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Poynting WiFi aerials


Foggy66

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I’m looking to buy an aerial to work with a Huawei B535.

There seems to be a big variation in price for the different omnidirectional aerials. My research has been inconclusive as to which will be my best option. I’m happy to spend more for the best suited to my needs.

We use the WiFi for general internet browsing and streaming from Amazon prime, YouTube etc. 


Any help from those wiser than myself would be much appreciated.

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12 minutes ago, Rob-M said:

I have the poynting 4g-xpol-a0001 which I use with a Huawei B818 although the signal is usually strong enough without the external antenna for streaming and working.

Same as mine except the 818 is at home and I use a 535 out and about.

Signal at the marina is nil without the Poynting and there and in several other places it makes the difference between internet and no internet.

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11 minutes ago, Richard10002 said:

Same here although, if i was buying today, i would probably pay the extra for a 5G capable Poynting.

When will 5g cover rural areas?

Not in my lifetime :(

 

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3 hours ago, Foggy66 said:

I’m looking to buy an aerial to work with a Huawei B535.

There seems to be a big variation in price for the different omnidirectional aerials. My research has been inconclusive as to which will be my best option. I’m happy to spend more for the best suited to my needs.

We use the WiFi for general internet browsing and streaming from Amazon prime, YouTube etc. 


Any help from those wiser than myself would be much appreciated.

Not necessarily wiser, just had more time to try things out after following the excellent guidance on this forum.

I have the Poynting 4g-xpol-a000, mounted on a 2m long antenna pole. Obviously, demountable for when under way. If you need that external antenna for your Huawei B535, I consider it worth getting the best signal you can obtain to feed it.

 

Another tip from here is to avoid shortening the Poynting lead, even if you mount it on one of the short poles with magnetic base many seem to use. Unless you are expert with the right tools, you will degrade the RF signal with poor plug connections. Just spool the excess cable and ruck it away.

You never know when you might need a longer erection 😳

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3 hours ago, Loddon said:

When will 5g cover rural areas?

Not in my lifetime :(

 

 

Not for some time, but it's not just 4G, if the 5G-capable aerial (and router) are x4 MIMO this is likely to increase data rates even on 4G. But this (especially the router) costs a lot more  than the Huawei... 😞

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1 hour ago, IanD said:

 

Not for some time, but it's not just 4G, if the 5G-capable aerial (and router) are x4 MIMO this is likely to increase data rates even on 4G. But this (especially the router) costs a lot more  than the Huawei... 😞

Have a look at the Huawei 818 that  is 4x4 Mimo and what I use at home.

After an upgrade on the local mast I now see speeds of 250mbs 😎

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1 hour ago, Loddon said:

Have a look at the Huawei 818 that  is 4x4 Mimo and what I use at home.

After an upgrade on the local mast I now see speeds of 250mbs 😎

The OP was talking about the 535 which is 2x2 MIMO. Accordimg to the data sheet the 818 is only 4x4 MIMO on 4G using internal antennae, it only has 2 external LTE ports so is 2x2 MIMO with an external antenna -- the other 2 external RF ports are for 2x2 MIMO Wi-Fi.

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7 hours ago, IanD said:

The OP was talking about the 535 which is 2x2 MIMO. Accordimg to the data sheet the 818 is only 4x4 MIMO on 4G using internal antennae, it only has 2 external LTE ports so is 2x2 MIMO with an external antenna -- the other 2 external RF ports are for 2x2 MIMO Wi-Fi.

What other RF ports I haven't found them yet there are only two on the 818.

The 4x4 Mimo works very well here

 

It's an easy modification to get 4 external antennas if you need them 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/HUAWEI-B818-Modification-Service-For-External-Antenna-Inputs-/185390978019?

 

Besides which the Poynting 5g antenna only has two cables out so you would need two of them anyway for 4x4 mimo

 

https://www.4gon.co.uk/poynting-5g-11db-high-gain-cross-polarised-lte-mimo-antenna-5gxpola0002-p-8462.html

 

So no advantage unless you have a 5g router.

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35 minutes ago, Loddon said:

What other RF ports I haven't found them yet there are only two on the 818.

The 4x4 Mimo works very well here

 

It's an easy modification to get 4 external antennas if you need them 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/HUAWEI-B818-Modification-Service-For-External-Antenna-Inputs-/185390978019?

 

Besides which the Poynting 5g antenna only has two cables out so you would need two of them anyway for 4x4 mimo

 

https://www.4gon.co.uk/poynting-5g-11db-high-gain-cross-polarised-lte-mimo-antenna-5gxpola0002-p-8462.html

 

So no advantage unless you have a 5g router.

4x4 MIMO will work well for you at home with the internal antennae. To work with an external 4x4 antenna modification to the 818 is needed, as you pointed out, as standard they only allow external 2x2 MIMO. 

 

There are now 4x4 MIMO Poynting antennas available so you only need one with a 4x4 MIMO router which has 4 external RF ports. These are mostly expensive 5G ones.

 

For a boat the high-gain directional antenna is the wrong choice unless you're going to align it to the nearest basestation every time you stop (and what about while moving?), an omni antenna is a better choice.

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So far I have found the internal antenna on the 818 to provide a fast enough connection on the boat with the router sat on a shelf behind the front bulkhead and nowhere near a window.  The only time I've needed the external antenna has been when moored below Junction Lock at Fradley but on the Fradley moorings on the Coventry section the external antenna wasn't required.

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1 hour ago, Rob-M said:

So far I have found the internal antenna on the 818 to provide a fast enough connection on the boat with the router sat on a shelf behind the front bulkhead and nowhere near a window.  The only time I've needed the external antenna has been when moored below Junction Lock at Fradley but on the Fradley moorings on the Coventry section the external antenna wasn't required.

 

That's quite impressive for a router inside a closed steel box (assuming a steel bulkhead...) with no holes nearby 🙂

 

Like a phone, in good signal conditions a router will often be fine with its internal antennae, depending on what data rate is "fast enough" which is different for different people.

 

It's only in poor signal conditions or when you want to maximise data rates (or both) that an external antenna comes into its own, and in this case a MIMO-2 one is definitely preferable -- MIMO-4 (probably 5G) is better still but also very expensive at the moment, around £500 or more for router plus antenna... 😞

Edited by IanD
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Don't bother with the cheap ones. I bought one and did a comparison between the 535 internal and the external alongside. 535 was better!

I have my router hanging in a window. Works fine unless the nearest mast is the other side of the boat. 😁

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29 minutes ago, Floating Male said:

Don't bother with the cheap ones. I bought one and did a comparison between the 535 internal and the external alongside. 535 was better!

I have my router hanging in a window. Works fine unless the nearest mast is the other side of the boat. 😁

Assuming you're talking about antennas, the reason people keep recommending Poynting is because they're good, not because they're cheap... 😉

Edited by IanD
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