which wilson antenna is best?

[rdthompson1]

I am confused and getting frustrated please help. I want to order the best sleek and antenna I can get that will work with numerous phone systems. At Amazon they have a model 813426 for $130. They also have a model 815126 for $99. I assume I will want a good antenna and maybe 50 feet of wire to reach well above my ladder. I know this has been addressed before but I just can't find it right now. The sleek for $130 comes with "Sleek 4G all-in-one cradle, outside vehicle magnet-mount antenna, cigarette-lighter power adapter, and installation guide." Is this antenna any good or do I need something more? How about added cable? I assume this will plug into 110 somehow?

Thanks folks. It's great to have a reliable source of help.

[WeBeFulltimers]

rdthompson1 wrote:
Thanks everyone for your comments. I guess I know which sleek to buy. I will pick an antenna later. Sounds like talking to Wilson would be a good idea. Would truck stops have any of these things at a reasonable price?

Truck stops almost NEVER have a good price on ANYTHING! Shop elsewhere!

[cpaulsen]

I stick my Verizon JetPack in the cradle and have never had a problem with a signal.

[RoyB]

My WILSON SLEEK came with a small rubber duckie type antenna. I mounted it on the metal edge that goes around my POPUP trailer roof...



My cradle is setup inside my POPUP trailer up on the ceiling behind the valance curtain that goes around the whole ceiling of my trailer. I have 120VAC up here to run my my awning lights. This is also powered by a INVERTER when camping off the power grid. The MIFI unit also has four hours capability with internal rechargable battery.

I dock my Verizon 3G MIFI unit in the cradle when inside my trailer.
Works great for connecting to the internet anywhere Verizon CELL PHONE service works... I get a good 60-foot radius around my trailer using WIFI connected devices...

When we go for walks or down to the beach I carry the MIFI unit with me in my shirt pocket

Looks similar to this photo showing a 4G MIFI unit


Was a great move for us several years back. I'm sure the newer ones now are even better...

Roy Ken

[rdthompson1]

Thanks everyone for your comments. I guess I know which sleek to buy. I will pick an antenna later. Sounds like talking to Wilson would be a good idea. Would truck stops have any of these things at a reasonable price?

[ktmrfs]

Gdetrailer wrote:

rdthompson1 wrote:
I am confused and getting frustrated please help. I want to order the best sleek and antenna I can get that will work with numerous phone systems. At Amazon they have a model 813426 for $130. They also have a model 815126 for $99. I assume I will want a good antenna and maybe 50 feet of wire to reach well above my ladder. I know this has been addressed before but I just can't find it right now. The sleek for $130 comes with "Sleek 4G all-in-one cradle, outside vehicle magnet-mount antenna, cigarette-lighter power adapter, and installation guide." Is this antenna any good or do I need something more? How about added cable? I assume this will plug into 110 somehow?

Thanks folks. It's great to have a reliable source of help.

50ft of coax?

That will eat up any possible gain ( or advantage) that you might get by using a external antenna even with amplifier.

With the frequencies used for cell phones you NEED to have the LEAST amount of coax involved as possible...

not always. yes, std coax will have considerable loss at 50ft, however, wilson does sell a low loss cable. about 3db @ 50ft, something you can usually tolerate. However, it isn't inexpensive, and it is about 3/4" diameter and is meant for permanent installation.

I used it to go from the front of the trailer where the antenna is to the back of the trailer where the amp is. Works fine, but really only as a permanent installation.

[vermilye]

rdthompson1 wrote:
I am confused and getting frustrated please help. I want to order the best sleek and antenna I can get that will work with numerous phone systems. At Amazon they have a model 813426 for $130. They also have a model 815126 for $99. I assume I will want a good antenna and maybe 50 feet of wire to reach well above my ladder. I know this has been addressed before but I just can't find it right now. The sleek for $130 comes with "Sleek 4G all-in-one cradle, outside vehicle magnet-mount antenna, cigarette-lighter power adapter, and installation guide." Is this antenna any good or do I need something more? How about added cable? I assume this will plug into 110 somehow?

