Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 


Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 11-19-2014, 02:00 PM   #1
2 Rivet Member
 
Currently Looking...
Tampa , Florida
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 26
Wi-Fi.

This will be easy for you experienced travelers.
Do you find the Wi-Fi signal is blocked by the metal exterior? The signal that many campgrounds provide free.
Sitting duck is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-19-2014, 02:12 PM   #2
Rivet Master
 
lsbrodsky's Avatar
 
2012 25' FB International
Trent Woods , North Carolina
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 3,120
It has not been a problem for me.
Larry
lsbrodsky is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-19-2014, 02:16 PM   #3
2020 Classic 33
 
Box Elder , South Dakota
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 1,731
Images: 1
Generally wi-fi in a campground is a bit of a myth. If they have a signal, and you can get it inside your AS, you will generally be disappointed in speed, connection reliability, etc. Even setting up something like a WiFI Ranger to boost the connection usually has disappointing results. The CG usually doesn't have adequate bandwidth coming into their park for the 50-100+ folks that all want to be on wi-fi at the same time. Add to that folks that then want to stream their favorite movie or TV show and you can imagine the challenge.

So it is a miracle when it works but have an alternative like a MiFI puck or cellphone with a data plan if you rely on a good connection.
__________________
Gary
2020 Classic 33 Twin, 2019 Ram 3500 Longhorn, ProPride
NØVPN
ghaynes755 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-19-2014, 02:36 PM   #4
Rivet Master
 
Wayne&Sam's Avatar
 
2014 25' Flying Cloud
Cuddebackville , New York
Join Date: May 2007
Posts: 4,333
Images: 21
Yes, frequently all it's good for is mail. But this September in the Canadian Maritimes we had great wifi. I streamed netflix with no problem. The campgrounds were practically empty but they told its that good all the time.


Sent from my iPhone using Airstream Forums
__________________
2014 25' Flying Cloud Rear Twin
2019 Ford Expedition Platinum
Wayne&Sam is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-19-2014, 02:44 PM   #5
Moderator
 
moosetags's Avatar

 
2015 25' FB Flying Cloud
2012 23' FB Flying Cloud
2005 25' Safari
Santa Rosa Beach , Florida
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 13,153
Images: 5
We can usually get the campground signal just fine in the Airstream. Very often there is no usable Internet on it. Most often we use our own wifi hot spot from our Verizon smart phones.

Brian
__________________
SuEllyn & Brian McCabe
WBCCI #3628 -- AIR #14872 -- TAC #FL-7
2015 FC 25' FB (Lucy) with ProPride
2020 Silverado 2500 (Vivian)
2023 Rivian R1T (Opal)
moosetags is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-19-2014, 03:07 PM   #6
Rivet Master
 
AnnArborBob's Avatar
 
2014 27' FB Eddie Bauer
Chelsea , Michigan
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 1,792
Images: 12
We have the panorama windows by the dinette and that's where we sit when using CG wifi inside the trailer. We've rarely noticed any degradation in the signal or usability of the wifi as compared to sitting at a picnic table right outside the door. The wifi's usability is usually more affected by how many other people are online, how many repeaters the CG has used and of course the speed of the CG's internet service.

Having said all this, we often will use our JetPack even if there is CG wifi because the CG wifi speed is usually pretty poor with 100 people watching Netflicks.
__________________
Bob Martel
WBCCI# 5766
AnnArborBob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-20-2014, 04:53 PM   #7
Retired
 
tvketchum's Avatar
 
2008 30' Classic
Currently Looking...
Livingston , Texas
Join Date: Jun 2012
Posts: 850
Images: 2
The Otter Box on my iPhone causes more problems with WiFi than the AS....
__________________
Tom
AIR 71620
WBCCI 5809 Reg 9 Unit 155
2008 Classic 30'
2019 F250 4x4
tvketchum is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 05:01 AM   #8
Rivet Master
 
dbj216's Avatar

 
1986 34' Limited
1975 27' Overlander
1969 21' Globetrotter
Conifer , Colorado
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 8,278
Images: 1
Sittingduck: We report mixed results with camp ground WiFi service. The aluminum shell of the Airstream doesn't seem to make much difference.

We rely more and more on internet service and cell phone connectivity making traveling so much easier than the old Woodalls and pay phones at fuel stops. We find the cell phone company data package and hot spot device works pretty well. Maybe 10% of the time we can't get a good cell signal and we are still without internet access.

