BUYER’S GUIDE
For those with a single laptop or PC on
board, all you need to boost marina
Wi-Fi reception is a signal booster
comprising a high-gain antenna
(preferably waterproof) and a long
cable, terminating in a USB connector.
Plugging it into your PC simply
overrides the internal Wi-Fi card and
software supplied with the antenna will
enable you to select and lock onto your
preferred Wi-Fi hotspot.
High-gain antennae come in two
types – directional and omni-
directional. The former, usually a flat
box with a simple flat plate or two
inside, can be pointed towards the
preferred signal source, effectively
‘tuning’ it to the transmitter, whereas
the latter, frequently a tubular ‘pole’
type, doesn’t need to be aligned to any
particular direction.Digital Yacht WL510
Price: £594
Contact: http://www.digitalyacht.co.uk
This is a 90cm-long, high-gain (+12dB)
omnidirectional antenna in a rugged (but
not waterproof) aluminium box,
measuring 170 x 100 x 55mm. The
antenna is waterproof, so can be
mounted outside on a standard 1in
threaded base mount. The box has one
PL259 antenna socket, a single RJ45 LAN
socket and a 12/24V DC power cable.
Compatible with all popular operating
systems the WL510 is configured via a
browser and the control software is
extremely good, though a little complex.
Once powered up you scan for hotspots,
select the one you want and then hit
apply. The unit will give access to
hotspots up to five miles away,
depending on antenna height.Wi-Fi Bat antenna
Price: £359
Contact: http://www.mailasail.com
The Wi-Fi Bat is a 2W, waterproof,
omnidirectional pole antenna that the
manufacturer claims will enable you to
lock onto Wi-Fi signals up to 10 miles
away. This high-gain (8dB) antenna is
70cm high and comes with 15m of
co-axial cable, terminating in a normal
USB plug. Annoyingly the antenna isn’t
compatible with a standard 1in VHF
antenna screw base mount.
Power is supplied by the USB port
and the software is supplied on a
mini-CD.
This is a simple plug-and-play device
that pretty much doubles the sensitivity
of the laptop’s integral Wi-Fi card and
enables usable Wi-Fi hotspots to be
logged onto several miles away.Digital Yacht WL70
Price: £180
Contact: http://www.digitalyacht.co.uk
This simple 1.3m-high omindirectional
antenna comes with 5m of cable
terminating in a USB plug.
Its threaded base fits a standard 1in
VHF-type antenna mount and is fully
waterproof for mounting outside.
Operates with Windows Vista/7/8/10 or
Mac OSX 10.4 to 10.10 (Yosemite).
The WL70 features a very high
performance 15dBm antenna that
can provide connections up to half
a mile depending upon conditions.
The Realtek software displays all
the available signals and
their relative strengths
allowing you to
get the
strongest.Alfa Tube-U
Price: £63
Contact: http://www.wifi-antennas.co.uk
This kit comprises two items – a
150Mbps, 2.4GHz long-range waterproof
USB Wi-Fi dongle and a 2.4GHz
high-gain (9dB) external omnidirectional
pole antenna with cable and connectors.
The dongle and antenna connect
together as one waterproof unit from
which you run the supplied 5m-long cable
(extensions available) down to your
laptop and connect it directly via the USB
plug. Power is taken from the laptop’s
USB (2+) port.
Supports all recent Windows, Mac and
Linux platforms.
Range is said to
increase to 4-5
miles using the Alfa
Tube-U.Kuma long-range
antenna
Price: £39.99
Contact: http://www.acdctv.co.uk
This ‘weatherproof’ plastic antenna comes
with a 5m-long USB cable which also
provides power. The box measures 220 x
80 x 40mm and can be wall- or pole-
mounted. Once activated a small console
appears allowing you to manually set up
profiles for frequently used Wi-Fi
sources. Selecting ‘search’ provides
a list of every Wi-Fi signal source in
range.
The console also has a signal
strength meter that goes green
when connected to the Internet.
The antenna is quoted as
offering a 16dB gain, which is
high compared to others
that are mostly around 8dB.Long-range Wi-Fi boosters
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Former Yachting
Monthly technical
editor Duncan
Kent is a marine
journalist who has
been writing for
a wide selection
of UK and
International sailing magazines for the
past 25 years. He has amassed a wealth
of practical and technical knowledge on
yachts of all types and sizes.