cornishdave Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 Hi, I'm wondering if anyone can recommend a specific 4g router/Wi-Fi hotspot device, ideally one that will runs on battery and also will take an external antenna? Or failing that, does sticking one to a window get over the Faraday cage problem of being in a metal tube? Cheers Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twbm Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 https://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?/search/&q=wifi&search_and_or=and Dozens of threads on this topic... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hudds Lad Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 we run a Huawei E5573 that i picked up 2nd hand a couple of years ago for about £20. It has an internal battery but to be honest its usually run off a USB cable plugged into a 12v cigar socket. Its blu-tacked to the window in the saloon and usually performs well, but i have recently bought a pair of cheap aerials for it as it has two TS9 sockets which worked well last time out on the boat. If it was solely our boat i'd look at a more permanent solution and spend a bit more. i think @Jen-in-Wellies had problems with one overheating in a window so be careful of direct sunlight Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sea Dog Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 3 minutes ago, cornishdave said: Or failing that, does sticking one to a window get over the Faraday cage problem of being in a metal tube? It does with my phone which I use as my WiFi hotspot for my laptop, tablet and for streaming TV, music and radio. Actually, it doesn't need to be in the window half of the time. I cruise most days though, so if I'm ever in an area with poor net access I can wait 'til tomorrow - this is why I don't feel any need to go for any device other than the phone. A Faraday Cage with glass windows isn't a very effective Faraday Cage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen-in-Wellies Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 16 minutes ago, Hudds Lad said: i think @Jen-in-Wellies had problems with one overheating in a window so be careful of direct sunlight Yes, a south facing window on the hottest day of that year killed it. As @Sea Dog says, a Faraday cage with glass windows isn't that effective. Window mounting helps if the signal is poor, but in a strong signal area, anywhere works pretty much. Jen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldGoat Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 Because our cruising range is a lot wider than most on here, I've timkered around wil all sorts of kit. For our requirements - "web browsing", the popular Huawei E5372 type(s) are adequate. I've played around with dongles in the window flat aerials also in a window For consistent results I find that a whip aerial on the roof works best 'almost anywhere'. You can spend a lot of money on multi elements in a box and whizzy routers from different manufacturers (though I suspect most of them contain "WahWei" chips). The real determinant is "location, location, location". Service providers concentrate their efforts on customers in towns and cities - folks moored in a tin box in a ditch at or below ground level are not a high revenue prospect, thus "we" get poor service... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alway Swilby Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 We have one of these router (which works off 12v or 240v) and one of these aerial Works a treat with an EE sim card. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bizzard Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 Wi Fi thingy in my window mounted upon Meccano bracket. good reception. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldGoat Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 3 minutes ago, bizzard said: Wi Fi thingy in my window mounted upon Meccano bracket. good reception. Yesah - but you're in Boyd Gibbins land - so you've got a good signal... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bizzard Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 (edited) 6 minutes ago, OldGoat said: Yesah - but you're in Boyd Gibbins land - so you've got a good signal... I can see the mast from here, just by the railway. But it's good everywhere, it's mobile with it's own battery, lasts about 4 hours, had it 3 years. The dangling lead is to USB charge it. The bracket has stand off Meccano bits at the top so that the curtain can be drawn across behind it, the signal gets through the curtain as well as the glass. Edited October 13, 2020 by bizzard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bizzard Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 Stacks of s/h Meccano on ebay cheap, buy some it will open up a fantastic new world for you and keep you fully occupied making things during lockdowns and the winter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bizzard Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 (edited) I know this is trivial. Meccano trivet upon my stove, on which I dry my nuts, wood and socks before feeding them into the furnace. Painted in metal primer. Edited October 13, 2020 by bizzard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nbfiresprite Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 40 minutes ago, bizzard said: I know this is trivial. Meccano trivet upon my stove, on which I dry my nuts, wood and socks before feeding them into the furnace. Painted in metal primer. That's something new!, Never throught that you were into hardcore Masochism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen-in-Wellies Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 1 hour ago, bizzard said: Wi Fi thingy in my window mounted upon Meccano bracket. good reception. Frank Hornby was a very forward thinking chap. He selected the pitch and size of the holes in Meccano in 1898 so as to easily let 4G and WiFi signals pass through. Will it block 5G signals though? Will conspiracy theorists be wearing home made Meccano suits of armour to protect themselves from the Covid and the mind control? Jen ? