Airport Express as wifi access point in RV

luvlabs wrote:
An Apple Airport most likely doesn't do WiFi as WAN and while it is a nice router and all, it was never mean't to be a RVer's solution to creating a network. WiFi Ranger, Cradlepoint, and now Pepwave SOHO all offer far more flexibility in connecting to the internet.

We use the Pepwave SOHO to connect to the campground WiFi or our MiFi (via USB) and redistribute in our own secure network environment. We can connect to the router wirelessly or via ethernet. It can also take a wired (ie from a cable modem) WAN signal as well. Very versatile.

X2 on the Pepwave... great product! Works great with campground WiFi or cellular data sharing. We even use ours to connect the xBox 360 to the internet for streaming videos, etc.

An Apple Airport most likely doesn't do WiFi as WAN and while it is a nice router and all, it was never mean't to be a RVer's solution to creating a network. WiFi Ranger, Cradlepoint, and now Pepwave SOHO all offer far more flexibility in connecting to the internet.

We use the Pepwave SOHO to connect to the campground WiFi or our MiFi (via USB) and redistribute in our own secure network environment. We can connect to the router wirelessly or via ethernet. It can also take a wired (ie from a cable modem) WAN signal as well. Very versatile.

duggram wrote:

vermilye wrote:
I've done the same with a Bear Extender, a USB high power WiFi adapter.

That looks really good. I wonder if a USB 3.0 compatibility would improve perforance. The reason I say this is that I use a USB 3.0 thumbdrive for storage and it's really fast.

USB 2.0 is already far faster than any internet connection you are going to have; the spec is >400 Mbps. The USB transfer rate is not what is limiting the speed of your connection.

vermilye wrote:
I've done the same with a Bear Extender, a USB high power WiFi adapter.

That looks really good. I wonder if a USB 3.0 compatibility would improve perforance. The reason I say this is that I use a USB 3.0 thumbdrive for storage and it's really fast.

Just a thought, but I do like the looks of the Extender.

MNtundraRet wrote:
Someone needs to say it.

You don't know what you are talking about. And, trolls like you are a perfect example of a major problem on forums.

Where did I say I did anything that I participated in any activity that would lead to hogging bandwidth?

Where did I say that I download video? I don't. Download music? I don't. Have more than one device connected to the wifi at one time. I don't.

All I do is login to servers on the internet for work. I would not be surprised to find out that I don't use much more bandwidth than email. All I do is down load a few small data parameters to verify system perfomance and problems.

So please stop trolling. Until you know what you are talking about please do not post on these forums.

duggram wrote:

pronstar wrote:
I'm not clear why you'd want to use an Airport access point, if the park has a wifi signal that you can access with your computer/devices?

That's an easy question to answer for a lazy person like me. Some parks only allow one connection per set of access credentials, and some other parks like the one I'm in now require a long loggon process each time you turn on a device. Why not have one device logged on to the park's network all the time that you can instantly access in your RV?

Someone needs to say it.

People with a similar attitude like yours cause the problems for free wifi in in the campgrounds. Many campgrounds need to now time-out access to dump the few hogging the system or trying to down-load movies.

Do us a favor and get 3-4G service and allow the rest of us to check our mail and do needed internet searches.

I've done the same with a Bear Extender, a USB high power WiFi adapter.

Well, you got me curious, so fired up my MacBook.

Another method I just tested and works is if you do have a MacBook, and use a separate router capable of bridge/client mode. Basically, this acts similar to a USB WiFi adapter, except your MacBook is accessing the CG's WiFi using the router's Ethernet connection. You can now use MAC OS X Internet Sharing using the MacBook's built in airport adapter.

So basically, you set the CG's SSID/password in the router in a bridge/client mode. Connect an Ethernet cable from the router to your MacBook. You now have net access on your MacBook. To share that same connection via WiFi to your other devices, start System Preferences > Sharing. Click Internet Sharing and select "From computer" using Ethernet, "To computer" using Airport or WiFi. Make sure to set an encryption type and password. You can find instructions here.

I was able to connect my Motorola smartphone to my MacBook acting as a WiFi hotspot, which in turn is connected to a recycled $4. Linksys router getting its WiFi from a mobile 4G router in another room. My download speed for my smartphone was ~3.6 mbps using shared connection, whereas my MacBook was connected at 8.1 mbps.

A router may also have an advantage when accessing CG WiFi as it generally has more power for receive/transmit signal. Such as those made by Amped. Many also have external antennas.

There are routers from WiFi Ranger & Cradlepoint that will do what you want. An additional advantage is they have a USB input that can be used with a USB cell modem to provide a choice of sources.

You can do it in Windows 7/8 using Wireless Hosted Networks, but not sure if MAC OS X has a similar function? If it does, you don't necessarily need two Airports, just another WiFi adapter.

Your other option is to use a router that has repeater capability. You set the repeater on a different sub-net with DHCP, so basically on its own network. The host CG router would just see one IP connection. Your repeater is handling the WiFi sharing with multiple devices. However, your net speed will likely be cut in half.

Using a repeater should work so long as you are given a ssid/password, which you will need to configure your router so it logs into the host network automatically. But may not work in all cases if the CG is using a captive portal. Basically, redirecting you to some type of splash page or terms of use before allowing access to the net.