Wi Fi Booster

[Powersalt]

I am thinking of fitting a wi fi booster to the boat as the marina signal I get often drops out as the tide goes down and a reception in the boat cabin is not always possible.
Looking at the types available I am amazed at the different claims. For example Wave Wi Fi claim 5 to 7 miles but costs an arm and a leg job. Metis claim half a mile and is more affordable.

So can any techy explain the difference and why such a difference. Can anyone advise on their practical use of any one of the fixed marine wi fi boosters available.
Any pointers would be much appreciated

 

[theoldsalt]

Powersalt,

I had wifi reception problems last summer and took advise from a previous thread on this (I think) forum.

I purchased an Alfa long range USB adaptor. It made a significant difference. I can pull in loads more hot spots.

Many sources available, eg :- http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AWUS036NH...TWORK-7-dBi-Directional-Antenna-/261269442984

I can thoroughly recommend it.

 

[MedMilo]

That Alfa long range booster looks very interesting - once you've logged on to a hotspot, does it allow multiple laptops/ipads etc to connect (ie does it have normal router functionality)? Also, what's the range like? I've fitted a Wirie (http://www.thewirie.com) to the top of my radar arch which works very well but requires a bit of installation - am changing boats soon so thought your option looked a bit simpler!

 

[theoldsalt]

MedMilo,

The Alfa unit I suggested is only a high gain wi-fi antenna powered by the USB connection on a PC (maybe a Mac).

Alfa do many devices and so I suggest you have a look at their website for a (maybe) more appropriate (to you) unit.

http://www.alfa.com.tw/

 

[Powersalt]

THe wirie does look good, but I am wanting to set up the boat as a wireless hot spot so that I can access the wi fi from anywhere on board and do this without software installation

 

[SteveSarabande]

You need add an alfa r36 to make it a hotspot

 

[adey]

+1 on the Alfa with R36. Great pieces of kit.

PS Isn't the wirie thing just an Alfa in a posh box?

 

[SteveSarabande]

I was a bit dissapointed with the r36.

I have a few profiles saved, home, hotel, boat, marina. I was expecting it to switch profiles depending on what networks it sees when turned on.

What happens is i have to manually login to the r36 and select the network every time i move location.
Maybe i missed something but it isn't as clever as i thought it would be.

 

[Powersalt]

I was a bit dissapointed with the r36.

I have a few profiles saved, home, hotel, boat, marina. I was expecting it to switch profiles depending on what networks it sees when turned on.

What happens is i have to manually login to the r36 and select the network every time i move location.
Maybe i missed something but it isn't as clever as i thought it would be.

Yes, I have been told the métis does it automatically. That is an advantage I guess.

 

[Powersalt]

Has anyone experience of the digital yacht booster and wi fi hot spot installation

 

[MedMilo]

THe wirie does look good, but I am wanting to set up the boat as a wireless hot spot so that I can access the wi fi from anywhere on board and do this without software installation

That it actually how the Wirie works - i.e. once you've logged the Wirie onto a hotspot (eg a local hotel's free wifi ) everyone on your boat can hook up whatever device they want to the Wirie as easily as they would a normal router at home. Simples! It's just that the Wirie needs to be installed on the radar arch and then needs a 12/24v power supply - which I took from the flybridge fridge. So not that hard really and the range is very good - it will pick up hotspots from many miles away.

 

[MedMilo]

MedMilo,

The Alfa unit I suggested is only a high gain wi-fi antenna powered by the USB connection on a PC (maybe a Mac).

Alfa do many devices and so I suggest you have a look at their website for a (maybe) more appropriate (to you) unit.

http://www.alfa.com.tw/

Thanks very much, I'll have a look - would be easier to have something that didn't require mounting on the radar arch but I guess that will mean poorer signal/less range due to lack of height...

 

[Tempus]

Thanks very much, I'll have a look - would be easier to have something that didn't require mounting on the radar arch but I guess that will mean poorer signal/less range due to lack of height...

You shouldn't worry about height too much, the rail of a motor boat would be fine. As wifi is a 2 way communication you won't get to anywhere near the horizon, so the benefits of extra height are largely irrelevant.

I'm a fan of the Ubiquiti bullet set-up into a home router, it runs on Power over Ethernet which is easier than a USB, but all of these systems do require some networking knowledge to set-up. The Digital Yacht systems as far as I can see is a bullet in a box for 5x the price. We've got a ubiquiti bullet (£60) running into a netgear home router (which takes 12v) £30, and a POE injector (£2.50) + a 8db aerial - about £30. All in around £125 and we have never failed to find a free hotspot!

There are lots of discussions on cruisers forums on this stuff. Most come down to the Bullet if you know what you are doing, or the Alfa for simplicity.

 

[MedMilo]

You shouldn't worry about height too much, the rail of a motor boat would be fine. As wifi is a 2 way communication you won't get to anywhere near the horizon, so the benefits of extra height are largely irrelevant.

I'm a fan of the Ubiquiti bullet set-up into a home router, it runs on Power over Ethernet which is easier than a USB, but all of these systems do require some networking knowledge to set-up. The Digital Yacht systems as far as I can see is a bullet in a box for 5x the price. We've got a ubiquiti bullet (£60) running into a netgear home router (which takes 12v) £30, and a POE injector (£2.50) + a 8db aerial - about £30. All in around £125 and we have never failed to find a free hotspot!

