Several new toys have arrived here at the SnB over the past week.
1. Uiquiti Titanium Bullet. (Amazon.com: BulletM2 Titanium Ubiquiti 2.4GHz 802.11n/g Outdoor Radio: Computers (http://www.amazon.com/BulletM2-Titanium-Ubiquiti-802-11n-Outdoor/dp/B008FITTKQ/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1384814854&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=ubiquiti+titanium+bullet)) About $125 at Amazon plus about $30 for the 8db antenna. I have not yet installed this little unit but it's almost ready to go. I have to cut the mounting sleeve down a bit so that the antenna fits directly onto the Bullet. The idea for now is to hit my home WiFi Router from where the coach is parked so I don't have to tether it to my cell phone or pay for another Internet connection.
Last weekend we were in a location where we could have had WiFi but missed it by *that* much. What's more, the cell phone didn't have a good enough antenna to hit the Verizon network (although we could make phone calls through a roam connection). So there we werre, stuck with no Interwebz at all.
For those of you who don't know about the Bullet, it is a WiFi router that can be mounted externally (I'm putting it on the rear ladder) and use to get a good connection to what would otherwise be weak WiFi hotspots. Although it is a wired device in the coach (and powered by a voltage sent by the Cat 5 wiring) it's not much of a problem to add an internal WiFi access point to allow laptops, smartphones and tablets to share the connection.
2. Wilson Sleek 813426 4G (Amazon.com: Wilson Electronics - Sleek 4G - Cell Phone Signal Booster for Single (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003NQ9U04/ref=pe_385040_30332190_TE_M3T1_ST1_dp_2)) which includes DC power and a "stubby" external mag-mount antenna. This device holds a smart phone in a cradle and amplifies cell system signals. We tested it at a favorite RV site which, unfortunately, is "iffy" for cell phone coverage and it does work. I understand it might work better with the "trucker" mirror-mount antenna so I might go for that once the details are in.
Since I am still gainfully employed (more-or-less) I need an Internet connection at least a couple of times a week so these little devices should help that along. Parking near a friendly McD gives us access to breakfast as well as a chance to get caught up on work using the Bullet while we take it home and eat it. And, should the WiFi be out of range, one of our cell phones (the Wilson Sleek allegedly works on all systems) in tether mode should do the trick.
With the Raspberry Pi already installed in the rig along with whatever laptops and tablets we choose to have along, we are set.
Craig
Craig,
That is great! But you lost me...all I got was breakfast at McDonalds
Hi, I'll be curious as to your success with these, as I was just now considering very similar solutions. A few places I parked were determined by WiFi poaching distance.
Dave
Sue and I just ran the cat5 from the bedroom out the rear engine grill to the ladder. It was getting dark so we stopped. I'll put the Bullett up on a temporary basis tomorrow and see if I can test its connectivity to the home WiFi. It's about 700 feet so it should be a good test.
Craig
I noticed in Craig's post that started this one that he made multiple purchases from Amazon. First Amazon started collecting TN sales tax (10%) and now has increased the required purchase amount for free shipping to $39, up from $25.
Personally, I am going to be doing a lot more looking for other sites from which to purchase. Several times recently, I have found Amazon to have higher prices on whatever I was shopping for. Just sayin'...
The Ubiquiti stuff is great.. I have used a Bullet HP or a Nano2 for several years. I configure it as a Station (so it looks for an access point) and as a Router so it does NAT and changes to my internal subnet. I run it into a SOHO Linksys router to create a hotspot. Since all my devices only see the Linksys I never have to change addresses and I an isolated from my provider's.
I have considered mounting the HP on the OTA TV antenna but for now just put in the front window.
This summer I'll try out Ubiquiti's indoor router. It uses the same software as the Bullets.
It's not that unusual these days, but I'm a bit confused about Ubiquiti.
Routers et al is fine. But I don't see a discussion of what delivers the Internet. And where.
best, paul
Craig,
When you get it installed, please share the details. Curious about the POE and if/how you end up doing anything internal to the coach.
