And to add to that, from what I understand, data used by the data sim actually counts as data in addition to your primary phone. So if you hit 10 gb between your primary phone + data sim, you get the bill protection for both.
Even better. Now I will need to get serious about finding a deal on a router with failover capability.
I think I paid around $115 for a Unifi security gateway, which has it built-in. I haven't tested it yet, though I noticed that there's no option (from what I could tell) to limit bandwidth or anything. I wish it could block all but some devices when it switches to the fallover device.
You guys all seem to be "techsperts" at this way, WAY above my skill level, so kindly bear with me...I have an Asus RT-AC86U router which does allow failover mode. I currently have ATT cell service with two unlocked S10+s and no contract. I do, however, have great voice service with ATT where we are. Use less than a gig of data between my wife and I every month. Despise ATT. Fi map shows our home in an area with 4GLTE coverage. Let's assume they're correct. A. How do you like Fi when it comes to voice quality? And B, if I read your post correctly, I could back up my Comcast internet connection to an alarm company with a USB dongle modem in the router with a Fi sim card in it. Am I correct? If so, can you suggest a particular USB dongle? Thank you.
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I like Fi but your mileage may vary. They use T-Mobile, Sprint, and US Cellular as their carriers. As with anything cellular, it's like real estate - location, location, location. I have not tried what you are suggesting, largely because Verizon FiOS is very reliable where I am. It sounds like a good approach since you can get the data SIM for no additional charge.
To add to what Eric said, Fi automatically connects to the best signal and seamlessly switches between them. In addition to T-Mobile, Sprint and US Cellular, Fi can also use WiFi for calls,
Just checked Sprint coverage map. Says "4G LTE Excellent Signal" at my address. T Mobile map says "4G LTE Good Signal". US Cellular shows "Partner Coverage - Strength Varies" in my area. Does FI somehow pick the best signal based on location?
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In theory that's what it should do - connect you to one of the carriers with the best signal for your current location. It also adds available WiFi networks for calls.
Having said all that - I don't know if the data-only SIM can do all that or not. I have a Google Pixel 2 phone. There are only a few phones that have all the radio frequencies to support the switching described above.
Oh oh - just read this on the Fi site: "Phones that aren’t designed for Fi are covered by T-Mobile". My S10+ phones are not "designed for Fi", but are only "Fi compatible". Looks like I'd be stuck with T-Mobile signal strength. Guess I'll have to find a T-Mobile user somewhere near me to get an answer on the quality of call.
T-Mobile's international roaming is great. I used it the last time we were in the Caribbean (using Google Fi) and it worked well and was far less expensive than either AT&T or Verizon's international roaming. That doesn't really help you for this issue.
I might simply cancel my wife's ATT line, get Fi on her phone only, try it out for a month or two, and, if it works OK, drop ATT on my line and move it to Fi. Luckily, she doesn't spend much time on the phone at all, so I can make her the guinea pig:)
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I am not a heavy user of either data or voice. When I retired last summer I switched from AT&T to Fi and I am saving over $100 per month and the service is good. And I got a healthy discount on AT&T because my employer was a huge AT&T customer.
That's slightly off-topic - sorry.
I don't know if you want to check the Unifi Early Access store, but they just started selling (currently sold out of course) an LTE cellular backup. AT&T. $200, with a $15 month plan, and up. Yes, spendy, but it is another option.
Yeah, that $15 a month to AT&T is a huge ripoff since, unless the Comcast cable is out and the alarm is triggered, the ATT network would NEVER even be used.
Consider purchasing a secondary router for this and chain link it to your main router. Connect Hubitat only on the secondary router.
I am using the Netgear LTE modem on my UniFi USG Pro as failover on WAN2. Initially I got a T-Mobile SIM for $10 per month. Unlimited data but only 2GB at 4G LTE. And I figured if I ever need more data - I can remotely add more.
But later I switched over to Verizon (added onto my unlimited family plan for $20). I only use 1 or 2 MB per month - my fiber connection is super reliable but I have it just in case!
I have a freedom pop hotspot I use. Free 500MB of data a month and my hub will never use that much since it all runs local except a little for Amazon.
Have you implemented anything to prevent certain devices from using fallover, like those streaming video or something? I have the same LTE modem with a Google Fi sim, so I pay per-MB of data. I intend to eventually use it for fallover, but only if I can restrict every non-critical device from using it.
Not sure if there is a simple way to accomplish this - I have sufficient bandwidth on my unlimited plan so this is not an issue for me.
I went with @vjv's suggestion and linked it up to a Ring contact sensor, and a UPS strip. Works great!
Just stepped into Costco and they have the Ring Doorbell 2 for $129 with 1 year of Ring Protect Plus, which I was about to drop $100 on anyway - so I bought it to hook up today. Basically getting the Ring Doorbell 2 for $29.
Mad props to @vjv!
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