Hello all, recent owner of 2026 CX-5 2.5 S SE. Can anyone clear up a little confusion over WiFi in this vehicle. Apparent my new vehicle comes with free trial for WiFi hotspot via AT&T. Dealer told me 1 year free, Mazda phone support told me 3 months. When I go to website that Mazda emailed me link for and I enter my VIN, it says 1 month of 2 GB free. I use Apple Car Play with a plan of 3 GB data per month limit. Not certain why I need a Hotspot other than for Google Assistant? Without WiFi in my car, how does my car connect to outside world for say Google Maps or SOS call if I don’t have my cell with me? If anyone is using Mazda Hotspot, or AT&T, or your own personal Hotspot, how much data does it use? Current I use Siri for directions and it uses my cell 5G network.

To add to confusion, when I turn on WiFi Client mode, I get a message: Vehicle services currently using vehicle embedded connectivity will be disabled. What would be effected? There seems to be no documentation on this. Any input or experience would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

 

Never understood why anyone needs a Wi-Fi hot spot when in a vehicle.
They are for business, entertainment, system updates something the driver should never be doing while driving.
That said, NAV uses direct satellite connection and requires no Wi-Fi.
Not sure why anyone who already has a cellphone which can handle all "outside connections", would spend more money on Wi-Fi connection for their vehicle.
But then after being on call 24/7 during my employment years, I'm now retired and spend my money wisely and only carry a flip phone which I turn on only for emergencies.
Not hearing my cellphone ring for the past 10 years is one of the best things about retirement.

 

The top hotspot option is for the vehicle's own dedicated hotspot. The client option is for the vehicle to connect to an existing connection, such as your home wifi.

Why people use this varies. As for the car's wifi hotspot, it allows those with families that use devices like ipads (which are sold with Wi-Fi only and wifi plus cell) to connect to wifi rather than tether to a parent phone. It also allows those that use GB limited plans like Straight Talk, Tracfone, Boost etc to have unlimited data for car stuff like kids, movies, games, your own maps etc. I personally told my kids to look out the window for full HD entertainment but some don't want to bother with talking to kids.

For the client one, the newer system will have OTA updates. To get those you will need Wi-Fi so you can use your home wifi to get those. They gave you options.

Unfortunately, many auto makers with the new built in OS's like Android built in limit most functionality once the trial ends. If you don't buy the plan you don't have much that works. I don't know if Mazda did this. Hopefully not.

 

Most any new smart phone can be used as wi-fi hot spot and you're already paying a fee for that.
Adults and kids today who can't go without the internet during a trip in a vehicle have very limited imagination if any.
It's really a sad comment on society as a whole, there are too many people who can longer carry on a conversation face to face.
Eye contact, sentence structure and grammar are nearly non-existent and without emojis many can't emotionally express themselves.
Sigh........

And yes, I purposely did that.

 

Not to drag this thread off topic some more......but, I hear ya Lobstah. My Wife and kids have bought me a Smart Watch, Earbuds, etc. over the years.......all of them have totally dead batteries now. Never use them. They just don't understand how blissfully "disconnected" can be! The best thing I use my Smartphone for, is playing some of my classic R&R from Spotify, so my young granddaughters can dance for me (and with me, when asked to do so).......warms the hell out of my heart!

 

I can give you a good reason. My wife uses it for her laptop to do her business while I drive to our destination. It works better than the phone hotspot and is much easier to connect to in our experience. We just used it on a trip this past weekend. Kids can also hook up to it with wi-fi only tablets to do what they want while traveling. It is just the way of the world these days.

 

Only because too many accept it as such.
As stated, I had to answer my work cellphone as I was on call 24/7 but I made sure it did not apply when I was on vacation.
Aside from that my work and my wife's work were done at work (unless we were actually working from home) not during family time at home or in any vehicle.
I also had a meeting with my boss after a year about compensation for being on call and we got corporate to change their call-in policy worldwide.
Those on call received compensation of a minimum 4 hours pay for any call requiring coming to the facility plus one week per month that a qualified individual (generally someone the engineering department) would have to take the call-in cellphone.
The company also paid for required Bluetooth phone accessories (for me my motorcycle helmets and boat stereo so I could hear the phone when I was riding my motorcycles or in my boat).
This only came about because I spoke up instead of saying that is the way of the world these days.
I also got other items changed at places I was employed because they were not how the world has to be.
Like first female forklift/truck drivers, welders, machinists, first full time second shift by proving paying overtime and working people 58 hours plus a week was not cost effective.
Instituting equivalent time and a half pay for salaried workers working over 50 hours per week among others.
And now reaping the benefits of one employer who had not instituted a 401K program until I got the ball rolling.

 

It depends on whether the tech is cumbersome or welcome. As I said, in my wife's case, the in-car wifi is a bonus as we can hit the road and she can continue working, which makes things much more efficient. It sounds like you were able to accomplish a lot at your job, which is great if it worked for you. Some like to do that, and some don't (or the company would not be open to such demands).

 

Tech being considered cumbersome or welcome is all personally "opinion based".
As you say it is a "bonus" for her.
We all know, even your wife, that working on a laptop in a moving motor vehicle is not a conducive environment for producing effective, quality work, it's no different than working from home.
And working from home is always a distraction unless you have zero housemates and/or a dedicated off limits "office room", trying to manage distractions from your spouse, children, housemates, pets and/or other household duties while simultaneously working.

You, or anyone else, never know what a company or employer is open to if you never ask.

As always to each their own, I'm just an old geezer who has seen decades of the results of multiple opinions about tech, employees and employers.

One thing I can confirm that is not an opinion: retirement, is great (at least if you planned correctly).
Just wish I had known enough not to physically beat up my body before reaching that goal