TOGO internet

[Jims94vmx]

If your looking for an internet solution that can use other sims then I would also look at the Mikrotik SXT LTE I know it works with ATT and T-Mobile, not sure about Verizon.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...4AF8CM2R&psc=1

If you need a more powerful unit that can reach towers further away you can try this one

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...K2DLQ8YY&psc=1

They both have directional antenna so it would need to be roughly pointed at the tower but would provide a much better signal than a device with OMNI antenna. It's antenna has wider beam so the pointing does not have to be dead on but in the correct general direction of the tower. I just got one and am running a T-Mobile sim in it and so far its working good. A quick setting rule in the device also stops all the data from being counted as "hotspot" data.

There is also newer versions coming out in the next month or so, that have LTE6 that has a newer LTE radio that will do carrier aggregation for faster speeds.

These units are not really plug n play like the TOGO and require a bit of setup/config. They also dont have built in WiFi so you would need to run your own router with it.

Would the Asus RT-N66U work?

[Maximus216]

If your looking for an internet solution that can use other sims then I would also look at the Mikrotik SXT LTE I know it works with ATT and T-Mobile, not sure about Verizon.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...4AF8CM2R&psc=1

If you need a more powerful unit that can reach towers further away you can try this one

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...K2DLQ8YY&psc=1

They both have directional antenna so it would need to be roughly pointed at the tower but would provide a much better signal than a device with OMNI antenna. It's antenna has wider beam so the pointing does not have to be dead on but in the correct general direction of the tower. I just got one and am running a T-Mobile sim in it and so far its working good. A quick setting rule in the device also stops all the data from being counted as "hotspot" data.

There is also newer versions coming out in the next month or so, that have LTE6 that has a newer LTE radio that will do carrier aggregation for faster speeds.

These units are not really plug n play like the TOGO and require a bit of setup/config. They also dont have built in WiFi so you would need to run your own router with it.

Damn, more choices to choose from. Which one do you have? So is everything built into the antenna and you just run an ethernet cable to it from your own wireless router inside?

[ReefBum]

Any router will work. All you need is ethernet cable. It uses POE to power up so you will need to provide 12~48vdc to the included POE injector. POE injector should be located indoors right beside your router. I already use a Mikrotik router in our RV so this is no big deal and the POE injector is not needed.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...K2DLQ8YY&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...K2DLQ8YY&psc=1

The above links are what I use, but I also have a TOGO because of the unlimited data plan. I can reach out 15+ miles with the larger LTE dish unit. The further away from the tower the better you need to aim the dish. Within 5-6 miles I just spin it in the correct general direction, further than this then I hop in the truck after RV setup and take a quick 15min drive to locate the tower so I can aim it better.

The HAP router above has a yellow port (port 5), this port outputs POE/Data so a cat6 cable from this port directly to the outdoor unit will provide power and data connection. The HAP provides both 2.4 and 5Ghz WiFi for your devices as well as 4 addition ports for any hardwire devices you want to connect. I power the HAP router with 12v from RV and use outdoor cat6 up to the outdoor LTE unit. This setup is working extremely well but you will need to do some config. If you choose this route drop me a PM and I can provide config help if needed.

[geotex1]

Interesting build... Better hardware, but losing that carrot of the unlimited plan from AT&T.

[Wicked ace]

Interesting build... Better hardware, but losing that carrot of the unlimited plan from AT&T.

In just looking at AT&T data plans offered I see similar pricing to Verizon but nothing close to the package you can get with the TOGO Roadlink. That and the download speeds reported using TOGO I would bet the price is based on a limited bandwidth signal no matter where you are. 15Mbps seems to be top speed and that can be throttled further if tower / area demand is great. You give, you get. 15 Mbps isn't nothing, you can stream video or game but heavy usage is limited. It's also matters on where you end up, how data dependent the place is. Lets face it most places we want to go to "get away from it all " aren't places where wireless companies want to invest heavily in high data transmission networks. In my experience traveling in the states it seems Verizon is dominant with it's build out along the coasts. AT&T is stronger in the heartland. Still I would weigh the TOGO Roadlink as a good solution to a problem.

[ReefBum]

Interesting build... Better hardware, but losing that carrot of the unlimited plan from AT&T.

Yes and No (in theory)

On my T-Mobile plan I'm supposed to get unlimited streaming from Netflix, Hulu and Amazon but only from the phone, if using phone as hotspot then I get throttled after 20gb. Carriers know when data is from phone or tethered hotspot device from the TTL (Time To Live) The phone sends a TTL of 65. The TTL is increased by 1 for each hop. (phone -> carrier = TTL 65), when you tether/hotspot a device you get (device -> phone -> carrier = TTL of 66) thus the carrier knows your using tethering (hotspot). In a router such as the Mikrotik you can tell it what TTL to send, so you tell it to use a TTL of 65 and then all data going out will always appear as if it is coming from the phone ie.. 50gb data instead of the hotspot 20gb.

Because T-Mobile has what they call Binge-On for streaming movies and such, this data is advertised not counted against the allotted 50gb of phone data usage so in theory we should be able to stream all we want and the 50gb of data would only count when web surfing, email or other download/upload data not related to streaming from Netflix, Hulu or Amazon. As I just got the Mikrotik LTE I'm only just now putting this theory to the test to see if I do get speed cut at a certain streaming usage.

