WiFi Booster to Pick Up Campground WiFi?

[ATONOFUN]

We are in a Florida RV park with WiFi. Unfortunately it is weak at our location. I see several repeaters on posts. Does anyone use a WiFi booster? Do they work? Any recommendations on models. Thanking you in advance,

 

[creativepart]

The WiFi booster thing is kind of dependent on how you are accessing WiFi. If doing so with your phone or laptop what you need is a better antenna. And if you can get one located outside of your RV, preferably higher up in the air all the better. But that’s not mandatory as long as you got higher gain antennas than the ones in your phone, etc.

There was a time when WiFi Ranger sold what the described as a WiFi Booster. But what it really was was an external router with a higher gain antenna that you mounted on the roof of your RV. It wasn’t a booster in the sense of something that amplified the WiFi signal. But it did a better job receiving WiFi signals because of the antenna and it location outside and above your RV.

They don’t sell that product any longer but there are plenty of ways to get the same results with a router inside your RV connected to one or two antennas - inside or outside your RV.

Do you currently use a router inside your RV? If not adding one with improved antennas inside or outside your RV would likely meet your needs.

When getting a router be sure to look for one with “WiFi As WAN” capabilities. All that means is the router can pick up an outside WiFi signal and connect it to the router just as if you plugged an Ethernet cable into your router to connect to the internet. With this the router uses the Campground WiFi to provide internet to multiple devices inside your RV.

Be aware that most routers like this theses days also have cellular modems inside to use cellular broadband when there isn’t a nearby WiFi network to connect to the internet.

Here’s a link to a $70 mobile router that does what you want without a cellular modem inside. It calls its WiFi as WAN service as a WiFi Repeater. I use the same basic device only with a cellular modem and dual SIM slots, it was 3 X the price of this mini version but works well.

https://store-us.gl-inet.com/products/slate-plus-gigabit-travel-router-gl-a1300

 

[ATONOFUN]

The WiFi booster thing is kind of dependent on how you are accessing WiFi. If doing so with your phone or laptop what you need is a better antenna. And if you can get one located outside of your RV, preferably higher up in the air all the better. But that’s not mandatory as long as you got higher gain antennas than the ones in your phone, etc.

There was a time when WiFi Ranger sold what the described as a WiFi Booster. But what it really was was an external router with a higher gain antenna that you mounted on the roof of your RV. It wasn’t a booster in the sense of something that amplified the WiFi signal. But it did a better job receiving WiFi signals because of the antenna and it location outside and above your RV.

They don’t sell that product any longer but there are plenty of ways to get the same results with a router inside your RV connected to one or two antennas - inside or outside your RV.

Do you currently use a router inside your RV? If not adding one with improved antennas inside or outside your RV would likely meet your needs.

When getting a router be sure to look for one with “WiFi As WAN” capabilities. All that means is the router can pick up an outside WiFi signal and connect it to the router just as if you plugged an Ethernet cable into your router to connect to the internet. With this the router uses the Campground WiFi to provide internet to multiple devices inside your RV.

Be aware that most routers like this theses days also have cellular modems inside to use cellular broadband when there isn’t a nearby WiFi network to connect to the internet.

Here’s a link to a $70 mobile router that does what you want without a cellular modem inside. It calls its WiFi as WAN service as a WiFi Repeater. I use the same basic device only with a cellular modem and dual SIM slots, it was 3 X the price of this mini version but works well.

https://store-us.gl-inet.com/ products/slate-plus-gigabit-travel-router-gl-a1300

Thank you for the clues. I have a Winegard Roadtrip Mission Satalite that apparently I can use as a WiFi extender. Just no clue how yet. Looking trough manual? If not I’ll purchase the unit or similar to your suggestion

 

[dkoldman]

We are in a Florida RV park with WiFi. Unfortunately it is weak at our location. I see several repeaters on posts. Does anyone use a WiFi booster? Do they work? Any recommendations on models. Thanking you in advance,

Work and being practical or useful are two different things. When I bought my RV new I immediately bought a Wifi CampPro v2. Yes it worked but it was a royal PITA, it required reconfiguring at every new WiFi site and even when returning home as it did not remember. Even when it is working as it should some would say it is not working because receiving bandwidth at most campsite is worthless to begin with. I felt bad about doing it, but I sold it to some poor soul :whistling:

I then bought a Netgear Wifi Extender, it was a lot better but it too was too much of a hassle anfd just not worth it. 3 1/2 years ago I bought T Mobile Home Internet for $25 /mo, I keep it at home in RV but it stays in the RV on every trip. It is greatest thing ever. If T Mobile is not good in your area buy someone else wireless home internet, but we have only been at one Campsite with no T mobile, but the trip was a retread so we didn't need it anyway.

