The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi • Hacker News Board

Re: The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi

#61

Post by thaumasiotes » Mon, Jul 06, 2015, 1:46 AM UTC

yishanl wrote: post #48

thaumasiotes wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Now it's touch screen "entertainment in-flight systems." Not like any of those things have made the flying experience any better. I couldn't disagree more. A fourteen-hour flight with in-flight movies is vastly superior to a fourteen-hour flight with the back of the seat in front of you.

Well, we've had movies on airplanes for a long time. And I agree it makes things marginally more bearable. But just because they've moved it from a shared television on the aisle/ceiling that everyone had to lean out to watch from to a little touch-screen in front of a chair hasn't really changed the fact that flying is a waste of time. And very uncomfortable.

You didn't say flying was a waste of time. You said the experience hadn't gotten any better. Those aren't related ideas.

Re: The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi

#62

Post by themartorana » Mon, Jul 06, 2015, 2:05 AM UTC

iGoPro_HD wrote: post #36

aurelianito wrote: post #10

The economics of airplane wifi remind me of the economics of the hotels wifi. Go to a 5-star hotel and you will pay 15 extra dollars for the priviledge of having a lousy internet access. Go to a small hostel and you will get good internet access for free.

The exact reason people are resorting to WiFi hotspots more and more.

Is there a smartphone these days that doesn't come with hotspot capabilities? I use mine constantly, and more often than not (when traveling domestically in the U.S.) my LTE speeds far outstrip hotel/airport provided speeds.

Re: The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi

#63

Post by yishanl » Mon, Jul 06, 2015, 2:14 AM UTC

thaumasiotes wrote: post #61

yishanl wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, we've had movies on airplanes for a long time. And I agree it makes things marginally more bearable. But just because they've moved it from a shared television on the aisle/ceiling that everyone had to lean out to watch from to a little touch-screen in front of a chair hasn't really changed the fact that flying is a waste of time. And very uncomfortable.

You didn't say flying was a waste of time. You said the experience hadn't gotten any better. Those aren't related ideas.

Uh, a bad experience is a waste of time.

And I'd call these opinions, not ideas.

Not sure if I agree with being downvoted but out of my hands. :)

Re: The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi

#64

Post by tossawayppooo » Mon, Jul 06, 2015, 2:23 AM UTC

themartorana wrote: post #62

iGoPro_HD wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The exact reason people are resorting to WiFi hotspots more and more.

Is there a smartphone these days that doesn't come with hotspot capabilities? I use mine constantly, and more often than not (when traveling domestically in the U.S.) my LTE speeds far outstrip hotel/airport provided speeds.

Verizon.

Re: The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi

#65

Post by __z » Mon, Jul 06, 2015, 2:32 AM UTC

tossawayppooo wrote: post #64

themartorana wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is there a smartphone these days that doesn't come with hotspot capabilities? I use mine constantly, and more often than not (when traveling domestically in the U.S.) my LTE speeds far outstrip hotel/airport provided speeds.

Verizon.

I use mobile hotspots with Verizon all the time. I have a Galaxy s4.

Re: The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi

#66

Post by oostevo » Mon, Jul 06, 2015, 2:39 AM UTC

colinbartlett wrote: post #55

tehwebguy wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, if you have an AMEX Platinum you get 10 GoGo passes (per year, I think)

That's only the corporate card, not the consumer one.

The consumer one does have Boingo access, though, which can come in handy.

Re: The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi

#67

Post by joezydeco » Mon, Jul 06, 2015, 2:48 AM UTC

akhilcacharya wrote: post #45

joezydeco wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Now it's touch screen "entertainment in-flight systems"... Enjoy that while it lasts. United is moving to a BYOD system where you use your own phone or tablet to watch in-flight entertainment. The new cabins have removed all screens and armrest audio systems (oh yeah, and headphones too) http://www.united.com/web/en-US/content/travel/inflight/ente...

But do they provide charging ports or outlets?

On some planes, mostly in the Economy Plus areas. Eventually all will have power outlets but, knowing UAL, it will be a very slow process. Your best bet is an international flight.

Re: The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi

#68

Post by mjcohen » Mon, Jul 06, 2015, 3:02 AM UTC

yishanl wrote: post #63

thaumasiotes wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You didn't say flying was a waste of time. You said the experience hadn't gotten any better. Those aren't related ideas.

Uh, a bad experience is a waste of time. And I'd call these opinions, not ideas. Not sure if I agree with being downvoted but out of my hands. :)

It's not a waste of time if it gets you where you want/need to go.

Re: The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi

#69

Post by megablast » Mon, Jul 06, 2015, 3:30 AM UTC

aurelianito wrote: post #10

The economics of airplane wifi remind me of the economics of the hotels wifi. Go to a 5-star hotel and you will pay 15 extra dollars for the priviledge of having a lousy internet access. Go to a small hostel and you will get good internet access for free.

The sort of people who go to expensive hotels don't care about expensive wifi, or wifi at all. Cheap hotels have to use it as a differentiator from each other.

Re: The economics of in-flight Wi-Fi

#70

Post by fpgaminer » Mon, Jul 06, 2015, 3:38 AM UTC

aurelianito wrote: post #10

The economics of airplane wifi remind me of the economics of the hotels wifi. Go to a 5-star hotel and you will pay 15 extra dollars for the priviledge of having a lousy internet access. Go to a small hostel and you will get good internet access for free.

During my travels in northern Taiwan, I found that every hotel I stayed at had free wifi, free snacks, and free necessities like toothbrush, comb, etc. One place even stocked the fridge with a couple free sodas. The wifi was quite good, comparable to what one would expect from, say, a Starbucks. They did some throttling, but my tunnel back to the States fixed that.

It was a decidedly different and pleasant experience, compared to American hotels. The toilets were great too. The only downside is the amount of smoking that goes on in eastern Asia hotels (even if you're on a no smoking floor).