I had changed firestick settings but didn’t think about iplayer settings. Will try again later and see what difference that had made. Thanks for info
I have a solution for good Mobile Data (300G) whilst in Spain (then any zone 1 country)
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MisterB
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- enough to know i shouldnt touch things i know nothing about ....
I am in La Sables D'Olonne and as luck would have there's a Free outlet here somewhere .... I will be checking it out in the morning, I think it's in a L'Eclerc supermarket looking at the map, which us also useful if it is as parking the Motorhome should be easy ..
Thanks for the heads up!
OP
OP
Be warned, my experience of Free is lots of traffic shaping = poor performance = unhappy wife!
OP
OP
Don’t follow you?
UK has numerous all you can eat UK data only deals (minimal roaming) for c. £25 pcm.
Tiekom’s offer is a Zone 1 full service data plan operating across the whole of the EU which luckily still (for the plans purposes) includes the UK (at the moment). The only reason the UK is so expensive (comparatively) and lacking flexibility is due to an event sixteen months back and the belief of the operators in the UK that they don’t need to differentiate their offerings. They are also chasing margin… pure greed!
Camino has been very clear this package works all across Zone1 and based on her fantastic service to everyone and attention to detail, I don’t thing we need to doubt what she says!
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MisterB
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- enough to know i shouldnt touch things i know nothing about ....
Sorry, but I have no idea what you're talking about - I just want a large amount of data per month for streaming TV whilst in France, mainly for the Vendée where our static caravan is sited. Are you suggesting it's not that good ? If so, is there a better alternative that I can get set up and working within the next five weeks while I am in France?Be warned, my experience of Free is lots of traffic shaping = poor performance = unhappy wife!
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OP
OP
Follow instructions on the first post on this topic.. 
Just used iplayer for another two and a half hours and changing the iplayer and firestick settings to the ‘standard’ definition picture has made a huge difference. Looks like I only used 2.5 GB tonight compared to 9GB last night. Seems to be a huge difference so I’ll check again over a few nights and see if that’s consistent but seems much lower anyway.I had changed firestick settings but didn’t think about iplayer settings. Will try again later and see what difference that had made. Thanks for info
This Camino is some saleswoman. I don't even need this sim card but I find myself wanting one 
Ukbandit
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Sorry wasn’t being negative, it’s a great deal and Camino has been great, I don’t doubt what she says about zone 1, I was just saying I hope it stays that way and doesn’t get changed. In my cynical mind I can just imagine the likes of O2 and EE etc. causing a right stink up when we’re all back in the UK leaching the data so cheap. Hence my comment ‘I hope it doesn’t go tits up’
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I wouldn't imagine that there are that many people using one of Camino's sims in the UK that it would make a significant impact on UK providers.
OP
OP
Agree
OP
OP
Makes the Tiekom (Camino) deal seem like the only practical/sensible/cost effective option now..
www.dailyrecord.co.uk
O2, Vodafone, EE, Three, Virgin, Sky and BT data roaming latest for holidays
At the end of March, selected network providers will enforce charges ranging from on average of £2 per day in an EU country.
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Yoigo's unlimited data package for phone or sim is 25€/month for the 1st 3 months then 33€/month fixed for life ,no increases. with 23Gb data when roaming in europe & specifiucally advertised as including the UK
That is still over1Gb/hour?Just used iplayer for another two and a half hours and changing the iplayer and firestick settings to the ‘standard’ definition picture has made a huge difference. Looks like I only used 2.5 GB tonight compared to 9GB last night. Seems to be a huge difference so I’ll check again over a few nights and see if that’s consistent but seems much lower anyway.
Depending on how much tv you watch 300Gb wouldn't usually be enough. This is why they throttle tv watching on unlimited contracts here in spain- people do not realise how much they use especially when a vpn is also added in to the mix+ the firestick/iptv.
My wife's tv watching woiuld appear to need between 1200 & 2000Gb/month ,whereas I use under 2Gb.
I have been trying this sim for the last week but for what my wife requires it isn't going to be any good.
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An update on our Tiekom data SIM.
We have used 290gb of our 300gb on the Camino SIM this month (25 days). Expecting to run out of data this week I requested a second SIM which arrived yesterday. Emailed Camino this morning and activated with 30 minutes.
When we have used all the data on 'SIM one' I'll swap to 'SIM two' in the MiFi. Camino suggested I contact her before the month end and cancel 'SIM one' so we don't get billed for April.
