Travel Router

[ericosmith]

Is it possible to use a travel router in the cabin to allow more than two devices at a time?  Or for that matter to just simplify the wifi connection process.

[CurlerRob]

6 hours ago, ericosmith said:

Is it possible to use a travel router in the cabin to allow more than two devices at a time?  Or for that matter to just simplify the wifi connection process.

We regularly travel with 4 devices, all connected simultaneously (2 per person). I frankly don’t know if there is a limit pp, as that’s all we have. 🍺🥌

[bookbabe]

Yup.  Connected to one as I type this.

[Frisky070802]

4 hours ago, bookbabe said:

Yup.  Connected to one as I type this.

Interesting. I was going to say almost certainly not since the router still needs to access the ship's network and authenticate to it with a room number. How do you do that? 

[OneSixtyToOne]

50 minutes ago, Frisky070802 said:

Interesting. I was going to say almost certainly not since the router still needs to access the ship's network and authenticate to it with a room number. How do you do that? 

Typically there is an app to interface with the router to log in and configure.

 

Also, most new phones have a hot spot feature which allows you to connect another device so you may not need a router.

Edited April 13 by OneSixtyToOne

[Frisky070802]

1 hour ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

Typically there is an app to interface with the router to log in and configure.

 

Also, most new phones have a hot spot feature which allows you to connect another device so you may not need a router.

OK, good to know, regarding the router connecting.  Not worth the space in my luggage (we did OK with a phone and tablet apiece) but if I ever also bring a laptop I may want to do that.

As far as the hotspot goes, I thought phones let you provide a hotspot if you are connecting to the external network, but turn it off if the phone itself is on Wifi.  That is certainly what I've experienced; maybe the newest phones recognize situations like this and support wifi bridging.  

[bookbabe]

2 hours ago, Frisky070802 said:

Interesting. I was going to say almost certainly not since the router still needs to access the ship's network and authenticate to it with a room number. How do you do that? 

This one doesn’t come with an app, although DH says some do.  It creates its own network, and the first time you connect to it, it bridges between your device and the ship and then you log in to the ship network that first use.  Afterwards, any device that connects to the router just logs into the router network, which is already connected to the ship.  
 

I hope I’m explaining that even semi-clearly, I’m going by my memory of what DH told me as he was setting it up.

[Frisky070802]

4 minutes ago, bookbabe said:

This one doesn’t come with an app, although DH says some do.  It creates its own network, and the first time you connect to it, it bridges between your device and the ship and then you log in to the ship network that first use.  Afterwards, any device that connects to the router just logs into the router network, which is already connected to the ship.  
 

I hope I’m explaining that even semi-clearly, I’m going by my memory of what DH told me as he was setting it up.

That makes sense.  A number of devices these days (such as Ring doorbells and such) work the same way, having you connect to them and share.  The reason I thought it would be hard here is because usually you're just connecting long enough to provide the credentials for the router (a WEP key or whatever) and after that the network you connect to doesn't care whether you're the phone or an extra wireless router.  Whereas on the ship, while I connected when I first arrived and provided my name and cabin, I was occasionally prompted for that info again.  I wouldn't expect the router to be able to do that unless it essentially says "I'm connecting to the ship, and it's asking me X and Y.  I'm giving you the form with that request, and whatever you respond, I'll respond to the ship with the same info".  Doable --- but I didn't expect it to be a feature.  

[bookbabe]

33 minutes ago, Frisky070802 said:

That makes sense.  A number of devices these days (such as Ring doorbells and such) work the same way, having you connect to them and share.  The reason I thought it would be hard here is because usually you're just connecting long enough to provide the credentials for the router (a WEP key or whatever) and after that the network you connect to doesn't care whether you're the phone or an extra wireless router.  Whereas on the ship, while I connected when I first arrived and provided my name and cabin, I was occasionally prompted for that info again.  I wouldn't expect the router to be able to do that unless it essentially says "I'm connecting to the ship, and it's asking me X and Y.  I'm giving you the form with that request, and whatever you respond, I'll respond to the ship with the same info".  Doable --- but I didn't expect it to be a feature.  

That sounds like what it does.  It’s been working for the last 31 days, and he only had to log in a second time on the B2B changeover day between cruises.