There are lots of discussions on cruisers forums on this stuff. Most come down to the Bullet if you know what you are doing, or the Alfa for simplicity.

I'll have a look but it's the severe lack of tech knowledge, let alone networking skills, that makes something simple like a Wirie (or possibly the Alfa) the safer option for a luddite like me! Interesting that you're saying height doesn't matter too much - that's good to know.

 

[Tempus]

If you have a lack of networking knowledge then go for a pre-configured solution! I'm good at this stuff

I'm told these guys are worth a conversation.

http://store.exmoor-tech.co.uk/


Good luck

 

[adey]

Looking at the wirie page again it seems it is just an Alfa in a waterproof box! http://www.thewirie.com/support.html
Not only that but it's an old model Alfa as well!

If you buy an Alfa and can't set it up I'm sure someone here will help. (I set mine up okay eventually and I know nothing about network stuff)
This guide sorted it for me... http://www.agl-distribution.co.uk/docs/wifi/dsheet/AP-R36_FW_Update.pdf
Once set up it's easy to use.

With the R36 it becomes a hotspot so everyone on board can use the Wifi. £80 well spent if you ask me.

 

[Aquarella]

I looked at the Digital yacht booster but wondered why they charge over twice as much as any other solution. I wrote to them and asked why, thinking they would give me some qualified reasons why their product was so superior and why I should choose it. They didn't answer so I ordered a Wirie instead. I hope I've done the right thing.

 

[AlbertSeely]

why not .. if there is none to suggest you best, your must take your stand firmly

 

[Hurricane]

As said above, it can all be done using low cost domestic kit.
The biggie for me is a good antenna but be careful.
If you use a basic antenna, you will need a low loss coax to the system.
The "Bullet" gets round this by incorporating the radio into the base of the antenna.
This means that you only need an ethernet cable connection to your system.
The Bullet is then powered over the ethernet connection.
This seems to me to be the obvious solution.

I'll try and explain my system simply for the non techie people.
Basically the system consists of two parts
Part 1 - the WiFi connection to the shore/marina - lets call this the long range connection.
Part 2 - a simple "home style" router providing your own internal WiFi network.

I use two routers - one configured as an internal home style access point and one as a client (long range device) which connects to the marina.
The one that is configured as an an internal home style access point can have wired connections to PCs etc.
All routers differ slightly so I won't go into any depth here but, generally, you access the long range device using a laptop/tablet which is connected to the internal home access point.

As I said above, the Bullet can be used as the long range device but the one that I played with a few years ago only had one radio so it needed to be connected to an internal system providing the internal access point.
There are routers out there which contain two radios and I've had success getting them to work but they are quite complicated to set up.
My recommendation is to keep it simple.

This is the kit I use.

Antenna (note this one does not use a Bullet so there is a big fat low loss cable fed through the boat)

This is the internal home style access point that I use - works off 12v and built to last.
(unfortunately it only uses old style WiFi standards - but still fast enough for all practical purposes)
(for those techies, it is a well respected router that has a huge following - and formed the basis of an OpenSource project called DDWRT)
(I use two of these - one on the boat and one at home forming a "seemless" network (VPN) between the two)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Linksys-WRT...ie=UTF8&qid=1393235951&sr=8-1&keywords=wrt54g


I've used several long range devices but this is the one I currently use and it seems to work the best for me.
(this one wouldn't be required if you use a Bullet)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-Link-TL-...6416&sr=8-1&keywords=tplink+router+high+power

BTW - these routers differ slightly from home ADSL ones - standard home ADSL routers contain a built in modem which connects back to the internet.
These routers have a standard ethernet connection for connecting to the "upstream" device

I've been using this system for 5 or 6 years now.

So, with a bit of time and patience, you can set up a system for a fraction of the cost of a Digital Yacht system.
In my experience, it is arguably easier to set up a system made from parts than from an "all in" system like Digital yachts.

If anyone wants any further information, just ask.

 

[Powersalt]

You shouldn't worry about height too much, the rail of a motor boat would be fine. As wifi is a 2 way communication you won't get to anywhere near the horizon, so the benefits of extra height are largely irrelevant.

I'm a fan of the Ubiquiti bullet set-up into a home router, it runs on Power over Ethernet which is easier than a USB, but all of these systems do require some networking knowledge to set-up. The Digital Yacht systems as far as I can see is a bullet in a box for 5x the price. We've got a ubiquiti bullet (£60) running into a netgear home router (which takes 12v) £30, and a POE injector (£2.50) + a 8db aerial - about £30. All in around £125 and we have never failed to find a free hotspot!

There are lots of discussions on cruisers forums on this stuff. Most come down to the Bullet if you know what you are doing, or the Alfa for simplicity.

OK what you say makes sense. The wave is the dearest one I have ben able to find and I dont know why its so much more than others.

Have a look at "on board wi fi" that does seema good compromise at £270 alreadt to go.

But now you have mentioned the cable?? can you expalin the differences?