We have an original WiFiRanger and WFRBoost (Bullet2) - have toyed with upgrading to the Ti version of the Bullet (for N) and have been very frustrated with WFR support/firmware issues this past year.
Since I live in WA and am in business here I am required by law to pay a "use tax" on everything I purchase via the Internet that I have not paid sales tax on. I know that everyone "winks" at this but I am also in business in WA and have to charge *my* clients sales tax for certain services and all hardware.
This presents a problem. If I were just a private citizen the tax authorities would have to catch me. But since I'm enrolled in their tax collection scheme I am also subject to audits. And since I no longer have a corporation (which would be a separate "person" the way our stupid laws are set up now) everything we buy could be included in that audit.
So Amazon is the most convenient place for me to buy. I have a "Prime" account so anything I buy is free shipping and comes in about two days. Amazon is also in WA so they charge me sales tax and I can point to that to any tax auditor. And I don't have to keep track of purchases elsewhere. Or at least not as much.
And if you don't think my concerns about tax collection are valid, I got a friendly email a while back asking me to explain just exactly why my quarterly tax payments did not include any payments for "use tax". It was an easy explanation. And I have the documentation to prove it.
Craig
I can understand the confusion.
As RVers we generally have two methods of getting onto the Internet:
1. Via a nearby WiFi "hotspot"; and,
2. Via our smartphone tether or cell phone access point "hotspot" (Millenium, Jetpack, etc.)
The Ubiquiti Bullet only connects you to a WiFi hotspot be it at McDonald's or Starbucks or your house (or shop's) WiFi router. It does not connect to any cell system unless there is a device (smartphone, Millenium, Jetpack, etc.) that provides a WiFi connection to the cell phone data service.
The main advantage to using the Bullet is that it is a rugged, weather tolerant means of connecting to those WiFi hotspots when they are much farther away than your laptop, tablet or cell phone can see. This is due to the 8db antenna (you can get 16db versions) that the Bullet uses and also because it is high and outside.
However, because the Bullett does not create a second WiFi network inside your motor home (just a wired network connection using cat5 cable) you have to come up with something that gets your tablet or laptop onto that network. You can just use a wired network with outlets or you can install a WiFi hotspot for INSIDE the RV (and close by outside).
Is this getting complicated enough for you, yet?
The Bullet doesn't create an Internet connection out of thin air. It has to be able to see a WiFi hotspot and it has to either know the encryption type and password for that hotspot or the hotspot has to be "open" for it to connect. But the hotspot can be way too far for your mobile devices to connect to on their own and still be accessible to the Bullet.
THEN... you either have to wire your PC or laptop to the Bullet (it comes with a 2-port hub: one for the power and data connection up to the Bullet and another for an internal connection) OR you can have a second WiFi network inside the RV using an access point that is connected to that second port.
So there is an outside WiFi network that the Bullet connects to and then an inside network (wired or WiFi) that you use to connect to the Bullet. The bullet moves data from one network to the other.
I'm going to elaborate on this in other posts as I get the system up and running. To do this I will probably be installing a second Raspberry Pi micro-computer to act as the internal RV WiFi hotspot to keep power requirements as low as possible.
Craig
Shucks! I thot sure that's what it was doing ;o)
Oh, well ... I guess I'll have to keep my MiFi & MBR1400
best, paul
I have the Bullet 2 routed thru a Netgear WD3700 router. I've just discovered that this system does slow the connection considerably. :(
I'm at Oregon Motorcoach and they have the best wifi I've ever been connected to. In the customer waiting area I'm getting 10mbs down and 8mbs up. When in the coach using the Bullet I was only able to get 5mbs down and 4mbs up. I disconnected my laptop (newer MacBook Pro) from the coach wifi and connected directly to the Oregon Motorcoach wifi and I was back at 10mbs down. This is while I was sitting in the coach in the Oregon Motorcoach parking lot. I suspect the slowdown is from the Bullet.