 

That being said, the internet is still diabolically slow, whether via the router or direct.  But the router we have at least has a port to connect a USB stick that we are streaming saved media from.

[OneSixtyToOne]

50 minutes ago, Frisky070802 said:

As far as the hotspot goes, I thought phones let you provide a hotspot if you are connecting to the external network, but turn it off if the phone itself is on Wifi.  That is certainly what I've experienced; maybe the newest phones recognize situations like this and support wifi bridging.  

You are right. I never tried it on WiFi before. It doesn’t bridge. Good to know.

[Jim Avery]

Im with Frisky.  Just how many devices does a couple need online at the same time??  On Neptune recently we had 2 iPhones, 1 iPad, and one MacBook Pro up at all times.  Occasionally had to log one out to download books on Kindles but only every few weeks.  Too much junk in my luggage anyway..🥃

[Mike07]

2 hours ago, Jim Avery said:

Im with Frisky.  Just how many devices does a couple need online at the same time??

 

 

As somebody that is on the far end of the pro-sumer side and has enterprise level networking equipment running for a home (for fun, not because I "need" it), I travel with my phone... and that's it.

 

For example, have spent about $500+ in the last week on more networking gear. If you don't have full bars of WiFi coverage at my homes, it means I'm failing you as a guest of mine.

[ericosmith]

9 hours ago, OneSixtyToOne said:

You are right. I never tried it on WiFi before. It doesn’t bridge. Good to know.

You must have one of those iPhone thingies.  I've never had any problem using an Android phone as a hot spot when connected to wifi.  Just did it on a Delta flight this afternoon.

[ericosmith]

9 hours ago, Jim Avery said:

m with Frisky.  Just how many devices does a couple need online at the same time??  On Neptune recently we had 2 iPhones, 1 iPad, and one MacBook Pro up at all times.  Occasionally had to log one out to download books on Kindles but only every few weeks.  Too much junk in my luggage anyway..🥃

A couple of phones, a couple of tablets, a couple of Kindles, a laptop it all adds up.  Actually the beauty of a travel router is that it can be set up with the same SSID and password as a home network.  That way those who are technology challenged are just automatically online without doing anything on the device.  

[longterm]

On 4/12/2024 at 9:29 PM, ericosmith said:

Is it possible to use a travel router in the cabin to allow more than two devices at a time?  Or for that matter to just simplify the wifi connection process.

I just did some reading about "travel routers;" Although I own a company that hosts and manages servers and databases, I really don't see much use for travel routers. 

Connecting to wifi is really simple; a travel router would allow you to connect more devices and enable you to configure it once and use it in different locations, but other than that, I fail to see the point. Furthermore, I would wonder if using one of these would step down the Internet speed at least a tiny bit; given the spotty nature of ship wifi, that's not something I'd want.

 

I always travel with my laptop so that I can manage my company business, and carry an iPad for watching movies on flights; with 2 connections assigned to our stateroom, it isn't a big deal to disable wifi on my iPhone when I need to do things on the laptop or iPad. In fact, at home, when I leave the house, I have automation on my phone that turns off my iPhone wifi, then turns it back on when I return. It's a good idea to turn off wifi when out and about anyway, because otherwise an iPhone or Android is constantly seeking a wifi connection, and that has a negative impact on battery life.

 

 

Edited April 14 by longterm

[Mike07]

11 minutes ago, longterm said:

No, because there's no ethernet port. A router has to have an input signal, and the only accessible Internet source is wifi.

 

 

 

 

It's 100% possible to do what OP wants.

 

Take a step back, do you think Viking is getting their internet from an undersea ethernet cable?

[longterm]

1 minute ago, Mike07 said:

 

 

It's 100% possible to do what OP wants.

 

Take a step back, do you think Viking is getting their internet from an undersea ethernet cable?

Please look at my edited reply. I know exactly how they get Internet.

[Mike07]

11 minutes ago, longterm said:

Please look at my edited reply. I know exactly how they get Internet.

 

 

Don't take it personally. It was a rhetorical question.

 

 

[longterm]

Just a thought, and not something I'd bother doing, but an iPhone can be used as a wifi hotspot--which means that if I wanted to (I wouldn't), I could connect my iPhone to ship wifi, then use it as a wifi hotspot to connect my laptop to ship wifi. 