Super happy with our data plan and the service received from Camino and Harvey Carpmart
We have used 290gb of our 300gb on the Camino SIM this month (25 days). Expecting to run out of data this week I requested a second SIM which arrived yesterday. Emailed Camino this morning and activated with 30 minutes.
When we have used all the data on 'SIM one' I'll swap to 'SIM two' in the MiFi. Camino suggested I contact her before the month end and cancel 'SIM one' so we don't get billed for April.
Super happy with our data plan and the service received from Camino and Harvey Carpmart
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MisterB
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- enough to know i shouldnt touch things i know nothing about ....
I bought a Free sim, now just looking to start using it and see how long it lasts me. It cost €10 to buy the SIM, which I assume I keep and just too up when I want to. I did check out the Orange Shop but their deal was nowhere near as much allowance for the price, though I don't know how good the Free coverage is yet!
HKF
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This might help
Free Mobile 3G / 4G / 5G coverage - nPerf.com
Compare the network coverage of mobile operators and check their performance at home !
cdn.nperf.com
I will pay the £3 a month in the summer to keep it live ready for our autumn trip. I get unlimited data in the UK for £20 a month so won’t need it there which I assume will be the same for most other big data users. But it’s working a treat in Portugal and I’ve used 111Gb so far and although €10 a month more than we could get with Nos unlimited, it’s faster and we couldn’t use that sim in Spain and France.
Will you then need to swap back and reactivate sim 1 (if abroad long enough), surprised there isn't a top up option or just reverting to zero and starting again early using just 1 SIM card.
Sounds like for some the 400Gb option might be more cost effective.
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As I’ve used all 300gb on ‘SIM one’ it is now no use until the month starts again on the 01/04 with another 300gb. By using ‘SIM two’ my data starts again today and I am charged pro rata for the remaining days this month i.e 25th to 31st = 7 days. By my reckoning €39.90/31*7= €9 (that’s what happened last month when I started mid month). I’m not sure if I have 300gb until the end of the month or 7 days worth of 300gb which is 68gb. I’ve asked Camino the question..
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OP
OP
As I said yesterday, coverage on Free was always reasonably good, it was the traffic shaping (very low bandwidth, controlled by Free and nothing to do with coverage) which was the issue I ALWAYS experienced and frustrated the hell out of me.
Will be interested to see how you get on!
MisterB
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- enough to know i shouldnt touch things i know nothing about ....
I will if course report back. Had I known about the deal being offered by Camino prior to leaving I would have jumped on it !!
I am using it in my Netgear Router. I had to change the settings to get it to work, but all pretty simple. I had to enter the pin for the SIM which comes on the card you get it on, then go to settings and add a new network which I entered Free and then I had to add an APN, which again was the word Free - press save and bingo, took all of three minutes to work it out !
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Just had the reply below from Camino…what a great deal.
I’d better start streaming in 4K to use up the March 300gb in the next seven days
“Hello Martin,
I have just asked to cancel the Service of the sim card 1.
You will get 300GB with your sim card in March and data will renew the 1st of April with 300Gb again.
Best regards
Camino”
I’d better start streaming in 4K to use up the March 300gb in the next seven days
“Hello Martin,
I have just asked to cancel the Service of the sim card 1.
You will get 300GB with your sim card in March and data will renew the 1st of April with 300Gb again.
Best regards
Camino”
OP
OP
I thought I would post this here as well as another topic as I think it’s useful information for people.
There are several factors to considering when looking for data sims. They are not all equal! Yes the overall amount or Gigabytes of data you get is one consideration, the other is fundemental, what policies are employed by the operator when using the X Gigabytes in my allowance. How do they shape and control my usage.
Mobile data providers have got way smarter over the years and offer lots of ‘attractive headline’ plans with oodles (technical term) of data for low cost. Very few of these plans are without traffic shaping. Traffic control happens automatically on mobile data networks. It’s a complicated algorithm of number of subscribers on the cell, proximity to base station, propagation of signal, topographical constraints, directional or omni directional properties of the base station, what the subscriber is doing (email, browsing, streaming) etc etc… most importantly for the point I wish to make, these algorithms additionally use both fair usage and commercial filters. The latter are a combination of the plan you are on and the status (hierarchy) of your IP address with the HLR (Home Location Register).
Bringing this back to laymen terms, not all the plans we see advertised will provide you with the ability to receive the very best service you possible can at the precise moment in the cell you are in. The traffic is shaped by commercial rather than physical impediment. In other words, the type of service you are allocated based on the plan you have bought will fundamentally dictate the unfair allocation of the speed and service you enjoy.