David
dbj216 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 05:50 AM   #9
Rivet Master
 
paiceman's Avatar
 
2020 28' Flying Cloud
Upper St Clair , Pennsylvania
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 2,943
Images: 1
No it does not in our case, however, WiFi in campgrounds is not secure, therefore if you are using their signal to do banking and paying of bills like we do your laptop and all it's information is open. We instead use a VPN our son set up, we log on through his home VPN and use our own WiFi off our Verizon tablet and we are as secure as we believe we can be while traveling.
__________________
2020 28' Twin Flying Cloud
2021 F350 6.7 King Ranch
USAF Master Training Instructor (TI) & (MTI)- 68-72
Volunteer K9 Rehabilitator & Trainer
paiceman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 07:38 AM   #10
Rivet Master
 
eubank's Avatar

 
Airstream - Other
2016 Interstate Grand Tour Ext
Bosque Farms , New Mexico
Join Date: Jan 2004
Posts: 7,017
This is always a problem for us. Essentially, if encryption involves a password, how do you distribute the password without compromise? It's pretty straightforward to come up with a very secure system, but that very security is threatened by the act of handing out the password. Certainly, we've found our password in the hands of folks to whom we did not ourselves distribute it.

One solution I've thought about it is a kind of double system: The main, park-wide system would be only poorly protected, the password easily available, kind of like we've seen at other places. The secondary system would involve only an unamplified signal from a second router with tough encryption. Folks would have to come up to the office to use it, and we'd do the computer set-up ourselves. And, of course, change the password fairly often. In this way, if folks want to do banking, we'd provide a secure way for them to do it, but not via the less secure, park-wide system.


Lynn





Quote:
Originally Posted by paiceman View Post
No it does not in our case, however, WiFi in campgrounds is not secure, therefore if you are using their signal to do banking and paying of bills like we do your laptop and all it's information is open. We instead use a VPN our son set up, we log on through his home VPN and use our own WiFi off our Verizon tablet and we are as secure as we believe we can be while traveling.
__________________
ACI Big Red Number 21043
eubank is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 08:15 AM   #11
Figment of My Imagination
 
Protagonist's Avatar
 
2012 Interstate Coach
From All Over , More Than Anywhere Else
Join Date: Dec 2011
Posts: 10,868
Quote:
Originally Posted by eubank View Post
One solution I've thought about it is a kind of double system: The main, park-wide system would be only poorly protected, the password easily available, kind of like we've seen at other places. The secondary system would involve only an unamplified signal from a second router with tough encryption. Folks would have to come up to the office to use it, and we'd do the computer set-up ourselves. And, of course, change the password fairly often. In this way, if folks want to do banking, we'd provide a secure way for them to do it, but not via the less secure, park-wide system.
Even easier. Secure system in the office/lodge/wherever can be ethernet, not WiFi. That way, only the people who are physically plugged in can use it. You have total control.
__________________
I thought getting old would take longer!
Protagonist is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 09:23 AM   #12
Rivet Master
 
Msmoto's Avatar
 
2015 30' International
2009 27' FB International
2007 25' Safari
Currently Looking...
Greensboro , North Carolina
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 1,564
Images: 135
My experience is most CG have limitations on how much data one IP address can download and once this is met the CG's system turns off or severally limits the bandwidth available to that particular address. As I upload large photographic filed, this has always been a problem. Thus, I went with Verizon Hot Spot, service is available in almost any area there is cellular service. Cost is about $50/month and up, but gives me service virtually in all places. I use this in any place where the "WiFi" is less than ideal.
__________________
Happy trails and Good Luck
Ms Tommie Fantine Lauer, Greensboro, NC
AIR #31871 KQ3H

www.fantinesvoice.com
Msmoto is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 09:50 AM   #13
Moderator
 
moosetags's Avatar

 
2015 25' FB Flying Cloud
2012 23' FB Flying Cloud
2005 25' Safari
Santa Rosa Beach , Florida
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 13,153
Images: 5
We have found that most campground wifi is junk. We use our own hotspot through our Verizon smartphones. We create our hotspot through an Android App called FoxFi without any monthly payment to Verizon. We have been using this app for about five years now. It works great and is much more secure than any campground wifi.

