Day 1, 8-128, no LTE but trying mobile hotspot with Visible $40 unlimited

[NMA]

I have always been stuck between devices I never carry out of inconvenience and cell phones that don't do everything I want.

I tried an Acer convertible years ago but the charger and battery were so bad that it wouldn't actually gain charge unless it was entirely shut down, no sleep. It was also hampered by needing wifi and me without a plan that allows mobile hotspot.

This should change now.

I am anxious to try charging with the magnetic connector and USB C (18 watt Google charger).

The Visible cell phone service is another thing that sounds really great. Hopefully the combination will finally let me do almost all of my computing from almost any location.

Hopefully my next post will be on my Surface Go over my Visible (R2 phone) mobile hotspot.

 

[NMA]

Success, finally.

The Visible cell service made me jump through several hoops to activate cell service and then mobile hotspot.

I have a lot more testing, software to load, etc.

 

[NMA]

As expected the mobile hotspot internet speeds are not terribly fast, 5Mbps down and 3.6Mbps up.

It should be enough for my needs.

 

[NMA]

Oh, my ZTE R2 Visible phone seems pretty OK and at $19, I think it was a good choice for my test drive. I have a Pixel 3XL which is also compatible so if I'm happy with the service after 2-3 weeks I'll port over my number on that phone and the R2 will become my backup.

 

[sharpuser]

Sounds like you have found the right solution you've been seeking - A Surface Go with a reasonable speed via Hotspot.

 

[NMA]

Yes, it has gone well except windows did an update while the surface wasn't "plugged in".

I think I lost some of my settings because it took a reinstall windows but keep your files option to get it going again.

It's kind of my fault. I was plugged in to 5v USB-C and the message seemed to say it was charging but not as fast as it was using power. The battery was low so I turned it off with it set to install the update when I start it next time.

After a night of "charging", I thought it would be fine and pressed power before I took a shower.

It wasn't fine and thus ends the standard USB-C charging experiment.

It would be nice if there was a way to see the state of charge before the OS loads.

Next time I'll try my Google Pixel charger that does an 18 watt charge (12v at 1.5A if I remember correctly) and no more mixing experiments with Windows updates.

It's going to be less convenient to need a specific USB charger or the factory charger to charge this. I can usually find a USB port in most places but only very rarely is it a quick charger.

I'm waiting on a Type Cover that I ordered so I'm using the touch screen keyboard. Its not great, especially when looking at a web page with a text entry field at the very bottom of the page so the keyboard covers it and I'm writing blind.

Just one of those minor annoyances you get with a tablet running a desktop OS.

 

[NMA]

So far the Visible service has given me pretty solid data service. I'm almost to the point of getting my phone number ported over and using my Pixel 3XL as a mobile hotspot.

The Surface Go has been very handy for me. I think the Typecase and a sleeve are the only things I need to really make it my go anywhere computer.

I might cheap out and just get a sleeve and a Bluetooth keyboard.

I still need to switch my Windows to full home mode instead of S mode.

One negative I have noticed is that when I'm using intricate websites like Disneyland, clicks and touch keyboard inputs are slow. I blame the website.