External Antenna Solutions

[503ducati]

I found this today:

http://www.rfwel.com/4g-data/index.php

[503ducati]

Outdoor Panel Antenna



"weatherized enclosures and range-extension techniques."

A setup for a Home Modem to be mounted outdoors.

[upilogue]

The thing about external antennas is, the length of the cable greatly impacts signal quality. The site's longest cable is 100 ft, for $99, and attenuation (optimistically, not stated at what frequency) is 4 dB!

[gunterm]

Back when XOHM was still around I briefly saw an offering there for fixed external recievers for WiMAX service, it seems they've dropped it now with CLEAR.

Reason I was very interested is because my folks live out in the boonies and are currently using water tower wifi internet which has way too many restrictions for what they're paying.

However we live in Topeka which is too far from kansas city for normal access, but I wonder if it's possible to hit the 4G service with one of these panel antennas from 60 miles away?

[503ducati]

Back when XOHM was still around I briefly saw an offering there for fixed external recievers for WiMAX service, it seems they've dropped it now with CLEAR.

Reason I was very interested is because my folks live out in the boonies and are currently using water tower wifi internet which has way too many restrictions for what they're paying.

However we live in Topeka which is too far from kansas city for normal access, but I wonder if it's possible to hit the 4G service with one of these panel antennas from 60 miles away?

Simple answer is no. Those external antennas turn a weak to moderate signal into a strong to strongest signal. Very basically instead of using the tiny antenna that a dongle, modem, or other device would have you'd be using one that is far larger.


What I'd like to see is indoor repeaters available to consumers. But I'd guess that Clear, for instance, believes that Home modems provide a good enough antenna. Which in most cases they do within a given coverage area. I would also guess that the customer support for them could be quite extensive and costly too.

http://global.kyocera.com/prdct/tele...ter/index.html

[503ducati]

http://www.disciplesofbloggism.com/2...s-to-tin-foil/

[Jack T. Chance]

I just signed up with Clear today, and got the dual-mode S-series 3G/4G USB modem. I notice it has the external antenna ports on the side, are there any external antennae available for it yet? I don't see any on Clear's website.

[503ducati]

I just signed up with Clear today, and got the dual-mode S-series 3G/4G USB modem. I notice it has the external antenna ports on the side, are there any external antennae available for it yet? I don't see any on Clear's website.

Shipping soon:

4 Band Blade Antenna with TS9 Connectors
AirCard 250U USB modem

http://www.sierrawireless.com/produc...e_Antenna.aspx

Frequency Bands:

CDMA 850 1900 MHz
WiMax 2500 MHz with MIMO support
GPS 1575 MHz



Man I wish one of these was possible with the U300 last year!!

[Jack T. Chance]

Shipping soon:

4 Band Blade Antenna with TS9 Connectors
AirCard 250U USB modem

http://www.sierrawireless.com/produc...e_Antenna.aspx

Frequency Bands:

CDMA 850 1900 MHz
WiMax 2500 MHz with MIMO support
GPS 1575 MHz



Man I wish one of these was possible with the U300 last year!!

Awesome!

I'll keep an eye on the website. Hope they have it available before the end of the year.

EDIT: I decided to sign up for email updates as to availability. Got this reply when I did so:

Thank you for your contact information. We will e-mail you in August when the 4 Band Blade Antenna for the AirCard 250U is available for purchase. Return to the AirCard 250U product page or visit the Sierra Wireless online store for more products and accessories.

Ummm.... Sierra Wireless peoples? It's OCTOBER now!

[Jack T. Chance]

The external antenna is available now HERE. I never got an email about it being available. Price is $35.00.

[503ducati]

Nexaira

HANA Wireless Routers with built-in 3G/4G Antennas






Compatible with Clear/Sprint 250U & PXU1900

Specs and install video:

http://nexaira.com/hana-high-availab...twork-adapters


10/20/10
http://www.thestreet.com/story/10894...k-adaptor.html


$369.99

http://3gstore.com/index.php?main_pa...oducts_id=2604

[503ducati]

I was curious if anyone out there has tried one of these;

http://www.wpsantennas.com/sprint-xo...-antennas.aspx

[503ducati]

Found this today from the a Clear forum:


http://forums.clear.com/clearcom/top...r_amp_question


You can get your current CLEAR modem converted into an outdoor weatherproof unit with an unofficial conversion by a dealer in Texas. Visit www.wimaxsatx.com for info. We will have new "conversion only" site up soon.

Maybe not a real cheap solution at $199+shipping, but it is guaranteed to work or your money back. We can't create a signal where there is none, but we can increase the signal with our better antenna and by putting it outdoors. Enclosure tested up to 149 degrees, down to 49 degrees, but modem is only rated up to 130 degrees by mfg. This can be placed in a window inside, or mounted outdoors under the eave, on the roof vent, or other location. Mounting hardware included.

Have successfully converted the original CPEi 25150 Motorola modem and the Series-M so far. Working on conversion for the Series-G now. Don't have plans to try converting the new modem with built-in wifi as of yet. We have found the Series-M modem easier to convert and it has a more sensitive receive firmware than the original modem does.

We remove your modem from its OEM enclosure, put it in an outdoor enclosure with a 16db gain antenna (modem has 1.3db gain antenna), and use power over ethernet adapters on each end of the cable so you only run a Cat 5e (or higher grade) ethernet cable out to the modem.

Since we convert your existing modem, it uses same MAC #, has no effect on your account, other that you'll be down for the shipping time both ways. We'll convert & ship back same or next day, 6 days a week. This process can be reversed if not satisfied. Or we can work with a dealer who has activation privileges in your town to sell you a new modem & ship it to you already converted, but then you have to get CLEAR to 'adjust' your account by cancelling your existing modem's account.

[503ducati]

http://www.rfwel.com/shop/WiMax-Antenna/

http://www.clearlywimax.com/

Quite a bit more to choose from nowadays I see.

[Jack T. Chance]

Shipping soon:

4 Band Blade Antenna with TS9 Connectors
AirCard 250U USB modem

http://www.sierrawireless.com/produc...e_Antenna.aspx

Frequency Bands:

CDMA 850 1900 MHz
WiMax 2500 MHz with MIMO support
GPS 1575 MHz



Man I wish one of these was possible with the U300 last year!!

So, I've been holding off on this, but I just finally ordered one because I'm working in a location for a couple weeks where it's necessary. 4G signal is much too weak without it. Should be here by Saturday, so I'll be able to use it next week. Until then, I'm stuck on Sprint's 3G network with sub-par speed (compared to Clear 4G) and a 5 GB usage cap.

So, I'm wondering if anyone bought one of these, and if any of you had any luck with mounting options OTHER THAN gluing velcro onto where you want to mount it? I want to mount it in a window, but since I'm only here temporarily, permanently gluing a velcro strip onto the glass is NOT an option.

So, has anyone found any other options that work? Are there any suction cups that would attach to the antenna using the velcro, and then I could just use the suction cup to put it on the window?