Here is my setup
Amazon.com: TRENDnet 10dBi Outdoor Omni Directional Antenna TEW-AO10O: (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000ERAOM8/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1)
to
Amazon.com: Ubiquiti BULLET2 AP or CPE Outdoor 802.11b/g: Computers & (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002Y31PHS/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1)
Powered by a Amazon.com: Ubiquiti POE-15 Power Over Ethernet: Computers & Accessories (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002R7JPGE/ref=oh_details_o09_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1)
Connected to a Amazon.com: NETGEAR Wireless Router - N600 Dual Band Gigabit (WNDR3700): (http://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Wireless-Router-Gigabit-WNDR3700/dp/B002HWRJY4/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1384882186&sr=1-3-fkmr0&keywords=netgear+wd3600)
I'm using N 5gz network in the coach so don't think the slowdown in between the laptop and the router. The Titanium Bullet with the 400mz processor as opposed to the 180mz of the Bullet 2 I have may do the trick.
I'm not sure if the results would be the same if the wifi connection is slower. I'll retest the next time I'm connected to a normal campground wifi where speeds are usually less then 1mps. Humm I can test via my mifi card. I'll try that tonight and post an update. (coach is in service again today)
@Craig thanks for the Ubuiquiti Bullet explanation! Saved me having to do it. :)
see ya
ken
That doesn't surprise me... the advantages of the Bullet are its ability to get weaker WiFi signals and its durability (at least in Titanium... the earlier models were problemmatic) in outdoor environments. I have the Titanium model and will be going over to the RV today to give it a go although I probably won't be able to do a decent speed test.
Craig
I
Ken... I wonder if the fact that you're using a router (not an access point) for your internal LAN isn't introducng some latency. Especially if, as I suspect, you're doing a second network address translation (NAT) for every packet.
Your test will be interesting when you get the coach back. :)
Craig
@Craig Yes I'm doing two address translations but don't think that would slow the connection by half unless the the Bullet or the router processor is totally overwhelmed. (which may be happening at the greater than 5mps speed)
see ya
ken
So if i understand this - it is an outdoor hi-gain antenna for the internet. It is connected either directly to a device OR another wireless antenna inside the coach for use with wireless devices.
It's more than that but, for simplicity's sake.... yes. But it also functions as a router, a bridge, an access-point repeater, etc. It also has settings for power and range. Plus you can scan with it to determine which network you want it to connect to.
Craig
A while back I put together a graphic of how my Ubiquiti stuff worked . See attached
POE: I used a surplus wallwart to plug into the power injector. It I were to make this permanent I could wire into the coaches DC system.
Island Times PC has been putting systems for boats together for a while with the same gear.
Marine WiFi Systems (http://islandtimepc.com/marine_wifi.html)
Ran some tests direct to wifi and then thru the Bullet. Results show the limitations of the Bullet 2. Below are my very unscientific results. The numbers on the left are upstream and right are downstream in Mbps. Ran 3 tests on each configuration. Used Speedtest.net by Ookla - The Global Broadband Speed Test (http://speedtest.net) to test.
My conclusion is that in most cases that you will see on the road the Bullet 2 does not degrade bandwidth. Looking at the results the bandwidth thru the the MiFi did not degrade when being passed thru the Bullet. This is when the MiFi cards was being used at close to its maximum bandwidth. (I had a clear line of sight to the Verizon cell tower. I could see it the tower out my windshield.)
It appears the high speed of the WiFi at Oregon Motorcoach is overwhelming the Bullet's processor and probably causing massive retransmits of the data. Strange that the downstream was not effected as much as the upstream.
The advantage of the Bullet is that
1. You can attach a high gain antenna to pull in weak signals. This is the main benefit of the Bullet.
2. All of your computers can connect to one access point. When you get to a new campgrounds you just update the Bullet to connect to the new WiFi network. I have 3 computers, 2 phones, a tablet, a printer, and Dish Network Hopper all attached to the network! This is big for me.
