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  • Winegard Connect 2 WiFi Booster, Hotspot

    This thing is a black dome (16 inches diameter, 8 inches tall) that is screwed down on the RV's roof. It boosts local Wi-Fi signals and connects to 4G LTE cellular networks when Wi-Fi networks are slow or aren't available. Winegard has a prepaid data plan that ranges from 1 GB to 20 GB a month. You can purchase more data at any time and there is no annual contract. You pay $0 for the months you don't use it. The data plan is easy to purchase and while it is not the cheapest, it is high speed and easy to set up. In my area it runs on AT&T. The Winegard plan can also connect to Verizon. You can use other cellular network data plans by swapping SIM cards. It includes thick wood screws for mounting, a 20-foot power cable that connects to 12 volt power, a power switch that you mount inside, and twist on wire nut connectors. The sim card is installed in the unit on the roof in a waterproof slot. It has a 2-year/1 year warranty on parts/labor.

    Installation on our Grand Design Imagine XLS 18RBE trailer was easy because I called Grand Design and they told me where I should mount it and where I would find a 12 volt line in the roof to connect it to. The instruction book, systems setup and web browser based management software is both understandable and easy to follow. I did have to go thru the factory reset procedure because I got called away before I could finish setting it up the first time I tried. Unless you are on the roof of the trailer the reset procedure is tedious. It involves cycling it on and off 4 times, waiting 90 seconds each time it's off. This takes 5 minutes and gets annoying if you have to do it more than once, as I did.

    It was able to pick up our home's WiFi from 100 yards away at 50 mbps. The cellular data plan was 50 mbps. Your devices all connect to this thing using WiFi. It creates its own local WiFi 2.4G hotspot even if it connects to local area WiFi, which it does using 2.4G. I don't know how many devices can use it at once, but it had no trouble with two phones and two computers streaming video. I will add more details on how well it works as we travel with it.

    The price of this thing varies aLOT. Although currently Amazon has new ones for over $350, I bought mine off Amazon a few weeks ago for only $280.

  • #2
    I have the Winegard 360+ I added to the roof of my RV in place of the crank up TV antenna that came with my trailer. The power to the Winegard 360+ dome TV antenna is supplied through the coax, and will connect directly to the coax already wired for the amplified crank up TV antenna.

    The 360+ has the ability to add the Winegard Gateway which largely operates as described above. I will likely add it to my RV at a later date. The 12V is already at the TV amp switch, so I fished wires about 6" to the hole through the roof for the antenna. So my power is now ready for the gateway. I used the Gateway power cable that came with the 360+ (the supplied cable is probably at least 6 feet long, and comes with the plug for the Gateway on one end). The 360+ has the TV antenna in the top of the dome, as well as prewired with 3 antennas for the Wifi and 4G for the Gateway. These antennas are also pre-mounted in the dome.

    The 360+ instructions state you can mount the Gateway on the inside ceiling of the RV (preferred) or within the dome on top of the RV (there's a place for it in the dome). I will be mounting mine inside on the ceiling. The Gateway is fairly low profile so will not be a problem on the ceiling. It is connected with the 12 volt power cable that came with the 360+, and three color coded coax connectors that go to each of the 3 gateway antennas in the dome.

    I researched the Gateway for pricing. I found it for $272 through Walmart of all places. Other places were more like $330 in price online. I will add the Gateway later when we begin traveling more with the RV. I will connect it through my Verizon plan. For now, the 12 Volt wire and 3 coax wires are stored under a small cover that attaches to the ceiling covering the hole where the old antenna crank was. This cover also came with the 360+. The 360+ also came with a switch for multiple TV's including power, and a 12V switch for the Gateway, with associated surface mounting bracket.

