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Improving onboard Mobile communications


KJT

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22 hours ago, SHG1 said:

Thank you to all who have contributed advice - all good and very welcome. We have heard what yous say and will have a landline after all at the home mooring, cost being worth it even at several hundreds to keep the business going. Away from our own mooring we will make use of the advice re 4g connections. Old-p I like your belt-and-braces style so will follow that too.

We will certainly seek specialist advice from specialists in commercial mobile data solutions. I'd be a little doubting of standard companies appreciating the demands of installation in a steel, mobile Faraday cage that is the boat. Am I being too wary? Or can you helpful folks suggest companies you know have done that kind of set up before? How much do such companies charge?

I get the impression that some people on this thread are maybe in the business and have kindly avoided plugging their own commercial interests - or perhaps are just knowledgable and helpful. But if any of you happen to be a "specialist in commercial mobile data solutions" who's also done boat set-ups feel free to message me direct off list.

Thanks again you helpful people :o)

one thing i forgot to say is when choosing an external aerial and router make sure they support all uk 4g/lte bands i.e 800mhz to 2600mhz as well as the router supporting LTE-A   to make sure you have the best chance to get maximum data rate available. 

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On 5/29/2017 at 13:44, BoatyMacBoatface said:

Thanks so much everyone who's contributed to this thread, it's been a big help for me.

I guess the technology will have advanced some more over the last year or so but I shall certainly be checking out Huawei gear and suitable antennae :)

Question: what are greenies? Is that the up arrow in the bottom right of the posts?

If you are looking for a top line setup and looking at Huwei this is what i use ...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/HUAWEI-E5186-5G-LTE-A-CAT6-Router/263303318427?hash=item3d4e19cb9b:g:3NgAAOSwGUBaAISd

It will run up to 300mbps download and 50mbps upload  and is 5g ready, it is made to run up to 32 devices, i use mine with an omni directional mimo aerial on a mast with an EE data only sim and its nothing short of brilliant! I stream tv and catch up to my smart tv through it and it works like a dream ... it incorporates 4 ethernet sockets along with a voip and lte phone sockets as it was designed for off grid mobile offices, far cheaper than the stuff sold through boating specific outlets but every bit as good and future proof.

Rick

Edited to add ... this is the aerial i use.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Omni-Directional-4G-3G-LTE-MIMO-External-Antenna-Huawei-Booster-E5180-E5377-CRC9/282101515993?_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIM.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D49130%26meid%3Db694c361b1f54a57aca4a56bca0bbcee%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D5%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D281920898240&_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851

 

The reason for going omni directional is i always get as boosted signal whereas if you have a directional aerial you have to be pointing directly at the local antenna to get its maximum gain every degree you are out you lose a percentage and as boats tend to move unless you re on a mooring where you "land base" your aerial it is never going to be 100% whereas mine always is wherever i move.

Edited by dccruiser
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  • 3 weeks later...

Just got this but it’s available with 100Gb per month for £30 a month on a 12 month contract.

https://www.broadbandgenie.co.uk/blog/20170628-three-homefi-review

Only available instore, and hard work to buy!

You have to ask for it, and I was told I couldn’t have it if I lived in Manchester. I could only have the 40Gb per month offer.

I asked if my sister could have as she lives in Lincolnshire and they said yes. So I said I’d get her to call into a store in Boston or Lincoln and get one for me.

All of a sudden, I could have the deal. So I’ve got it.

It comes with a 240v router which takes the SIM card, and which looks like it can be fed with 12v DC. It also looks like you can connect a couple of aerials.

ive got it up and running at home right now and it’s fine. I’ll have it on the boat tomorrow night.

not sure whether to put the sim in my new Netgear MiFi, or have a go with the Three Huawei Homefi router. 

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  • 4 months later...

a great deal is available for existing virgin broadband customers . virgin are offering a 4g virgin media unlimited data tariff , inc teathering with no caps or restrictions for £25 per month. 

sorry if this is seen as an advert so admin please delete if you feel it violates rules. 

