Looking at getting a VRS rover. Verizon was recommended for data, but apparently they don't do sim cards. All of our phones are AT&T, so guess that's the answer. Could get one for the phone, or a card in the controller. Any recommendations? What do they cost? How much data if it's used 10 hours or so a week? any other tips?
Look at the no contract data plans from AT&T. I had one for my DC and it worked out fine.
I believe VRS is trademarked to Trimble so I am assuming a Trimble rover?
I have a R8 Model 1 running on a Trimble RTN network here in Central Texas.
I have an AT&T SIM card mounted in the receiver head and I bluetooth to the TSC2 controller running Trimble Survey Controller 12.45.
I was told by my local Trimble rep that the TSC3 with the SIM mounted in the controller actually picked up the cell signal/data corrections better.
I have a grandfathered unlimited data plan which I have never even come close to using any significant amount of data. If limited data is a concern, when running the controller, there is a "pause" feature for streaming the data. Toggle on for occupied points, toggle off for moving in between points, while keeping the network conncetion open.
The best thing to do is look for the best coverage area of the local cell network providers. If everyone is using AT&T, then perhaps that is the best provider for your area.
I know a former Trimble rep who carried a SIM card from AT&T, Verizon & Sprint to be able to get his gear to work in whichever market he was operating in.
I cannot speak for Leica's RTN or any other flavor.
'Just my .04'
run at&t 2gb plan on the leica GS14- no complaints at all. though it didn't want to fix at all this morning in this soup weather. bagged it and had a beer for lunch...
Might consider looking into a Verzion JetPack:
http://www.verizonwireless.com/wcms/consumer/shop/prepaid.html
The weekly pay as you go allows me to turn the service on and off depending on my project needs and at $15 a week it's plenty of data. The wifi is also easy to use for other devices (laptops, tablets, etc).
We use an AT&T cell phone on the Ky VRS network. Our data usage is around 1MB per hour.