    I will note that removing the old crank up antenna was easy, but getting the old sealant off the roof was tough. The 360+ did not come with anything to seal it to the roof. They recommend Butyl tape for the seal around the outside of the dome ring, and then roof sealant around the edge of the dome once secured to the roof. I ordered the Butyl tape online and bought tan roof sealant from my RV dealer for the final seal. The Butyl tape is more like rope caulk, and forms between the bottom of the dome and the roof. Note that when I pullet the TV switch off the ceiling to access its wiring, I found the negative wire for 12V had come loose from its spade connector. The unit was still working, likely because the negative is also ground which is likely also through all the coax connections too. I added a new spade connector and re-attached. There are multiple coax connectors on this switch, as well as plus and minus 12 volt connections. Very tight fit in the ceiling under this switch plate.
    Tony G
    2020 Chevy Silverado 3500 Highcountry
    2016 Grand Designs Reflection 303RLS
    KTM 250XC

    Comment


    • #3
      More notes on my install...
      I installed in place of the stock crank up TV aerial.
      I decided to add the Gateway 1000 to my system at this time instead of waiting until later.

      For the 12 Volt connection, I opted for a switch on the Gateway unit (see pictures below). On Amazon I purchased some round white SPST switches for about $5 (5 in a pack). The hole diameter for this switch was 0.75". It is actually 20mm for the switch, so used the drill bit to hog out the hole slightly to make it just a bit larger for the switch to fit. I used a 1/8" square small file for put a notch in the hole for the switch orientation tab (which keeps the switch from rotating). This switch is mounted directly on the Gateway housing in the wiring area. I used the power cable that came with the unit which is much shorter. I ended up cutting the bulk of the power cable that came with the 360+ off, and splicing the shorter cable onto the 12 volt wire I had previously fished to the location. I put spade connections on the red wire to attach to the switch and a butt connector to connect the two black wires (these are crimp connectors, red size). Made for a very clean install with minimal length wires. Not sure if the orientation of the Gateway on the ceiling is critical, but I installed the orientation forward as indicated in the instructions. The 360+ on the roof is also installed with the correct front orientation.

      Before I installed the 360+ antenna to the roof, I ended up drilling another wire hole in the bottom of the unit to better place the wires at the existing hole in the roof to get me the 8" clearance from the edge of the RV roof as indicated in the installation manual. This required cutting the tie wraps, rerouting the wires, and re-attaching to the base with new tie wraps. This location will also give me 8" clearance to the new bedroom AC unit I will be installing (another thread in this forum). I did order some butyl sealant. It came as a rope sealant, which I put under the outer ring of the base about 1/4" from the edge of the base. This sealant will squish to conform to the base and make a good seal. I also ran a length around the existing hole in the roof for added protection. I then mounted the base to the roof using the supplied screws. I gave the base several days for the sealant to squish (technical term ). I made one more turn on the mounting screws then sealed the entire base around the outside edge and over the screws with a roof caulk from the RV dealer. I used a tan color which matched that already up there. Question here... There are 4 screws that hold the dome to the base. Are these to be sealed also, or does the rubber seal around the dome take care of this?

      That completed the install. I now need to link up to the Gateway and get it set-up. Waiting for a cooler day to do this.

      Click image for larger version

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      Tony G
      2020 Chevy Silverado 3500 Highcountry
      2016 Grand Designs Reflection 303RLS
      KTM 250XC

      Comment


      • #4
        GREAT idea. I'll be using this one. Just ordered my switch for my new GW1000 on our 2022 297QB.

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by Dadeo6472 View Post
          This thing is a black dome (16 inches diameter, 8 inches tall) that is screwed down on the RV's roof. It boosts local Wi-Fi signals and connects to 4G LTE cellular networks when Wi-Fi networks are slow or aren't available. Winegard has a prepaid data plan that ranges from 1 GB to 20 GB a month. You can purchase more data at any time and there is no annual contract. You pay $0 for the months you don't use it. The data plan is easy to purchase and while it is not the cheapest, it is high speed and easy to set up. In my area it runs on AT&T. The Winegard plan can also connect to Verizon. You can use other cellular network data plans by swapping SIM cards. It includes thick wood screws for mounting, a 20-foot power cable that connects to 12 volt power, a power switch that you mount inside, and twist on wire nut connectors. The sim card is installed in the unit on the roof in a waterproof slot. It has a 2-year/1 year warranty on parts/labor.

