Simple Travel Advice: Don’t Pay for Wi-Fi at Airports
The free Wi-Fi at Miami International Airport is 2x as fast as the paid version.
While at the Miami International Airport in the Summer of 2021, I decided to connect to the Wi-Fi. I was given two options with Boingo:
- Unlimited Wi-Fi at download speeds of up to 5 Mbps for free
- Unlimited Wi-Fi at download speeds up to 20 Mbps for $9.99 or $14.99 per month (I don’t remember which)
I chose the free option and then did two speed tests with the Speed Test Speedcheck iPhone app. The download speeds were in the 40–50 Mbps range, and the upload speeds were 2x as much.
Is this false advertising?
I did some research and found the following on this page from Justia:
A common form of false advertising involves deceptive or misleading product descriptions, particularly claims that a product has certain features or benefits that it does not, or that it is of a higher quality than it actually is.
The product descriptions of the 2 Boingo Wi-Fi options were precisely deceptive and misleading. It’d be surprising if Boingo and the Miami International Airport aren’t aware of this.
I also googled define false advertising in Miami and found the following on the Miami-Dade government website.
Misleading Advertisements — Advertising that is false or misleading is illegal. An advertisement that fails to disclose information, or that is ambiguous, partially or even literally true may be found illegal if consumers are deceived by it.
How Merriam-Webster defines deception:
An act or statement intended to make people believe something that is not true.
I wonder how many people have chosen to buy Boingo Wi-Fi at the Miami International Airport because it stated that it would be up to 4x as fast as the free Wi-Fi. And how many of those people paid for the monthly subscription for months because they forgot about it or are now using it in other airports that may have free Wi-Fi that is fast enough for their needs.
Simple traveling advice
When connecting to Wi-Fi at an airport, always choose the free option. Then do a speed test with the Internet Speed Test Speedcheck smartphone app or at SpeedCheck.org to determine if you are being misled and need to upgrade.
Download speeds of 10–20 Mbps are likely fast enough for your needs, even if you want to stream a movie. If you go to this page and scroll down a bit, you’ll see a table showing how fast you need your Wi-Fi to be for specific purposes, from checking email to live streaming on Twitch.
Enjoy your flight!
What is your experience with Wi-Fi at airports? If you’re keen, do a speed test the next time you connect to Wi-Fi at an airport and then report back here with your results.