 

[RV-Travelers]

WiFi CampPro V2, T-Mobile home internet service & Zoleo satellite communicator

Work and being practical or useful are two different things. When I bought my RV new I immediately bought a Wifi CampPro v2. Yes it worked but it was a royal PITA, it required reconfiguring at every new WiFi site and even when returning home as it did not remember. Even when it is working as it should some would say it is not working because receiving bandwidth at most campsite is worthless to begin with. I felt bad about doing it, but I sold it to some poor soul :whistling:

I then bought a Netgear Wifi Extender, it was a lot better but it too was too much of a hassle anfd just not worth it. 3 1/2 years ago I bought T Mobile Home Internet for $25 /mo, I keep it at home in RV but it stays in the RV on every trip. It is greatest thing ever. If T Mobile is not good in your area buy someone else wireless home internet, but we have only been at one Campsite with no T mobile, but the trip was a retread so we didn't need it anyway.

I've had a different experience with the WiFi CampPro V2. It has worked well for us, making it relatively easy to share WiFi, occasionally at campgrounds but more typically at places like McDonalds, Lowes, etc. Never had any problems with it at home either, always worked fine when we tested it.

In our case, we connect the CampPro to the network in question, and we just set up the various devices (tablets, laptops, etc.) to connect to the CampPro's SSID and no further configuration or reconfiguration is required.

We recently signed up for T-Mobile 5G wireless internet at home. Don't know if that's the same service you are referring to or not. Ours is the current offering ranging from $50 to $65 a month, depending on if you have discounts for T-Mobile cell service and auto-pay (which requires giving them your bank account or debit card number).

I have had good results at home with the T-Mobile service, but the terms of service specifically prohibit moving the gateway elsewhere (other than the service address) which precludes taking it on the road in our RV. A shame as that would be a really nice option when traveling.

On the emergency communications front...

We are often in very remote areas with no WiFi or cell signal. We looked at satellite phones, but they are expensive to buy and the plans are also pretty expensive. We decided to try a Zoleo satellite communicator as an emergency device, giving us the ability to send texts and short e-mails, along with location data and SOS capabilities for a reasonable monthly fee. We can also pull weather reports. So far so good. I'd certainly prefer a satellite phone and perhaps that's the next step, but the Zoleo is a useful option at a reasonable price.

 

[creativepart]

Thank you for the clues. I have a Winegard Roadtrip Mission Satalite that apparently I can use as a WiFi extender. Just no clue how yet. Looking trough manual? If not I’ll purchase the unit or similar to your suggestion

The Winegard Roadtrip Mission is a Satellite TV dish but in reading its specs just now I don’t see anything about WiFi being part of it. Winegard does have a range of mobile routers with WiFi and Cellular Broadband capability. Many with rooftop antennas which can really make a significant difference.

As one other poster mentioned, this is not plug and play. It’s somewhat tech savvy stuff that requires repeated setup at different locations.

For more consumer friendly internet you might consider going with SpaceX’s Starlink. As long as you have clear access to the sky it’s basically set it up and you’re good to go. However it’s one of the most expensive options and it does have some complications.

T-Mobile Home Internet is very good, but doesn’t work everywhere and TMobile says they plan to restrict its roaming usage… at some point.

All of this helps you with internet access but I’m afraid it’s not so simple as what you first inquired about in your original post.

 

[be happy]

I purchased this king extender last year and have had good luck with it. I am far from tech savvy on this type stuff. I would have gotten the one with the outside antenna but just did not want the hassle of running the cable.

https://kingconnect.com/king-wifimax-router-range-extender/

 

[thompwil]

I purchased this king extender last year and have had good luck with it. I am far from tech savvy on this type stuff. I would have gotten the one with the outside antenna but just did not want the hassle of running the cable.

https://kingconnect.com/king-wifimax-router-range-extender/

I've been using the same one for a few years now and for the price I'm very happy with it. I've been toying with getting the external antenna, but it works well enough for me that I just haven't bothered.