Edited by old-p
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7 minutes ago, old-p said:

a great deal is available for existing virgin broadband customers . virgin are offering a 4g virgin media unlimited data tariff , inc teathering with no caps or restrictions for £25 per month. 

sorry if this is seen as an advert so admin please delete if you feel it violates rules. 

Have you a link please?

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1 minute ago, old-p said:

yep here it is, just ordered one for myself , under virgin TV and broadband customer exclusive. 

http://store.virginmedia.com/virgin-media-mobile/sim-only/pay-monthly-sim.html

 

 

 

Just now, WotEver said:

Blimey.That was like buses.You wait ten minutes,then two turn up,

Thanks both

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12 minutes ago, Richard10002 said:

IIRC It doesn't allow tethering and, if I'm correct, unlimited, or large data allowances, don't mean much.

I may be wrong.

yep I agree I was sceptical so I asked and they pointed me at this press release and said to read the notes to editors at the bottom. 

http://www.virginmedia.com/corporate/media-centre/press-releases/virgin-mobile-launches-the-uks-first-truly-unlimited-mobile-plan.html

also Gizmodo seem to think its true

http://www.gizmodo.co.uk/2018/02/virgin-mobile-is-launching-an-unlimited-data-plan-with-zero-limits-even-for-tethering/

I think the catch is you have to already have virgin broadband connection to qualify for the tariff which is probably to stop people using it as a home broadband replacement.

Edited by old-p
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4 hours ago, old-p said:

yep I agree I was sceptical so I asked and they pointed me at this press release and said to read the notes to editors at the bottom. 

http://www.virginmedia.com/corporate/media-centre/press-releases/virgin-mobile-launches-the-uks-first-truly-unlimited-mobile-plan.html

also Gizmodo seem to think its true

http://www.gizmodo.co.uk/2018/02/virgin-mobile-is-launching-an-unlimited-data-plan-with-zero-limits-even-for-tethering/

I think the catch is you have to already have virgin broadband connection to qualify for the tariff which is probably to stop people using it as a home broadband replacement.

Might have been a vodafone deal I was recalling.....

You definitely have to be wary of these mobile providers, with their great looking offers, and restrictions and stuff hidden in their very small print :(

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9 hours ago, Richard10002 said:

You definitely have to be wary of these mobile providers, with their great looking offers, and restrictions and stuff hidden in their very small print :(

My Three account has one of those ;)

Unlimited Data! Even in Europe!

(Unlimited when abroad is subject to our fair use policy. Fair use is described as 14Gb...)

How is 14Gb ‘unlimited’?  (To be fair to Three they did declare this up front when they were selling me the contract.)

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  • 5 months later...

A few years ago you had to connect everything on your home network with Ethernet cable.  Now the vast majority of devices use WiFi.  I wonder what will happen to home broadband.  There must be a lot of people who only have a wired phone line in order to connect to the internet. Meanwhile taxpayers are paying a small fortune to have the country wired up for fibre connections.  It will probably just about all be in place when the majority of us connect through a mobile data link.

I was on Nantwich embankment at the weekend.  My phone registered 76 Mbps on a 4G+ connection; I get 30 Mbps on my home Infinity fibre connection.

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1 hour ago, dor said:

A few years ago you had to connect everything on your home network with Ethernet cable.  Now the vast majority of devices use WiFi.  I wonder what will happen to home broadband.  There must be a lot of people who only have a wired phone line in order to connect to the internet. Meanwhile taxpayers are paying a small fortune to have the country wired up for fibre connections.  It will probably just about all be in place when the majority of us connect through a mobile data link.

I was on Nantwich embankment at the weekend.  My phone registered 76 Mbps on a 4G+ connection; I get 30 Mbps on my home Infinity fibre connection.

 

5G trials with live commercial customers have just started. Apparently you can download a 3 hours movie in 4K in a few seconds.

 

If it follows the rollout timescales of 4G it will be offered to the general public in about 4-5 years. 