Thanks folks. It's great to have a reliable source of help.

The difference between the two Sleeks you posted part numbers for is the 813426 is a universal model - it has a switch that can be selected for AT&T's LTE or Verizon's LTE frequencies. The model 815126 is an older version that amplifies Verizon LTE signal only (they do make an AT&T single frequency version, the -A as well) Both are older models.

As to antennas, the one that comes with the Sleek does not have a ground plane. It is designed to attach to the metal roof of an automobile. If you use it on a fiberglass or rubber roof, you will need to add a 6" - 8" metal disk glued to the roof to both attach the antenna, and provide a ground plane.

Wilson makes antennas that have built in ground planes that also have more gain than the stock Sleek antenna. I use the Wilson "Trucker" antenna, which provides about 3db gain at the 4G frequencies. Again, if you are going to mount the antenna on a pole or other non metal surface, you need a model that had a built in ground plane. Without it you will have far less gain, and may even damage the Sleek.

Here is a link to Wilson's Antennas.

[RickSo]

dahkota wrote:
We bought this antenna and use 25' of coax. Works pretty well so far - no complaints. We have picked up signal where previously we were out of range. We also have ours mounted on our ladder.

BTW - it does not plug in to 110. We had a 12V outlet installed where it comes in the tt.

X2 on this antenna! Has worked very well on our unit.

[2chiefsRus]

we purchased the Wilson Sleek 815226 from the 3Gstore.com back in 2010 for $99.95. I see Amazon now lists that model for $79.99. We have used it several times to get a usable signal when we had none. We use the included little antenna in the toad and also purchased an adapter for another $6 that we use to connect the Sleek to our roof mounted RV Shorty Antenna that we also purchased from the 3Gstore for the motorhome. We have also been able to use the Sleek to boost the signal on our USB aircard by using a USB connector cable to give us room to hold the aircard in the sleek.

Bottom line is it is not something that I would like to have to rely on everyday but it has been very helpful to make a call when we wanted/needed to while temporarily in an isolated site. by the way, ours does use 12volt.

[RV_CONUS]

I bought two Wilson sleek 4g-A booster cradles.

They work as advertised.

I use the standard 4" magnetic antenna on one cradle. I upgraded to the 12" magnetic antenna for the second cradle.

There isn't any discernible difference in signal with the upgraded antenna.

The boosters have taken a one bar barely usable signal to a signal that registers -95 to -101 or up to 3 bars.

It boosts the data and voice signal. The only downside is the phone has to be in the cradle. We either use the speaker or a blue tooth headset.

It works great.

[dahkota]

We bought this antenna and use 25' of coax. Works pretty well so far - no complaints. We have picked up signal where previously we were out of range. We also have ours mounted on our ladder.

BTW - it does not plug in to 110. We had a 12V outlet installed where it comes in the tt.

[Gdetrailer]

rdthompson1 wrote:
I am confused and getting frustrated please help. I want to order the best sleek and antenna I can get that will work with numerous phone systems. At Amazon they have a model 813426 for $130. They also have a model 815126 for $99. I assume I will want a good antenna and maybe 50 feet of wire to reach well above my ladder. I know this has been addressed before but I just can't find it right now. The sleek for $130 comes with "Sleek 4G all-in-one cradle, outside vehicle magnet-mount antenna, cigarette-lighter power adapter, and installation guide." Is this antenna any good or do I need something more? How about added cable? I assume this will plug into 110 somehow?

Thanks folks. It's great to have a reliable source of help.

50ft of coax?

That will eat up any possible gain ( or advantage) that you might get by using a external antenna even with amplifier.

With the frequencies used for cell phones you NEED to have the LEAST amount of coax involved as possible...

[Trackrig]

I'd call Wilson, I've found them helpful to deal with when I had questions.

Bill

[Mandalay_Parr]

Wilson has a wireless system. I suggest you call them. They have been very helpful.

[tvman44]

With the Sleek Cradle the phone has to be in the cradle to work, I have one and it works great. A system that does not require the phone in the cradle would be more flexible and of greater use. 🙂