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How Inflight Wifi Works

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Re: How Inflight Wifi Works

#91

Post by cmsmith »

dheera wrote: post #57

"Prior to the integration of in-flight Wi-Fi, most airline passengers passed their time at 30,000 feet completely disconnected from the world below them — but these days, that’s a highly uncommon occurrence." Am I missing something here? 99% of the flights I take don't offer Wi-Fi, and in most cases not even power outlets. And those that do have Wi-Fi seem to be charging 30% of my monthly internet bill to provide it…

Data >> Anecdotes [1]

60% of domestic flights have wifi on them. My apologies if you are flying outside the US or using regional carriers 98% of the time (which might not be included here).

1: http://www.cnbc.com/2015/06/26/for-onboard-wi-fi-not-all-air...

(this was google result number one for 'percent of flights with wifi')

Re: How Inflight Wifi Works

#92

Post by chillwaves »

hueving wrote: post #17
cryptoz wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have used in-flight WiFi on about 10 to 15 flights, and I would say that about half those times it either breaks midway through the flight or it doesn't work at all. From my anecdotal experience the failure rate is more like 100x higher than home WiFi. Not that I'm complaining, it's magical to even get WiFi for a few seconds in an airplane. I try to hold the same attitude as Louis CK on this topic: https://www.yout…

It's not really the WiFi component that is unreliable though. It's the connection to the ground. Every time the Internet connection breaks down, the WiFi connection itself is fine.

But how do we explain why WiFi never works on buses?

Re: How Inflight Wifi Works

#93

Post by soared »

kozukumi wrote: post #65
mbesto wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I use airline wifi quite a bit. This has been my experience: Gogo (Delta/American/Virgin) - Meh (anywhere between 50-1000 KB/s) United - Mostly crap (anywhere between 5-200 KB/s) Jet Blue - Free tier was pretty solid (anywhere between 500-1500 KB/s)

Damn you make me feel old saying "meh" to ~1MB/s internet access while flying at 500+mph at 30,500+ feet over the earth . Something about my lawn...

Thanks for making me appreciate (at least for a second) the ~50MB/s connection I regularly complain about.

Re: How Inflight Wifi Works

#94

Post by rdtsc »

Redoubts wrote: post #85
kozukumi wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Business idea - Free WiFi on all flights as part of your ticket price! Mains power supply provided for $30/hour ;) New TSA policy: Li-ion/Li-poly/etc batteries cannot be more than 20% charged for safety.

You joke, but sometimes I wonder if the low fluid ounce limit was a conspiracy by Big Shampoo and the Toothpaste Trust.

Hehe, could be, or the recent reduction of carry-on luggage sizes for some airlines, sponsored by Samsonite and other luggage manufacturers, who knows...

Re: How Inflight Wifi Works

#95

Post by eropple »

idlewords wrote: post #80
voltagex_ wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I found out the hard way that on the new Qantas A380s, the power outlets are only in "premium" economy. It's $939 from SYD to LAX in December (holy crap, at that price I better take a trip!) in Economy, but a whopping $2539 or $3389 for Premium Economy. I like having an AC outlet too, but that's crazy. If you do get to use the outlets on the A380, be aware that they do ~75W maximum. Exceed that and they'll shut down,…

Veering off-topic, if you fly Air New Zealand on that route, you can often use their name-your-own-price auction system to get an upgrade to premium economy for a few hundred dollars. I'm picturing you on that A380 cursing as you try to blow-dry your hair. What were you doing that pulled more than 75W?

15-inch Macbook Pros use (or used, maybe it's changed now?) 85W chargers, which you could tap out and fully draw on.

