Has anyone had any experience with a mobile Wi Fi antenna known as iAntenna300? It apparently picks up hot spots enroute, which the user can then stop and tap into. I travel a couple of times a year for a month or so at a time and need to keep in e-mail contact for business reasons but do not want to put a full-fledged $6000 roof mount antenna on my Souothwind Class A. I feel it would also be limited because it needs open sky. Also I don't stay long enough in one place to set up a tripod dish, nor do I want to carry all that equipment. This iAntenna300 is supposed to pick up signals while in motion. I would welcome comments. Is it worth the cost? Is it effective? Thanks.
iAntenna300
- Thread starter rscrogg
- Start date
TexasClodhopper
Senior Member
Re: iAntenna300
Welcome to the forum, Ray!
Just be like all the high school hackers here in our small town. It's a well known secret that the Western Auto store doesn't have sense enough to password protect or encrypt their high-speed connection. In the old days we gathered at the local "hot spot" for some fun, but today that means something alltogether different!
:clown:
I'm sure that I can find several "open" hotspots in most towns. There are programs that will "sniff" them out for you and allow you to connect through to the Internet.
I'm voting THUMBS DOWN on anything like you describe, EXCEPT for one thing. It sure would be nice to have an EXTERNAL antenna with gain for those weak hotspots!
Welcome to the forum, Ray!
Just be like all the high school hackers here in our small town. It's a well known secret that the Western Auto store doesn't have sense enough to password protect or encrypt their high-speed connection. In the old days we gathered at the local "hot spot" for some fun, but today that means something alltogether different!
:clown: I'm sure that I can find several "open" hotspots in most towns. There are programs that will "sniff" them out for you and allow you to connect through to the Internet.
I'm voting THUMBS DOWN on anything like you describe, EXCEPT for one thing. It sure would be nice to have an EXTERNAL antenna with gain for those weak hotspots!
Kirk
Senior Member
Re: iAntenna300
All that equipment will do for you is to improve your ability to get on to a service in the RV park when one is available. All it amounts to is a better antenna and a signal amplifier. It don't have any service to it, just is supposed to do better at connecting to wifi if it is available.
It is very common in RV parks for the coverage to have poor to dead spots in the park. Very often the coverage varies with things like leaves on trees and weather. It would also mean that you probably would have better odds of reaching and connecting to routers which are not pass protected in the area. I highly doubt that it would be enough better to be worth the cost. You would still have to be in range of a hot spot.
If all you are seeking is a better way to connect to hot spots when they are available, then this might be a good answer. It does seem that it probably would make even the poorer RV park signals usable. It could also mean that you might be able to connect to the signal of other open routers that you happen to park near. Today there are many RV owners who have either an internet dish or cell internet and who use a wireless router who do not pass word protect them. This kind of system would make such signals much more usable, assuming that it works as stated.
A typical hot spot has a range of no more than 1/4 mile under ideal conditions and most are no more than half of that. Assuming this equipment is as the advertising says, it would probably make that same signal usable for at least double that and perhaps four times the distance.
All that equipment will do for you is to improve your ability to get on to a service in the RV park when one is available. All it amounts to is a better antenna and a signal amplifier. It don't have any service to it, just is supposed to do better at connecting to wifi if it is available.
It is very common in RV parks for the coverage to have poor to dead spots in the park. Very often the coverage varies with things like leaves on trees and weather. It would also mean that you probably would have better odds of reaching and connecting to routers which are not pass protected in the area. I highly doubt that it would be enough better to be worth the cost. You would still have to be in range of a hot spot.
If all you are seeking is a better way to connect to hot spots when they are available, then this might be a good answer. It does seem that it probably would make even the poorer RV park signals usable. It could also mean that you might be able to connect to the signal of other open routers that you happen to park near. Today there are many RV owners who have either an internet dish or cell internet and who use a wireless router who do not pass word protect them. This kind of system would make such signals much more usable, assuming that it works as stated.
A typical hot spot has a range of no more than 1/4 mile under ideal conditions and most are no more than half of that. Assuming this equipment is as the advertising says, it would probably make that same signal usable for at least double that and perhaps four times the distance.
