This tiny router lets you share that Gogo connection with multiple devices
Most airlines seem like they are constantly trying to out-Wi-Fi each other, offering faster speeds, upgraded technology or more options for in-flight streaming. Although there might be improved connectivity, it is often limited to one device at a time, forcing you to rely solely on your laptop while your iPhone serves as nothing more than an expensive paperweight. Gogo, for example, doesn't allow you to connect two devices with the same credentials. You can log out on one one device and log in on another, but only if you bought a Gogo pass using your tablet or laptop and not while using a mobile phone. So you could either try to memorize that kind of restriction, or you could check out a device like this.
The HooToo Wireless Travel Router allows you to share one network connection — such as an all-day Gogo pass — between multiple devices. The HooToo, which currently retails for $18.99 on Amazon, only weighs one ounce and is powered by the USB port on your laptop or the one built in to your airplane seat. There are also a couple of larger HooToo versions that have external battery packs or built-in power sources, which would also enable them to charge your other mobile devices.
As Gary Leff wrote on View From the Wing:
"The idea is that you use the travel router to create your own network. All of your devices connect to that network, which connects to the Wi-Fi. All you have to do is connect to the router, pull up a browser, and log in on the router’s admin page. From that page you search for and connect to Wi-Fi, whether at a hotel or inflight. Then your devices connect to your own network!"
It could also be used in hotels to create your own Wi-Fi network — especially if it's a property where you'd have to pay to use the Wi-Fi but a network cable is available for free. The HooToo would let you get around any of the hotel's restrictions on the number of devices that could be connected at once.
At the very least, it might make you feel slightly better about paying $16 for in-flight Wi-Fi: if it's only $8 per device, that doesn't sound nearly as bad.