3. The WiFi you are connecting to will only see one device. Some campgrounds require a unique password per device. The Bullet hides your devices and appears to the campground WiFi as a single device.
4. Hackers have a very difficult time getting past the Bullet. The system is set up to only allow very limited services thru.
The Disadvantages
1. I haven't figured out how to connect to the Tengo type networks. (I hate Tengo)
2. Additional complications in the WiFi setup can make troubleshooting a PIA.
Is it worth it? For me yes but I have an extensive background in information technology. If you decide to go this route be prepared to spend some time educating yourself on how this technology works. It's not that difficult to put together but it's not a simple plug and play item.
The more expensive Bullet Titanium with its 2 times faster processer will probably not see this issue. Having said that in real world conditions you will probably never see this issue with the Bullet 2 either. If you do just connect directly to the WiFi by passing the Bullet and stream Netflix all night long!
Oregon Motorcoach WiFi
21.10 13.73
20.72 12.07
17.19 11.90
Oregon Motorcoach via Bullet
4.31 7.69
3.79 7.53
3.60 7.34
MiFi Card
12.44 9.00
13.83 10.07
11.14 9.06
MiFi via Bullet
12.21 10.04
17.91 9.83
12.40 8.81
see ya
ken
I wonder if the physical proximity overwhelmed one-or-the-other in terms of too much power for too short a distance. I have read reports of this happening with the WiFi Ranger's version of the Bullet
Another plus for the Bullet, in addition to all those you listed, is that it's pure Linux. I was ssh'ed into my device yesterday (from the Rpi) and it was comfortably familiar. :)
Craig
Today I updated the Raspberry Pi Linux micro-computer and set it up to be a web server (Apache) with a database (MySQL) along with a more convenient administration package (Webmin). All of this over a link to my little-old WiFi router sitting in the kitchen of our SnB house about .3 miles away from where the coach is sitting behind the shop and connected up to 50A power. I also configured BIND to make this the main DNS server for the coach. The Bullet can do some caching but it's much better to have the Rpi do it.
Handy.
I was intending to use one Rpi as web site, DNS and WiFi Access Point but reality hit when I discovered that the poor little Rpi with only 500mb of RAM hits the wall early and often. So it appears that a second Raspberry Pi microcomputer will have to be installed to take over some of the server duties.
The Midnight Solar Classic 150 is due to arrive any day now and I plan to have that interface with the Rpi web site to give me data and control for the solar panel charging system as well as have various temperature monitoring and control systems spread around the coach. Two Rpi systems barely nudge the readout on the Trimetric battery bank monitor system. I could probably wire this into the web site, too.
Some of this will undoubtedly take an add-on board but there are several hitting the market now, including the Arduino. But there is a camera board and a weather station board already out there.
At any rate, I am pretty pleased with the Bullet's performance; it was much better than I had hoped. Downloads were relatively quick and web browsing was okay once I shut down some of the extra cycle hogs (Apache and MySQL, namely).
However, when I fired up FoxFi tethering on my smartphone (Droid Bionic) the Bullet did not see it at all. I had assumed that it would and that I could simply use the Bullet as the default gateway for everything and select the smartphone when no WiFi was available. Mind you, it was getting into the 20s on this coldest night of the season so far (predicted into the teens) so I didn't pursue it too long.
But the Bullet rocks!
Craig
I should add here that I can browse to the Bullet's web configuration application as well as ssh into it right here from my sofa in the SnB.
The Bullet's home page gives Tx/Rx bandwidth speeds and right now it's reporting 19.7/11Mbps (that's a little "b").
Pretty spiffy!
Craig
I've been using a Ubiquiti Nanostation for a couple of years now, and am quite happy with it. I have it mounted on the batwing mast and can point it at the local WIFI source. The Nanostation feeds into the coach on Cat 5 and a Cradlepoint M1000 provides in-coach WIFI. When we're out of local WIFI range, we use a Millenicom MIFI on Verizon's net.
