Hi Everyone. Well, after 15 years the RV-Dreams Community Forum is coming to an end. Since it began in August 2005, we've had 58 Million page views, 124,000 posts, and we've spent about $15,000 to keep this valuable resource for RVers free and open. But since we are now off the road and have settled down for the next chapter of our lives, we are taking the Forum down effective June 30, 2021. It has been a tough decision, but it is now time.


We want to thank all of our members for their participation and input over the years, and we want to especially thank those that have acted as Moderators for us during our amazing journey living and traveling in our RV and growing the RV-Dreams Family. We will be forever proud to have been founders of this Forum and to have been supported by such a wonderful community. Thank you all!!

Members Login
Username 
 
Password 
    Remember Me  
RV-Dreams.com Home -> RV-Dreams Community Forum -> Technology On The Road -> WI-FI Booster Antenna
Post Info TOPIC: WI-FI Booster Antenna
thebearII


RV-Dreams Family Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 544
Date:
WI-FI Booster Antenna
Permalink  

The park we are setup in offers Wi-Fi service but the signals were barely received by our Wi-Fi equipped laptop.  The access to the internet was spotty unless we turned the laptop just the right way....

So I went to Best Buy and purchased a Hawking Technologies USB boost antenna.  Here are the details regarding the antenna:
http://www.hawkingtech.com/products/productlist.php?CatID=32&FamID=60&ProdID=280

This device worked great.  It was easy to install and immediately the signal strength went from poor to excellent.  Before the antenna, we could only see 2 Wi-Fi connections, after adding the antenna we saw 8 Wi-Fi connections in the area.

This is from inside the RV shooting through metal mini-blinds.  It's a great little antenna.

The antenna is cute, it looks like a toy satellite dish and is completely powered using a USB port, so no batteries or power supply to worry about.  It has a 5 bar LED signal strength meter on the base, to aid in pointing the rotatable dish for the best signal.

This is a great, easy to use product, that does exactly what the sales person at Best Buy said it would do.   The price was $19.99, well worth it.

The Bear II



__________________
Larry
"Small House, Big Yard "
7 years to go to FT
Alfa See-Ya 5'er and 2007 Kodiak C4500 Monroe Pickup
Speedhitch


RV-Dreams Family Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 1043
Date:
Permalink  

Thanks Bear! I have the same problem sometimes. I will give this a try and see how it works.

Joe

__________________

 

Joe Sherri and Kris living in a Open Range Lite 308BHS. 2500 Dodge Ram Diesel  http://speedysgreatadventure.blogspot.com/
jdensie


RV-Dreams Family Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 120
Date:
Permalink  

We have been using the Hawkings for about a year.  I made a waterproff container out of a Tupperware container and mounted it on a pole. I have two spring clamps and we can clip it on to  the side of the slide out.  Aim it toward the supply and it works great.smilesmile

if any one wants pictures we can e-mail them.

-- Edited by jdensie at 08:04, 2008-07-09

__________________
Jon Ensminger / Kathleen Lightner 
2001 40ft safari MH  DP pulling a 2005 Saturn Vue. 
Life is good in the USA
http://trailsofserengeti.blogspot.com/
mward3


RV-Dreams Community Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 17
Date:
Permalink  


 thebearII,

    This sounds like a good deal as I also have problems picking up a signal in some campgrounds.  I have one question though about the price - when I looked this up on best buy's web site the price was listed at over 60 dollars.  Has the price went up that fast or did you get it somewhere else?

  Thanks,


   Mike

__________________
Mike
thebearII


RV-Dreams Family Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 544
Date:
Permalink  

I guess I had a senior moment. We bought several items at Best Buy that day and I was working from memory. I don't have the receipt handy so I can't check the price. I just remember I thought the price was reasonable.

I know something we bought was $19.99 and everything else was much higher....so I went with the $19.99.

Maybe I ended up with a better deal than I thought. Perhaps they mis-priced them at the store.

The web site shows the price at $62.00 still a "best buy" because it works great.

ashamed  Sorry if I mis-represented the price.   I'm going to take my memory pills now.....if I can remember where I put them.   "Honey !...where's my glasses"

__________________
Larry
"Small House, Big Yard "
7 years to go to FT
Alfa See-Ya 5'er and 2007 Kodiak C4500 Monroe Pickup
Aliceinwl


RV-Dreams Community Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 2
Date:
Permalink  

I just picked it up at Buy Now through Amazon.com for $50 - no shipping charges

__________________
Tom Donaldson


RV-Dreams Community Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 24
Date:
Permalink  

Here is another way to go if you want a more permanent installation and you are comfortable configuring networking gear:

We got solid connections this way when no one else in the park could.


__________________
www.mactom.com
Tom Donaldson


RV-Dreams Community Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 24
Date:
Permalink  

Here is a very nice option for MacBook Pros. It is the QuickerTek Express Card with an external antenna attached by a coax cable. You could put a longer cable on it and stick it just about anywhere.

Sure wish computer manufacturers would just put a standard coax connector in laptops so we could add an external antenna ...




__________________
www.mactom.com
Page 1 of 1  sorted by
 
Quick Reply

Please log in to post quick replies.
RV-Dreams.com Home -> RV-Dreams Community Forum -> Technology On The Road -> WI-FI Booster Antenna
Tweet this page Post to Digg Post to Del.icio.us