WIFI Ranger usless

[Glenncarp]

OK, let start by saying we took our 2022 Epro out for the first time this weekend. All went as planned, we loved it, so we have only used it one time to date.

I was using the parks WIFI (Roan Mountian State Park, TN) and i did a speed check, 5 MBS downlaod. Figured lets see what WIFI Ranger can do, so, after the process of coming here and Youtube and figuring out how to use it, I got on successfully. Ran speed test again......1.5 MBPS!!! Why bother?

Am i missing something?

BYW, I just opened the WI Ranger on my WIFi list and I choose "more information" and I was taken to the WIFI Ranger net address where I could see the available WIFI sources.

I did see 3 or 4 of the parks WIFI names listed wondering of I should have tried aonther one or two?

Thoughs and thanks!

[Glenncarp]

Appologies if I posted this already, but I do not see post and got no replies:
2022 EPro FBS

Was at local campground (Roan Mt state park, TN) and was using parks WIFI, I ran a speed test and was getting 5 MBS downloads. I was able to set up my WIFI Ranger after coming to this form and Youtube. After seting it up and chosing the parks WIFI from the WIFI Ranger IP address, I ran a speed test and got 1MBS speed. Wonding how this could be? There were 4 of the same park WIFI names on the IP address for WIFI Ranger, but I do not think that makes a difference.

Anyone have any ideas?

Kind of useless to use Ranger if it does not boost signal or make is faster.

[cboss]

There are many posts about the WiFi Ranger, just do a search.
IMHO I think it is junk and not necessary.
When I redo my roof the Ranger will be removed and that hole will be covered over with Eterna bond.

[Glenncarp]

Getting same not so warm and fuzzy feeling

[TeachTexas]

The ranger does not make it faster. It can only work with what is there. It's main job is to help connect and get a stronger signal to your setup. It also allows you to connect all your devices to it so you only have to connect the ranger to the camp signal for everything to work. Campground wifi is marginal at best most of the time. The multiple IPs may offer different levels of success depending on the load they are carrying.

[KE0OUA]

As others have said, it's more for convenience so that your devices only need to connect to 1 device no matter where you are.

The issue with devices like that is that it introduces additional latency into the network, which is already an issue with most WiFi networks, especially campground ones. From a networking perspective, devices like the WiFi Ranger add additional hops for devices to go through and it creates additional routing that the campground WiFi has to deal with, which is why the speed test you ran came back so much slower. If you enable the various security settings, it will impact that speed even more.

The WiFi Ranger and similar Winegard devices are good for making it easy to connect to 1 network, but don't use it with super high expectations.

[Tabasco_Joe]

Originally Posted by Glenncarp

OK, let start by saying we took our 2022 Epro out for the first time this weekend. All went as planned, we loved it, so we have only used it one time to date.

I was using the parks WIFI (Roan Mountian State Park, TN) and i did a speed check, 5 MBS downlaod. Figured lets see what WIFI Ranger can do, so, after the process of coming here and Youtube and figuring out how to use it, I got on successfully. Ran speed test again......1.5 MBPS!!! Why bother?

Am i missing something?

BYW, I just opened the WI Ranger on my WIFi list and I choose "more information" and I was taken to the WIFI Ranger net address where I could see the available WIFI sources.

I did see 3 or 4 of the parks WIFI names listed wondering of I should have tried aonther one or two?

Thoughs and thanks!

I assume signal strength is also shown?
Start with the strongest signal.

[jbflag21ds]

Could be the WifiRanger had signal strength issues or it could be that by the time you got it setup that someone decided to try streaming content on the campground wifi and bogged it down. You'll need to make multiple attempts at speed tests at different times of the day to get a good average/max.

[Phreak480]

Originally Posted by jbflag21ds

Could be the WifiRanger had signal strength issues or it could be that by the time you got it setup that someone decided to try streaming content on the campground wifi and bogged it down. You'll need to make multiple attempts at speed tests at different times of the day to get a good average/max.

Exactly, lots of variables to consider here before condemning the device. If you really want to test to see if it is causing slowdowns try it at home where you can control who is doing what on your network. Run multiple speed tests both direct to your network and via the wifi ranger and compare.

[Flybob]

This is not your equipment. What you are likely seeing that the WiFi capacity provided by the park is not sufficient to support a campground full of people trying to stream content. Except for higher end seasonal parks most campground WiFi is good for checking email or other low BW demand applications. In most cases you will be limited in BW due to demand from others.

[Glenncarp]

Originally Posted by Flybob

This is not your equipment. What you are likely seeing that the WiFi capacity provided by the park is not sufficient to support a campground full of people trying to stream content. Except for higher end seasonal parks most campground WiFi is good for checking email or other low BW demand applications. In most cases you will be limited in BW due to demand from others.

Agreed, but issue I have is speed was faster without Ranger, I am not an expert, but I believe if you have a stronger signal, speeds should be faster.

