Stations with wi-fi

[bicbasher]

Which stations have wi-fi and have done deals with TOC's or NR to provide it and is it any good?

London Underground - Virgin Media which also include NR/LOROL platforms at Canada Water.

London Overground - The Cloud. Not picked it up myself, but apparently in operation at New Cross Gate and Dalston Junction.

London Charing Cross (NR) - The Cloud, for the Greggs bakery rather than a deal with Network Rail. Can be received on the concourse and platforms.

 

[Bungle73]

St. Pancras has free WiFi throughout.

 

[Lampshade]

Kings Cross has wifi if you sit near a train with free wifi

 

[Crossover]

As has Leeds, Waverley, Glasgow Central etc

 

[jnjkerbin]

York does too.

 

[ess]

Ealing Broadway, Slough, Maidenhead, Reading

 

[Goatboy]

I've never understood the appeal of station wifi. It's a great idea in theory but frankly the money charged to use it makes it pointless as I've never been to a station with Wifi but no 3G signal.

 

[W-on-Sea]

Oxford and Didcot Parkway are among numerous FGW stations that allow up to an hour's free wifi access a day, from the Cloud. It's free, but you have to register. And yes, it's good: it does all you'd expect it to do.

 

[Bungle73]

I've never understood the appeal of station wifi. It's a great idea in theory but frankly the money charged to use it makes it pointless as I've never been to a station with Wifi but no 3G signal.

That's all very well if you're using a phone (with unlimited data), but what if you're using a tablet or laptop?

 

[Goatboy]

Thats a good point (Though I use my phone as a wifi hotspot for that).

It also seems many offer free wifi these days - last time I connected to a Cloud wifi network at a station it was chargeable.

 

[W-on-Sea]

The one at Didcot only used to offer 15 minutes' free access a day - it was increased to an hour, maybe six months ago.

 

[GlosRail]

Swindon and Cheltenham also have free WIFI which you have to register with. I guess most the bigger FGW stations do now.

 

[All Line Rover]

That's all very well if you're using a phone (with unlimited data), but what if you're using a tablet or laptop?

Tether it. Wirelessly. That way you don't lose the signal once aboard the train. (You don't need unlimited data to tether - just an add-on which on contract plans is often free and rarely costs more than £5 a month).

Installing Wi-Fi in railway stations is an enormous waste of capital investment. Wi-Fi has limited range, is very insecure and struggles with high demand. There is no need for it if a 3G signal is also available. Even for places where a 3G signal is unavailable (e.g. basement coffee shops), I'd be wary about using Wi-Fi.

 

[Bungle73]

Tether it. Wirelessly. That way you don't lose the signal once aboard the train. (You don't need unlimited data to tether - just an add-on which on contract plans is often free and rarely costs more than £5 a month).

Installing Wi-Fi in railway stations is an enormous waste of capital investment. Wi-Fi has limited range, is very insecure and struggles with high demand. There is no need for it if a 3G signal is also available. Even for places where a 3G signal is unavailable (e.g. basement coffee shops), I'd be wary about using Wi-Fi.

Some packages don't allow tethering, and those that do usually charge extra for it. If you don't have unlimited data it will eat into your data allowance. And tethering requires a phone that is capable of it. You've only got to go to places where WiFi is available to see plenty of people using it, so hardly a waste. I always use WiFi if it's available, and free to use.

 

[All Line Rover]

Some packages don't allow tethering, and those that do usually charge extra for it. If you don't have unlimited data it will eat into your data allowance. And tethering requires a phone that is capable of it. You've only got to go to places where WiFi is available to see plenty of people using it, so hardly a waste. I always use WiFi if it's available, and free to use.

Most packages don't allow tethering by default but almost all have an add-on available which is usually staggeringly cheap compared to the fees that Wi-Fi providers (and TOCs) charge for going over the 'free daily usage' allowance, which is often as low as 15 minutes.

Using up your phone's data allowance is unlikely to be a problem unless you stream video, which is often blocked or impossible on Wi-Fi networks, so tethering is no worse in this respect.