 

[dkoldman]

I've had a different experience with the WiFi CampPro V2. It has worked well for us, making it relatively easy to share WiFi, occasionally at campgrounds but more typically at places like McDonalds, Lowes, etc. Never had any problems with it at home either, always worked fine when we tested it.

I said WiFi Camp Pro v2 worked, but if it had worked relatively easy, I would have kept. Yes, you can connect to McDonalds, Lowes and similar but you had to pull outthe laptop to configure the settings each time. It could take 15 - 20 minutes but very up and down. Then when trying at most RV Campsites if you did make a connection the bandwidth from the host services was so poor you could only do email anyway. I put it the category of those that like RV covers, yes they work, but there is a reason why WBGO manual says they do not recommend.

In our case, we connect the CampPro to the network in question, and we just set up the various devices (tablets, laptops, etc.) to connect to the CampPro's SSID and no further configuration or reconfiguration is required.

For the CampPro v2 what I refer to above requires a laptop to configure the router to the new SSID you wish to use. One that configuration was complete yes all subsequent device devices could connect with no further configuration. Once connected I would say 70% of the time we did not have enough bandwidth to stream. About the only place I could say we could stream youtube TV was when we were at a Wal mart. I work from home and sometimes the RV and being able to stream Teams or Google meet is essential. The latter was NOT Wifi Camp Pro's fault, but it was hassle to setup and configure just to find out. I would not recommend to my worst enemy (if I had one)

We recently signed up for T-Mobile 5G wireless internet at home. Don't know if that's the same service you are referring to or not. Ours is the current offering ranging from $50 to $65 a month, depending on if you have discounts for T-Mobile cell service and auto-pay (which requires giving them your bank account or debit card number).

It is same T Mobile Home Internet. When it first came out I was paying $50/month. After a year I got a new plan that is $30/month and now $25/mo with autopay. I gave them my bank account number. I know some don't care too, but I figured out a long time ago, there is no such thing as privacy anymore. That is why we get mail every day from somebody telling us how much they value our privacy.

I have had good results at home with the T-Mobile service, but the terms of service specifically prohibit moving the gateway elsewhere (other than the service address) which precludes taking it on the road in our RV. A shame as that would be a really nice option when traveling.

Yes that is what they say, I talked with T Mobile Support and was told that while the devices have GPS, they primarily only use to track those that setup at a residence in area not supported. They said it might take 2 or 3 months of usage in unauthorized area before getting flagged. That was years ago. I know know T Mobile markets a plan just for RVs. In my view, I follow policy. My T Mobile Home internet is always on inside my RV that is 90% of the time at my Home address. When I get in my RV and drive to Florida to I take it out first? No. Typical trip for us is 3 - 5 days, we have streamed 200GB in one trip and no issues. No antenna to fool with either. We keep device on a shelf. We even stream TV while driving say Dallas to Houston and zero disconnections. I know T Mobile is not everywhere, so it is not for everyone, but I guess that is not a focus for where we travel.

On the emergency communications front...

We are often in very remote areas with no WiFi or cell signal. We looked at satellite phones, but they are expensive to buy and the plans are also pretty expensive. We decided to try a Zoleo satellite communicator as an emergency device, giving us the ability to send texts and short e-mails, along with location data and SOS capabilities for a reasonable monthly fee. We can also pull weather reports. So far so good. I'd certainly prefer a satellite phone and perhaps that's the next step, but the Zoleo is a useful option at a reasonable price.

We have 5 T Mobile phones, plus the Home Internet, T Mobile is bringing starlink satelite to T mobile to do some things and I am worried sick about it. We don't need satelite anything. My fear is that they will eventually have it linked and will start charging us more. Just like cable make me pay for 300+ channels that I don't need or want, but they sure like to tell you why the bill is high. It is like going to the store and you only need Milk, but you are told Eggs come bundled with milk so you have to get the eggs to get the milk. So you throw away the eggs every month complaining about the high cost.