Re: How Inflight Wifi Works

#96

Post by mritun »

idlewords wrote: post #80
voltagex_ wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I found out the hard way that on the new Qantas A380s, the power outlets are only in "premium" economy. It's $939 from SYD to LAX in December (holy crap, at that price I better take a trip!) in Economy, but a whopping $2539 or $3389 for Premium Economy. I like having an AC outlet too, but that's crazy. If you do get to use the outlets on the A380, be aware that they do ~75W maximum. Exceed that and they'll shut down,…

Veering off-topic, if you fly Air New Zealand on that route, you can often use their name-your-own-price auction system to get an upgrade to premium economy for a few hundred dollars. I'm picturing you on that A380 cursing as you try to blow-dry your hair. What were you doing that pulled more than 75W?

Charging your laptop can do that. MBP charger is 85W.

Re: How Inflight Wifi Works

#97

Post by dazzla »

rconti wrote: post #36
greggyb wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

American travelers tend to purchase tickets based solely on price. If your consumers are very price conscious, you move as much as you can out of the base price. Don't blame airlines in the US, blame airline customers. Personally, I like the nickel-and-dime scheme, as you call it. I rarely take cross country flights. My typical travel is 3-4 hours of flying at the most. I absolutely prefer a cheaper base ticket price…

They haven't even bothered to try. 3" more legroom for $40? No. Human-sized seat? I'd pay double the price. But I'm not going to pay 5x as much.

American Airlines way back had "more room" seats which were only slightly more expensive. I loved it and became loyal. But then they stopped. I guess not a lot of people wanted to pay the few bucks.

Re: How Inflight Wifi Works

#98

Post by nly »

scholia wrote: post #70
rhino369 wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know people who do that when they come visit America from the EU. High end brands are a lot cheaper here.

They don't even have to be high-end brands. Don't think I've ever bought Levi's shirts or jeans in the UK....

Wait for sales. The Levi jeans I wear are ~£80 a pair, but often come around at £40. Incidentally I believe Levi jeans in the US are made in Mexico, whereas the ones on the market in the UK are all made in Bangladesh. Some denimheads are convinced the Mexican ones are of poorer workmanship. Different washes (colours) are also priced differently and the cotton may vary between them even if they have the same cut (number). Like anything these days you need to do your research. I've never paid higher than £60 for a pair of jeans and only ever own 2 to 4 pairs at a time. They last a long while.

On a related note. I just got back from a month in the States and was surprised at how comparable prices were to the UK these days. Eating out, clothing, groceries, electronics. All fairly expensive. I'm not sure where rhino369 is shopping.

Re: How Inflight Wifi Works

#99

Post by PebblesHD »

eropple wrote: post #95
idlewords wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Veering off-topic, if you fly Air New Zealand on that route, you can often use their name-your-own-price auction system to get an upgrade to premium economy for a few hundred dollars. I'm picturing you on that A380 cursing as you try to blow-dry your hair. What were you doing that pulled more than 75W?

15-inch Macbook Pros use (or used, maybe it's changed now?) 85W chargers, which you could tap out and fully draw on.

Yep, my 15" rMPB uses an 85w charger which maxed out the in-flight outlet on my last flight, glad I charged the battery before I left, MacBooks last forever!

Re: How Inflight Wifi Works

#100

Post by voltagex_ »

idlewords wrote: post #80
voltagex_ wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I found out the hard way that on the new Qantas A380s, the power outlets are only in "premium" economy. It's $939 from SYD to LAX in December (holy crap, at that price I better take a trip!) in Economy, but a whopping $2539 or $3389 for Premium Economy. I like having an AC outlet too, but that's crazy. If you do get to use the outlets on the A380, be aware that they do ~75W maximum. Exceed that and they'll shut down,…

Veering off-topic, if you fly Air New Zealand on that route, you can often use their name-your-own-price auction system to get an upgrade to premium economy for a few hundred dollars. I'm picturing you on that A380 cursing as you try to blow-dry your hair. What were you doing that pulled more than 75W?

http://www.qantas.com.au/travel/airlines/inflight-communicat... - 75W @ 110V. My Lenovo X1 charger says 90W but I don't know under what conditions.

Also, if we ever run into each other on our travels, I'll buy you a beer.

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