Poor Premium Connectivity Coverage/Switchover - Money Saving Tip

We had Tesla's Premium Connectivity on our '25 MY AWD LR, and it just didn't seem worth the $100/year.

I understand some of you love it and think it's a great deal. That's fine...we don't and opted to non-renew. I'm not posting this to have a discussion about the value of PC. If you like it, you should subscribe. This is just meant as a money-saving tip and functionality improvement.

1. The switchover from our home Wi-Fi to PC was slow.
2. The coverage was poor and in many places non-existent.
3. Even though we had a Sirius subscription using it with the Tesla required a 2nd subscription.
4. Even with PC you had to use Wi-Fi to download updates
5. The traffic data was often too old to be of use.
6. There was no offline maps capability to download maps of area where the coverage was poor.

So...here's what I did...

1. Started using my unlimited data plan to provide internet connectivity to the car while driving. I named my hotspot and used the same password as our home network to speed up the change over. There's still a dead time, but it's as fast if not faster than the cutover to PC.
2. Put a small macro on my Android phone that automatically starts the hotspot when my phone connects to the car's Bluetooth. The hotspot shuts off when the car disconnects. I used Macro Droid to do this. It took about 15 minutes to download and setup. The app also gives a lot of other functionality that can be helpful/timesaving.
3. Bought an Amazon Echo Auto (They retail for about $50, but are frequently on sale for closer to $25). I plugged it into the 12v adapter (it has a pass-through for other devices) and then ran the small microphone up and in front of the arm rest (to the driver's side so as not to block the key activation area).
4. I lay my phone (Google Pixel 10 Pro) on the wireless charging bed and even with hot spot, the phone continues to gain charge.

What this gets me:

1. Cost saving of $100/year on PC and another roughly $100 on Sirius.
2. Far better voice controls for calling and media control.
3. I can still use all the Tesla media apps, and browser, but because I find their UI poor I'd rather just use Echo voice controls.
4. Others in the car can use their devices over my hotspot's connection if needed.
5. Tesla updates downloaded while driving.
6. Better internet connectivity than PC in several areas (your experience may differ).

What I've lost:

1. Traffic and real-time weather on the nav map. I never used the weather and found the traffic data to often be outdated.
2. Satellite view on the map. I never used this while driving. If I require a satellite view, other times it's pretty easy to pick up my phone.
3. Tesla also says I lose Caraoke. I can't say I ever had the desire to even try this, so I only list it as a loss for those that might care.

Cost Data:
Tesla PC: $9.99/month or $99.00 a year (plus tax).
HotSpot: Included with phone plan + Macro Droid ($7) + Amazon Echo Auto ($28 on sale).

So, roughly $100 minus $35 in the first year, and then a savings of at least $100 every year thereafter. If you use Sirius and have another Sirius account you will save another $9.99/month.

Hope this is of some help.