[GPs37FLH]

Originally Posted by Glenncarp

Agreed, but issue I have is speed was faster without Ranger, I am not an expert, but I believe if you have a stronger signal, speeds should be faster.

Actually, always remember that your signal strength is not a good indicator of what performance you will receive. There are many instances where you can have a high number of bars (indicating a strong signal), but have poor performance, while at other times have a lower number of bars, but good performance. As was mentioned already by Phreak480, there are many, many variables that come into play when it comes to Internet performance. This rings true whether it be thru a cellular carrier like Verizon or T-Mobile; satellite providers, such as StarLink, or traditional carriers, like Spectrum or AT&T.

Don't believe me? Browse to the Mobile Internet Resource Center website to see for yourself what the experts that test and evaluate WiFi products have to say about this. Great website for learning about, evaluating and researching WiFi products and services for mobile users.

[Riccochet]

In technical terms the Wifi Ranger is a network extender. What this does is cut duplex in half. The Ranger is using half duplex for communication with the parks wifi, and the other half to broadcast to you. Therefore speed is halved or more.

You might look in to something like the GL.iNet GL-MT1300.

[TeachTexas]

Originally Posted by Glenncarp

Agreed, but issue I have is speed was faster without Ranger, I am not an expert, but I believe if you have a stronger signal, speeds should be faster.

Signal strength and speed are not hand in hand. The signal strength only gets you the ability to connect. Speed is controlled by many factors in addition( environment, congestion, quality, etc.) Speed tests are not always reliable indicators of what you may actually get. The test is for a specific moment in time and could be different in just a few seconds or milliseconds.

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by Glenncarp

... I was using the [TN State] parks WIFI (Roan Mountian State Park, TN) and i did a speed check, 5 MBS downlaod. ...

TN State parks provide Tengo Internet, which is glacially slow. I think you can subscribe (and pay money) for an improved speed but it's not improved much.

WiFiRanger is a repeater, meaning it has to duplicate everything. I won't say that will halve the source speed because it can communicate with connected devices (e.g., your laptop) much faster than it can communicate with the source WiFi, but it is, by definition, slower than the host.

In my experience at Cumberland Mtn SP earlier this month, I had a decent Tengo WiFi signal inside my trailer but the connection was painfully slow. My phone connection wasn't great but, when it worked, was 5 times faster than Tengo.

[MevetS]

Originally Posted by Glenncarp

OK, let start by saying we took our 2022 Epro out for the first time this weekend. All went as planned, we loved it, so we have only used it one time to date.

I was using the parks WIFI (Roan Mountian State Park, TN) and i did a speed check, 5 MBS downlaod. Figured lets see what WIFI Ranger can do, so, after the process of coming here and Youtube and figuring out how to use it, I got on successfully. Ran speed test again......1.5 MBPS!!! Why bother?

Am i missing something?

BYW, I just opened the WI Ranger on my WIFi list and I choose "more information" and I was taken to the WIFI Ranger net address where I could see the available WIFI sources.

I did see 3 or 4 of the parks WIFI names listed wondering of I should have tried aonther one or two?

Thoughs and thanks!

Which WFR equipment are you using?

[Riccochet]

Something else you may consider. You should make sure the Wifi Ranger is broadcasting on a different band/channel than what the park is using. If they are both using the same band/channel they will be conflicting with each other and cause a loss in performance.

But, still extenders/repeaters are all going to suffer from duplex loss unless it's a MU-MIMO device.

[Glenncarp]

Originally Posted by Riccochet

Something else you may consider. You should make sure the Wifi Ranger is broadcasting on a different band/channel than what the park is using. If they are both using the same band/channel they will be conflicting with each other and cause a loss in performance.

But, still extenders/repeaters are all going to suffer from duplex loss unless it's a MU-MIMO device.

How does one choose a channel for the Ranger?

[Phreak480]

Originally Posted by Riccochet

Something else you may consider. You should make sure the Wifi Ranger is broadcasting on a different band/channel than what the park is using. If they are both using the same band/channel they will be conflicting with each other and cause a loss in performance.

But, still extenders/repeaters are all going to suffer from duplex loss unless it's a MU-MIMO device.

Depending on the hardware in it that may not be possible. You need dual radios do be on 2 channels effectively.

This is why I've rolled my own solution and others have too. You can get a ubiquiti outdoor bullet to act as a client device to the park wifi then over ethernet feed that to your own internal router with wifi tha tmakes the network you use inside the RV. This cuts out the big slowdown that happens with single radio devices that spend half their time as client and half as source. Depending on the router you use you may also then be able to USB tether a cellphone to it to use instead of the campground wifi.

I'm in the design phase of a new build for my RV to do such things.

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by Phreak480

... You can get a ubiquiti outdoor bullet to act as a client device to the park wifi then over ethernet feed that to your own internal router ...

Do you have a suggested model? I assume it uses PoE for a power source?