MOBILE WIFI......AGAIN.

Mtbcol

Mtbcol

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Morning all.
I know this has been talked about before, but I know I'll get some useful info/advice on this forum from real users, and also routers etc. have probably moved on a bit now.
So, I'm looking for, and I know they don't necessarily go together, a reasonable cost, reliable WiFi set up for our van to enable us to get WiFi, mostly all over this country (not too worried about Europe) for watching you tube, Amazon movies etc, and maybe some light computer work for my wifes work, although that's not essential at this stage.
What setups are people using with success, particularly in the poorest signal parts of the UK? What are people experienced etc.

Any other useful advice very welcome.

I currently use a smarty SIM in our phones which we find good value.

Thank you.
Colin 🙂
 
Loads of stuff available now on 4 and 5g but all I do is carry two sims in my phone. Vodafone (main Contract) and EE. As we tend to stay in rural areas one or the other generally works. On the very odd occasion they dont I have an old iBoost system that picks up wifi over long distances.
 
I have always used a mifi unit in the motorhomes I have owned and my present caravan. Allows me to watch sky go on my laptop so I don't miss my sport lol. I can count on one hand the times I haven't had reception which is usually in remote locations up the west coast of Scotland. have also always had a satellite on my motorhomes so ive never been without tv.
Recently managed to negotiate a great data only deal with Three for the mifi, already have my phone sim with them.
 
I have a puck Ariel on roof, about £30 rom ebay, a TELTONIKA router £18 from auction and sky SIM which carries over, benefit I think is that it has a permanent wireless address in UK so when I went to Spain I was able to watch all the apps for ITVX etc
 
I use a Netgear Nighthawk 5g router, it has the advantage of its own battery so can also be taken anywhere as well as the Motorhome, their expensive but very good.

In truth any mobile router will do but try to get a 5g version as it’s more future proof.
 
Thanks all again for the input.
After ages of research and a headache I've purchased a set up within our budget. I'll let you know how we get on.

Colin.
 
We use a Teltonika rut 950 with EE Data sim

And external Xpol antenna on the lift up TV pole ...
Our online caperbilities have deff improved mostly due the the external antenna and extra 1.5 m lift .
 
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Netgear Nighthawk. I bought it on EBay. Can connect to an external ariel if needed. Streaming TV uses 1Gb of data per hour. Only way to get good coverage over the whole of the UK is with different SIM cards. CAMC in Cromer doesn't even have a phone signal. I just download content from the Web. Going to watch the Sopranos again think there is only 76 episodes. Should keep us entertained for a few hours 🙂
 
This is a link to the system that I use. I think it is the best 5G and WiFi solution available for motorhomes at the moment. It is not cheap but is high-quality.
Just because something is 5G and has an external antenna does not mean that it will connect as well in weak signal locations or deliver the speeds of this setup. I have been testing this unit since last March and now feel that I can recommend it to our members as I did with the previous setup that I had in my Hymer.

I use Solwise to source my equipment as they offer superb technical support to anyone who purchases from them. Solwise have been trading for more than 30 years have the best reputation in the business. As members will know I only recommend companies that I would stake my own reputation on.

Solwise have agreed to give Wild Camping members (Full and Free) 10% off their orders from Solwise if they use the code: WC23SW at checkout.

Geeky Philip | Solwise Ltd

www.solwise.co.uk www.solwise.co.uk
 
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I decided not to go to the expense of mifi. I don't mind buying tech but don't want to have to pay for an extra SIM contract so I use my mobile as a tether. This becomes more of a problem with motorhome like mine with aluminium skins and this is made worse when the aluminium coated blinds are drawn at night. Except in weak signal areas I overcome this by wedging my mobile in the skylight where it normally gets a reasonable signal.
 
Just following this thread, as we tend to use my phone and tether to that, but at times reception in the van is patchy. Is it possible to connect an ariel to a mobile phone to improve the signal inside the van?
 
bjh said:
Just following this thread, as we tend to use my phone and tether to that, but at times reception in the van is patchy. Is it possible to connect an ariel to a mobile phone to improve the signal inside the van?
Click to expand...

It’s easy to connect a mifi devise to an external Ariel, but only if you have an external aerial. As for connecting a phone to an external aerial, not so easy.

I guess the whole mobile internet thing depends on your needs, personally I don’t actually want internet access in the Motorhome my view is I’m away and not wanting anything the internet can give me.

BUT other people have different needs and demands, last year I needed internet access because my clients needed access to me and me to them, this year having retired, I’m finding I’m not really interested in how fast my mifi is, much prefer a book.
 
trevskoda said:
How long does it take to charge the book up. :unsure: 😂
Click to expand...
The problem that I have is that sometimes the book discharges for no apparent reason and I then have to wait while it charges up enough for me to read it. Other than that, it's definitely the way to go: saving on weight and space and can obtain new books 24/7.
 
has anyone one seen this rykoko thing keeps coming up on facebook ? seems too good to be true so haven’t bitten yet , but full roaming quoted comes with sim card fitted also says 500mb ? so only half a gb £79 purchase but only monthly fee if you fit your own sim ?
 
rugbyken said:
has anyone one seen this rykoko thing keeps coming up on facebook ? seems too good to be true so haven’t bitten yet , but full roaming quoted comes with sim card fitted also says 500mb ? so only half a gb £79 purchase but only monthly fee if you fit your own sim ?
Click to expand...
Very mixed reviews. If you wish to return the device, this is apparently to Lithuania at your expense. Requires top-ups after the first 500MB but I have been unable to find info anywhere regarding the cost of the top-ups.
 
i get that it comes with a pre installed sim but it says you can fit your own do you think that you could use your own package & this would let it roam and extend range , ! this is the bit i thought tooo good to be true
 
rugbyken said:
i get that it comes with a pre installed sim but it says you can fit your own do you think that you could use your own package & this would let it roam and extend range , ! this is the bit i thought tooo good to be true
Click to expand...
I don't know what you've seen on antisocial media or what price may be indicated. Prices that I have seen elsewhere are comparable with or higher than reputable brand mifi devices not locked to any network. Some reviews suggest that other SIM cards don't work in the device, but others are happy, so perhaps it's just the technophobes who have issues with getting it working. I've also seen suggestions that people are persuaded to change reviews from negative to positive in order to have issues addressed.
 
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