And as an example it's flat out wrong because you don't know what I need.
It's clear that you're angry and are taking it personally since you won't let this go and you keep insisting that you're right and I'm wrong. Okay then, you really want to do this?
Let's do this. I've actually got a good handle on what you
do need. You already made it clear, and I have a pretty solid idea where most of your data is being used.
As convoluted as you think my setup is, it serves me well. I use online GPS because Waze/Google Maps save me at least 4 hours a month sitting in traffic. I could switch to voice/text only, but to me the time saved is worth the $15 spent.
Waze/Google Maps are online, live updating (streaming) GPS services. Very little local map data is stored to your phone in this mode. You are using these services primarily for the traffic updates to save you your precious time while driving around doing the clown car habit way too much for whatever reason. Traffic updates are only a tiny fraction of the total data involved in GPS services. If you used offline GPS maps with an online traffic update component from say Sygic, you wouldn't need so much bleeding data. The cost of offline maps and an annual traffic subscription together is less than the comparable online data habit over the course of a year for online GPS map usage, and the nice thing about Sygic is that you only buy the maps themselves once. So yes, this is equally facepunch worthy stupid data use equivalent to lolcat videos on Youtube.
This is not a new statement, by the way. I already said this once in this thread specifically about your setup.
Keeping this in mind, we can now see that DarinC's setup is a ridiculously convoluted and wasteful one done just to indulge the fallacies of needing "unlimited" anything or that people need online GPS to navigate.
-snip-
Going Ultra and using an offline GPS app (even Google Maps supports this now), he could have gotten his unlimited calling, texting and 600MB of 4G data (which is a lot of data, especially for someone who constantly hooks up to WiFi hotspots and can do nearly everything needed on occasional 2G data anyway) on any pentaband GSM phone of his choice for $25/month.
Moving on...
The laptop is also something I need for work.
I'm also not sure why you're suggesting Ultra.me. I've had terrible signal from both TMO and ATT MVNOs.
I'd be all over Ring Plus would be great if they allowed roaming on VZW like RW, but unfortunately that isn't something they do and it would mean lack of voice service depending on where I am, which is the same issue I had with sim based carriers. With that said, if you know of any CDMA MVNOs that offer ~1GB of data/month, voice/text roaming, a fair amount of talk/text, and will do BYOD for $20/month, I'm down with that.
And believe it or not, the great part of having two data providers, one of which is only $4/month and nets me a great free laptop, or conversely, is free with the purchase of a great $200 laptop, is that when data isn't available through Sprint, I generally can get data through TMO, and vice versa.
It sounds like what you
actually need is service through Verizon to satisfy your actual needs regarding voice and data reception, especially for work related habits which probably involves a lot of driving. As already pointed out, there are viable options that would drastically slash your data dependence with your navigation needs. You don't know this, because you didn't research. In an effort to cut corners and save money without properly assessing your needs, you have instead compromised on service, coverage, availability and quality by choosing an under-priced provider with shallow promises that is a poor fit at best because the price looked attractive compared to what you figured you needed. Unfortunately, going this route has left you needing a secondary backup data connection more often than not to deal with poor data coverage on Sprint's network, not that it matters much because you have a cellular provider who won't let you tether either. This need for business data is obvious because of your especially whiny first world problem statement here:
You may be OK spending hours looking for signal or an open wifi network, but my time is more valuable to me that that. Running into a hard cap at 100MB/600MB and having to pay for extra or troll around for an open wifi network is just as frustrating/time consuming.
Even if I'm off-base about the GPS data dependence, I'm not wrong about your decision making. You need more than what Republic is providing to give you what's actually necessary for your business needs. You chose Republic anyway because you chose cutting corners and cheaping out over paying for what you actually needed. Realistically however, from the information you have provided thus-far, it would probably be a safe statement to make that if you actually exercised a little discipline and worked smarter, you would have made fewer reliability and coverage compromises if you'd gone with Page Plus, and it's entirely possible that with the addition of an offline GPS service, you could comfortably squeeze in under the 500MB mark. This puts Page Plus' $30 Talk n Text 1200 plan into serviceable territory, with the ability to pay for data overages instead of having a "hard cap". Added benefit, because the data usage is fixed, Page Plus can't kick you off for tethering. The cost is nearly identical, there is no savings. You chose to go with the cheapest solution you could find with the biggest numbers instead of paying for what you actually need. Reliable business related services are
needs, and you don't cut corners on business expenses. This means one of two things: 1) you're incredibly short-sighted, or 2) you don't actually
need your services as much as you argue you do if you're willing to cut these sorts of corners just to save a couple bucks a month, which means you don't actually need as much or are as dependent upon your service as you claim.
Your setup is a result of your chosen mobile provider, and reads like compromises and workarounds to shortcomings the way you describe them. That makes it a ridiculously convoluted setup that was necessary because you chose not to pay for what you actually need, which makes you appear to be yet another stereotypical Republic Wireless customer turning somersaults to justify their decision making process when someone points out some critical flaw.
All the same, if you actually did do proper research and Republic does actually fit all your needs to a "T" despite your own comments to the contrary, you claimed it served your needs. That's all the defense you need. If someone is wrong on the internet about you specifically, who cares? Not that it matters... remember?
If I'm using your setup as an example of why people should research more and not cut financial corners on actually getting the service they need, and I tell you specifically not to take it personally.... why are you still here trying to defend your choices to the internet?
Even if I'm wrong about you specifically, your example as presented was still a valuable tool to demonstrate the importance of doing research, not cutting corners, and paying for what you actually
need. Clearly though, I've hit a nerve. I am sorry that you've been so gravely offended, but let it go man. You're trying to save face in an argument where your opponent cares more about providing sound advice for people shopping around for new service than your feelings.
Are we finally done now? It looks like we're done now.
*drops his keyboard like a mic and walks away*