My link to the coach (and the Ubiquiti Titanium Bullet WiFi router) failed last week. I rebooted the router and all came back only to fail again several days later. Logging into the Bullet from inside the coach I noticed that the Bullet was not linking to my home WiFi so I tried to do a search of local WiFi stations. The "tools" section won't work. No search, no ping; I can get to every page on the configuration section except the "tools" part.
Something is up. There have been issues with the Titanium unit but I had thought it was all fixed by now. Maybe not. I'll have more time later this week to go do a full check on it (using ssh this time) but for now.... I would not advise buying this particular unit... and since WiFi Rangers use the same thing you might want to hold off on any purchase of that, too.
Not a happy camper right now. This seemed like such a great addition to the coach. More to follow....
Craig
Ubiquiti has a forum that might be helpful
802.11a/b/g Products - Ubiquiti Networks Community (http://community.ubnt.com/t5/802-11a-b-g-Products/ct-p/80211abg)
You might look at the last several in this thread:
12V POE possible? - Ubiquiti Networks Community (http://community.ubnt.com/t5/Bullet-Radio-Modules/12V-POE-possible/m-p/129513#U129513)
A re-flash to a different version of the OS??
I have had good luck with several of their devices. I use a Bullet2HP as a Station/Router to connect to the local campground/hotspot on the outside and to a Linksys router on the inside. On rare occasion (had non-DHCP devices) I have done MiFi>BulletHP>Linksys>internal devices.
Occasionaly Ubiquiti has had QC problems and had to recall whole batches. They can tell you if your device is one of those.
I like them.
(an aside: look at Introducing the Intel® Galileo Development Board (http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/do-it-yourself/galileo-maker-quark-board.html))
hth
It came back (on its own) but it's gone again right now. I managed to get the "tools" working remotely while it was back and I was kinda hoping it had fixed itself. :P
I have been reading the forum and noticed that entire production runs on some products have issues; I was hoping the Titanium Bullet had been out long enough to not have those. I'll have to check on the OS version and do an upgrade.
At least it's not completely dead like some users have reported in the past. They mount them on towers and 2 days later they have to send a crew back up the tower to replace it.
I'm happy with it as long as it is working. :)
Thanks for the links. :)
Craig
This looks like an interesting IO platform. I like the 3.3v or 5v ability. Not a lot of software "sketches" out for it yet, though. I'm a little wary of 3.3v devices in an RV since there isn't a lot of leeway if there are transients on the power bus. Years ago we went to CMOS discreet components on a ship (the Hughes Glomar Explorer, actually) because we wanted more protection from transients. Of course, not much difference between 3.3 and 5 so *shrug*.
So much stuff.. :)
Craig
You don't happen to remember Art Trunzo from that time, do you? I met and worked with him at Airpac in San Diego. He did a lot of the electrical engineering on the Glomar.
EMCM(SW) ret
Doesn't ring a bell. Lots of guys came and went on that project and most of them had no idea of the scope. I was an engineer for the company that built the heavy lifting yokes and associated control system. It was certainly an interesting job. :)
Craig
The Bullet is working again; I am beginning to suspect that it's temperature sensitive.
Craig
Could it be a moisture issue? I noticed this on the Q&A: " Many users have complained that the weather proofing is not sufficient for a long and durable life."
It's possible... we had fog at 25F this morning and right now the sun is shining right on the Bullet. However it's well sealed up. If it were moisture I'd expect it to take longer to come back to life; but this morning as soon as the sun hit it we were back in business.
Craig
I'm using the Wilson Sleek 815225 with my Motorola Droid X2. Using the optional 12.25 inches, Magnet-Mount Stainless Steel antenna. Does offer quite a gain signal strength.