 

https://www.ericsson.com/en/5g?gclid=CjwKCAjw_b3cBRByEiwAdG8Wqps-fCdxrd4Csgn-CcGA5Wwv9Qg6soOUXtyrOsKqm7N3ulo6DGid1RoChPAQAvD_BwE

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39 minutes ago, cuthound said:

 

5G trials with live commercial customers have just started. Apparently you can download a 3 hours movie in 4K in a few seconds.

 

If it follows the rollout timescales of 4G it will be offered to the general public in about 4-5 years. 

 

https://www.ericsson.com/en/5g?gclid=CjwKCAjw_b3cBRByEiwAdG8Wqps-fCdxrd4Csgn-CcGA5Wwv9Qg6soOUXtyrOsKqm7N3ulo6DGid1RoChPAQAvD_BwE

Mobile data prices seem to be dropping. This year I managed to get 80gb of data from BT via doubling 'cause the house broadband is BT for £20 and today Vodafone offered me 100Gb for £30. My 2 year EE data plan which I am half way through now looks a bit expensive at £45 for 60Gb.

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  • 8 months later...

Excellent, excellent, excellent OP by @NB Ellisiana, packed full of good information there, thanks and greenie given. I'm in very much the same boat as it were with requiring excellent internet for work while CCing around the country.


'Pologies for reviving this old thread, but I think it's perhaps in need of an update.

As 6-months-in newbies we're still trying to figure out what we need and how to get it before we drop a lot of cash. But we do intend to drop the necessary cash to make sure that our internet is as good as we can get it. Our current system is working fairly well in the southeast (where we are currently) but no doubt this will need an upgrade when we venture further out. We are simply relying on hotspots provided by our two phones. For redundancy, we each have a 12-month SIM only contract from different networks. One EE at 22 GBP / month for 40 GB and unlimited calls/texts, and one '3' for 20 GBP / month for unlimited everything (including data).

On 06/06/2014 at 17:24, NB Ellisiana said:

it’s well recognised, and it’s also my experience, that the ‘3’ network has the most extensive and reliable coverage of the canal system.

This is the exact opposite of my experience. EE has been excellent in every way, including the customer service. 3 on the other hand barely works even in London. They say it's because they are rolling out the next generation of towers, which may or may not be accurate. However 3 with the uncapped deal is still handy to have. Is this technology moving on or is this just different areas having different coverage? Which network or deals are people swearing by these days?

Secondly, I'm sure the technology has come a long way since the Huawei E5332. Any updated recommendations for the fastest and strongest Mi-Fi router that will accept an external aerial? I may be dreaming but if it was dual-SIM and could automatically pick the strongest connection, that would be first prize! I would also want to be running the internet entirely off 12V, like the OP.

Finally, having a secondary router / wifi extender so that I could have strong signal on both ends of the boat - has this been necessary/advantageous for anyone here?

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I’m sitting here a quarter mile from The Ashby and have the full 4 bars of signal on Three. Work is very close to the Oxford and I get the same there. The missus is on O2 and her signal is worse in those two locations yet in other places her reception is better than mine. There doesn’t appear to be a ‘this service gives better coverage’ scenario, they all have good spots and bad. Three does seem to be better on average from what folk on here regularly report. 

30 minutes ago, ivan&alice said:

3 on the other hand barely works even in London.

I was in the West End a couple of weeks ago and had no problems with Three. It does look like it might be very location specific, or perhaps it’s the device, I’m using an iPhone 7. 

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51 minutes ago, ivan&alice said:


Secondly, I'm sure the technology has come a long way since the Huawei E5332. Any updated recommendations for the fastest and strongest Mi-Fi router that will accept an external aerial? I may be dreaming but if it was dual-SIM and could automatically pick the strongest connection, that would be first prize! I would also want to be running the internet entirely off 12V, like the OP.

Finally, having a secondary router / wifi extender so that I could have strong signal on both ends of the boat - has this been necessary/advantageous for anyone here?

