Ditching Landline / Broadband For Sim With Unlimited Mobile Data.

[Waldo 96]

Hi,

 

My current landline and broadband deal is coming to an end soon; and I'm reviewing my options. Which are, broadly, a new landline / broadband contract, or, ditch the landline / broadband and get a SIM only deal with unlimited data. Tempted to go for the later...

 

I never use the landline, and there are some good SIM only deals with unlimited data (expect I'll average 100GB / month, or so).

 

Best deal I've found so far is with Three; Unimited for 12 months, at £18 per month, and £60 top cash back (can't find this deal direct on the Three website, but it shows up okay if you click through from TCB). Works out to £13 per month, which, I'll be able to ditch my exisiting SIM only contract, and it seems like a good deal.

 

Any gotcha's though? Is there likely to be any restrictions on use, no tethering, fair-use data cap, etc?

 

Will I be able to setup a router that connects to my phone, and supplies internet connection to all devices connecting to my router? Or would I need to connect devices direct to the Personal Hotspot on my phone (with this new SIM in it)?

 

Thanks.

[willman 10]

I was told that using a phone sim as a hotpsot thingy uses twice as much data, apparently the sim uses data and then additional data is used by the recipient or streaming device.

I opted for a wifi box from vodafone that used that sim and then use that as the router.

[Ghozer 112]

Why not just get broadband with no phone offering?

they might not advertise it, but you can request BB with no phone line... 

(it still uses the physical line, but the phone service is not enabled)

using mobile BB/Internet you will find all sorts of problems, and depending on the sort of signal you get in your house it may even be slower...

If you decide to go that route, don't go with Three, I was with them for years as they were one of the best, but I watched my speed go from around 35mbps download, drop to around 0.8 over a couple of years and it didn't improve, even after multiple promises of expanding capacity..

I switched to EE and sat in the same place I can now get 80mbps down and 35mbps upload.

Also, while you could use your phone, don't....  you would ideally need to buy a specific SIM card router, using your phone all the time to provide connections to multiple devices could cause the phone to overheat, could potentially cut people off when you get a phone call, speed will plummet with more than 1 device using the connection also...

I would never recommend SIM / Mobile based internet as the primary / only internet connection in a house, it's great for a backup though...
 

Edited April 6, 2020 by Ghozer

[spider1 11]

14 hours ago, Waldo said:

Hi,

 

My current landline and broadband deal is coming to an end soon; and I'm reviewing my options. Which are, broadly, a new landline / broadband contract, or, ditch the landline / broadband and get a SIM only deal with unlimited data. Tempted to go for the later...

 

I never use the landline, and there are some good SIM only deals with unlimited data (expect I'll average 100GB / month, or so).

 

Best deal I've found so far is with Three; Unimited for 12 months, at £18 per month, and £60 top cash back (can't find this deal direct on the Three website, but it shows up okay if you click through from TCB). Works out to £13 per month, which, I'll be able to ditch my exisiting SIM only contract, and it seems like a good deal.

 

Any gotcha's though? Is there likely to be any restrictions on use, no tethering, fair-use data cap, etc?

 

Will I be able to setup a router that connects to my phone, and supplies internet connection to all devices connecting to my router? Or would I need to connect devices direct to the Personal Hotspot on my phone (with this new SIM in it)?

 

Thanks.

Follow ghozers advice he is a top man in this minefiel 

[the_bloke 17]

21 hours ago, willman said:

I was told that using a phone sim as a hotpsot thingy uses twice as much data, apparently the sim uses data and then additional data is used by the recipient or streaming device.

I opted for a wifi box from vodafone that used that sim and then use that as the router.

Sort of. Just because you are using your 'phone as a hotspot with something like a laptop, it won't stop the 'phone also using data doing whatever it does in the background, such as checking email, facebook, whatsapp etc.

 

Saying twice as much data is a massive overstatement though. You could download GB through the hotspot and the 'phone background tasks would only be a few MB in the same period.

[Waldo 96]

Thanks everyone, there’s a lot to consider.

 

Im getting data through my phone now (on plusnet) and it’s a lot faster than my home broadband. One concern is, what effect it will have on my phone if I’m constantly using it as a hotspot. Dunno.

[Ghozer 112]

1 hour ago, Waldo said:

Thanks everyone, there’s a lot to consider.

 

Im getting data through my phone now (on plusnet) and it’s a lot faster than my home broadband. One concern is, what effect it will have on my phone if I’m constantly using it as a hotspot. Dunno.

Your phone could overheat, the battery will drain in around 30 minutes, - and you can't really leave it plugged in all the time as that will cause more heat...

It will also slow down dramatically the more devices/people are using the connection, and cause more heat...

[Waldo 96]

13 hours ago, Ghozer said:

Your phone could overheat, the battery will drain in around 30 minutes, - and you can't really leave it plugged in all the time as that will cause more heat...

It will also slow down dramatically the more devices/people are using the connection, and cause more heat...

Yeah, that’s not good, thanks Ghozer.

 

Guess I would need a spare phone or dedicated SIM wifi box thingy, if I went the mobile internet route.

[zach 234]

21 hours ago, Waldo said:

Yeah, that’s not good, thanks Ghozer.

 

Guess I would need a spare phone or dedicated SIM wifi box thingy, if I went the mobile internet route.

The small portable 4G routers can be a bit hit and miss. If you plan this to be a permanent thing, have a look round for a "normal" router that has 4G capability. A spare phone will only repeat what Ghozer mentioned, just on another phone. Although the hotspot feature on phones works quite well, it's only meant for short use (IMO)

[Waldo 96]

Also, what happens if I cancel my current landline / broadband service and don’t signup with someone else straight away?

 

Will I lose current landline number?

Will there be some kind of reconnection fee when I do sign up with another company, say 3 months later?

[Ghozer 112]

46 minutes ago, Waldo said:

Also, what happens if I cancel my current landline / broadband service and don’t signup with someone else straight away?

 

Will I lose current landline number?

Will there be some kind of reconnection fee when I do sign up with another company, say 3 months later?

When you cancel, they will usually give you a cancellation date (usually the day your next cycle starts, or the end of 28 days after cancellation)

Once cancelled, you will loose the phone line, the broadband, and the phone number attached to it.

if you wish to go with someone else, they MAY charge a connection fee, depends on who/what/when etc...

[geared 303]

There is usually limits on tethering data, even on unlimited plans.

 

Double check before you sign up for a mobile plan.