Does anyone have any experience with FreedomPop Wifi Hotspots?
I came across a company called FreedomPop that offers "4G" wifi hotspots for $99 (refundable for the first year) with no other fees. Seems like a pretty good deal for someone like me who is interested in basically turning my iPod touch into an iPhone without the phone. Coverage looks to be limited to just major cities. And the few reviews that I've found online have said that the speed isn't quite up to 4G standards, but for just checking email and casual surfing it should be fine.
Does anyone have any experience with this company? Any stories to share? Thoughts on their business model? Should I add my jar of saved up quarters to my most recent gas lease check and get one for myself? Or should I continue to be one of those people who either goes without internet connectivity on the go or has to go find the closest McDonalds or Starbucks when in need of wifi?
Forgot to include the link to the website:
http://www.freedompop.com/
I don't have any experience with them. I just noticed them today in a Lifehacker article. I currently use Ting and pay $9 a month. Switching to this would save me money after 1 year, but I might be buying a smartphone with Ting next year. So it's a tough call. I'm really considering this but it's just a beta - and who knows how long they'll be around. Then again, so is Ting.
I have been testing them out for about a month now. I went with the 2g for $18 plan. It has taken me a bit to get everything to recognize it (the kindle had to be added to the "allowed" list) but I think it is all set up now. It has been pretty fast as far as I can tell. I have had a hard time logging in to their site to check on my data usage -- they can be very slow in resetting your password at times but otherwise I think it is a pretty good deal. Oh. The day of Sandy I had no internet for half the day so I couldn't work online most of the day but I hope that was just a one-time problem
I have the Photon device, which is basically a mi-fi, but smaller. It works great in LA and NYC, I get about 10 mbps down which is faster than my home DSL. definitely faster than 3g. No hidden charges though i pay 3.99/month for "faster speeds" which may be why i get such good performance.
Don't do it. I accidentally and stupidly clicked on something I needed for work on Monday while I was working from home. Now I realize that clicking on that download was totally my fault, but I had set my Freedompop account to not automatically keep going or top-up when it gets to the limit. Instead of shutting down or warning me that I had done something stupid, they instead charged me a $10.00 fee for each increment or something. I'm not exactly sure what the increment is but I do know that I now have 5 $10.00 fees on my credit card for Monday's mistake. I'll go back to dial up, thank you.
It's great. 500 mb free a month. Once you hit 501 megs you get charged $10 and you get another 1GB to play with.
Use as much or as little as you want. It seems the only downside is how strong the signal is where you love. Freedompop using Clear Wireless's towers and system so if you can find reviews of clear in your area you'll get an idea of their service level. (Clear also provides Sprint with their 4G coverage).
Just don't go watching Netflix or downloading 10GB steam games and you'll be fine. Just remember 1GB=$10. Always.
In addition to the all of the other problems, the "deposit" for the hotspot device is not fully refundable. They will deduct a fee from your "deposit" under the guise of a supposed fee from their logistics partner that they are passing along to you.
Stats
- Asked
- Asked By
- gt0163c
- Answered
- 7 times
- Viewed
- 572 times
- Voted Against
- 0 times
- Voted For
- 5 times
7 Answers answer
Sort By: