Visible Wireless Feedback

[chuckbear]

I just started using the service and so far so good...

I would like to hear from others about how they are finding the service to work?
What equipment are you using in your RV with the Visible?
What kind of coverage are you getting?
What devices are you running with Visible?
How are you finding the Visible to work with Streaming?
Any other details you would like to pass on?

Only looking for feedback from current users please. Chuck

[Dutch_12078]

We're using our Visible data service with our main TV, Dish Hopper w/Sling, two FireTVsticks, two laptops, two cell phones, and two tablets. Our Visible SIM is in a Novatel Verizon 7730L Jetpack that supports fifteen connected devices and is connected to one of two MIMO antenna sets. So far in our travels up and down the east coast and currently in Florida, we haven't found any place where we didn't have at least some service. Sometimes it's been marginal for streaming in the weaker signal areas not surprisingly. We do have an alternate service for those times though. Connecting to our directional MIMO antenna pair and peaking the signal helps quite a bit. We've used over 150 GB a month on a number of occasions with no complaints from Visible. 

We've been in a Visible "Party Pay" party almost since they introduced the feature, and have never paid more than $25/mo. since joining. Early on we lost a couple of party members, but they were quickly replaced within hours. I can't speak to the Visible customer service since I've never needed it. All in all we've been very pleased with our Visible service and have no intentions of dropping it any time soon.

[LindaH]

I finally quit Visible because there were too many problems with it.

I never got as far as doing any streaming, but the first problem I ran into was when I tried to do a chat on the Dish website in order to change my service address.  I couldn't get chat to work, so I did a chat with Visible (which DID work...go figure).  The person had me do some stuff and he did some stuff on his end and we finally got Dish's chat to work.

The second problem I ran into was apps stopped working.  I had downloaded some apps in order to watch/listen to a particular news channel.  In each case, the apps would work for about a week then completely stop working.  I tried another chat with Visible, but was never able to get the problem resolved.  That's when I terminated the service.

I did use a travel router so that both my DH and I could get online with our computers at the same time.  That worked like a charm.

[chuckbear]

Linda, I'm not sure why Visible would cause your apps to stop working but I am by no means an expert. I am using Visible right now and so far, no issues whatsoever, even with the 5MBPS speed cap. I too use a travel router. I've had problems getting Dish chat to work at times no matter what internet service I have been using. Other times it works great. I did finally figure out that some browser extensions caused issue. But that's for another thread. I am especially looking for feedback on coverage as others have moved around the country. Chuck

[Bill Joyce]

Visible runs through its own servers and that adds an extra hop, extra processing and delay potential to internet access.  I suspect it not having straight through access to the internet is some or all of the problems.  I tell people that if they have a choice, to not depend on Visible as their only internet source and to be really worried about it as your only phone for voice and texts.  But many don't want to spend much money and are willing to deal with the issues.  

I have no skin in the game since I do not have Visible, but do recommend it with caveats. I have the no longer available unlimited Verizon prepaid hotspot plan, so I have Verizon covered.   But that plan costs more.

[nscaler2]

On 2/26/2021 at 12:04 PM, Bill Joyce said:

Visible runs through its own servers and that adds an extra hop, extra processing and delay potential to internet access.  I suspect it not having straight through access to the internet is some or all of the problems.  I tell people that if they have a choice, to not depend on Visible as their only internet source and to be really worried about it as your only phone for voice and texts.  But many don't want to spend much money and are willing to deal with the issues.  

I have no skin in the game since I do not have Visible, but do recommend it with caveats. I have the no longer available unlimited Verizon prepaid hotspot plan, so I have Verizon covered.   But that plan costs more.

Bill,

I too have the unlimited prepay grandfathered plan. I don't know if you are having the same experience as I, but, Verizon seems to be more aggressive at slowing this service down than they have in the past.  I have gone to many of the same places that I would normally get 20-30mbps down that now I am doing good to get 2 or 3 in the exact same spot, at the same times of the day.

[chuckbear]

We have been using the Visible service for a month now alongside a Verizon Mifi with a real unlimited plan that the wife uses for working at home, provided by her employer. The Visible actually has a higher speed than the Verizon service when run through the Ookla speed test.  It remains consistently higher no mater what time of the day we run it or what day. Our AT&T plan is all but useless here at or homebase.  Chuck

[durangodon]

I have a couple of questions about Visible please.

If I qualify for the plan and a sim by using my iPhone imei, will Visible lock that phone down so I only can use it with them?  I use it for my cell phone service and don't want to change carriers for that.