What this means is that you can go and get a cheapie deal and be in a very uncontested cell and the algorithm doesn’t constrain you. Happy days, all is good and you can stream away. The next day is a weekend, the cell you are connected to has loads more traffic and because of your Lowly service status, the network is no longer allocating you a ‘fair’ proportion of the available bandwidth. Effectively there are more important customers than you, your service diminishes and you are no longer the happy bunny.
As with many things in life, it’s not the headline that’s important eg 300G for €40 Euros, it’s the up to 150MB download and no commercial shaping that dictates the best possible service you can receive.
I Hope this Helps to explain some of the annoying aspects of mobile data plans?
There are several factors to considering when looking for data sims. They are not all equal! Yes the overall amount or Gigabytes of data you get is one consideration, the other is fundemental, what policies are employed by the operator when using the X Gigabytes in my allowance. How do they shape and control my usage.
Mobile data providers have got way smarter over the years and offer lots of ‘attractive headline’ plans with oodles (technical term) of data for low cost. Very few of these plans are without traffic shaping. Traffic control happens automatically on mobile data networks. It’s a complicated algorithm of number of subscribers on the cell, proximity to base station, propagation of signal, topographical constraints, directional or omni directional properties of the base station, what the subscriber is doing (email, browsing, streaming) etc etc… most importantly for the point I wish to make, these algorithms additionally use both fair usage and commercial filters. The latter are a combination of the plan you are on and the status (hierarchy) of your IP address with the HLR (Home Location Register).
Bringing this back to laymen terms, not all the plans we see advertised will provide you with the ability to receive the very best service you possible can at the precise moment in the cell you are in. The traffic is shaped by commercial rather than physical impediment. In other words, the type of service you are allocated based on the plan you have bought will fundamentally dictate the unfair allocation of the speed and service you enjoy.
What this means is that you can go and get a cheapie deal and be in a very uncontested cell and the algorithm doesn’t constrain you. Happy days, all is good and you can stream away. The next day is a weekend, the cell you are connected to has loads more traffic and because of your Lowly service status, the network is no longer allocating you a ‘fair’ proportion of the available bandwidth. Effectively there are more important customers than you, your service diminishes and you are no longer the happy bunny.
As with many things in life, it’s not the headline that’s important eg 300G for €40 Euros, it’s the up to 150MB download and no commercial shaping that dictates the best possible service you can receive.
I Hope this Helps to explain some of the annoying aspects of mobile data plans?
Mixyblob
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We're currently pitched up by the side of the river Lot in France.
Using Carpmarts/ Camino's 300gb sim in a mifi and a firestick with ExpressVPN.
Most of the time we have at least 20meg download speed (I check it every time we arrive at a new site) but not once have we been able to watch a video/tv programme without it buffering to some degree.
I've set all video settings to SD or the equivalent but still have problems. Itv hub and all4 won't even attempt to play. Maybe they are able to detect the vpn?
Facetime, Whatsap etc all work well, its just the firestick which is a pain in the arse, if it was any thicker I'd use it as a levelling ramp..
Using Carpmarts/ Camino's 300gb sim in a mifi and a firestick with ExpressVPN.
Most of the time we have at least 20meg download speed (I check it every time we arrive at a new site) but not once have we been able to watch a video/tv programme without it buffering to some degree.
I've set all video settings to SD or the equivalent but still have problems. Itv hub and all4 won't even attempt to play. Maybe they are able to detect the vpn?
Facetime, Whatsap etc all work well, its just the firestick which is a pain in the arse, if it was any thicker I'd use it as a levelling ramp..
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OP
OP
20 MB down is fine for streaming even HD content. Please the service isn’t giving you problems!
Sounds like some kind of config issue. Can you factory reset the Firestick and start again?
Mixyblob
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Factory reset the tv, firestick and mifi. I've only just discovered my android phone will stream the same progs without buffering using the same mifi.
OP
OP
Seems clear you’ve narrowed down the issue to one component… it’s the Firestick is it not? It could be one or more issue on the Firestick though. What happens without a VPN with say Netflix?
Is it a 4k firestick or the older one? also remember that there is a server at the other end of the Internet that is sending data out, (the program you're watching), if lots of people are accessing it at the same time that can slow everything down causing buffering, i find this happens quite a lot during the F1, after the race whilst the pundits are discussing what happened, the buffering and pixelating disappear.
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& that speedtest itself eats data at an alarming rate. The greater the down/up speeds the more data it uses.
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