Anyone using A Wifi Bat?

:-)

You are absolutely correct. You should be very careful about buying any high power wifi device and first check that it's legal in your local area. You don't want the wifi police to come and confiscate your kit!

Presumably in most countries the police are busy enough that this would only be triggered if you made a nuisance of yourself, but it's worth bearing in mind (especially for certain professions, lawyers, etc). However, it's tricky to see what circumstances that might occur in common usage - wifi cards throttle their output to what is necessary for the distance, so typically they are throttled back in use.

In short though, it's a bit like "accident blackspot detectors" - legal to sell in many places, it's the using them which is the restricted bit...

What all users *should* do is make sure that their operating system supports the 802.11d standard, or manually throttle the power of your wifi card. So basically you should deliberately throttle back your card and not allow it to achieve maximum range - however, that's not something that I can enforce...

Note this is true of ALL wifi devices, including your home wifi router and your laptop card. Please everyone log in to their router (and check the settings in the Contol Panel) and ensure that the country code is set correctly (this is why there is such as setting on them). Please do NOT go and research which country has the highest allowed power output and then deliberately set your router to that country - do NOT do that, it will potentially lead you to violate local transmit regs and allow your router to work over a wider area than is allowed...
 
Range obviously depends on many factors but I do know that I've had over 5nm in many different places. One recent one was in a marina where they apologised in advance for the poor WiFi and said I'd probably need to sit in the office to connect. No problem at all in the marina and in fact I could still connect a few days later from a bay 5.2 nm away from their office.

I have the power turned down on my home routers and do the same with my Alfa AWU036H. However, I do turn up the power as required when well available Hotspots are pretty distant. Not legal at full power but not required that often with 1000nW version.

I've also had 5nm from the 500mW version. However, I've also had trouble picking up nearby signals due to masts, buildings etc.

Line of sight and lack of interference are both important so distance isn't the main factor. You will get reception with an Alfa AWUS036H (not talking about the NH model) when internal laptop WiFi hasn't a hope of getting a decent signal.

I seem to remember reading that the world record for a Wifi connection (many years ago) was around 137 miles. But this was from one mountain to another using large highly directional aerials. I'm happy to get 0.5 - 1 nm and 5nm is just a bonus from time to time.

I know the range reported was for an Alfa and not the kit mentioned by the OP. But I saw earlier comments asking about data for range of Alfa units.
 
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wifi bat

we have one and are using it now. range is pretty good and after the odd hiccup with the cable things seems to be pretty reliable. I've started a log of what it can "see" in terms of networks as the range here is anything from 25 down to three, on the odd occasion nothing at all. Not sure why the variance is there. Checking at same time each day so can pick up static and working business networks but there is a fairly regular variance.......
 
I have found this a really interesting and informative thread.
For those of us who live aboard wi fi is pretty important in keeping in touch with the outside world and friends/ family.
As we know marina wi fi is very expensive and hit and miss. Some is good, some bad. They seem to have an exceptional fast and strong sign up page but when you do sign up it often becomes slow and erratic. I also suppose it depends on how many users are using the marina wi fi at the same time.
We have a normal type Alpha and a spiked Ariel (yugi?) type type thing with built in alpha which gets a better signal but is much more directional.
I am sure we have all wondered round the boat trying to find the strongest signal with wires going all over. I would like a fixed device coming down to a router which is out of the way somewhere and then connect to that without wires.
Having several computers on board and two boys it is a pain sharing the access around.
 
Nostrodamus said:
I have found this a really interesting and informative thread.
For those of us who live aboard wi fi is pretty important in keeping in touch with the outside world and friends/ family.
As we know marina wi fi is very expensive and hit and miss. Some is good, some bad. They seem to have an exceptional fast and strong sign up page but when you do sign up it often becomes slow and erratic. I also suppose it depends on how many users are using the marina wi fi at the same time.
We have a normal type Alpha and a spiked Ariel (yugi?) type type thing with built in alpha which gets a better signal but is much more directional.
I am sure we have all wondered round the boat trying to find the strongest signal with wires going all over. I would like a fixed device coming down to a router which is out of the way somewhere and then connect to that without wires.
Having several computers on board and two boys it is a pain sharing the access around.
Click to expand...

We use a sitecom WL330 range extender under the spray hood this gives a WIFI network inside the boat from an external signal and runs three computers ok.
 
Anyone can suggest a good way to share a dongle.
We have a very fast Spanish one with unlimited data at 2.25 euros a day and if we don't use it we don't pay... would like to use it so it can connect to more than one computer.
 
Nostrodamus said:
Anyone can suggest a good way to share a dongle.
We have a very fast Spanish one with unlimited data at 2.25 euros a day and if we don't use it we don't pay... would like to use it so it can connect to more than one computer.
Click to expand...

The simplest way is to use a mifi unit. Cheapest way used to be to get a PAYG SIM from Three and then unlock it (about £10, I can do it if you are in Gibraltar). I think they do them for about £50 with a UK data SIM. Alternativly ebay have loads from about £35. You will need to the APN of the SIM you are using, there are lists on the internet, or I have most of them.