Has anyone bought that ZTE phone Visible offers for $49?  Does it do hotspotting?  The specs don't mention that ability.  Is it decent for data?

Thanks.

[GlennWest]

On 2/26/2021 at 9:08 AM, LindaH said:

I finally quit Visible because there were too many problems with it.

I never got as far as doing any streaming, but the first problem I ran into was when I tried to do a chat on the Dish website in order to change my service address.  I couldn't get chat to work, so I did a chat with Visible (which DID work...go figure).  The person had me do some stuff and he did some stuff on his end and we finally got Dish's chat to work.

The second problem I ran into was apps stopped working.  I had downloaded some apps in order to watch/listen to a particular news channel.  In each case, the apps would work for about a week then completely stop working.  I tried another chat with Visible, but was never able to get the problem resolved.  That's when I terminated the service.

I did use a travel router so that both my DH and I could get online with our computers at the same time.  That worked like a charm.

Never heard of streaming dish. Thought that was strictly satellite. And I wonder why anyone would. I really like roku.

Edited February 28, 2021 by GlennWest

[chuckbear]

6 hours ago, durangodon said:

I have a couple of questions about Visible please.

If I qualify for the plan and a sim by using my iPhone imei, will Visible lock that phone down so I only can use it with them?  I use it for my cell phone service and don't want to change carriers for that.

Has anyone bought that ZTE phone Visible offers for $49?  Does it do hotspotting?  The specs don't mention that ability.  Is it decent for data?

Thanks.

Visible does not lock your phone if you use one of their SIM cards for service. You will not be able to use Visible and your current provider on the same phone at the same time. No service will let you do that.  I have the $49.00 ZTE phone and it works just fine. It does do a hotspot. Limited to connecting one device unless you connect it to a router, and it also does tethering. If you use your iPhone the one device limit does not apply. The hotspot is limited to a speed cap of 5MBPS, unless...  THIS IS NOT A DATA CAP.  I only use the phone for internet but it does calls, text, apps, whatever you want it to. But it's not an iPhone. Chuck

Edited February 28, 2021 by chuckbear

[Dutch_12078]

7 hours ago, GlennWest said:

Never heard of streaming dish. Thought that was strictly satellite. And I wonder why anyone would. I really like roku.

Dish offers the free DishAnywhere app for its subscribers that have Sling equipped Hoppers. We have it installed on both our Firesticks, our phones, and our tablets. It's also available as a website on our laptops. As to why we would use it, we find it very handy for connecting to the Dish Hopper w/Sling we installed at our upstate NY family cottage when we make brief overnight stops and don't bother setting up our full sized dish. It's also handy when a storm rolls through and knocks out our local Hopper w/Sling reception, plus using the DA app at the beach or elsewhere to watch various programming on our phones or tablets. My wife sometimes uses the DA app on one of our Firesticks to watch her favorite soap on our bedroom TV while we're underway between parks. Happy wife...

[GlennWest]

We haven't used dish for over a year and don't miss it. Streaming on roku reminds so much of years ago where we only paid for what we wanted. So much nicer

[durangodon]

2 hours ago, chuckbear said:

Visible does not lock your phone if you use one of their SIM cards for service. You will not be able to use Visible and your current provider on the same phone at the same time. No service will let you do that.  I have the $49.00 ZTE phone and it works just fine. It does do a hotspot. Limited to connecting one device unless you connect it to a router, and it also does tethering. If you use your iPhone the one device limit does not apply. The hotspot is limited to a speed cap of 5MBPS, unless...  THIS IS NOT A DATA CAP.  I only use the phone for internet but it does calls, text, apps, whatever you want it to. But it's not an iPhone. Chuck

Thanks much.

[Dutch_12078]

47 minutes ago, GlennWest said:

We haven't used dish for over a year and don't miss it. Streaming on roku reminds so much of years ago where we only paid for what we wanted. So much nicer

As Internet coverage continues to improve, we're constantly re-evaluating our TV options regarding streaming. The coverage isn't quite there yet, but it's getting closer...

[LindaH]

21 hours ago, GlennWest said:

Never heard of streaming dish. Thought that was strictly satellite. And I wonder why anyone would. I really like roku.

I never said I was trying to stream Dish.  Not sure why you thought I was.  What I said was that I had never gotten around to trying to stream (in fact, I don't even know how to do that where I can see it on my TV rather than the small screen on my phone).  

