Trying to decide if I should pay the $25/mo for onstar data or what. Seems like a lot for old 4g. I know I can connect to my phone hotspot but I have to manually do it every time and it disconnects after a while for some reason. Plus I have to remember to enable hotspot every time I get in the car. It is just kind of annoying. I am just wondering what other people are doing.
onstar free data ended, now what (23 suburban)
- Thread starter Ingeinge
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if you have a smart phone youre probably ok without it.. the only problem is these trucks are too "google enabled" so the navigation app will be useless, so will the fact that the speed limit display in the HUD and cluster will be blank.. sucks about that for sure
StephenPT
Full Access Member
You likely have either an Android or iPhone in which case once you plug it in, you can run either Android Auto or Car Play and get all of your mapping, music, phone/messaging, etc. via that method.
The only thing the OnStar data plan will also get you beyond the built-in google maps is the hotspot for other people in the vehicle to connect non-data plan devices, i.e. tablets.
The only thing the OnStar data plan will also get you beyond the built-in google maps is the hotspot for other people in the vehicle to connect non-data plan devices, i.e. tablets.
old 4g that's funny, you do know you have to be within a very short range to even get a 5g signal right? before 3g you could get a signal even in pretty remote area's, same with pre hd tv, going digital effectively cuts the signal range to literal crap. even the hd tv broadcast towers are maybe 20 miles from me or less with line of sight no mountains hills or trees and it barely works.
that all being said you can probably add a mobile hotspot to your cell service for less than what onstar wants for a data account. throw it in the center console with a usb cord and you are golden. it will stay connected as long you have it set to not power off a hotspot uses very little juice.
i have verizon and can add a hotspot for $10 a month unlimited data
i can get 5g at home which is around 120gb, but mostly the signal while driving around is going to be 20-40gb 4g even though it may say "5g" it's not
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Stbentoak
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Pay the 25 bucks and move on.. we waste a lot of other money on other dumb &$%#. Price of a fast-food meal for 2. If for any dumb reason you would forget your phone, you could still make calls and the hotspot is valuable when traveling and for rear entertainment. I save enough in fuel every month to easily pay for it twice over...
TollKeeper
Full Access Member
And if I am remembering right, no data limit!
Yeah good point. And if you buy 2 years up front it is $380 which is under $16/mo.
swathdiver
Full Access Member
Our old analog cell phones had a much further range than today's phones and they had a real antenna too.
I miss my truck having it's own phone number. Had that since 2006. My wife pays for her phone to be a hotspot if needed on our cell plan, it's not expensive at all. Projecting your phone up onto the screen was a big game changer but I still miss the old ways.
i used to get great service on a little itty bitty nokia that you could drive over and it would still work, now i loose the signal not even a 4th of the distance that old service had, no it did not have internet but you would think they would have come up with a split signal so you could still make and receive phone calls and have internet where there is a digital signal.
now I can go into target down the street and loose service, dead zone.
you could chuck a old nokia across the street the rear cover would pop off, the battery would fall out. walk over pick it up put the battery back in, put the cover back on, turn it on and make a phone call lol
This part, leaves a bad taste in my mouth.
At the time of purchase it should have been clear that some of the features currently enabled are going to leave unless you add a subscription.
Is the $300 a year the end of the world, no, but it feels really slimy.
WalleyeMikeIII
Full Access Member
Well, you can actually not display the speed limit sign by turning it off in the instrument cluster settings.
Next time buy a GMC, you get 3 years “included” data!
To be fair to GM
If you dig through their interior advertisement online. It says "Google built-in".
Then if you drill into those words it says; in small print at the very bottom of the page:
Google built-in services are subject to limitations and availability may vary by vehicle, infotainment system and location. Select service plan required. Certain Google actions and functionality may require account linking. User terms and privacy statements apply. Google, Google Play, and Google Maps are trademarks of Google LLC.
So really, how could a customer ever assume they would get those features by buying the truck
.
If you dig through their interior advertisement online. It says "Google built-in".
Then if you drill into those words it says; in small print at the very bottom of the page:
Google built-in services are subject to limitations and availability may vary by vehicle, infotainment system and location. Select service plan required. Certain Google actions and functionality may require account linking. User terms and privacy statements apply. Google, Google Play, and Google Maps are trademarks of Google LLC.
So really, how could a customer ever assume they would get those features by buying the truck
.
