Tablet Wifi and 3G/4G LTE
Product Information
One of the main feature of a tablet is a tablet wifi with or without 3G/4G LTE. A tablet without these features won’t allow you to connect to the internet. All tablets will come with a wifi connectivity feature. 3G/4G LTE is an option and adds to the cost of the device. Even the low cost eReaders come with a wifi connection. There are many ways to connect to the outside world.
1. 3G/4G LTE: Some tablets will have been paired with a service provider (Verizon/AT&T/Rogers/Bell). Your tablet will be connected to the provider’s 3G/4G LTE network. You will need to pay a monthly data plan which comes with a maximum monthly data usage. The advantage to this is that you will experience high speed surfing. The disadvantage is that you need to monitor carefully your data usage. Go over your monthly limit, and you will be hit with extra charges. As mentioned, not all tablets will have the 3G/4G LTE connectivity feature. So if you want this feature, make sure the tablet you choose has it.
2. Tablet Wifi: All tablets and most eReaders will have the tablet wifi feature built-in. More and more cities, restaurants, cafes, public areas, shopping centres, libraries, and hotels are providing free wifi hotspots. Even Macdonald’s is providing free wifi internat access. There is no worry of going over your data usage limit. The only issue is that you may experience slowness in speed as some wifi hotspots cap their speed. Also, security may be an issue as you are going through a public connection so be careful if you are doing some banking tranactions. The service provider of the tablet wifi may not necessarily be the same provider for your 3G/4G LTE.
3. Personal hotspot: It can get quite costly if you have both a smartphone (iPhone, etc.) and a tablet as you will be paying a dataplan for each devices. Check with your service provider to see if they offer some form of sharing plan where you can pay one data plan and share it between all your devices. Here is a tip: If you already have a smartphone, you can use your smartphone as a wifi hotspot whereby your tablet wifi can connect to. One thing to keep in mind is that you will use up your data usage on your smartphone. So make sure you have enough data coverage on your smartphone’s data plan. Since your hotspot is now open to everyone around you, use a password to protect your personal hotspot. This will keep people from stealing your bandwidth.
4. Home Internet Wifi: Your home wifi connection can serve as a connection to your tablet wifi. Make sure you don’t go over your monthly data usage for your home internet connection.
5. Automobile Hotspot: The latest in tablet wifi hotspot is some automobiles are now providing “wifi” hotspot so that means you can have internet access in your car. Of course, for safety reasons, you should not be texting or talking on the phone while you are driving.
Tablet Wifi or 3G/4G LTE?
The best option would be a tablet wifi connection as wifi hotspots are pretty accessible almost everywhere.