Around half of the UK population now own a smartphone, and this number is increasing all the time as smartphones plummet in price (e.g. Samsung smartphones can be picked up for as little as £7.50 a month!).

It is possible to achieve speeds of 3mb+ on 3G (rarely possible on Wi-Fi) and have an individual, password-protected connection (impossible on Wi-Fi, unless you fancy faffing about with VPNs).

Just because many people currently use Wi-Fi doesn't mean it is the best solution. Investing millions of pounds in the technology is very short-sighted (except, perhaps, on the London Underground, where 3G signals are not available and Virgin Media are paying a hefty percentage of the investment).

 

[bicbasher]

Until the mobile networks improve their infrastructure and their price plans, free wi-fi is the only real alternative for those of us with rubbish data plans.

There is an incentive for those wi-fi providers, The Cloud asks for an email address and I'm sure Virgin Media's from January when they start charging some users to access the London Underground wi-fi will do similar.

 

[mullin]

Any station (well, I've only tried Euston and Manchester) with a First Class Virgin Lounge - so long as you're close enough to the lounge

 

[HSTEd]

Tether it. Wirelessly. That way you don't lose the signal once aboard the train. (You don't need unlimited data to tether - just an add-on which on contract plans is often free and rarely costs more than £5 a month).

So there is now a tax of however much a contract smartphone costs on the internet access?

I have a GSM phone with ASDA Mobile.... I probably spend as much as people spend in one month using contract phones every quarter, if not longer.
I have no need for a smartphone, I have access to WiFi almost everyhwere I might want to access the internet.

Installing Wi-Fi in railway stations is an enormous waste of capital investment. Wi-Fi has limited range, is very insecure and struggles with high demand. There is no need for it if a 3G signal is also available. Even for places where a 3G signal is unavailable (e.g. basement coffee shops), I'd be wary about using Wi-Fi.

It doesn't cost very much and I don't see how security is really an issue?
People do do things over the internet that don't involve significant risk of monetary loss you know?
Maybe 3G will take over, but not until it is possible to go into a shop and buy a pay as you go phone for five pounds like you can with GSM.

OH NO! PEOPLE MIGHT FIND OUT I POST ON RAIL FORUMS.......

 

[All Line Rover]

It doesn't cost very much and I don't see how security is really an issue?
People do do things over the internet that don't involve significant risk of monetary loss you know?
Maybe 3G will take over, but not until it is possible to go into a shop and buy a pay as you go phone for five pounds like you can with GSM.

Personally I'm more concerned about the fact that, over Wi-Fi, people can quite easily access the files on your computer and/or implant viruses on it.

If you don't have a smartphone you can get a dongle for as little as £5 a month (even less after cashback). Peanuts! You don't have to worry about where the nearest Wi-Fi hotspot is, don't have to worry about the security of your connection, and so on.

 

[HSTEd]

Personally I'm more concerned about the fact that, over Wi-Fi, people can quite easily access the files on your computer and/or implant viruses on it.

If you don't have a smartphone you can get a dongle for as little as £5 a month (even less after cashback). Peanuts! You don't have to worry about where the nearest Wi-Fi hotspot is, don't have to worry about the security of your connection, and so on.

..... This isn't hollywood.

You will be extremely hard pressed to infiltrate a WiFI connection system like that without direct access to the wireless router providing the service, you can't mount a man-in-the-middle attack practically. (Unless like idiots you go connecting to random networks named 'EastCoazt WiFi' or something).

This is the same vulnerability that a 3G dongle has btw, someone could break into the cell tower's equipment cabinet and subvert the whole damn cell wtih a simple man in the midldle attack.

As to £5/month not being "very much".... that is still £60 a year for a capability I simply don't need since I don't need to access the internet in places where I don't have WiFI apart from perhaps stations (and since stations and trains now have WiFi...).

Over the lifetime of my mobile computing capability you will likely have had me spend about as much as said capability cost on just the internet connection for it. (I spent £199 on a Acer Aspire One Netbook in Sainsbury's more than two years ago now and apart from a pair of new chargers (at £25 each) it continues to serve today and for the forseable future).