With that said, If I needed WifI in remote areas not served by T Mobile, AT&T, Verizon or similar; I would buy the one of the expensive satelite plans versus going back to WiFi CampPro V2 or the Nergear Extender. I hadn't even had to look for anyone's public SSID in almost 4 years. But have internet 24/7.

 

[Bzerull]

When using wifi at a campground, if you increase the signal strength to maximum with a booster, it does not increase the wifi bandwidth. So, a signal booster is generally worthless. As others have suggested, you are better off spending money on a cell hot spot, or something like star link.

 

[kvmllr-WO]

A wifi booster presumes there's wifi to boost - too rarely the case, or such that even boosted it's pretty weak. We use a cell phone booster (WeBoost) and then the phone as a hotspot. Even where there is seemingly no phone coverage, most of the time we have at least some coverage and usually enough to stream on the smart TV, if we choose.

 

[Sir Robin]

Wi-Fi Hotspot

We are in a Florida RV park with WiFi. Unfortunately it is weak at our location. I see several repeaters on posts. Does anyone use a WiFi booster? Do they work? Any recommendations on models. Thanking you in advance,

Use your cell service to provide your WiFi Internet access, and ignore park-supplied WiFi. For $25/mo, Verizon subsidiary Visible.com provides unlimited talk, text, and data, and **unlimited Wi-Fi hotspot.**

I have used Visible all over Texas and the American southwest, and it works fine wherever there is a Verizon signal. Granted, I'm not a gamer, but I've had four and five devices connected, including my laptop and my Roku.

 

[RV_Lee]

I just used my phone as a hot spot all over the place last year and it worked great unless its at a place like Quartzsite when all the people show up and overwhelm the cell towers. For $500+ just for booster I'd rather just get starlink and never have to worry about it again. It looks like starlink phone is coming soon, so that might be the silver bullet.

 

[RV-Travelers]

Cell coverage

Use your cell service to provide your WiFi Internet access, and ignore park-supplied WiFi. For $25/mo, Verizon subsidiary Visible.com provides unlimited talk, text, and data, and **unlimited Wi-Fi hotspot.**

I have used Visible all over Texas and the American southwest, and it works fine wherever there is a Verizon signal. Granted, I'm not a gamer, but I've had four and five devices connected, including my laptop and my Roku.

That $25 Visible plan looks like a pretty good deal. Hotspot is unlimited, but speed is throttled to 5 mbps, which is adequate for e-mail and some web surfing, probably not good for any video streaming other than SD if that. Wonder if YouTube TV or other streaming services would work?

Unfortunately, we tend to travel through and stay in many places where there is simply no or very spotty cell coverage. For example, Land Between The Lakes, Cades Cove, much of West Virginia, etc. I have to think that's the case for many / most remote areas in the continental US.

 

[Pointyears]

It looks like starlink phone is coming soon, so that might be the silver bullet.

From what I read (I haven't been granted access yet), the T-Mo/Starlink solution is NOT for data streaming, just for text/mms.

 

[RV_Lee]

From what I read (I haven't been granted access yet), the T-Mo/Starlink solution is NOT for data streaming, just for text/mms.

Thats odd, I dont see that being of much use unless you're in a survival situation where it could be used like a garmin inreach. Regardless as more satellites go up the dishes will get smaller and smaller and eventually it probably will just be your phone.

 

[dkoldman]

Thats odd, I dont see that being of much use unless you're in a survival situation where it could be used like a garmin inreach. Regardless as more satellites go up the dishes will get smaller and smaller and eventually it probably will just be your phone.

Correct the only use or purpose is in July, T Mobile gets to charge millions of customer more so they can proudly say they have satellite but only be able to send / receive text. Starlink will also get their cut, my guess is 50%? Then in some distant future they will add even more expensive plans if those customers want to add data for internet access and streaming, like with some data limits like Hotspots today.

As more satellites go up, expect a lot more space satellites falling and collisions. Google the amount of satellites orbiting the earth now and how many fall from orbit, then imagine it when it is double.

 

[Pointyears]

From what I read (I haven't been granted access yet), the T-Mo/Starlink solution is NOT for data streaming, just for text/mms.

T-Mo says "During beta, you can send and receive satellite-powered text messages, with data and voice capabilities to follow."

I'd imagine voice would be first because they can compress the hell out of that whereas they can't with data (not to mention that would also cannibalize today's Starlink sales.