I've never done a definitive test, but I would guess that speed wouldn't be as good as connecting directly to ship wifi. For that reason, I'll continue to simply disable my iPhone wifi, turn on wifi on my laptop (both of which take all of 15 seconds) and do what I need to do.
 

[Mike07]

10 hours ago, ericosmith said:

You must have one of those iPhone thingies.  I've never had any problem using an Android phone as a hot spot when connected to wifi.  Just did it on a Delta flight this afternoon.

 

 

I've seen the hotspot feature disabled on carrier locked android phones -- mainly b/c tethering is something some carriers charge for. At least that was the case pre-COVID. There are ways to defeat a lot of what carriers implement to charge more for what you already pay for.

 

From a data perspective, it's irrelevant whether the packets final destination is your subscribed device or another device. It doesn't cost the carrier a single cent more. I suppose it prevents people with unlimited wifi plans from using their phone to power their home's internet to save money. Though, if everybody did this, data usage would explode. 5G and the eventual 6G have the potential to completely elminate the need for home internet through coax or fiber or copper.

Edited April 14 by Mike07

[Mike07]

Just now, longterm said:

Just a thought, and not something I'd bother doing, but an iPhone can be used as a wifi hotspot--which means that if I wanted to (I wouldn't), I could connect my iPhone to ship wifi, then use it as a wifi hotspot to connect my laptop to ship wifi. 

I've never done a definitive test, but I would guess that speed wouldn't be as good as connecting directly to ship wifi. For that reason, I'll continue to simply disable my iPhone wifi, turn on wifi on my laptop (both of which take all of 15 seconds) and do what I need to do.
 

 

 

"speed wise" it should be 100% transparent to both devices. Well, you know what I mean, transparent to you. If you had a PCAP running and did bandwidth tests of how long it took to send 100,000 packets, it might be like 98 or 99% there.

[ericosmith]

13 hours ago, longterm said:

I just did some reading about "travel routers;" Although I own a company that hosts and manages servers and databases, I really don't see much use for travel routers. 

1.  If your travel companion has little to no idea of how to navigate wifi it can automate the process since the device can see the travel router as the home wifi and connect automatically.

2.  It can eliminate the need to deal with captive portals on every individual device in places where those are used.

3.  It provides an added layer of security particularly in environments like hotels and Airbnb.

[CurlerRob]

19 hours ago, longterm said:

Just a thought, and not something I'd bother doing, but an iPhone can be used as a wifi hotspot--which means that if I wanted to (I wouldn't), I could connect my iPhone to ship wifi, then use it as a wifi hotspot to connect my laptop to ship wifi. 

Is this a function of a newer iPhone? I’m very familiar with creating a wifi hotspot on iPhone using cellular data, but I’m unaware of the ability to do so when “connected to ship wifi”. 

Thanks. 🍺🥌

[longterm]

4 hours ago, CurlerRob said:

Is this a function of a newer iPhone? I’m very familiar with creating a wifi hotspot on iPhone using cellular data, but I’m unaware of the ability to do so when “connected to ship wifi”. 

Thanks. 🍺🥌

It's doable, but not with the hotspot feature--I haven't tried it, but I've read articles about how to go about it. Not something I would want to fool with though. It has to do with spoofing a MAC address, and more involved than I'll go into here.

Considering the ease of turning wifi on and off on a laptop, tablet, or smartphone, it's simple enough to move a connection around as needed, and that's how I've done it on cruises for years.

Also, a ship has a finite pipe through which all passengers' Internet travels; for someone to cheat the system and use more devices than are allowed is simply bad form. 

As to travel routers--they're convenient, I suppose, but I already carry enough electronics as it is, and wifi management these days is a simple one-click process.

[longterm]

11 hours ago, ericosmith said:

3.  It provides an added layer of security particularly in environments like hotels and Airbnb.

It's a simple matter to enable VNC if one is concerned about security in places like hotels, airports, and elsewhere; I have Nord VNC on my iPhone & laptop, and enable it when I feel the need.

 

Perhaps I'm being overly trusting, but I don't consider Viking passengers the types who might be looking to hack into one of my devices. 🙂