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bizzard Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 35 minutes ago, Jen-in-Wellies said: Frank Hornby was a very forward thinking chap. He selected the pitch and size of the holes in Meccano in 1898 so as to easily let 4G and WiFi signals pass through. Will it block 5G signals though? Will conspiracy theorists be wearing home made Meccano suits of armour to protect themselves from the Covid and the mind control? Jen ? Indeed, Frank did think about the future and thought a lot about Wi Fi signals and stuff. So much so that he made it clear that in future when plastics technology arrives thin plastic plates to let the signals through were to be manufactured, as just the holes wouldn't be sufficient in metal plates. The blue and yellow back plates behind ,my dongle thingy are the later thin plastic ones. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bizzard Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 39 minutes ago, Jen-in-Wellies said: Frank Hornby was a very forward thinking chap. He selected the pitch and size of the holes in Meccano in 1898 so as to easily let 4G and WiFi signals pass through. Will it block 5G signals though? Will conspiracy theorists be wearing home made Meccano suits of armour to protect themselves from the Covid and the mind control? Jen ? Indeed, Frank did think about the future and thought a lot about Wi Fi signals and stuff. So much so that he made it clear that in future when plastics technology arrives thin plastic plates to let the signals through were to be manufactured, as just the holes wouldn't be sufficient in metal plates. The blue and yellow back plates behind ,my dongle thingy are the later thin plastic ones. He actually visualized 10G to match his biggest No 10 Meccano construction set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bizzard Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 3 hours ago, cornishdave said: Hi, I'm wondering if anyone can recommend a specific 4g router/Wi-Fi hotspot device, ideally one that will runs on battery and also will take an external antenna? Or failing that, does sticking one to a window get over the Faraday cage problem of being in a metal tube? Cheers Dave Hope you will be suitably inspired by all this highly technical Wi FI nollidge, cornishdave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cornishdave Posted October 13, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 15 minutes ago, bizzard said: Hope you will be suitably inspired by all this highly technical Wi FI nollidge, cornishdave. I am thanks, all very helpful and interesting. I'm also impressed with your mecanno contraption - it reminds me of the stereo mount I cobbled together in my very first car using the same materials Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldGoat Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 I had Trix stuff - much better stampings with less agricultural fixings. I wonder what happened to them?....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bizzard Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 10 minutes ago, OldGoat said: I had Trix stuff - much better stampings with less agricultural fixings. I wonder what happened to them?....... I don't think they lasted long, very limited differing bits and pieces in the range. They're Trix Twin 3 rail 00 gauge model train sets didn't either, Strange looking out of scale loco's and stock. Not in this country anyway. Bloddy Gairmans again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bizzard Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 Vogue was another metal construction set in the 1950's, similar to Meccano, same red and green colours and pretty well compatible too, could be used together in most cases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy D'arth Posted October 13, 2020 Report Share Posted October 13, 2020 (edited) I had several Bayko houses at an early age, none of them had WIFI or a router. Edited October 13, 2020 by Tracy D'arth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Up-Side-Down Posted October 14, 2020 Report Share Posted October 14, 2020 16 hours ago, Tracy D'arth said: I had several Bayko houses at an early age, none of them had WIFI or a router. Loved Bayko. Probably why grew up to be a builder! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nbfiresprite Posted October 15, 2020 Report Share Posted October 15, 2020 I have one of these Huawei E5172As-22 150Mbps LTE WiFi Router It will run on 12 volt with volt voltage regulator inline instead of 240v to 12v adaptor which comes with it. Only took 10 days to arrive. A landline phone pluged into my one. The External antenna socket is SMA female. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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