A more 'grown up' solution is to use mailasails redbox which allows you to plug in an unlocked dongle and then share that between all connected systems (including wired ones which is useful) and also means you can easily switch between 3G, Wifi, satellite etc;

Who is the Spanish dongle with, vodafone?
 
SeamanStaines said:
The simplest way is to use a mifi unit. Cheapest way used to be to get a PAYG SIM from Three and then unlock it (about £10, I can do it if you are in Gibraltar). I think they do them for about £50 with a UK data SIM. Alternativly ebay have loads from about £35. You will need to the APN of the SIM you are using, there are lists on the internet, or I have most of them.

A more 'grown up' solution is to use mailasails redbox which allows you to plug in an unlocked dongle and then share that between all connected systems (including wired ones which is useful) and also means you can easily switch between 3G, Wifi, satellite etc;

Who is the Spanish dongle with, vodafone?
Click to expand...

The dongle is with movistar and we have found it pretty amazing everywhere in Spain. You can even use it sailing all the way down and well off the coast.
I do have a French mifi which is locked to orange. Can you unlock this?
Whilst we are at it do you do U phones as well.
We are in La Linea but go into GIB several times a week.
 
Wifi Bats rule ok!

We've got a wifi Bat! It's brilliant! Yes, it was expensive, but worth it. We have used it extensively since we bought it this summer, we have it fastened high up on the mizzen mast. Everywhere we have sailed in Greece, from Ionian, Saronic, and now Syros in Cyclades, we have picked up dozens and dozens of signals which would be impossible without it. We have always found an unsecured signal and managed to connect, or if in harbour we find the passwords from tavernas etc. 100% recommend.
We are actually living onshore at the moment in a rented apartment, while,boat is out of the water in Syros. We have the wifi bat on the roof and are picking up a brilliant signal from local hotel! Wooo! Someone told me this is illegal, is this true? Probably doesn't matter in Greece .....
 
fandancer said:
We've got a wifi Bat! It's brilliant! Yes, it was expensive, but worth it. We have used it extensively since we bought it this summer, we have it fastened high up on the mizzen mast. Everywhere we have sailed in Greece, from Ionian, Saronic, and now Syros in Cyclades, we have picked up dozens and dozens of signals which would be impossible without it. We have always found an unsecured signal and managed to connect, or if in harbour we find the passwords from tavernas etc. 100% recommend.
We are actually living onshore at the moment in a rented apartment, while,boat is out of the water in Syros. We have the wifi bat on the roof and are picking up a brilliant signal from local hotel! Wooo! Someone told me this is illegal, is this true? Probably doesn't matter in Greece .....
Click to expand...

Yet to meet anyone who uses bat.

Currently at £25 from Amazon, the 2watt Alfa appears to be a very popular, cheap solution.

From personal experience we get about 6-7 km range from our 500mW Alfa. The system is in no way marinised but we have seen some interesting modifications with plastic bottles that have resolved this shortcoming.

Bearing in mind the carrier frequency, line-of-sight is important but long time since I did e-band radar theory (ground plain & all that) so am not too sure the benefit of hoisting the aerial up a mast against the losses in longer cable runs.

Additionally, since you ask, by using an unsecured site, without their permission, you are stealing from that subscriber. Just the same as if you disconnect a boat from its metered electrical supply to charge your batteries.

It is most unlikely you will suffer any penalty; rather it is a moral/ethical issue.

Reminds me of kids scrumping apples or nicking milk from doorsteps.
 
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Nostrodamus said:
Anyone can suggest a good way to share a dongle.
We have a very fast Spanish one with unlimited data at 2.25 euros a day and if we don't use it we don't pay... would like to use it so it can connect to more than one computer.
Click to expand...

Orange Domino E5331 3G to world wifi to pc.

Mine was great around Brittany.
When my initial Domino credit ran out, trying to top up was hard work, as my french isn't up to much.
First tried the online top-up option which started ok but then wouldn't accept my VISA credit card, so tried the phone a number option and the automated voice goes at twenty to the dozen.
I asked a (2) local(s) to assist, they both gave up, not being able to understand the procedure. My last option was to go to a town with an Orange shop. It turns out (according to the Orange guy) that the online option doesn't like VISA, but it will take MasterCard.
The phone a number option needs a 'credit voucher' - you ask for a 'Orange Mobicarte' top-up at a Tabac, pay your money and the receipt has a 14 digit voucher number, then phone the freephone (France Telecom) number, key in your Domino SIM 'phone' number, select option 2, key in your 14 digit voucher number and Bob's your uncle.

I have yet to try the Domino with my UK Orange 3G sim, it may need to be unlocked to accept it, obviously it will have to be for your 'fast Spanish one'.
 
Nostrodamus said:
Anyone can suggest a good way to share a dongle.
We have a very fast Spanish one with unlimited data at 2.25 euros a day and if we don't use it we don't pay... would like to use it so it can connect to more than one computer.
Click to expand...

You can set up connection sharing via an "ad-hoc" wifi connection. Never done it, but it should be straightforward in Windows.
 
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