And before you ask why I am using a puny Netbook and not a Laptop.... I can buy a Netbook and my home built Desktop for half the price of a laptop with the processing power of said desktop and since I don't do computationally intensive things on the move....

 

[Alteran Ancient]

I've experienced my fair share of access points - residential, public, educational and corporate.

BT Openzone appears to be the least reliable out of all the popular ones; plus you need to have a BT account or be with one of BT's partners. The Cloud works as advertised when you can get it, and usually gives you 15 minutes or more for free. Not everywhere has it, though. I believe The Cloud is SSP's selected Wi-Fi provider, so that's what you're most likely to get at stations.

T-Mobile's one isn't free unless you're travelling First Class, but that usually works well.

I take my hat off to Virgin Media Wi-Fi, though. Most of the bigger Tube stations are kitted-out with it, and it works brilliantly. Considering it's Virgin's first attempt at offering public Wi-Fi, they've done a fantastic job. That, and they let customers use it for free until the end of this year, which seems like nothing short of an intentional middle-finger directed towards BT who were previously in talks with TfL for Wi-Fi on the Underground.

I'm happy to use public Wi-Fi, but only if it's hassle-free. I'd rather use that instead of my 1GB allowance with O2 - and that's when they're being generous!

 

[Bungle73]

That, and they let customers use it for free until the end of this year,

Actually Virgin customers can use it for free indefinitely.

 

[Alteran Ancient]

Actually Virgin customers can use it for free indefinitely.

Tube Customers - free until the end of the year (or until Virgin change their mind again).

Virgin Customers - free until hell freezes over (it's a "perk" they can sell their packages with).

They extended the freebie period once already - I think because the technical goings-on that allows Virgin customers free access and non-customers subscriptions or agreements via other providers are probably incomplete.

 

[bicbasher]

VM wi-fi on the tube will still be free for customers of VM, Vodafone and EE after January. How a landline VM customer who may have an O2 or 3 smartphone be able to access the service from then is another question.

 

[Bungle73]

Tube Customers - free until the end of the year (or until Virgin change their mind again).

Ah, Tube "customers", otherwise known to normal people as "passengers"

VM wi-fi on the tube will still be free for customers of VM, Vodafone and EE after January. How a landline VM customer who may have an O2 or 3 smartphone be able to access the service from then is another question.

What's what mobile network you're on got to do with using WiFi?

 

[Be3G]

From what I've read (following the world of technology fairly closely), the mobile phone companies are actually keen to encourage WiFi use because the huge growth in smartphones with persistent data connections has resulted in them running out of capacity, and it's felt that a cheaper and more reliable way to increase capacity in urban areas is by installing WiFi. Hence, for example, even O2 have set themselves up as a WiFi provider!

Anyway, the main reason I'm posting to this thread is actually to point out this which I read earlier. Does anyone know what the 100 stations will be?

 

[jon0844]

It's far less likely a mobile operator will have its network hacked compared to someone setting up a fake hot spot with a valid SSID. Why would they incorrectly spell it?

The chance of that is tiny, but higher than any thought of a mobile data connection being compromised.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

 

[scotsman]

The Cloud works as advertised when you can get it, and usually gives you 15 minutes or more for free. Not everywhere has it, though. I believe The Cloud is SSP's selected Wi-Fi provider, so that's what you're most likely to get at stations.

It depends where you are. SSP may charge, but JD Wetherspoon and McDonalds offer free wifi with no time limit.

 

[jopsuk]

Anyway, the main reason I'm posting to this thread is actually to point out this which I read earlier. Does anyone know what the 100 stations will be?

Hmm. They do obviously mention come of the included stations. According to Wikipedia they serve 168 stations. So it's more "which 68 won't be included?"

They don't manage Liverpool Street- that's Network Rail's responsibility. Upminster is c2c. Waterbeach, Littleport, Downham Market, Watlington and Kings Lynn are FCC. Peterborough is East Coast.

So that's 8 that are unlikely to be part of any GA scheme.

I doubt Berney Arms will be included (it would be a cute stunt if it is). Same goes for all the other unmanned stations, how many GA-managed stations are completely unmanned?