I got 99 problems but my WiFi ain't one

Thanks that looks reasonable. I guess most things will do for us.

@Stonehedge

Can you recommend a 4g router? I think the one I got (ADOC R45) isn't good. I've got the Pontyng antenna but not getting good speeds.

Sim in phone = 40mbps
sim in router = 12mbps#

Weirdly signla strength is good

RF Parameters
RSRP: -98dBm
RSSI: -69dBm
RSRQ: -11dB
SINR: 9.2dB
PCI: 141

Weird. Could you put your router on an extension lead and do a speed test with built in antenna outside?

Also, are you sure the router is set to use the external antenna?

An RSSI of -70 is what I'd call fair rather than good.

Putting the router (no antenna) out the window I get 12mbps.
So it seems antenna is making no difference.

i looked on router settings (192.168.1.1.) and seems to be no option to select 'use external antenna'

RF Parameters
RSRP: -90dBm
RSSI: -66dBm
RSRQ: -11dB
SINR: 16.2dB
PCI: 102

But looking at signal strength without antenna, maybe antenna is making difference.

I just expected to get as good if not better speed with antenna than I do on my pixel 6!

ANd back with anetnna

RF Parameters
RSRP: -98dBm
RSSI: -72dBm
RSRQ: -9dB
SINR: 6.4dB
PCI: 141

Maybe i need to try another location. I need to go on the roof in a week or so, so I will try it up htere. It's currently facing a mountain that has line of sight to the tower. I tried a few locations with my phone to see where got best speed.

Sorry for slow reply...spending alrge chunks away from the internet at the moment.

Can you link to your router please? You said ADOCR45 but when I look that up it brings up a model without external 4g antenna ports.

Thanks.

https://adocdv.com/portfolio/adoc-r45?lang=en

Adoc said

ADOC R45 has two SMA connectors on the back. You must use an antenna for 4G networks without gain.

Once you install it, if the outdoor antenna receives more network capacity than the indoor one, the device automatically switches.

Haven't had a read of this complete thread because I'm a tad frazzled at the moment...

We've moved into a new house. The internet chap has just been round, and informed me that we are the only house on the street without a fibre connection (this may not be the correct terminology, but I can't have fibre internet).

So, I'm looking at 4g, satellite or ASDL. Which do you think would be the fastest, all other things being equal? What do I need to consider when making choices? What about cost?

I'm in Spain, so lets assume that Openreach won't come an connect me.

You should be able to ask Movistar what your ADSL speed will be. They told me. I bought movistart ADSL as it's 1 month rolling and got the 8mbps they said. I then bought vodaohone 4g and an antenna and am getting 20mbps and will cancel the Movistar.
You should be able to get connected to fibre no?
If in a town I'd say ADSL. I'm up in the mountains so it's very slow and 4g best.

We've moved into a new house. The internet chap has just been round, and informed me that we are the only house on the street without a fibre connection (this may not be the correct terminology, but I can't have fibre internet).

What does it cost to have fibre brought to the house. In France my parents street had it but not their house but as long as they signed a two year contract the telco ran fibre from the "box" down the road to their house for free. Took about an hour from what I remember.

Cheers, by two strokes of luck I’m in a 4g weak spot and in the gap between two fibre boxes. We’ve both upped our mobile data allowances, and will sit on the terrace if we need to use the net, while we look into 4g routers. I got 20mbs just sat at a cafe in the street and that might have to be it. Puts my ability to teach online to the test though, and no more gaming.

Yes, that will have to be the long goal. The problem is that to run the cable out to me they need permission to enter someone’s garden, and the house is abandoned, so no permission, so no cable.

But we will have to do some digging with land registry when we are settled in.

I'm not sure a different router would improve things if you're getting similar on your phone and router when it's in a window.

If an Omni antenna is not helping them it points to the possibility that your signal is not only out of line of sight but also possibly being reflected on its way to you.

The problem is, directional antennas can be a pain in the ass to align and keep aligned with reflected signals.

It is however extremely odd that using an external antenna doesn't improve things by a noticeable amount compared to an internal antenna so I'm a bit stumped...which is why I was wondering if your router is like the Huawei ones where you have to enable the external antenna ports.

@skinny

This article has been pretty much the best summary of 4g antenna choices for the last few years. Does reading this give you any ideas?

https://www.solwise.co.uk/4g-lte-antenna-considerations.html

I need to get it up on the roof. Right now it's one side of the building. I need a big ladder though and some balls or a platform. My neighbour has a nice mast above his and my roof but I think with the short stretch between building it's be longer than 5m. It is not like of sight and is being reflected, but I still expected the same as my phone!

No they say not. They say it'll take over. The issue is my phone in same location as antenna will get 30mbps and antenna 20mpbs. Thats what confused me.

I'll get it on the roof and see what happens.

I have come across situations where a router might not be a perfect match with the service provided from the local mast but it's such a grey area because both the router manufacturers and the ISPs are super vague about their service/capabilities usually.

Fingers crossed things improve with the antenna up high.

I see a hauwei router for 80 euro second hand. Half tempted to buy to try. Less death factor than the roof.

Yes we are around 30mbps and I think we won't get much more. If you need more I'd push for fibre with the town hall/Movistar.

On the plus side, 2nd hand 4g routers and Poynting antennas have pretty good resale value so if you do go for it and strike out, I reckon you'll get most of your money back.

I mean it's better than any other option as it stands already. Just trying to maximise.

Good thing I only use internet for Netflix.

I'm in rural Austria at the moment. On my own internet connectivity journey....it's frustrating.

To be fair, broadband connectivity itself isn't that bad. The issue I have is that the WiFi in this building is 2.4g and struggling from am extremely noisy solar panel installation next door. If I manage to get a good WiFi signal I drop out of a zoom call because a neighbour uses their microwave.

It's extra frustrating because I have all of my test equipment with me so I know what the issues are but it's not my building so I can't do anything to fix it.

Tethering on my phone via 5ghz WiFi solves the interference problem and we get good download speeds but latency is sky high so it doesn't work well for video calls.

Going to be sad to come back to the UK but at least I've got 1gbps internet waiting for me.

I've got a slightly funky set-up at the moment, FTTC with a junction box in our loft (easily accessed, right next to the hatch). From there there the filtered line run down a disused chimney breast to my router in my lounge. This is of my own making, I've got no-one else to blame, but I wanted all the electric gubbins at the back of the lounge in one place.

Now I see BT are doing FTTP for not much more than I'm currently paying, but that's not going to work with my current set up.

Who do I talk to about where the line can come into the house? I assume openreach don't really consult and just drill through the closest wall with the new fibre line.

Openreach engineers are usually amenable to running the fibre to somewhere sensible, especially if the route is simple for them to access. If there is a draw wire in some duct in the disused chimney for example they are likely to be happy to use it.