I have the same thing but bought the "trucker" antenna. It won't mount on the mirrors but I put it at the back of the motor home on the railing that goes around the rear of the rooftop (about 24 inches from the Titanium Bullet). I routed the wiring down the ladder and through the rear radiator grill into the coach and keep the cradle on the bedside counter top. I'm going to wire up a power source that is closer and use my Bluetooth earpiece for phone calls. Since we will be using the cardle mostly for Internet tethering I don't think it's going to be an problem.
Have not tested the trucker antenna over the stubby but other reports indicate that it is a LOT better.
Craig
@Craig You might try moving the Bullet to inside the coach. You'll lose a few db but it will at least tell you if it's temperature related. I use my Bullet2 inside the coach going on 2 years now. I was thinking of upgrading to the Titanium on your recommendation. Thanks for posting and letting us know of a possible issue. Keep us posted.
see ya
ken
Here is a 9db antenna for the 'stubby'.
I spent a winter in Wilmington, NC with this rig
Really works. Here are plans. I'm sitting here in my office looking at two of them.
Ez-12 (http://www.freeantennas.com/projects/template2/index.html)
Of course, just sitting here on a soda straw doesn't bring in much.
I figure I'll post my notes on this subject. I achieved a similar result utilizing the TP-Link TL-WA5210G (I think). It is an outdoor access point with an integrated 12dbi panel antenna. It is connected via a single long ethernet cable and power is injected into the cable using a power injector at the other end indoors. The indoor end also has our standard household wifi router. The cable can be very very long and ours is. We used a piece of metal electrical conduit that I mounted to the ladder to mount the access point. Generally the higher it is, the better it works. The 5210 is the same hardware as the Ubiquiti Nano or maybe nano 2. If I had to do it all over again, I would definitely get the Ubiquiti over the TPLink. For the most part it works and I can typically get wifi in any part of an rv park IF the rv park intends for access to cover much of the park. Many parks provide wifi only in the office and that is more touch and go. If the area doesn't have a lot of permanent residents and not a lot of wifi interference you can go pretty far. I've gotten good signal as far as the width of about 20-30 rv sites pointing at the office. Maybe 1/4 mile. This requires line of sight and if a car drives in front of the access point the connection drops. This is why it's always better if they mount a big antenna outsite. You can get a much more reliable connection from distances close to a mile or more. One time in Indiana I connected to a wireless isp with an antenna on a grain elevator that was around 6 miles away.
When you do this, make sure your RV wifi network uses a very different channel than the long distance connection to the rv park wifi. Otherwise your wifi will interfere and you will get vastly reduced speeds. So if their network is 1 use 6 or 11 and vice versa. The channel changes automatically so you may have to go in and adjust your channel now and again.
Also make sure you set the distance setting in the wifi settings and you can also do a much more reliable connection if you reduce the bandwidth. 802.11b instead of g and make sure your channel width is 20mhz or less if you can set it. I've wasted a lot of time on this stuff ;)
Recently we had a marginal connection so I tried to do better. I bought the *enormous* tp-link TL-ANT2424 parabolic grid antenna, a low loss cable from AIR802 via amazon and a good 27db router. The resulting signal was a whopping 2db higher so the panel antenna wiht integrated access point (which is quite small) is the way to go. When I went to return everything AIR802 apparently had a tiny line buried in their return policy that cables are "custom" and not returnable. (It's so custom but it has an amazon sku?) I'm still miffed about that. Either their cable or the antenna didn't work as advertised and there are other cables from other vendors that allow returns and if I realized that I wouldn't have given them my business. That's the last time I buy from amazon and it's not amazon.com itself sending you the product.
I eventually figured out that they have a busted router which caused all the issues. Since we are staying a while we just got cable internet. Nice, fast and reliable.
We also had the Millenicom verizon hotspot while we were moving often. That worked awesome everywhere we went. We never needed a wilson sleek 4g because we never ventured outside of the listed coverage area on the map. It was really fast, often faster than rv park wifi even with the big outdoor antenna we have. The 20GB monthly limit is a bummer though.