Many people have slow and unreliable internet connections over 3G/4G/LTE and 5G networks. This is often due to poor signal strength and in the majority of cases, it can be improved. This is achieved by connecting external antennas to your broadband router/modem and pointing them towards your carriers cell tower.
Router/Modem Connectors
Some cellular broadband routers/modems have screw-on SMA connectors for external antennas like these. If there are two connectors, for best results you should use two antennas.
Some cellular routers/modems have push-on TS-9 connectors like these:
If the router/modem has two push-on TS-9 connectors like above, again for best results you should connect an external antenna to both of them. To connect an external antennas they first need to be converted to SMA using two of our AN-28 adaptors:
The AN-28 can be found here: https://www.gowifi.co.nz/an-28.html
Antennas
Next you need to decide on the external antenna to use, where to mount it and which direction to point it in.
For IoT connectivity many people get excellent results using a single external antenna however if your cellular router/modem is used as your internet connection and it has two external antenna connectors, for best results you should use an antenna on each connector.
The ANT-205 is 3G/4G and can be found here: https://www.gowifi.co.nz/ant-205.html
The ANT-252 is 4G/5G and can be found here: https://www.gowifi.co.nz/ant-252.html
Both antennas have only one N-Type connector so if you decide to use one for each of the connectors on your router/modem, for best results they should mounted at 90 degrees to each other with the bottom one being at 45 degrees to the ground as in the image below:
Another great choice for 3G/4G/LTE is the ANT-228 which has two N-Type connectors. So one device with two in-built antennas. Just mount, point at the tower and run two coax cables to your router/modem:
The ANT-228 can be found here: https://www.gowifi.co.nz/ant-228.html
Mounting hardware
Our full range of pole/wall mounting hardware can be found here https://www.gowifi.co.nz/mounting-hardware/pole-and-wall-mounts.html however our most popular pole mount for this scenario is the BKT-22 which can be found here: https://www.gowifi.co.nz/bkt-22.html.
Cables
You will need to run at least one coax pigtail cable from the modem to your antenna of choice. Our full range of N-Type male to SMA male coax pigtails can be found here: https://www.gowifi.co.nz/index.php?keyword=n-male+to+sma+male&option=com_virtuemart&view=category&limitstart=0&virtuemart_category_id=0&Itemid=286&lang=en As far as the length of cable required is concerned, that will vary according to individual needs however among the most popular pigtails for this scenario are the 10 metre P-39 which can be found here https://www.gowifi.co.nz/p-39.html and the 6 metre P-38 which can be found here https://www.gowifi.co.nz/p-38.html
Putting it all together
The first thing to do is to fix the pole or wall mount to the side of the building that faces your ISP or carriers cell tower. To find out which direction the tower is from your house go to https://gis.geek.nz/ and register. The website will send you a verification email and once you've verified your email address, go back to the website and login. Once logged in go to Cell Towers at the bottom of the page and click View. From here you can click on Map and zoom in to find your location and where your carriers nearest tower is in relation to your property.
Next, mount the antennas on the pole or wall mount as mentioned above while ensuring they are pointing towards your carriers cell tower.
Once the antennas are mounted and pointing in the right direction, connect the N-Type connector on each of your coax cables and run the cables back to your router/modem using proper cable clips to fix it to the walls. Don't use staples as they will damage the cable.
Connect the SMA end of the coax cables to you router/modem by screwing them on. Alternatively, screw the TS-9 adaptors to the SMA connectors on the coax cables and push them onto the modem TS-9 connector ports.