Almost three months in to using my phone as a 20 gb Hotspot and having unlimited mobile data, I am thinking this is the way I will want to go when I eventually have my off-grid property. I find I don’t have much of a need to go to the library even with using the limited Hotspot data for work and play. Truth be told, I don’t actually use even close to amount of Hotspot data I buy each month – 20 gb but I’m not sure I want to go down to 10 gb at this point lest some big work projects come in and I need to do a lot of research using my laptop and the weather is too bad to work down at the library. Some weeks over the winter I’ve entirety avoided using anything but my phone and the Hotspot data.

For most things I just prefer using my phone with the computer off. The phone is lightweight and it fits in my hand. It uses a couple of watts of power in use, compared to my laptop which is between 40 and 60 watts depending if I use the external monitor or not with it. That’s a big deal if I want a very small solar system for my off grid homestead that isn’t complicated to maintain. From writing emails to reading reports and putting together blog posts I’d rather just use my phone that fits in my hand wherever I want. With the unlimited plan I don’t hesitate to stream audio or YouTube on my phone. My phone works good for 90% of what I do.

Now I plan to drop the Hotspot service and go back to the 25 GB mobile plan when I return to work downtown and the library reopens for in person use. That will save me around $15-20 a month depending on how long I renew my service for at once. But if I didn’t have access to the library nearby I would certainly consider going back to my current plan – $60 a month for my current phone and data services is heck of a lot cheaper than any kind of wired connection. And I’m not really into streaming, online shopping or all the things the kids play around with today. I just like the basics. Well except I do kind of like watching videos about real life off griders, homesteaders and dairy farmers.

It’s just really shocking how expensive a wired internet connection really is these days – Spectrum and Verizon Fios advertises their connections a low $45 a month but that’s before installation, modems, and dozens of fees the tack on. Plus it’s only a teaser rate. Most reports paying $80-100 a month. And that doesn’t even include the phone bill – I could cut my phone bill in half to $30 maybe if I went with the most basic data plan but that wouldn’t make up for the high cost in the range of $60-100 a month for a wired connection.

I can only imagine how expensive internet would be in areas not wired – satellite internet is even absurdly expensive, some people report bills well over a hundred a month. Not to mention with a wired connection your teathered to your home. With my cellular connection I can work or play on the internet anywhere I have cell service. Even if my place is in a roadless location, if I cell signal can reach there I’m good. I can be sitting in the woods, in a tent and be doing my job. Or watching video or updating the blog. It’s kind of nice.