[GlennWest]

11 minutes ago, LindaH said:

I never said I was trying to stream Dish.  Not sure why you thought I was.  What I said was that I had never gotten around to trying to stream (in fact, I don't even know how to do that where I can see it on my TV rather than the small screen on my phone).  

You stated chatting on dish about it. That's where i got it from

[LindaH]

2 minutes ago, GlennWest said:

You stated chatting on dish about it. That's where i got it from

No, I said I chatted with Dish about changing my service address.

[GlennWest]

12 minutes ago, LindaH said:

No, I said I chatted with Dish about changing my service address.

sorry. my bad

[Pappy Yokum]

On 2/25/2021 at 3:32 PM, chuckbear said:

I just started using the service and so far so good...

I would like to hear from others about how they are finding the service to work?
What equipment are you using in your RV with the Visible?
What kind of coverage are you getting?
What devices are you running with Visible?
How are you finding the Visible to work with Streaming?
Any other details you would like to pass on?

Only looking for feedback from current users please. Chuck

Good questions!

Look forward to "on topic" answers!!....😁

[brooksrimes]

On 2/25/2021 at 8:04 PM, Dutch_12078 said:

 

I just bought a 8800L Jetpack and put in a Visible SIM.  I changed the APN to VSBLINTERNET.  The Jetpack shows a 4G LTE with 2-4 bars of service and my laptop connects to the Jetpack wifi but it shows "no internet".  Any help/ideas appreciated ...

[Dutch_12078]

2 hours ago, brooksrimes said:

I just bought a 8800L Jetpack and put in a Visible SIM.  I changed the APN to VSBLINTERNET.  The Jetpack shows a 4G LTE with 2-4 bars of service and my laptop connects to the Jetpack wifi but it shows "no internet".  Any help/ideas appreciated ...

Double check the APN setting to make sure it was saved and also to make sure there isn't an invisible character like a space on either end of it.

[GlennWest]

Just ran speed test. 1.29 mbps. That with chromebook connected wifi to my Moto phone with Visible. Version mifi  42.9. Knew it was terrible. Now my phone itself is fast plenty. Don't see how one could stream tv with it. Just hooked back up to Visible and got 4.24 mbps. 

Edited September 18, 2021 by GlennWest

[gypsydan]

On 2/26/2021 at 8:08 AM, LindaH said:

I finally quit Visible because there were too many problems with it.

I never got as far as doing any streaming, but the first problem I ran into was when I tried to do a chat on the Dish website in order to change my service address.  I couldn't get chat to work, so I did a chat with Visible (which DID work...go figure).  The person had me do some stuff and he did some stuff on his end and we finally got Dish's chat to work.

The second problem I ran into was apps stopped working.  I had downloaded some apps in order to watch/listen to a particular news channel.  In each case, the apps would work for about a week then completely stop working.  I tried another chat with Visible, but was never able to get the problem resolved.  That's when I terminated the service.

I did use a travel router so that both my DH and I could get online with our computers at the same time.  That worked like a charm.

It would be interesting to know what your problem was, as I use visible and have never ahd a problem with my apps not working, or any other issues that could have been rlated to Visible.  Of course, now that i've said that . . . . . .

As would be expected, if I am in a poor signal area I will get poor reception. What phone system do you have:  android or Apples ios? I have an iPhone. My expereince is that apps have nothing to do with the internet, as they connect to teh internet via an internal modem/hotspot, which is before you would ever reach Visible.

So, again, it would be interesting to know what your problem really was?  I assume you reset the phone, and then reinstalled all your apps to see if there was an internal glitch? 

Happy Trails,

 

Happy Trails,

[LindaH]

20 hours ago, gypsydan said:

It would be interesting to know what your problem was, as I use visible and have never ahd a problem with my apps not working, or any other issues that could have been rlated to Visible.  Of course, now that i've said that . . . . . .

As would be expected, if I am in a poor signal area I will get poor reception. What phone system do you have:  android or Apples ios? I have an iPhone. My expereince is that apps have nothing to do with the internet, as they connect to teh internet via an internal modem/hotspot, which is before you would ever reach Visible.

So, again, it would be interesting to know what your problem really was?  I assume you reset the phone, and then reinstalled all your apps to see if there was an internal glitch? 

I explained the two problems I had in my first post, above.  I had an android phone, as all my phones have been.  The last problem I had, the CSR recommended that I reset the phone, but by that time I was too irritated with the whole setup and didn't feel like going to all the trouble to reinstall apps -- and then I probably would have had the first problem again because the CSR on that chat had to do something on their end.