Backup internet options

KPG

KPG

Associate
Joined
24 Jun 2020
Posts
26
Hello all.

I'm new here. Like so many people right now, I'm working from home for the foreseeable future and am even more reliant on a stable internet connection than usual. Also like many people, I only really look into these matters when things go wrong, and I am not especially tech-savvy.

I switched to FTTC about three months ago and a TP-Link Archer VR900 modem-router. It's been pretty sturdy in general, but over the past few weeks it has dropped connection randomly and would only reconnect after a reboot. The result is I spend as much time checking the lights on the router as I do looking at the work PC it's sitting next to.

My question is this: how can a person get as close as possible to having 'guaranteed' internet access in a domestic environment? What are considered the most reliable/cost-effective backup methods if/when fixed-line broadband fails?

I have been told, and have read on here, about 4g dongles and mobile tethering - sim-only mobile plans with large (unlimited?) data allowance - and have considered business broadband, for the promise of dedicated support (though I haven't looked closely into eligibility - I'm a freelance journalist but not self-employed). I know these matters have been discussed in the forum before and I have read the threads, but some up-to-date advice would be much appreciated.
 
Didn't think of an LTE router. My only experience of one of those was a poor one, but it was in a cottage in the countryside, so I can't fairly judge them on that basis!
 
A further question on this if I may: with a 4G modem/dongle plugged into a router, if the router switches to 4G during an outage, does it transmit a wifi signal as it usually would or is the dongle only good for device(s) connected to the router via ethernet? Is this entirely dependant on the router itself?
 
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