Indeed technology has improved since my original post.

 

I currently use the Huawei E5573 mifi unit which has two TS9 external aerial connections.

 

 

I also use a different external aerial from Connex Technologies https://www.connextech.co.uk/lmo7270-wb-smsm---4g3ggsm-mimo-outdoor-omni-antenna-1153-p.asp

It is smaller than the two separate aerials I used in the OP. It works just as well but smaller and simpler as both aerials are in the one unit with two aerial leads to the mifi unit.

 

In my experience I find '3' still has the best coverage on the cut but of course it is a very subjective view as there are so many variables. I also find that the '3' data sim in the mifi unit gives a better signal strength than the '3' phone even when using the phone outside.

I have an EE, Vodafone and an O2 phone as well as a '3' phone and generally still find the '3' coverage better than the others on the cut. The worst without a doubt being Vodafone!

 

Ken

 

IMG_2239.JPG

IMG_0717.JPG

Edited by NB Ellisiana
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Interesting, thank you. I would expect a larger antenna to be more effective though. On the site you linked there is this for example:

 

https://www.connextech.co.uk/fgo---4g3g2g-high-gain-omni-antenna-ffgo35342-nf-xx-821-p.asp

 

As well as a very impressive looking Yagi antenna (but I believe these are directional):

 

https://www.connextech.co.uk/lte-mimo-yagi---lte-high-gain-yagi-antenna-1400-p.asp

 

We do have cheap Chinese phones that may not have the best antennae. Its reassuring to know that others find 3 effective in a mifi unit!

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15 hours ago, NB Ellisiana said:

Indeed technology has improved since my original post.

 

I currently use the Huawei E5573 mifi unit which has two TS9 external aerial connections.

 

You're not concerned about the Chinese govt reading your emails? ?

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12 hours ago, ivan&alice said:

Interesting, thank you. I would expect a larger antenna to be more effective though. On the site you linked there is this for example:

 

https://www.connextech.co.uk/fgo---4g3g2g-high-gain-omni-antenna-ffgo35342-nf-xx-821-p.asp

 

 

It looks like an updated version of the aerial I originally used. The disadvantage is that you would need two of them for 4g.

 

When I changed to my current 4g aerial it was as a result of advice from an engineer at Connex who thought performance would be just as good, if not better, in a smaller and cheaper unit. Experience over the last couple of years or so, cruising far and wide has proved him right. I have no plans to change it as I am very happy with the performance of the '3' mifi / 4g aerial combo.

 

Ken

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13 hours ago, NB Ellisiana said:

It looks like an updated version of the aerial I originally used. The disadvantage is that you would need two of them for 4g. 

 

When I changed to my current 4g aerial it was as a result of advice from an engineer at Connex who thought performance would be just as good, if not better, in a smaller and cheaper unit. Experience over the last couple of years or so, cruising far and wide has proved him right. I have no plans to change it as I am very happy with the performance of the '3' mifi / 4g aerial combo.

 

Ken

Fair enough.

I think probably your best bet for improving the signal is to get as tall a mast as possible. Unless there is some impact on attenuation of the signal over the longer length of cable?

Perhaps it would be worthwhile my giving Connex a call then and seeing if they recommend the same. Thanks for your help.

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  • 2 months later...

My experience fwiw using a draytek LTE 3/4G router on the three network.

 

I threw my TV aerial away and I stream TV on an unlimited data contact currently £21/m. I rarely have so little bandwidth that I can't stream HDTV. HOWEVER, bandwidth can be limited by congestion on the cell mast that you're connected to, confirmed by Draytek tech support. I can often get greater bandwidth by forcing the router to (the less congested) 3G network. Currently in the middle of Banbury with 'excellent' signal strength and less than 1Mbps bandwidth, my first failure in two months!

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On 09/05/2019 at 06:27, blackrose said:

 

You're not concerned about the Chinese govt reading your emails? ?

Lol, they would find mine very uninteresting. I dont chat with James Bond or the like very often.

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