This post is for discussion purposes only. I am not selling anything or advertising anything for sale. This post is for those who are interested in learning about high quality. high power, long range vessel WiFi systems, networking your boat, etc and wish to learn more about wireless Internet services in general and to share the information with others.
As far as WiFi service and internet in general, most people don't really seem to know what is going on in the industry because they (the industry) don't tell us ahead of time what is coming, well not the lay persons anyway. It's a real job just to find things out and i have found out a bunch over the years and my journeys through cyber space and equipment Hell, so here's some knowledge to share.
There are so many wierd choices out there, strange boxes, low power-high claims, cell units, "booster's", "extenders", etc. I have an Apple iPhone which is great and offers better internet capability than any other cell phone out there, but still, it's nothing compared to a laptop connected to good, strong WiFi signal access. Especially important for sending and receiving attachments, downloading pdf's, watching videos, free SKYPE calling (VoIP Phone) and what not. Satellite is WAY too expensive and "little plug-in cards" are just that, keyword "little" - because that's what you get!! Don't get me wrong though, SAT internet is great and needed for sure for bluewater crossings IF you must send and receive text only email on the way or in remote places. Still to slow for attachments and large VoIP Internet telephones, etc. Higher speed SAT dishes do a real good job but you are looking in to 10's of thousands of dollars to buy and a small fortune to use on a continuing basis.
For WiFi, Don't be fooled. There is no need to spend $1,000. $1,500, $2,000 or more on a system, and even those, are low power compared to the new PORTSIDE802 WiFi unit I have. I have blown a lot of money on bad equipment, funky cards, antennas and the such. Glad THAT'S over.
After extensive, exhausting research, I was lucky enough to come in contact with the manufacturer of these new high power WiFi transmitter/receivers through a friend of a relative and ended up a beta tester in return to offering my review and results and I can say, the search is OVER. IT'S FANTASTIC!! I used to see maybe 5 or 10 available signals with my SENAO/ENGENIOUS and now I see 50 to 100 and the SPEED is GREAT!! (depending where I am) The range is rated at 7 miles. I think these will be the new standard for many, many years to come. By the way, WiFi is here to stay for a very long time and WiFi units are as easy to install as a VHF or a GPS and the antennas are marine grade white fiberglass so they look pretty good on the boat too. These units aren't on the market yet, but they say by mid May or June 1 to start shipping. I feel the day has finally come for affordable, powerful WiFi solutions, at last, so an investment in this type of gear will work great for many, many years to come.
The bottom line is the really expensive units either don't deliver the power for the money, have strange housings, weird power needs (48VDC) 110VAC, etc. And the little built-in antenna units don't do much at all unless you go sit next to the base on shore.
ALL worldwide WiFi operates on the 802.11 b & g, 2.4Ghz carrier wave standard. THE MAX legal power for Public IP (internet protocol) WiFi transmission is 30dBm or 1,000mW; FCC (USA/CAN)/CE (Europe)/TELEC (JAPAN) IEEE 802.11 b/g standard. 802 "N" is coming in about 2 years, and will offer slightly greater distance/signal range and use the 5gHz carrier wave frequency. This will also use different boxes and antennas rated for the platform use at 5Ghz standard.
"N" will be backwards compatible to G as G is to B and N to B ,etc. All these standards are here for a very long time to come. N equipment is a ways off though. The USA is just catching on with free WiFi, (internet in general actually compared to the rest of the world) but the rest of the world has free WiFi pretty much every where you go. AND Systems in place now (worldwide), are being upgraded to higher power from 200mW to 500mW units, up to 800mW and 1000mW units as the demands of the net's ability & systems and users, dictate the need for more powerful signals and data rates (speed).
Maybe a little less confusing . . .I hope, Anyway, feel free to ask questions about signals, antennas, power ratings, brands, AP (access points), connection speeds, Hot Spot locations, etc., I have become very familiar with pretty much everything out there now and it CAN be a confusing subject. I would be happy to discuss my passed experiences and things to steer clear of. My onboard system is a long range Wifi unit (12V box) connected with Low Loss LMR400 equivalent RF cable to a 12dBi antenna (47" - stern rail mount) in to a LinkSys WG54, to 4, laptops (wireless), a portable HP printer (with the wireless option), and an iPhone - works pretty good. A note to remember, when buying gear, look at mW for dollar ratio and power supply. Long range WiFi gear and vessel network WiFi HUBs should be 12V capable. Don't worry about amps, they draw very little anyway. With a good LinkSys WG54xx, you get both wireless to the whole boat for all devices, laptops, VoIP phones, Wifi enabled cell phones, printers, etc., you also get 4 or more ethernet channels for other stuff and your onboard NAV gear.