Brian
__________________
SuEllyn & Brian McCabe
WBCCI #3628 -- AIR #14872 -- TAC #FL-7
2015 FC 25' FB (Lucy) with ProPride
2020 Silverado 2500 (Vivian)
2023 Rivian R1T (Opal)
moosetags is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 10:07 AM   #14
Moderator
 
jcanavera's Avatar

 
2004 30' Classic Slideout
Fenton , Missouri
Join Date: Mar 2002
Posts: 10,401
Images: 143
Send a message via AIM to jcanavera Send a message via Skype™ to jcanavera
WiFi from the campground has been hit or miss. Sometimes it's poor strength, sometimes it's a limited number of users or it's just plain slow.

I carry my own WiFi hotspot from Verizon. The downside is it's subject to cellular reception which affects speed. The Airstream also restricts cellular reception.

Typically a hotspot device performs a little better than a hotspot cell phone since it's a single function device. The one I'm carrying now has 10 hour battery life, can either broadcast WiFi on the 5GHz or 2.4GHz, can provide WiFi to up to 15 devices and has a port that can provide a battery charge for another device.

Jack
__________________
Jack Canavera
STL Mo.
AIR #56 S/OS#15
'04 Classic 30' S.O.,'03 GMC Savana 2500
jcanavera is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 11:17 AM   #15
Rivet Master
 
Goal15's Avatar
 
2006 23' Safari SE
Holly Lake Ranch , Texas
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 1,794
Images: 1
iPhone hotspot

Over the past three years, I think we have only taken the computer with us twice, each time on week long trips. The latest time, we took our new MacBook Pro with us and I had the need to do something on the internets and used my iPhone as a personal hotspot. Really easy and worked well.
__________________
Dana and Olga
2006 Safari 23
2011 Tundra Double Cab
Goal15 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 11:32 AM   #16
3 Rivet Member
 
indy's Avatar
 
1962 22' Safari
Vintage Kin Owner
kansas city , Missouri
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 195
Images: 22
Blog Entries: 1
We have had hit and miss with CG wifi so we added a boster and it really works for us and I think it adds a level of security.

"Pepwave surf 200"
Be sure to set it up with a password!
indy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 12:35 PM   #17
Rivet Master
 
terryV's Avatar
 
2002 31' Classic
Currently Looking...
Monroe , Iowa
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 649
Whatever they have doesn't matter to me, I'm probably not going to use it.

I use my hot spot. It works well for my emails and I can get on the internet. That's really all I care about anyway.

But, I hear that my next Chevy truck will have kick ass wifi.
terryV is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 01:30 PM   #18
Rivet Master
 
drboyd's Avatar
 
1978 25' Tradewind
Metro Phoenix , Arizona
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,524
I'm replacing the old TV antenna with a crank up dual Yagi version, especially for Wi-Fi.
__________________
"Between what matters and what seems to matter, how should the world we know judge wisely?" - E.C. Bentley, Trent's Last Case
drboyd is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 04:43 PM   #19
BAB
Rivet Master
 
BAB's Avatar
 
2015 30' Classic
2012 28' International
Greensboro , North Carolina
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 1,708
I found that the WiFi Ranger made a big difference in signal strength....but as noted by just about everyone, campgrounds who advertise wireless access (in general) are a far distance from what you would find in a hotel/motel. They just do not provide adequate bandwidth to do much more than email. It can be very frustrating to do route planning or any modest web surfing. Forget trying to watch Netflix or any streaming video.
__________________
_________________
"SilverLeaf II" 2015 30' Classic
2019 RAM 2500 Limited 4x4 CC w/6.7L Cummins
ProPride 3P
AIR# 58452
WBCCI # 3430-Unit 21
BAB is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2014, 05:41 PM   #20
4 Rivet Member
 
Schools Out's Avatar
 
2005 30' Land Yacht 30 SL
Rockford , Michigan
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 275
Images: 12
Quote:
Originally Posted by Goal15 View Post
Over the past three years, I think we have only taken the computer with us twice, each time on week long trips. The latest time, we took our new MacBook Pro with us and I had the need to do something on the internets and used my iPhone as a personal hotspot. Really easy and worked well.
Goal15, please clarify….Are you saying you just use your iPhone when you need to get on the internet? Or, does the iPhone act as the hotspot device to help connect your Mac to WiFi? We both have iPhones & an iPad & MacBook Air. Can we use our phones to connect our other devices when the cg signal is not good? How? We would like to be able to do this.
Schools Out is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off



Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Airstream, Inc. or any of its affiliates. Airstream is a registered trademark of Airstream Inc. All rights reserved. Airstream trademark used under license to Social Knowledge LLC.



All times are GMT -6. The time now is 01:59 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.