Homestead Internet Service

ErinP · #41 10/30/14, 09:30 AM

Do NOT get satellite unless you have absolutely no other options!!

WIRELESS--
Most towns have wireless these days. It's often a small, local provider so they won't necessarily show up in those generic provider searches. If you're close enough to town, or they have a really powerful broadcast, you can pick them, particularly if you use an antenna of some sort.

TELEPHONE CO--
We've lived on three different ranches in the boonies of Nebraska, where the local phone co provided a reliable, fast DSL. (Small, rural carriers are subsidized, which is the only way they could ever make such an expense worth while for a small population)

CELLULAR--
Cellular is just as reliable as the previous three. Some companies will limit your bandwidth, but some don't.
Cellular is what we currently use. We have a small, regional carrier available in our area that has a fast, reliable connection and a limit of 150G per month. But even streaming Netflix on family movie days, we don't even come close to that limit. The highest month I've ever seen was 20G and that's with two teens, multiple devices, Netflix, Pandora, video games, etc.
Because we're in a marginal area for service, though, we had to mount a $100 parabolic antenna to max our signal.

SATELLITE--
There are several options out there, but they're all basically the same. VERY limited bandwidth, usually the most expensive option and often marginal speed quality if there are very many users in the area.
However, they can get service in areas where every other option can't.

Except for the local phone company, obviously, none of the other options require a land line. We haven't had a land-line in four years...