Cellular Booster

[Midnightsun]

The VHF thread got me thinking about cell boosters for the boat. Is there anything out there that improves weak signals that actually works?

I think the problem is the antenna needs to be omnidirectional since the boat is obviously changing directions constantly. I get fair to excellent signal everywhere I boat so it's not like I'm looking to boost a non existant signal. More like improving fringe signals.

[RGrew176]

Where I boat mainly the Detroit River and lakes Erie and St. Clair cellular service is very good. I've yet to be where there is no signal out on those waterways.

[Flight Pay]

Not sure if you're still looking for an answer, but this is the cell booster that I use. The lake that I keep my boat on usually only has 0-1 bars. With the booster on, I get anywhere between 1-3 bars. I'm able to stream TV and movies while anchored and underway. https://powerfulsignal.com/marine-weboo ... ter-470154

[Midnightsun]

Thanks for the post, always good to have someone with hands on experience of a unit. I ended up going with a dedicated 4G/LTE router with sim card. Use it for almost everything including occasional Netflix. Gotta be able to connect to the web today.

[vineyardgray]

I often read seabits.com, he has some great articles about technology on a boat, but I am always envious any time he brings up the unlimited cell plans from the States. I did go with a Peplink unit based on his suggestions but I didn't bother with one that will accommodate cell signals because I'm too cheap to have a SIM just for my boat.

The peplink does connect to the Wi-Fi and rebroadcast it inside the boat (peplink calls it WiFi as WAN), and it does work pretty well. For the cost I'm not sure I would do it again.