Laptop in hospital

i need to spend about two weeks in hospital – i’ll be bored stiff. Im in a single room so plan on taking a laptop and watching netflix all day. Do I just need to upgrade my mobile deal and use the phone as wifi hotspot ? is there another way anyone can think of?

Most hospitals should have public Wifi.

Probably varies massively but when I was in hospital for a couple of weeks with sepsis in 2017, they had free wifi.  Netflix kept me sane.
I know a lot of networks limit using your phone as a hotspot, even with unlimited plans.

Free WiFi in the last hospital I was in overnight. In fact I had to use it as the data/mobile signal were non-existent in the hospital for letting family know what was going on.

Our hospital didn’t have wifi when I was in for 6 1/2 weeks with a broken spine. Also mobile signal was bad, so this involved using a 4g portable router (we already had it), on a power bank hanging from a window lever on the other side of the room. I couldn’t get out of bed, so had to ask the nurses/care assistants to take it over each day once I’d been able to charge overnight.

Got halfway through Walking Dead in that time.

Hospital public WiFi may well be rubbish, there won’t be protected bandwidth and it will probably be maxed out from 8am to 8pm. 

hospitals are also notorious 4G black spots due to the building design.  

Downloads will be your friend here 

As above public WiFi will be crap. Unless you’ve access to Eduroam or something you’ll struggle.

Data signal depends – Halifax was a faraday cage so nothing at all (for example), current place is OK for all networks apart from EE (guess who the trust mobiles are with…) or in the darkest recesses of ED resus.

Our local hospital has excellent free Wifi, can watch Netflix endlessly etc.

Prepare for needing lots of data, hope for decent Wi-Fi

Really depends on the hospital.

Check on the hospital website – it will probably say if they have free wifi. From my experience, most offer wifi but some block streaming apps.

Of course, if you have Netflix or suchlike, you could always download some stuff to your laptop before your stay.

Download , download, download. Get it all onto your laptop so you don’t have to rely on WiFi. And fill up a couple of memory sticks too, just in case.
Get some of your old favourite movies. Get The Wire. get Misfits (the good one). Get Game of Thrones. Put on some books that you’ve always promised yourself you’d read but never got around to. Load on old Judge Dredd stories, and original Tomb Raider game.

You won’t want to come home.

Most offer free WiFi just check for Public WiFi or NHS Free WiFi. Connection on ours isn’t great but it’s fine for Netflix etc.

You will have to provide a number to get a code to login or you can login with a Facebook account.

If all else fails, take the Morphine – you’ll sleep most of the time !

Why not just take your TV and sound bar?

NHS Free WiFi.

Hospital I work at has had this for years. It’s fine for streaming

I don’t think I could hack two weeks of screen time!  I think I’d take some books/kindle and perhaps pay for one of those phone apps that helps you learn a language, come out with the start of a useful skill!  I’ve seen a Youtuber (ColetheCornstar) using one to learn Spanish, seems pretty good, you recite stuff back and it checks your pronunciation and it’ll teach and test you so you are not just reciting all the time.

NHS WiFi & subscribe and watch my YouTube channel. I need a bored, captive audience that’ll watch any old rubbish to while away a few hours. 102 videos to get through though 🤣

how many saw the title & expected WCA to be the author?

Get some of your old favourite movies. Get The Wire. get Misfits…

ER. House. Grey’s Anatomy. Casualty. Marathon Man. Rear Window. Only When I Laugh.

(Get well soon, OP).

Flatliners?

My sister spent a lot of time in various hospitals and often struggled to get any sort of signal.

Spent a week in hospital when I broke my pelvis.
Audio books are awesome, especially if dopey on pain meds. Many hours of entertainment, minimal data or effort.
Although I did get a little too immersed when half asleep with the drugs.

Also Ear defenders can be useful at night.