Ask HN: Living with seriously limited Internet?

Got some family struggling with very limited Internet service in the Caribbean. Recent storms and financial challenges mean living with only mobile access at home and relying on the Wifi generosity of local businesses. Appears to make life increasingly difficult as OS updates become impossible monsters, huge page loads crawl, and gaming even on consoles won't accept entirely offline lifestyles.

Sending a few portable HDDs hasn't really helped much since so much must be downloaded directly by devices themselves. Offline installers appear to be an endangered species.

Are there other tools, ideas, or free/low cost solutions I can pass along?