Re: iAntenna300
You will need to buy an internet service with one of the four cell companies that work with this system but this should be the answer to all your seeking. http://internetinmotion.net/index.html
You will need to buy an internet service with one of the four cell companies that work with this system but this should be the answer to all your seeking. http://internetinmotion.net/index.html
THISTOYISHERS
New Member
Re: iAntenna300
Mr Lee, I have internet in motion and have little problems, and it did not cost 6,000
Mr Lee, I have internet in motion and have little problems, and it did not cost 6,000
THISTOYISHERS
New Member
Re: iAntenna300
rscrogg said he did not want to spend that amount, so I really agreed with you about the system internet in motion, but you will not have to worry about answering , because this is my last day on the internet untill I return.
God Bless The United States Of America
LtCmdr TO Young
USN
Off to the Job that is Needed
rscrogg said he did not want to spend that amount, so I really agreed with you about the system internet in motion, but you will not have to worry about answering , because this is my last day on the internet untill I return.
God Bless The United States Of America
LtCmdr TO Young
USN
Off to the Job that is Needed
Re: iAntenna300
Getting open routers enroute is spotty at best, with or without a higher gain antenna. The places that claim 'wifi hotspot' are rarely free and ask about 5$ per day too use them.
If you are looking for a connection through an unintentionally unencrypted router you will rarely find one enroute. The manufacturers of routers intentionally sell them to work out of the box without encrypting them or requireing them to be encrypted before operating so they can sell products to seriptitiously access them. Rarely do rvers, truckers, or businesses along the route make the mistake of not encrypting. You tend to find unencrypted routers near residential areas where there are a high number of routers, increasing the probability of a few out of the box and on the air folks.
Getting open routers enroute is spotty at best, with or without a higher gain antenna. The places that claim 'wifi hotspot' are rarely free and ask about 5$ per day too use them.
If you are looking for a connection through an unintentionally unencrypted router you will rarely find one enroute. The manufacturers of routers intentionally sell them to work out of the box without encrypting them or requireing them to be encrypted before operating so they can sell products to seriptitiously access them. Rarely do rvers, truckers, or businesses along the route make the mistake of not encrypting. You tend to find unencrypted routers near residential areas where there are a high number of routers, increasing the probability of a few out of the box and on the air folks.
TexasClodhopper
Senior Member
Re: iAntenna300
"so they can sell products to seriptitiously access them."
Wow, you mean Linksys is driving around all over the country like Google and is trying to get into peoples networks in their homes? Wow. Ben, you should probably call someone about that.
"so they can sell products to seriptitiously access them."
Wow, you mean Linksys is driving around all over the country like Google and is trying to get into peoples networks in their homes? Wow. Ben, you should probably call someone about that.
Re: iAntenna300
I didn't get the gist of that. Linksys and others are not trying to get in to peoples networks. They know some of their customers want products to allow them to do it. And getting in to networks as opposed to getting an internet connection I don't think is the subject.
I've never known anyone who wanted to get in to a wireless network to steal something or mess things up. I'm sure those folks are out there and the people who buy wireless routers and don't encrypt them are vulnerable. But, getting access to an unencrypted router to the internet, in my opinion is fine. It allows me to get mail, do some finances, look at the forums, etc while we're on the road and I don't have my dish set up. If I did that regularly without doing something to earn it, it might be considered wrong, but when in parks and on the satellite I often leave my router open or give the code to neighbors if they're looking to get on the internet.
I've never found open routers in parks or on the road. When I say, on the road, it means we've stopped over to see family or friends and are parked in a neighborhood or at walmart or home depot next to a neighborhood. I have a directional antenna/amp, airlink 101, that works fine. It's not a regular occurance, but maybe three or four times a year when we are in a parking situation and there is an open router, which is rare.
I didn't get the gist of that. Linksys and others are not trying to get in to peoples networks. They know some of their customers want products to allow them to do it. And getting in to networks as opposed to getting an internet connection I don't think is the subject.
I've never known anyone who wanted to get in to a wireless network to steal something or mess things up. I'm sure those folks are out there and the people who buy wireless routers and don't encrypt them are vulnerable. But, getting access to an unencrypted router to the internet, in my opinion is fine. It allows me to get mail, do some finances, look at the forums, etc while we're on the road and I don't have my dish set up. If I did that regularly without doing something to earn it, it might be considered wrong, but when in parks and on the satellite I often leave my router open or give the code to neighbors if they're looking to get on the internet.
I've never found open routers in parks or on the road. When I say, on the road, it means we've stopped over to see family or friends and are parked in a neighborhood or at walmart or home depot next to a neighborhood. I have a directional antenna/amp, airlink 101, that works fine. It's not a regular occurance, but maybe three or four times a year when we are in a parking situation and there is an open router, which is rare.