snagitseven

Also note that the signal strength displayed on a cellular device (incl the car) does not always correlate to data speed. You can get max bars but if there is too heavy a load on data usage relative to the available local bandwidth, it will slow things down.

Timmay

That's pretty much what I was saying earlier. Doesn't matter how many bars your cell phone shows when talking about data speeds. I'm also wondering about the coverage of T-Mobile.

slasher016

I have a Galaxy S4, and I will do that the next day I drive it.

RickFLS4

I ran some speed tests today to provide you some baseline comparisons. All tests were done with Ookla Speedtest app and figures are in Mbps:

iPod Touch in Car using 3G hotspot (3G alternating between 2 and 3 bars) - ran 4 times

Download: 3.11, 3.03, 1.47, 1.97
Upload: .31, .32, .31, .12

iPhone using LTE in same spot: 4.31 download, 1.21 upload

Same iPod Touch in house (25 Mpbs cable HSIA over WiFi)
Download: 3.39, 15.91, 3.22 sitting on bar stool in kitchen
Upload: 4.99, 5.25, 4.57

You only get maximum results on these speed tests when hard-wired into the connection (i.e. gateway). When using WiFi there are many variable that can cause disparate results including microwaves and cordless phones. Inside a car, I expect Bluetooth can have a significant adverse impact on WiFi via interference. If accurate, mixing Bluetooth and WiFi in a car will never work that well. This is what I meant by the issue potentially being with the WiFi even if 3G connection is good:

http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1365

I don't stream audio or use Internet radio services and use a prepaid SIM for data only in the car (sending addresses from computer, google maps when I want them and online destination searches in the car). The concept of a 3G hotspot in a car never made a ton of sense to me, so I guess I'm saying I'm not too surprised if you are having issues trying to use it as a WiFi hot spot. Even when 4G LTE is available, I expect there will be issues with consistent connectivity over WiFi as long as Bluetooth and other sources of interference are nearby since I see the same thing in my house.

snagitseven

I suspect you are right when it comes to the car's wifi hot spot. Although Bluetooth and wifi interference can be mostly mitigated by using 802.11n in the 5Mhz band, I'm guessing Audi uses the 2.4Mhz band for the hotspot, at least in the current models. The exception might be the new A3 which could be using 5Mhz. Like 4G cellular, most auto manf. are slower to implement the later tech found in non-auto applications.

PhilNotHill

I do not see the need for Audi Connect. My wife gets all the info she needs as a passenger using her iPhone 5. Seems to have no problems. We have ATT and coverage is pretty good. But there are spots in the mountains with no service. So I could see some usefulness to a satellite hook up.

Assume AC is really so kids can play internet games etc while travelling. we have no children at home so this is no value to us.

No need to listen to Pandora (which my wife can get on her iPhone) as we have Sirius...no commercials and we love it. No dead spots in the mountains (except tunnels and spots in Glenwood Canyon).

Am I missing something????

RickFLS4

The nav features are nice to have (namely google maps, sending destinations to the car from a PC or tablet and more precise online destination searches). Also, many of us don't have our wife in the passenger seat all the time to use an iPhone based alternative. Otherwise, I agree there is limited value to AC which is why I use a prepaid SIM to use what I want rather than paying a monthly fee to T-Mobile.

PhilNotHill

Thanks for the info.

the Audi dealer gave us a fee schedule and suggested that the only time we would use it is when we are on a trip to someplace unfamiliar. You can buy the service for just a month at a time. But that's when my wife is in the passenger seat.

I do not recall a "prepaid SIM" being offered as an option.

Best.

snagitseven

Internet audio streaming, i.e. Pandora, is not a feature of Audi Connet as such but offered as part of Nav Plus. In car wifi is only one of the many features of AC (and prob the least used). The real benefit is integration with the nav and the MMI screen w/o fumbling around with a phone while driving.

There are several option for AC service. T-Mobile has their standard month to month (expensive) or a prepaid 30 month plan with unlimited data which comes out to $15 @ month. Pay-for-use sim providers are also available like TruPhone and P-Tel to name two, which use the T-Mobile network. You get their sims online directly from the provider.
Do an AW global search for many threads discussing these options.

slasher016

I ran it a few times this morning during my commute. I had Blutooth on and connected for both audio and phone functions, but obviously I paused Pandora during the test. As someone else said, that could be relevant.

Results:
Down 1.60, 0.52, 1.85
Up 0.47, 0.21, 0.38

As a comparison my work Wifi:
Down 27.31, 29.30, 31.64
Up 31.57, 40.53, 41.84