Finding connectivity solutions while RVing can be a challenge. While camping in remote areas you may find that your cellular carrier doesn’t provide adequate coverage to make phone calls or connect to the internet. In our efforts to regain connectivity to the rest of the world, we’ve contemplated switching cellular carriers and even purchased the WeBoost for a whopping $700.00. Unfortunately, the WeBoost was a complete bust. If you haven’t already, we highly recommend you read our post “WeBoost: Read This Before Purchasing” for details and information you need to know if you’re thinking about buying one.
The Internet Solution
Still determined to find a RV internet solution, we continued our research and came across the MIMO Antenna by NETGEAR. It connects to a mobile hotspot and assists in boosting an already weak signal. We wish we could take credit for finding this solution, but our purchase was made after watching a very informative YouTube video by Technomadia. They have been field testing connectivity products for a while now and are experts on the topic.
MIMO ANTENNA
The MIMO Antenna is not hard to find or purchase. We got ours from Amazon for $32.99 and it arrived in just a few days. It’s a small, flat, piece of square plastic with two wires coming from its base. The ends of the wires fit into the antenna ports of our MIFI hotspot, which we purchased from Verizon prior to hitting the road. The antenna is then attached to a window or the back of a laptop screen with the provided hardware. We attached the antenna to the window of our Airstream but received no signal. After moving it to the windshield of our truck, parked in the driveway in front of our travel trailer, we got signal! Our hotspot displays LTE 4G two bars and we surf the internet as if we’re in town. The only catch… we have to sit in our truck to use it. We don’t mind, though. For $32.99 we think that’s a fair compromise.
Lessons learned: First, if you travel and find yourself in remote locations, it’s probably best to have various connectivity options. Second, the most expensive product out there may not be the best application for you. It wasn’t for us. And finally, there are tons of helpful Youtube videos and blogs out there on this topic. Do your research before making a purchase. We got our money back from WeBoost after returning their product, but the process was inconvenient and frustrating. If we had done just a little more research, we would have found the MIMO and purchased it first.
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