Last Updated on December 25, 2021
Some of the larger modern RVs and motor homes now come with full entertainment systems, just like the ones you have at home. The only question is how do you make it work for you when you’re on the road?
Most higher-end private campgrounds offer cable hookups. These are the ones that accommodate people who stay for a long time. Most state or county grounds won’t offer cable. Full hookup means that you have water, electricity and sewage.
I tried to plug into the cable at a KOA but it didn’t work great for me, however, to get around this you can use your own dish to get quality channels or you can use indoor antennas. Most newer small RVs come with their own separate entertainment system in the back, with a DVD/CD player, satellite deck, separate speakers, and flat-screen TV.
Honestly, I don’t even like cable as it is full of commercials and channels I never watch. I had cut my cable years ago and now only use ROKU. I’ve been subscribed to Netflix, Amazon Prime, HBO and SHOWTIME for a while so I always have something to watch. I really don’t need more and I had to figure out a way to make this work on the RV. The problem was, that my TV in my RV was a bit old style, and the ROKU player needs HDMI hookup and also it needs to be plugged into a power outlet. This won’t work when you are dry camping unless you run your generator.
My solution was is to upgrade to a modern 120V TV that has a USB plug and I got the Roku streaming stick. I found out later that the stick also needs to be powered through an outlet but it is less trouble than to have two cables and a ROKU box. To get the internet on my Roku I can tether my laptop through my phone’s unlimited data and use my laptop as a hotspot. Even though most newer computers will allow you to use your computer as a hotspot, I installed a 3rd party software called mHotspot. With this I can stream my ROKU while also able to use my computer to work from the same unlimited cell phone data plan. How awesome is that?
I can also use my Verizon Mi-Fi hotspot as a backup. I got this one just in case Sprint doesn’t work somewhere where Verizon is. I have a pre-paid plan which I have to use every two months. Be careful though because if you don’t have an unlimited data plan, this can cost you a good bit of money depending on your rates.
