{"id":18014,"date":"2015-08-09T16:40:16","date_gmt":"2015-08-09T15:40:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ourtour.co.uk\/home\/?p=18014"},"modified":"2021-08-18T11:24:16","modified_gmt":"2021-08-18T10:24:16","slug":"zagans-connected-motorhomewifi-com-4g-internet-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ourtour.co.uk\/home\/zagans-connected-motorhomewifi-com-4g-internet-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Zagan\u2019s Connected! Our new 4G Internet System"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fancy being able to get onto the Internet from your motorhome, anywhere, anytime? I guess lots of folks do? Being sat on a remote Greek beach, beside a German river, on a mountain pass in the Swiss Alps, even on the edge of the Sahara, and being able get online, was a fantastic feeling for us.<\/p>\n

During our previous\u00a0two year stint on the road, we updated\u00a0our blog every day (almost, that bottle of Ouzo was to blame<\/a>!). As we shifted about a fair bit, we needed to get online from about 500 different places. Most of the time we used the cellular (GSM) networks to do it \u2013 better known as the 3G network at the time, now being upgraded to 4G. Motorhomewifi.com<\/a> have recently released a 4G system <\/a>which will make this all much easier and more convenient, and we’ve just installed it.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The motorhomewifi.com 4G MIMO LTE Low Profile Roof-Mounted Antenna. A thing of beauty!<\/p><\/div>\n

Since coming back to the UK, we\u2019ve dragged ourselves into the position of being able to again head off out again for some long forays into foreign parts. Huzzah! Our recent focus was on getting the right motorhome for us, and then onto massaging it to our liking with a\u00a0SOG Unit<\/a> and Refillable LPG tanks<\/a>. We\u2019d not much considered how we could make our Internet access better when Adam from motorhomewifi.com<\/a> dropped us a line. He asked whether we\u2019d considered a roof-mounted antenna coupled to a MiFi unit. We hadn\u2019t, but his offer of providing the antenna for free (plus a discounted MiFi) in return for\u00a0documenting a\u00a0DIY install was too good to turn down (thanks Adam!).<\/p>\n

\"Tasty<\/a>

Tasty 4G signal on our Huawei MiFi connected to the 4G roof antenna<\/p><\/div>\n

Good roaming\u00a0data packages are still hard to find (the UK Three network operator seems to have the best deal at the time of writing) but motorhomewifi may have nailed the problem of trying to get a good\/fast data signal. We fitted\u00a0their system\u00a0yesterday to our Hymer B544 motorhome.\u00a0It consists of a low-profile, but good-sized, waterproof 4G antenna which sits on top of the van, high up and outside the van\u2019s signal-shielding metal-coated case. The antenna is connected through a hole in the roof to an unlocked Huawei 4G MiFi. The MiFi holds the SIM and connects to the mobile network via the roof-mounted antenna, which boosts the signal flowing into and out of the van. It then broadcasts a private WiFi network inside the van which allows 10 devices to share the mobile network connection.<\/p>\n

Basically, this means for us:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Once we\u2019ve sourced a suitable SIM wherever we happen to be, and popped it in the MiFi, we can set the data cap in the device\u2019s web console and track the data we\u2019re using on its screen.<\/li>\n
  2. In general use, we\u2019ll just switch the MiFi on at the start of the day, wait a few seconds for it to get a connection, then get working\/playing with the laptop, tablet etc. Yep – we also\u00a0used to be able to do this sometimes with Ju’s Android-based phone and its mobile hotspot WiFi tether feature, but as often as not the signal in the van was frustratingly slow or non-existent.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The install took about 90 mins and would have been much faster if we didn\u2019t have to remove the Sikaflex gunk from an old TV aerial installation! The part of the install which will perhaps worry most DIYers is cutting the hole in the roof. Having just cut a hole in the loo door for our SOG unit<\/a>, this didn’t concern me massively. In retrospect I\u2019d have much rather cut a new hole than have to clean up the gunk which surrounded the aerial hole! The antenna is self-sealing (it has a broad glue pad on the bottom), but as I\u2019d had to scrape the roof a fair bit I opted to pop some silicon around the base of it after gluing it down, to help keep water out. The rest of the install really is a doddle and anyone with reasonably basic DIY skills could do it in less than an hour.<\/p>\n

    There\u2019s a video showing the kit and the install on the OurTour YouTube channel <\/a>and embedded below. Ju took photos of the install too – they’re all at the end of the post.<\/p>\n