MIMO Antenna

What antenna can I best use with the NetGear AirCard 815S Mobile Hotspot?

Recently did the ICW and wanted internet connectivity even when at anchor (also the marina wifi security issue - and the general slowness as we are all logging on to the marina wifi at the same time). Settled on the above AirCard

Specifications indicate a MIMO Dual TS9 antenna would work. Couldn't find one that had a long attachment wire and all weather, and boat friendly exterior mounting. TMI on the web, need to hear from you folks.

John

Fundamentaly, coax losses at 700 and 1800MHz, for 4G are quite high. So, long wires and far away antennas are problematic. That is, you would want a gain antenna, that is highly directional. And, an active antenna that can both Tx and Rx is high $ and also problematic.

diver dave said:

Fundamentaly, coax losses at 700 and 1800MHz, for 4G are quite high. So, long wires and far away antennas are problematic. That is, you would want a gain antenna, that is highly directional. And, an active antenna that can both Tx and Rx is high $ and also problematic.

Click to expand...

Ok, so if I knew what Tx and Rx (from a doctor?) were, it would help me understand the issue. But what I do understand from this is a short run is recommended from both a cost and utility point of view.

I was thinking, after writing my first post, about just using the internal antenna and see how it works. Also thought of an install location that would only require 6 ft or so of run.

Rx Tx, sorry, Rx= receive. Tx=transmit. So, the issue is that the same coax is containing both, and its just not as simple as, say a TV antenna that is Rx only. Putting a preamp at the antenna to account for coax loss is a problem, since every few milliseconds, the modem is in Tx mode and preamps don't like a Tx signal pushing up its output. Plus, it won't route to the antenna.
So, try to make the card/modem very close to the window or use a passive antenna a short distance away.

diver dave said:

Rx Tx, sorry, Rx= receive. Tx=transmit. So, the issue is that the same coax is containing both, and its just not as simple as, say a TV antenna that is Rx only. Putting a preamp at the antenna to account for coax loss is a problem, since every few milliseconds, the modem is in Tx mode and preamps don't like a Tx signal pushing up its output. Plus, it won't route to the antenna.
So, try to make the card/modem very close to the window or use a passive antenna a short distance away.

Click to expand...

Thanks Dave,

Now looking at the next iteration, Netgear Nighthawk M-1. Same antenna issues. If I understand correctly, close to a window, like up in the helm area, is best. ( I did notice that on the trip down I lost a "bar" when I went below. And in some spots, it meant zero production. )

In terms of antenna, I was just thinking it would work like a radio - higher is better. I noticed that some antennas have two wires, is that to solve the Tx Rx thing?

John

two wires might mean feeds for the two bands are seperate. Higher is not necessarily better, since we are talking short range, less than a mile, LOS. sorry, line of sight.

cellular world much different that broadcast TV, radio , even two way radio. Too high antennas cause interferernce with the cells a few miles away on the same frequencies. You will see many base antennas with a down tilt on the antennas to minimize cell to cell interference.

You might consider finding hotspots from a cell or cable vendor. I use Xfinity cable and have an enormous number of free hot spots all around the coast, at least in New England and in Florida. Verizon also offers me free hotspots as part of my cell service and I can find a lot of them. I have a Wi-Fi antenna extender from Island Time (a cruiser live no in a Florida) and it works great-I get speeds like I am at home.

I use a Verizon hot spot for Internet access while cruising. Very seldom have I not had access. No external antenna, just the hot spot sitting on a shelf.

Most modern cell phones can be used as a hot spot as well, at least for one device.

PMF1984 said:

Thanks Dave,

Now looking at the next iteration, Netgear Nighthawk M-1. Same antenna issues. If I understand correctly, close to a window, like up in the helm area, is best. ( I did notice that on the trip down I lost a "bar" when I went below. And in some spots, it meant zero production. )

In terms of antenna, I was just thinking it would work like a radio - higher is better. I noticed that some antennas have two wires, is that to solve the Tx Rx thing?

John

Click to expand...

I had a Netgear 4G mobile hotspot that was performing reasonably well. Then my service provider offered a deal on the Nighthawk M1 that offered more data at the same cost, so I upgraded. The M1 has been really good, in terms of both speed and range.

I also have a CelFi GO installed.
https://www.cel-fi.com.au/cel_fi_go_telstra_stationary_nextg_4gx_repeater_booster.html
The antenna is as high as I can get it, and the cable run quite long. There is an app which allows experimenting with placement of the internal antenna for best performance. I find with the M1 that I have seldom needed to turn on the CelFi in local waters. However, when I travel to more remote locations, towards the limit of range for phones/M1 as standalone, then the CelFi is very beneficial. But as I have noted before, telecom's law in USA is more lenient than in Australia and you can use wireless cell boosters that are illegal here. Cell boosters are a much cheaper alternative than the CelFi repeater.

Hey Guys,

I am getting the Nighthawk next week to configure to my devices. It will take some trying out in the more remote spots to determine if I need an antennae.

John

Has anyone connected an external antenna to the M1? I see the capability for it but have not found any reference o anyone making use of it.

Marty.........................

Final Report

I ended up installing the Netgear Nighthawk MR-1100 (same as M-1)

It is an ATT unit (untethered units are available on EBay)

A funny thing buying this - I went to best Buy and they punched in the name and model number _ blank.

They had to type in "AT&T - Nighthawk LTE Mobile Hotspot Router"

It is far far faster than the cell service on my Ipad 2. You can view videos.

Very satisfied with it.

At this time, I don't see the need for an external antenna. (but right now I'm in a place with excellent coverage - we'll see what happens as I crawl up the ICW this Spring.)

John

I found out more why two feedlines are used, if you are going remote antenna.
4G/LTE uses polarization diversity. Each antenna is set up for a different polarization and therefore can increase data speeds by using the one with the more optimum gain/signal to noise ratio/lower bit error rate.

PMF1984 said:

What antenna can I best use with the NetGear AirCard 815S Mobile Hotspot?

Recently did the ICW and wanted internet connectivity even when at anchor (also the marina wifi security issue - and the general slowness as we are all logging on to the marina wifi at the same time). Settled on the above AirCard

Specifications indicate a MIMO Dual TS9 antenna would work. Couldn't find one that had a long attachment wire and all weather, and boat friendly exterior mounting. TMI on the web, need to hear from you folks.

John

Click to expand...

The receiving signal strength would be faded if the cable length is too long. In general, 3m is the best. Here are some recommendation for you at https://www.store4g.com/4g-antenna/

So I came up the ICW last month, and there was define toy some dead spots with the ATT service. Some places were also very weak. When underway, an ability to check out marinas ahead of you is essential.

Other than the overage charges, and the few dead spots, the M-1 worked great. An antenna will help the dead spots problem.