veletron Posted October 30, 2017 Share Posted October 30, 2017 Hi Put together a wee blog re what I use for Motorhome Internet. Covers MiFi (mobile) and WiFi repeater options together with what to buy and how to set it up. The other bit: '2-Way Ku Band Satellite' (on a budget) coming soon! http://www.veletron.com/?p=249 Nigel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barryd999 Posted October 31, 2017 Share Posted October 31, 2017 A fantastic guide, thanks for sharing it. Ive not got into Mifi yet mainly because being a techie myself I hate paying for internet connectivity and currently either try and find a free connection with my motorhomewifi iBoost or now that the roaming charges have been dropped on this summers four month trip I just connect my iphone as a hot spot and use it sparingly (4gb a month). I struggled this year much more than usual getting an SFR FON signal in France, normally I am pretty lucky and more data via the phone, or a Mifi would have been useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterjl Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 I found this very interesting and I have bookmarked cos I intend to have another look. Food for thought. Looking forward to the next instalment. Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starvin marvin Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 Looks, and reads hugely complicated. Unless I'm convinced otherwise I'll stick to using my iPhone on a contract, I'm with EE. Simples Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aandncaravan Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 Veletron, this is very good. Please may I create a webpage on our website, and link it to your page? My webpage won't crib any of your data, just link through to your Blog, is that ok? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will86 Posted November 2, 2017 Share Posted November 2, 2017 Noting the pictured assembly on the first post. Does this raise the detected height of a M/H ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veletron Posted November 2, 2017 Author Share Posted November 2, 2017 Aye, but for my van its still well under 3M - taking it over 3M might mean that the tolls in France pick you up as 'classe 3' rather than 'classe 2' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veletron Posted November 2, 2017 Author Share Posted November 2, 2017 aandncaravan - 2017-11-01 10:14 PM Veletron, this is very good. Please may I create a webpage on our website, and link it to your page? My webpage won't crib any of your data, just link through to your Blog, is that ok? No problem! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veletron Posted November 2, 2017 Author Share Posted November 2, 2017 starvin marvin - 2017-11-01 10:13 PM Looks, and reads hugely complicated. Unless I'm convinced otherwise I'll stick to using my iPhone on a contract, I'm with EE. Simples If you only have one device, and can get a signal within your van from the locations where you stay then this is indeed the simplest option. The MiFi enables you to have: A) an external antenna which brings in a far better signal (better coverage and better speeds) B) a single sim card for many devices C) gives WiFi-Only devices internet access (tablet, laptop etc) In my own case, my EE phone has many times had no signal or just '2G' (which is useless for the internet) but the MiFi with external antenna can have a decent signal or 3G/4G rather than 2G. As ever, it depends on how and where you use your van and what you want the internet for. I have a FireTV stick in my van and can stream iPlayer, Netflix and Amazon Video, and watch it on a decent-sized screen. Nigel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veletron Posted November 7, 2017 Author Share Posted November 7, 2017 Part 2 - Budget 2-way Satellite Internet http://www.veletron.com/?p=802 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aandncaravan Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 Veletron, webpage created here : http://www.aandncaravanservices.co.uk/motorhome-internet-on-the-go.php Just a fairly blank page linked to your brilliant blog, but let me know if you want anything added or changed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barryd999 Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 veletron - 2017-11-07 12:23 AM Part 2 - Budget 2-way Satellite Internet http://www.veletron.com/?p=802 Wow! You really are a techno genius! And very good at putting guides together which is something ive found most techies are terrible at doing. I could do with someone like you! (I work in IT) :D The only thing I would add though is whilst the satellite DIY job saves a fortune from buying an auto system I guess here is an argument now that says it would be cheaper and easier to use a mifi or smart phone hot spot. "£16/Month (with 1 month contract) for 3GB, with a 4Mbit download and a 384Kbit upload speed," was I think the best value you quoted yet now my Vodafone phone deal is 4gb allowance per month for about £13 I think and tethering is allowed and of course no roaming charges. However of course with the sat you are pretty much going to get the same speed all over europe. Ive just come back from four months in Europe and whilst I always got a phone connection apart from one or two spots in the high Pyrenees it wasnt always fast enough for internet access but good enough and cheap enough to be usable if I couldnt get on with the wifi antenna. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veletron Posted November 7, 2017 Author Share Posted November 7, 2017 Barryd999 - 2017-11-07 3:43 PM veletron - 2017-11-07 12:23 AM Part 2 - Budget 2-way Satellite Internet http://www.veletron.com/?p=802 I guess here is an argument now that says it would be cheaper and easier to use a mifi or smart phone hot spot. "£16/Month (with 1 month contract) for 3GB, with a 4Mbit download and a 384Kbit upload speed," Hi The MiFi and WiFi Relay options are covered in part one here: http://www.veletron.com/?p=249 The satellite internet will be of limited interest to most folks, Indeed, I get a connection myself probably 70% of the time with the MiFi and WiFi repeater solutions. Satellite internet is an addition to the above, not an alternative!! Vodafone and O2 have always been terrible up here in Scotland for 3G and they ain't much better for 4G. Vodafone does have good 2G coverage, but that's totally useless for the internet unless you have the patience of a saint! That's why I sing EE's praises, I get 4G from them in some odd places where I expected nowt! Nigel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caddies104 Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 Hi Love the post, wish I was techie enough to have a go at the suggestions,, guess it will still have to be McDonalds :-) :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaelmorris Posted November 8, 2017 Share Posted November 8, 2017 Great guide, thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve928 Posted November 9, 2017 Share Posted November 9, 2017 Great guide, thanks. Just a couple of Mifi-related points if I may. If people opt for the excellent Huawei E5577 Mifi they should check explicitly with the vendor that it's the UK model with suffix '-321' as some Ebay and Amazon sellers are describing the -321 model but supplying the Indonesian -603 model which lacks 3 of the 4 3G frequencies plus the 4G 800MHz band. Buyer beware! (Don't ask me how I know this 8-) ) . The admin interface for the 5577 is different to that described in your document under both One Time Setup and Tips. The device is at 192.168.8.1 and the menus and options differ greatly. Like yourself I found that it will hang onto a strong 3G signal over a weak 4G one but the only menu option with the 5577 is to tick/untick 'Support LTE networks' but even with that ticked in will hang onto a strong 3G signal. To be honest I find the best way is just to do a manual network search and then select the one you want as it will list 3G and 4G carriers from the same network separately. Another EE fan here, both in the UK and on the near continent where their preferred partner Orange has great 4G coverage. Interestingly their pre-paid data-only SIMs can be activated from abroad and don't need to be used first in the UK which is great for us prepay users as you can buy multiple time-limited SIMs dirt cheap on Ebay and activate them one by one as you go along. Unlike our O2 phones, which refused to switched away from their preferred partner (Bouyges in France and Movistar in Spain), the EE SIM was happy to be directed to any network to find the best signal. Keep up the good work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veletron Posted November 9, 2017 Author Share Posted November 9, 2017 Cheers for that! I had the old 3G MiFi before and the web interface had not changed between that and my 5776 4G model - hoped it would be the same for the newer 5577 4G model as well - obviously not! Would you mind if I highlighted your guidance re the specific UK model (my links are to a UK model, but folks might get it via ebay/etc for a better deal). If you are able, could you send me some screen shots of the 5577 equiv of my existing screenshots where possible, and perhaps one of the sticker under the battery where the default IP / SSID / etc is written down? Happy to credit you in the text - my guide might as well be 100% right! Being without that key 800MHz 4G band would be no good at-all! - EE has been going all-out on remote area 4G provision lately, using 800MHz or an 800/1800MHz mix (for long range, low capacity and close range high capacity). Their 2600MHz spectrum will stay in towns and cities - its pretty much useless in area's of low population density. When they come down in price, I will update mine to a Cat6 LTE model! Nigel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monique.hubrechtsgm Posted November 9, 2017 Share Posted November 9, 2017 Does the height of a motor home in the above include the sattelite disc in down position which is about one inch? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve928 Posted November 9, 2017 Share Posted November 9, 2017 veletron - 2017-11-09 12:46 PM Would you mind if I highlighted your guidance re the specific UK model (my links are to a UK model, but folks might get it via ebay/etc for a better deal). That's fine and I'll try and do some screenshots tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veletron Posted November 9, 2017 Author Share Posted November 9, 2017 monique.hubrechts@gm - 2017-11-09 3:46 PM Does the height of a motor home in the above include the sattelite disc in down position which is about one inch? ?? The height of the van is not mentioned - and the overall height with any kind of antenna is obviously dependent on the current height! A roof mounted raising dish will add between 15 and 20CM to the roof height, but as a van would have rooflights anyway, and maybe a Luton, its impossible to say how much it would raise the effective roof height by. A dome would add much more height - these start at 25cm tall but some are 40cm tall. Nigel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wortho Posted November 10, 2017 Share Posted November 10, 2017 Not sure about shipping cost to UK but the E5787 unlocked appear to be quite a bit cheaper in Australia. https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/UNLOCKED-HUAWEI-E5787-4GX-WIFI-PRO-TOUCH-SCREEN-DISPLAY-MODEM-DUAL-ANTENNA-PORT/322591676390?epid=557963848&hash=item4b1bf657e6:g:71kAAOSwx6pYntGb I used an Australian purchased E5573 in the UK and Europe last year and it worked really well so assume frequencies etc are the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve928 Posted November 10, 2017 Share Posted November 10, 2017 Wortho - 2017-11-10 11:15 AM I used an Australian purchased E5573 in the UK and Europe last year and it worked really well so assume frequencies etc are the same. There are 9 x E5573 sub-models with differing frequencies so I doubt that's a true assumption. The different frequencies of the sub-models are listed here: https://www.4gltemall.com/huawei-e5573-4g-lte-cat4-mobile-hotspot.html Clearly there's some overlap of frequencies which means that models will work to some extent outside their design area as indeed did the E5577s-603 model that I received in place of the E5577s-321 that I ordered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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