Hotspot is very slow

[hotSpot]

Just joined the Premium plan to save money on satellite service, but the hotspot speed is terrible. I tried USB-tethering and it was a little better, but still useless to stream Amazon vids.

I am using a new phone with Android-16 and wifi-6. The fastest speed I have seen on our Home Theater PC (Intel 13-series i7 CPU with 32GB memory) is 5.9Mbps and that is useless.

If I use "fast.com" on the phone browser I am getting upwards of 200Mbps.

Are there some settings I need to tweak or is that as good as it gets?

Will have to cancel after just 1-day if I can't get about 40Mbps on the HT PC.

[DeanKevin64]

Visible has a set speed on hotspot, it depends on the plan. Base plan is max 5Mbps, Plus is 10Mbps, the Pro is 15Mbps. You are never going to get 40Mbps on Visible's hotspot unless you go against the TOS and manipulate the hotspot somehow to bypass that speed. 

Be aware that canceling service after 1 day you will forfeit any remaining days left of service that you paid for since Visible is prepaid and they have a no refund policy.

[hotSpot]

Thanks, I was not aware of actual speed caps.

The sign-up showed "stream up to 4K" and AI tells me, "To stream 4K video resolution smoothly, a minimum internet speed of 25 Mbps is typically recommended by major streaming platforms like Netflix and YouTube. However, for optimal performance and to account for other devices or simultaneous streams, speeds of 50 Mbps or higher "

So, my expectation of 40Mbps seems reasonable to assume when getting only 5Mbps.

As to forfeiting the remaining days, why does it matter if the speed is unusable. What is a little irksome is that the free trial period streamed just fine, (I never checked the speed) .

I signed up after only a few days of the trial thinking I'd be honorable and pay for the max package since it looked to be good enough speed to be able to drop the expensive satellite. But, I have rarely seen streaming speeds since then. Yesterday afternoon I got 480p, watchable -- just.

We are out in the boonies and I assumed that traffic-congestion would not be an issue for speed.

So, it's back to satellite and voice/text-only phone with our old local 2G carrier. I lose the $39-bucks for my naive gesture. I should have let the free trial run it's course I guess. Lesson learned.

[DeanKevin64]

"Up to 4K streaming speeds" is on your phone not the hotspot and that is provided you get 5G UW. If you read the plans descriptions next to 4K streaming there is a reference number 6 and if you scroll to the bottom 6 is: ⁶streaming quality up to 1080p when using 5G Ultra Wideband network on a capable device, or up to 720p when on 5G or LTE. For Visible+ Pro, streaming quality up to 4K when using 5G Ultra Wideband network on a capable device, or up to 1080p when on 5G or LTE. 

Same with hotspot, it is reference number 2: ²Mobile hotspot with unlimited data at speeds ups to 15 Mbps (Visible+ Pro), 10 Mbps (Visible+), or 5 Mbps (Visible Plan). While some devices may support more than one connected device, a single connected device will experience optimal speeds. Performance will be reduced if multiple devices access data through the Hotspot simultaneously. Actual data speed, availability and coverage will vary based on device capabilities, usage, your location and network availability. You got to read the fine print. Since you are out in the sticks UW mmwave to get 4k streaming is unlikely since that is usually in large cities. 

My reference to forfeiting remaining days has nothing to with speeds. You said you were canceling after 1 day, I was pointing out that if you canceled there are no refunds, you would forfeit the remaining time left on your billing cycle.

Also, the free trial is the base plan which is deprioritized data. Not the same as the plus or pro plan which has priority data. The other thing to point out is that using Visible's hotspot for whole home internet replacement is again their terms and condition, using excessive amounts of data is usually the trigger to that.

[hotSpot]

OK, thanks for clarifications on "unlimited"

Clearly I did not understand the foot-notes and TOS properly. I had read them and could not make sense of the TOS portion regarding "unlimited" but not "replacement". I assumed the "unlimited" meant just that for a single hotspot site but not excessive use such as an apartment building or other multiple sites all hanging off one hotspot.

>Also, the free trial is the base plan which is deprioritized data

The 2-days of trial streaming, the speeds were OK. I never checked speeds so I have no idea on the Mbps. But after springing for the top package streaming resolution was poor.

Regarding cancelling I reiterate, there is no point in not cancelling regardless of loss of useless (to me) days. I **only** wanted Visible for the hotspot to replace  the satellite costing us twice the price. We don't need another phone service. we already have that, albeit 2G.

As mentioned, lesson learned and I'll write off the $39 as "schooling fees."

[mlaurel]

I'm seeing a similar issue.   I paid for the fastest service and the one night I went to use it at a coffee shop, it was horrible!  I'm so disappointed!   I tried it on 2 different Linux distros, and Windows 11 (triple boot laptop), and all has the same issue.  I've tried using USB-C direct to my iPhone 16 Pro, Bluetooth tethering and Wifi.  Its always a struggle just to get connected, and so spotty once I can get it working.   

I know I tested this out awhile back and had it working with acceptable service.  I worry that if I don't use the HotSpot service, which I don't use much, they throttle me down or something.  

Again, I've got pretty much the fastest plan, annual Visible+ Pro.  So frustrating!

[DeanKevin64]

Hotspot speeds are limited to 5Mbps on the base, 10Mbps on the plus and 15Mbps on the Pro plan that you are on, this is whether you are tethered or wireless while on hotspot. Another thing to consider is that the speeds on the hotspot are still determined by the speeds that the phone is getting. So, if the tower(s) you were on at the coffee shop were congested and limiting your phone to less than 15Mbps then hotspot will get what the phone gets, I know I am in a 4G LTE area and certain times of the day I barely have 5Mbps and when I use the hotspot that is even limited to a little less and I am on the Plus plan with priority data. So, let's say if you get 5Mbps on the phone you will only see 5Mbps on the hotspot. Visible isn't going to throttle you any more whether you use hotspot or not. Although, they can suspend your account for abuse which is rare, but, there has been mention on Reddit(Visible subreddit) that some have gotten throttled to 1.5Mbps speeds or even had service shut off for using an abundance of data in a short period, seems like 450GB is the threshold of getting speed limited or even suspended, but some have said they used upwards of 1TB of data and nothing was done.