Mifi query

ranciduk

hi

I have BT broadband at home and it's fine

but I want a backup plan if it ever goes down for a lengthy period

so I've ordered a mercusys mt110 mifi device

it looks like it's fairly easy to setup hopefully but there is something I can't get my head round

I intend buying a Lebara data sim for it

So if my BT broadband is down and im using my new MiFI device, eventually the data will run out , so I will have no Internet access I.e. i would then need to top it up

but how?

no Internet means I can't go to the Lebara website or us their app!

as the sim is in a mifi device, not a mobile phone, I can't ring lebaras top up line!

so how would I top it up ?

thanks

Cryptix

Do you have a smart phone with a data plan and signal where you are?

ranciduk

yes I have a mobile smart phone with a three payg sim card which I top up by ringing 444 and a voucher

Also, once I’ve activated the Lebara sim (within 30 days) by inserting it into my mifi unit, can I take as long as I want to use up the data? Or is there a time limit, do you have to use it all by a certain date?

And if I don't need to use the sim for , say, a few months, will I still be able to top it up it up again?

flaneurs_lobster

Why Lebara?

Which Lebara plan are you planning on buying?

Your personal mobile runs on Three so presumably the coverage from them is good at home? What speed does your phone report?

Is the Lebara (runs on Vodafone) signal at least as good?

You need to describe how you think this backup service will work - having an always on immediately available hot backup will cost you a not insignificant amount if it's to have a meaningful amount of data available.

Adding extra data to the Lebara (or pretty much any other SIM) is not difficult if you have access to a smartphone, it doesn't need to be in a phone.

ranciduk

Hypothetically my BT broadband goes down

Nightmare! I can’t email, can’t use Amazon, can’t do online banking etc

so The thinking was if I have this mifi unit in my cupboard I can just use that instead

BT broadband is very reliable but for peace of mind I need this backup so my life doesn’t grind to a halt!

So this “backup” would be purely for emergency only

when my BT broadband is working ok I wouldn’t need the mifi at all

It’s just I don’t understand how I would be able to top up a sim in a mifi unit because it’s not a phone so you can’t ring up a top up line!

would I need to take the sim out of the mifi unit and insert it into my smart phone instead, top it up, then take it out and pop it back into my mifi unit ?

flaneurs_lobster

Stop worrying about topping up another SIM, it's easily done without taking it out of a mifi (or a tablet or a laptop or a car GPS etc)

Your BT broadband goes down.

What can you not do on your mobile phone that needs a backup broadband service (apart from watching a big telly)?

On-the-coast

for an outage of up to a few days it would be much easier just to run a wireless “hotspot” from your phone. Assuming you’re not streaming lots of media.

Woodstok2000

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81867487#Comment_81867487

You can top up lebara sims on their app or their website via your phone, or by voucher (from a shop) or by calling them. I've done all of these for my daughters phone and never had to remove a sim.

As others have said though, you'd be better just managing through your phone for the period of any outage.

Cryptix

Like the others have mentioned, using your smart phone and its data as a hotspot (wifi connection) for your other devices is the cheapest way to go. You'll just need to make sure you have enough data, but you can always top up or upgrade all from your smart phone if you ran short.

Murmansk

One thing to bear in mind - assuming your main broadband doesn't go off - you might never, or very rarely, use the SIM in your MiFi device so it MIGHT be that when you come to use it, it won't work because you've not used the SIM.

You need to "exercise" it every now and then to reassure yourself it works and to stop the supplier cutting off your SIM because it's not been used. It's usually 3 or six months before I think before they cut you off so I'd be inclined to investigate exactly what applies here and if it was me I think I'd be looking at using the SIM every month or two just to keep it active.

ranciduk

great

thanks for the advice