Originally Posted by
daniellam
If the hotel uses SIP/VOIP based phones for their in-room phones, try connecting your computer into the "data" port on the phone using an ethernet cable. Sometimes you can even get free internet at higher speeds (bypassing the hotel's paid wifi system)! You might need to change your network adapter settings to use 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4 as your DNS servers for it to work.
I am in a Courtyard in Costa Rica with "enhanced" WiFi of 4.5 mb/sec, and no idea of what the free speed is but it cannot be much worse, I'd think. I have 40 mb/sec LTE on my phone through the local cellular company. Because I connected to 9 different Marriott wifi systems in the last month it was auto connecting but this is the first time it was feeble vs. enhanced.
But under the desk I spot an ethernet port this morning so off to Walmart I go and $6 later I try it and what do you know. 43 mb/sec and DNS from Level 3. After a while because I am on a mac the network connection changed to my DNS choice of OpenDNS. The router/gateway is not the same as assigned to the wifi adapter.
I did have to connect again to Marriott with my account credentials (not the room #/ name login).
There is a data port in the phone but I did not try as I suspect it's not on the same network, but is a phone line because the phone is connected with what looks like a phone cord vs an ethernet cable. The phone has an ethernet port for connecting that's unused so I think the available port on the side of the phone won't work at all.
Look for an ethernet port especially in newer hotels where it is not a case that old wired internet was superseded by wifi later.
Now I can change my wifi from connecting via WiFi, to sharing my honking fast signal via WiFi with my other devices.
Customers should not have to resort to shenanigans.