Internet on cell phone anywhere but not laptop?

[lostsoul62]

I can get Internet on my cell phone anywhere but not my laptop. Why? and how can I fix this where my laptop can get Internet anywhere like my cell phone. You go to a hotel and they charge you for wi-fi so you can hook up to the Internet with your laptop.

 

[voyagerfan99]

You need to either enable a tethering plan on your smartphone or get a mobile broadband card that works over USB from a cell carrier.

 

[johnb35]

I've never known a hotel to charge for wifi internet. What hotel are you going to?

 

[voyagerfan99]

I've never known a hotel to charge for wifi internet. What hotel are you going to?

Ha. You'd be surprised. When I stayed at the Embassey Suites in Cleveland back in the summer of 2011 it was $20/day for internet. I think it was wired internet too.

 

[Geoff]

I can get Internet on my cell phone anywhere but not my laptop. Why? and how can I fix this where my laptop can get Internet anywhere like my cell phone. You go to a hotel and they charge you for wi-fi so you can hook up to the Internet with your laptop.

Because your cell phone has a mobile data plan with a cell carrier, while your laptop does not and only uses WiFi. If you want internet anywhere on your laptop, as @voyagerfan99 said you either need to enable tethering or get a mobile hotspot / wireless card for your laptop. Remember though, that mobile data on your phone is often charged per gigabyte used.

I've never known a hotel to charge for wifi internet. What hotel are you going to?

It's very common outside the US, I know when I was in Europe free WiFi was rare. Even in the US, you often get free internet at cheap hotels but the expensive ones sometimes charge you for "premium" WiFi.