Onstar 4g upgrade - free wifi hotspot - Canada

EaZ8 · June 26, 2015

Well i just got a email from onstar that my truck is eligible to get the 4g wifi hotspot installed.

i really only want the upgrade so that i can start my truck from my office in the winter (they are cutting off all 2g service in Canada so the onstar app would be toast here without the update.), but it coming with a 3 month free trial and 3gig of data right before my 10 day road trip doesnt hurt either.

ive used the wifi hotspot on other 2015s and the internet is surprisingly reliable, i dont really think ill pay for service after the 3 month trial because really i have 5 or 6 gig of data on my phone that can turn into a hotspot and internet at home...dont really need a truck that has it but whatever.

for those of you in Canada, call onstar with your vin they will program the onstar module and ship to your dealer.

i was told it should be at my dealer within a week or 2.

GMC-AT · June 26, 2015

That's my thought.. I don't understand what the big deal is about the GM cars/ truck having a 4G hotspot ? This is probably the last thing I care about. I hit 1 button on my phone and I have a 4G hotspot if I need it. I think most people have this now... especially those that can afford a 40K+ truck.

BigBadSierra · June 26, 2015

They need to do the Upgrades soon. They are already shutting down 2G towers in my area so the onstar app is hit or miss on where it works now.

redwngr · June 26, 2015

That's my thought.. I don't understand what the big deal is about the GM cars/ truck having a 4G hotspot ? This is probably the last thing I care about. I hit 1 button on my phone and I have a 4G hotspot if I need it. I think most people have this now... especially those that can afford a 40K+ truck.

The issue is that the 'old' onstar system used the 2g cellular system and 2g is being turned off by the cell system providers.

The 2015's are already 4g. 2014's are eligible for no cost hardware upgrade. (I know this is also true for a least some GM 2014 cars).

No cost and it will at least mean you can continue to use the onstar app on the phone for remote access.

EaZ8 · June 26, 2015

They need to do the Upgrades soon. They are already shutting down 2G towers in my area so the onstar app is hit or miss on where it works now.

call onstar with your vin and get them to escalate your vehicle....they will do it if you complain about service issues.

im really glad its a free upgrade... when i had a 2003 CTS they had the same issue and they were not giving free hardware upgrades.

i dont get why they even buit the 14's with the 2g, they have known for about 3 years that the 2g was doing to be shut down, and a even worst move is doing 4g and doing a dual or tri band service. i know in areas that i had 2g coverage i dont have 3g, LTE or 4g on my phone. yes the 2 g will be gone but make it 3g/4g/LTE.

if my cellphone can house 3 antennas im sure my truck can handle a couple extra wires...

COP TZR · June 27, 2015

Going to call on Monday regarding the 2014 upgrade. I cancelled OnStar after receiving letter that service would be deteriorating.

tbare54 · June 29, 2015

If a simple hardware change is all that is required for the upgrade to 4G, why isn't this being offered to all 2014 Silverado-Sierra owners, even here in the US. I travel through Canada with mine, all the time, so what do I do for the ONSTAR service.

rocnrol · June 30, 2015

That's my thought.. I don't understand what the big deal is about the GM cars/ truck having a 4G hotspot ? This is probably the last thing I care about. I hit 1 button on my phone and I have a 4G hotspot if I need it. I think most people have this now... especially those that can afford a 40K+ truck.

It's not a big deal for everyone I suppose, but it truly does have a use, I was just out camping on the weekend with zero Cell reception, but I had WiFi from the truck and was able to BBM with the wife letting her know all of us got out there ok and what not

TxTruckMan · June 30, 2015

It's not a big deal for everyone I suppose, but it truly does have a use, I was just out camping on the weekend with zero Cell reception, but I had WiFi from the truck and was able to BBM with the wife letting her know all of us got out there ok and what not

How did your truck have a signal and not your phone? Different service provider?

rocnrol · June 30, 2015

How did your truck have a signal and not your phone? Different service provider?

that's the benefit of onstar...... its satellite. I had xm too. maybe that's whats being missed here as the big benefit of using onstar.

TxTruckMan · June 30, 2015

that's the benefit of onstar...... its satellite. I had xm too. maybe that's whats being missed here as the big benefit of using onstar.

Huh? Not correct. The only thing satellite based is XM radio. OnStar uses AT&T cellular service in the US. They previously used Verizon.

rocnrol · June 30, 2015

Huh? Not correct. The only thing satellite based is XM radio. OnStar uses AT&T cellular service in the US. They previously used Verizon.

yep..... i'm an idiot, lol. I was looking into it after I said that, and got edumicated. that being said, what ever GM is doing with that system in the truck, I had wifi from the truck, not my phone data package. don't know what to say.

EaZ8 · July 1, 2015

How did your truck have a signal and not your phone? Different service provider?

the onstar uses a stronger antenna and higher voltage to get better signal than cell phones. i have no cell coverage at my cottage but im able to make very clea calls using onstar.

EaZ8 · July 1, 2015

If a simple hardware change is all that is required for the upgrade to 4G, why isn't this being offered to all 2014 Silverado-Sierra owners, even here in the US. I travel through Canada with mine, all the time, so what do I do for the ONSTAR service.

USA isnt decommissioning the 2g cell network, Canada is so OnStar has no option at this point.

im sure if you really wanted to upgrade yours they will do it but not for free. one of the stipulations i believe is the vehicle has to have been sold as new in Canada.