Tep Wireless: Your New Essential Travel Item
A Tep Wireless is a small device that fits in your pocket and allows you to connect to the internet at any time. Think of it like carrying around your modem, but much smaller and without cables.
Having a Tep Wireless whilst abroad will allow you to connect to wifi on-the-go without being restricted to your hotel or Starbucks. In fact you don't even need to be indoors, you can connect to wifi in the great open outdoors - like on the Golden Gate:
We trialled a Tep Wireless in the USA for nine days, and this is what we thought:
Why we wanted a Tep Wireless
The main reason we decided to go for a Tep Wireless was because of the US transportation system: a couple of weeks before our trip we thought 'oh no, American public transport it's non-existent, right?' We knew we'd have to catch a bunch of ubers and knew we wouldn't be able to rely on free airport wifi to do this.
In the end it turned out we didn't use uber once in the US - ironically thanks to the Tep!! Because we had wifi on-the-go, it allowed us to a) look up where and when the next bus/train was going from and b) once we were actually on said bus/train, we used the Tep Wireless to navigate where we were.
We used the Tep Wireless in so many more ways, but more on that in a moment, first of all the ordering process:
How to order a Tep Wireless
Renting a Tep Wireless on their website: www.tepwireless.com is super easy, simply follow the three steps.
Tep Wireless can be used across most of the globe:
You can choose to rent a Tep by country, by area (e.g. Asia or Central America) or you can even pick global!
If you're a frequent traveller, you'll probably want to think about just buying a Tep device - the great thing about doing that is you only pay for the days that you use it! So even if your travel plans have big gaps in-between, frequent traveller is still the best option for you.
Once our Tep was ordered we didn't have to wait long at all (just three days!) for it to arrive. And what I liked best about the arrival were the updates on text and email:
The only thing was, I was expecting a lot of packages and I didn't know these texts and emails were coming from Tep until it arrived! Still, it's so professional and convenient that Tep picked a carrier that let me know when they would be there.
It arrived in a compact package complete with instruction manual and portable charger.
The charger itself was awesome - it had an adaptable plug which could be used world-wide (very sensible) or you could just charge it using a USB outlet.
Review of Tep Wireless
So far so good: The website was super easy to use, the Tep was compact with a great charger, but what was it actually like using it?
It was exactly like using mobile data at home, in terms of the wifi connectivity and ease of use. It was unlike using mobile data at home in that it didn't cost an arm and a leg.
I can't tell you how good it felt to leave the hotel room without having pre-planned and screen shot our day. Usually, before we leave the hotel we do something along the lines of this:
- Plan where we want to go that day
- Print screen the walking directions to public transport
- Print screen the bus/train times for the next hour or so in case some are delayed
- Print screen the walking directions from public transport to wherever we're going
- Make sure we've print screened a wide enough area in case we walk the wrong way
- Look up a few different options for where to have lunch
Etc. but with a Tep Wireless we didn't have to do ANY of that!! We could just walk out of the hotel room, get lost, use the Tep to find where we were. Use the Tep to look up where we wanted to go, use the Tep to find the best way to get there. Use the Tep on route to check we were still going in the correct direction.
When we got hungry we could just use the Tep to find the closest/best restaurant.
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| Vegenation - found in Vegas thanks to Tep and the HappyCow App |
If you've ever been travelling without internet, you'll know what I'm talking about.
When we were travelling on the bus from LA to Vegas, we used the Tep to track exactly where we were on the road (and how much longer we had left).
When we were travelling on the bus from LA to Vegas, we used the Tep to track exactly where we were on the road (and how much longer we had left).
But the Tep Wireless didn't stop by 'just' helping us have a stress free, (print-screen free) day. It had lots more uses:
Instagram
Have you ever uploaded an awesome Instagram story (or maybe a Snapchat story) saved it, connected back to wifi later to upload it and found it's disappeared? This happens to me all the time!! But not with Tep! I could upload it instantly - and I connected with our Instagram followers so much more!
Some of our followers messaged us with tips and recommendations - which we could read on the spot and then follow through! (As opposed to what usually happens: we read them later when we finally have wifi, and by then it's too late to take them up on their recommendations.)
It also meant I could upload my Instagram photos at an optimal time! Instead of wasting time, waiting at the hotel to upload the photo.
Hotel use
Speaking of hotels: having a Tep means you don't have to rely on hotel wifi; both in terms of the fact that you can use the internet whilst travelling about and not in your hotel room, but also because you can also use it IN YOUR HOTEL ROOM!
What?
Okay, anyone whose ever stayed someplace with bad wifi will know what I'm talking about - a couple of times on our USA trip we found ourselves using the Tep to work because a) you can connect your laptop to your Tep Wireless and b) our Tep Wireless had better download/upload speed than our hotel.