That's it for now, Safe sail all . . . . . . . . . . hail with Q's on systems and networking if you like.
JANDY clear
As far as WiFi service and internet in general, most people don't really seem to know what is going on in the industry because they (the industry) don't tell us ahead of time what is coming, well not the lay persons anyway. It's a real job just to find things out and i have found out a bunch over the years and my journeys through cyber space and equipment Hell, so here's some knowledge to share.
There are so many wierd choices out there, strange boxes, low power-high claims, cell units, "booster's", "extenders", etc. I have an Apple iPhone which is great and offers better internet capability than any other cell phone out there, but still, it's nothing compared to a laptop connected to good, strong WiFi signal access. Especially important for sending and receiving attachments, downloading pdf's, watching videos, free SKYPE calling (VoIP Phone) and what not. Satellite is WAY too expensive and "little plug-in cards" are just that, keyword "little" - because that's what you get!! Don't get me wrong though, SAT internet is great and needed for sure for bluewater crossings IF you must send and receive text only email on the way or in remote places. Still to slow for attachments and large VoIP Internet telephones, etc. Higher speed SAT dishes do a real good job but you are looking in to 10's of thousands of dollars to buy and a small fortune to use on a continuing basis.
For WiFi, Don't be fooled. There is no need to spend $1,000. $1,500, $2,000 or more on a system, and even those, are low power compared to the new PORTSIDE802 WiFi unit I have. I have blown a lot of money on bad equipment, funky cards, antennas and the such. Glad THAT'S over.
After extensive, exhausting research, I was lucky enough to come in contact with the manufacturer of these new high power WiFi transmitter/receivers through a friend of a relative and ended up a beta tester in return to offering my review and results and I can say, the search is OVER. IT'S FANTASTIC!! I used to see maybe 5 or 10 available signals with my SENAO/ENGENIOUS and now I see 50 to 100 and the SPEED is GREAT!! (depending where I am) The range is rated at 7 miles. I think these will be the new standard for many, many years to come. By the way, WiFi is here to stay for a very long time and WiFi units are as easy to install as a VHF or a GPS and the antennas are marine grade white fiberglass so they look pretty good on the boat too. These units aren't on the market yet, but they say by mid May or June 1 to start shipping. I feel the day has finally come for affordable, powerful WiFi solutions, at last, so an investment in this type of gear will work great for many, many years to come.
The bottom line is the really expensive units either don't deliver the power for the money, have strange housings, weird power needs (48VDC) 110VAC, etc. And the little built-in antenna units don't do much at all unless you go sit next to the base on shore.
ALL worldwide WiFi operates on the 802.11 b & g, 2.4Ghz carrier wave standard. THE MAX legal power for Public IP (internet protocol) WiFi transmission is 30dBm or 1,000mW; FCC (USA/CAN)/CE (Europe)/TELEC (JAPAN) IEEE 802.11 b/g standard. 802 "N" is coming in about 2 years, and will offer slightly greater distance/signal range and use the 5gHz carrier wave frequency. This will also use different boxes and antennas rated for the platform use at 5Ghz standard.
"N" will be backwards compatible to G as G is to B and N to B ,etc. All these standards are here for a very long time to come. N equipment is a ways off though. The USA is just catching on with free WiFi, (internet in general actually compared to the rest of the world) but the rest of the world has free WiFi pretty much every where you go. AND Systems in place now (worldwide), are being upgraded to higher power from 200mW to 500mW units, up to 800mW and 1000mW units as the demands of the net's ability & systems and users, dictate the need for more powerful signals and data rates (speed).
Maybe a little less confusing . . .I hope, Anyway, feel free to ask questions about signals, antennas, power ratings, brands, AP (access points), connection speeds, Hot Spot locations, etc., I have become very familiar with pretty much everything out there now and it CAN be a confusing subject. I would be happy to discuss my passed experiences and things to steer clear of. My onboard system is a long range Wifi unit (12V box) connected with Low Loss LMR400 equivalent RF cable to a 12dBi antenna (47" - stern rail mount) in to a LinkSys WG54, to 4, laptops (wireless), a portable HP printer (with the wireless option), and an iPhone - works pretty good. A note to remember, when buying gear, look at mW for dollar ratio and power supply. Long range WiFi gear and vessel network WiFi HUBs should be 12V capable. Don't worry about amps, they draw very little anyway. With a good LinkSys WG54xx, you get both wireless to the whole boat for all devices, laptops, VoIP phones, Wifi enabled cell phones, printers, etc., you also get 4 or more ethernet channels for other stuff and your onboard NAV gear.
That's it for now, Safe sail all . . . . . . . . . . hail with Q's on systems and networking if you like.
JANDY clear