First-World Problems Are The Worst...

[OK Corgi Rancher]

Part of the downside of living in a rural area is the lack of choices when it comes to things like internet and cell phone service.

Cell coverage is barely adequate at our home, even with a booster. But at least it works most of the time.

I had to go back to satellite internet. HughesNet, to be specific. Satellite internet is a small step up from dial-up. I last had satellite internet in the early 2000s living in the Colorado mountains. It sucked then and in 20 years it really hasn't improved. It has, however, increased in price for the same crappy service.

It's supposed to be 25 mbps download speeds. It actually averages more than that...when it's actually downloading something. I can't even play a 1 minute YouTube video thru the first time without buffering about every 10 seconds. It really sucks.

I've pre-ordered Starlink...but the website says it may not be available until next year sometime.

Oh, well. I'd rather live in a rural area with bad cell phone and internet service than a city. Guess that's just part of the cost of admission to the lifestyle choices.

I hope you all can appreciate the suffering some of us go through, though. I'd like to see some celebrity do one of those "starving kids in Africa" type of video for those of us with bad internet in rural areas. Might help our plight...

 

[RickN]

Part of the downside of living in a rural area is the lack of choices when it comes to things like internet and cell phone service.

Cell coverage is barely adequate at our home, even with a booster. But at least it works most of the time.

I had to go back to satellite internet. HughesNet, to be specific. Satellite internet is a small step up from dial-up. I last had satellite internet in the early 2000s living in the Colorado mountains. It sucked then and in 20 years it really hasn't improved. It has, however, increased in price for the same crappy service.

It's supposed to be 25 mbps download speeds. It actually averages more than that...when it's actually downloading something. I can't even play a 1 minute YouTube video thru the first time without buffering about every 10 seconds. It really sucks.

I've pre-ordered Starlink...but the website says it may not be available until next year sometime.

Oh, well. I'd rather live in a rural area with bad cell phone and internet service than a city. Guess that's just part of the cost of admission to the lifestyle choices.

I hope you all can appreciate the suffering some of us go through, though. I'd like to see some celebrity do one of those "starving kids in Africa" type of video for those of us with bad internet in rural areas. Might help our plight...

But Obama promised high speed internet for everybody!

 

[HiredHand]

Do any cellular providers have 5G coverage in your area?

 

[Jason Freeland]

But Obama promised high speed internet for everybody

I hate to link a Huffpost article, but it's been going on long before Obama. The telecom companies have been paid many times for running fiber to the home, without doing anything.

The Book Of Broken Promises: $400 Billion Broadband Scandal And Free The Net

 

[RickN]

I hate to link a Huffpost article, but it's been going on long before Obama. The telecom companies have been paid many times for running fiber to the home, without doing anything.

The Book Of Broken Promises: $400 Billion Broadband Scandal And Free The Net

That is okay, I read their site too at times.

 

[OK Corgi Rancher]

Do any cellular providers have 5G coverage in your area?

You're just messin' with me, right? Seriously... No, they don't. As I said, we get a signal (AT&T network/towers with PureTalkUSA) but it's marginal. It's supposed to be 4GLTE but downloading anything is a real struggle. It REALLY reminds me of dialup.

 

[Catt57]

Part of the downside of living in a rural area is the lack of choices when it comes to things like internet and cell phone service.

Cell coverage is barely adequate at our home, even with a booster. But at least it works most of the time.

I had to go back to satellite internet. HughesNet, to be specific. Satellite internet is a small step up from dial-up. I last had satellite internet in the early 2000s living in the Colorado mountains. It sucked then and in 20 years it really hasn't improved. It has, however, increased in price for the same crappy service.

It's supposed to be 25 mbps download speeds. It actually averages more than that...when it's actually downloading something. I can't even play a 1 minute YouTube video thru the first time without buffering about every 10 seconds. It really sucks.

I've pre-ordered Starlink...but the website says it may not be available until next year sometime.

Oh, well. I'd rather live in a rural area with bad cell phone and internet service than a city. Guess that's just part of the cost of admission to the lifestyle choices.

I hope you all can appreciate the suffering some of us go through, though. I'd like to see some celebrity do one of those "starving kids in Africa" type of video for those of us with bad internet in rural areas. Might help our plight...

I feel you. We have the same problem out near Bristow. Only with nonexistent cell coverage as well. Satellite internet is slow, has low data caps, and is crazy expensive.

 

[thor447]

25 mbps download speed sounds like a dream for me. I'm stuck with long range wi-fi, with an antenna on my roof connected to a tower 13 miles away. I pay for a 5 mpbs connection, but in reality on get a little over half of that. OEC fiber will be in my future soon.

I can just barely stream TV, but if I check my email on my phone, the TV will buffer, lol.

 

[dennishoddy]

We have rural internet with a 15 or so mile wireless signal. Best day is 12 MBPS download speed and 1.5 upload speed, but we can stream TV without buffering while using a couple of devices at the same time. The provider had to buy a bigger higher gain antenna for us to use their service.
I think the difference is the bandwidth in the signals your being provided. Only so many people can walk through a doorway shoulder to shoulder without increasing the size of the doorway.
We experience that a lot during our travels in the RV. Zero wifi during the day without a lot of buffering, while late at night we can stream TV. The owners say we have wifi and it's free but they don't understand the need to have the capacity for 100 people using what most people would use in their home for two people. Commercial vs home wifi.

 

[wawazat]

I grew up on DSL and when I moved to DFW for my first grown up job the cable internet speed blew my mind.

We got super lucky where we are now. There is a boys home a few miles north of us that paid to have fiber run up County Line Rd right after my in laws moved in next door. My Father in Law was able to catch the project foreman while they were surveying everything and got the number to call to add a leg down our road which we all split the cost of.

As much as I would love to move out into the sticks when the kids are out of school, the internet speed is the big hold up. My wife and I rely on internet pretty heavily and slow speeds just couldn't work out for us.

In short, I feel your pain for sure and I am not sure I could do it again.