And even if your hotel wifi is great, there are still some things you shouldn't do on hotel wifi with a shared connection - like checking your credit card/anything to do with money.
I checked our credit card a few times whilst we were in the USA (we have a 0% conversion rate so we were using it to buy stuff there). It was so nice to be able to check our accounts without worrying that we were on an unsafe connection.
Also, we didn't need to use this because we both speak English - but can you imagine using Tep in a country where you don't speak the language? You can have google translate doing all your speaking for you, no more bad charades for you!
Hotel use
Speaking of hotels: having a Tep means you don't have to rely on hotel wifi; both in terms of the fact that you can use the internet whilst travelling about and not in your hotel room, but also because you can also use it IN YOUR HOTEL ROOM!
What?
Okay, anyone whose ever stayed someplace with bad wifi will know what I'm talking about - a couple of times on our USA trip we found ourselves using the Tep to work because a) you can connect your laptop to your Tep Wireless and b) our Tep Wireless had better download/upload speed than our hotel.
And even if your hotel wifi is great, there are still some things you shouldn't do on hotel wifi with a shared connection - like checking your credit card/anything to do with money.
I checked our credit card a few times whilst we were in the USA (we have a 0% conversion rate so we were using it to buy stuff there). It was so nice to be able to check our accounts without worrying that we were on an unsafe connection.
Also, we didn't need to use this because we both speak English - but can you imagine using Tep in a country where you don't speak the language? You can have google translate doing all your speaking for you, no more bad charades for you!
Are there any disadvantages to using a Tep?
Hopefully you can tell by now that I was SUPER impressed by the Tep Wireless - we thought we'd only use it a couple of times a day but quickly found there were plenty of things to use it for.
That's probably why I found the battery didn't last all day - because I was always on it. If you're not a travel blogger/social media influencer and aren't on your phone all day then I can't imagine you'd have the same problem.
If you're worried though, you can always rent a power bank too. My phone also ran out of battery - I literally didn't see much of the USA at all, just my screen 😭
Returning the Tep Wireless if you go back to the UK is super easy (and free) simply drop it off at Heathrow or at London Paddington.
Sending it back from other countries depends on where you're sending it from. It will cost $5-$60 depending on which country you're sending it from. And note it does have a battery in it so some countries (like Thailand) get a bit funny about sending those.
In the end (as we were sending it from Thailand), we decided it was easier to keep the device: it was going to cost $60 to FedEx it back and we knew we'd use it again in the future (and at just $8 a day this made a lot more sense).
What about just getting a sim card?
Some people get a sim card when they travel, with data on it that they can use. This is why a Tep is better:
Hopefully you can tell by now that I was SUPER impressed by the Tep Wireless - we thought we'd only use it a couple of times a day but quickly found there were plenty of things to use it for.
That's probably why I found the battery didn't last all day - because I was always on it. If you're not a travel blogger/social media influencer and aren't on your phone all day then I can't imagine you'd have the same problem.
If you're worried though, you can always rent a power bank too. My phone also ran out of battery - I literally didn't see much of the USA at all, just my screen 😭
Returning the Tep Wireless if you go back to the UK is super easy (and free) simply drop it off at Heathrow or at London Paddington.
Sending it back from other countries depends on where you're sending it from. It will cost $5-$60 depending on which country you're sending it from. And note it does have a battery in it so some countries (like Thailand) get a bit funny about sending those.
In the end (as we were sending it from Thailand), we decided it was easier to keep the device: it was going to cost $60 to FedEx it back and we knew we'd use it again in the future (and at just $8 a day this made a lot more sense).
What about just getting a sim card?
Some people get a sim card when they travel, with data on it that they can use. This is why a Tep is better:
- Tep Wireless wifi is unlimited - unlike most sim packages
- If you're going to lots of different countries you don't have to get lots of different sim cards
- Having a Tep saves you time - it gets sent to your house before you leave, you don't have to waste the precious time of your holiday finding a sim card
- You can connect up to five devices to your Tep, including your laptops - which you can't do with a sim
Conclusion
All in all, we were very impressed with our Tep wireless - it solved so many problems for us, including ones we didn't even realise we had (like wasting our lives taking screen shots of all the directions).
We live in a world where everything is so much easier with the internet and it's so great to be connected. Having a Tep Wireless is by far the easiest way to connect to the internet on the go and we recommend you get one on your next trip.
Disclaimer: Travelling Weasels were offered a Tep Wireless in return for an honest review and all opinions are our own. We loved the Tep so much we're keeping it and will be paying to use it on our next trip.
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