I have confirmed that changing the TTL now shows all data as "phone" data and no longer as hotspot data. We do have TOGO and paid for a year and will contine using it but I was interested in finding a solution that had a much longer range than the TOGO for our boondocking in the boondocks.

[geotex1]

Yes and No (in theory)

On my T-Mobile plan I'm supposed to get unlimited streaming from Netflix, Hulu and Amazon but only from the phone, if using phone as hotspot then I get throttled after 20gb. Carriers know when data is from phone or tethered hotspot device from the TTL (Time To Live) The phone sends a TTL of 65. The TTL is increased by 1 for each hop. (phone -> carrier = TTL 65), when you tether/hotspot a device you get (device -> phone -> carrier = TTL of 66) thus the carrier knows your using tethering (hotspot). In a router such as the Mikrotik you can tell it what TTL to send, so you tell it to use a TTL of 65 and then all data going out will always appear as if it is coming from the phone ie.. 50gb data instead of the hotspot 20gb.

Because T-Mobile has what they call Binge-On for streaming movies and such, this data is advertised not counted against the allotted 50gb of phone data usage so in theory we should be able to stream all we want and the 50gb of data would only count when web surfing, email or other download/upload data not related to streaming from Netflix, Hulu or Amazon. As I just got the Mikrotik LTE I'm only just now putting this theory to the test to see if I do get speed cut at a certain streaming usage.

I have confirmed that changing the TTL now shows all data as "phone" data and no longer as hotspot data. We do have TOGO and paid for a year and will contine using it but I was interested in finding a solution that had a much longer range than the TOGO for our boondocking in the boondocks.

Definitely interested in what you find because all I need to work is connectivity and to be able to get to an airport. Skype for business is part of every workday, plus a flawless VPN tunnel. If I could have connectivity without hunting for a signal, my wife and I could spend a lot more time traveling thr country.

[ReefBum]

Definitely interested in what you find because all I need to work is connectivity and to be able to get to an airport. Skype for business is part of every workday, plus a flawless VPN tunnel. If I could have connectivity without hunting for a signal, my wife and I could spend a lot more time traveling thr country.

Your exact situation with us being able to spend more time traveling is what set me off on everything I'm currently doing for connectivity. I retired last year but the wife still works and can't be without access to office VPN and phone for more than a few hours, this really restricts us on where/when we can currently go and for how long.

We really like the TOGO because of the unlimited data plan but it's signal reception is not any better than our phones. I like the Mikrotik LTE dish but have concern over data usage limits, I mainly installed this as a long range backup to the TOGO when needed. I will continue to try different things on the TOGO to see if I can get long range reception from it as this would be our ideal setup with no data caps to worry about.

My next experiment will be with our weBoost cell booster, I'm going to take weBoost indoor antenna and one of the TOGO internal antenna wrap them both together with electrical tape and then wrap them up in tinfoil to block out signal from the external directional antenna on 25ft telescoping mast and see where that gets me. I have added a Wilson OTR antenna (OMNI) to the TOGO and this has helped some but I think if I had used a directional it would have been better.

[Maximus216]

Your exact situation with us being able to spend more time traveling is what set me off on everything I'm currently doing for connectivity. I retired last year but the wife still works and can't be without access to office VPN and phone for more than a few hours, this really restricts us on where/when we can currently go and for how long.

We really like the TOGO because of the unlimited data plan but it's signal reception is not any better than our phones. I like the Mikrotik LTE dish but have concern over data usage limits, I mainly installed this as a long range backup to the TOGO when needed. I will continue to try different things on the TOGO to see if I can get long range reception from it as this would be our ideal setup with no data caps to worry about.

My next experiment will be with our weBoost cell booster, I'm going to take weBoost indoor antenna and one of the TOGO internal antenna wrap them both together with electrical tape and then wrap them up in tinfoil to block out signal from the external directional antenna on 25ft telescoping mast and see where that gets me. I have added a Wilson OTR antenna (OMNI) to the TOGO and this has helped some but I think if I had used a directional it would have been better.

I just received a directional antenna for our weboost rv 4g kit. Gonna try it out tomorrow if its not raining. I've tried the tinfoil trick and it didn't help much. I still have to sit within a foot of the indoor antenna for it to work.

[ReefBum]

I just received a directional antenna for our weboost rv 4g kit. Gonna try it out tomorrow if its not raining. I've tried the tinfoil trick and it didn't help much. I still have to sit within a foot of the indoor antenna for it to work.

When using the weboost, the wife puts her phone directly on the indoor antenna and uses a bluetooth ear piece for phone use. This allows her to move around and even outside a bit. I have tried 3-4 different indoor antennas with little to no improvement in range. I did find a commercial building indoor antenna that I tried but it had so much coverage that it caused massive oscillation with the outdoor antenna. Self interference is the main reason the indoor antennas are so weak. If the tinfoil on the TOGO antenna does not work, I guess I will have to break out the calculator and design/build a proper RF shield.

If you need phone with caller id and voice assist instead of bluetooth ear piece then you can try something like the link below. You can link up to 2 cell phones and leave the cell phones directly on the weboost antenna.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...KIKX0DER&psc=1

I use an ipod touch and connect it to my iphone and then leave iphone on the weboost antenna. This allows me to use the ipod touch just like my iphone.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT209456
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203032