          Installation on our Grand Design Imagine XLS 18RBE trailer was easy because I called Grand Design and they told me where I should mount it and where I would find a 12 volt line in the roof to connect it to. The instruction book, systems setup and web browser based management software is both understandable and easy to follow. I did have to go thru the factory reset procedure because I got called away before I could finish setting it up the first time I tried. Unless you are on the roof of the trailer the reset procedure is tedious. It involves cycling it on and off 4 times, waiting 90 seconds each time it's off. This takes 5 minutes and gets annoying if you have to do it more than once, as I did.

          It was able to pick up our home's WiFi from 100 yards away at 50 mbps. The cellular data plan was 50 mbps. Your devices all connect to this thing using WiFi. It creates its own local WiFi 2.4G hotspot even if it connects to local area WiFi, which it does using 2.4G. I don't know how many devices can use it at once, but it had no trouble with two phones and two computers streaming video. I will add more details on how well it works as we travel with it.

          The price of this thing varies aLOT. Although currently Amazon has new ones for over $350, I bought mine off Amazon a few weeks ago for only $280.
          -----------------------------
          Update 4/13/22:

          We've been using this thing as we travel this spring from National Park to Park in the western USA. To get the best Internet as cheaply as possible, we first try to use the free campground provided WiFi. If the campground WiFi signal is poor, we use the Connect2 as a WiFi booster. Sometimes the Campground WiFi is so bad the Connect2 doesn't help. Then we turn to the hotspot data on our phones. When we run out of data on the phones, or if the phones can't get a decent signal, then we turn on the Connect2 and use the more expensive Winegard data plan.

          In Chaco National Historical Park we had no WiFi or cell service on our phones. However the Connect2 was able to get a solid 4G cell data signal thru a Native American cell provider on a nearby reservation. We used the internet and made phone calls thru our Connect2.

          In Joshua Tree National Park there was no WiFi, no cell phone service and our Connect2 could not get a signal either.

          If you know where to look, the software on the Connect 2 data plan allows you to choose between cell towers and/or providers. Where we are now I am using a local provider I'd never heard of. It's a slightly weaker signal than the nearby Verizon tower, but its faster.

          The only bug: I downloaded and edited 1500 photos and videos from my digital SLR on my Chromebook, which was syncing to my Google drive. Before I realized it, Google uploaded the pictures and videos thru the Connect2. It took me two days to figure out why my Chromebook was slow surfing the 'net. And the picture syncing used up all the Winegard data plan in a few hours. Groan.

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by tgodrich View Post
            More notes on my install...
            I installed in place of the stock crank up TV aerial.
            I decided to add the Gateway 1000 to my system at this time instead of waiting until later.

            For the 12 Volt connection, I opted for a switch on the Gateway unit (see pictures below). On Amazon I purchased some round white SPST switches for about $5 (5 in a pack). The hole diameter for this switch was 0.75". It is actually 20mm for the switch, so used the drill bit to hog out the hole slightly to make it just a bit larger for the switch to fit. I used a 1/8" square small file for put a notch in the hole for the switch orientation tab (which keeps the switch from rotating). This switch is mounted directly on the Gateway housing in the wiring area. I used the power cable that came with the unit which is much shorter. I ended up cutting the bulk of the power cable that came with the 360+ off, and splicing the shorter cable onto the 12 volt wire I had previously fished to the location. I put spade connections on the red wire to attach to the switch and a butt connector to connect the two black wires (these are crimp connectors, red size). Made for a very clean install with minimal length wires. Not sure if the orientation of the Gateway on the ceiling is critical, but I installed the orientation forward as indicated in the instructions. The 360+ on the roof is also installed with the correct front orientation.

            Before I installed the 360+ antenna to the roof, I ended up drilling another wire hole in the bottom of the unit to better place the wires at the existing hole in the roof to get me the 8" clearance from the edge of the RV roof as indicated in the installation manual. This required cutting the tie wraps, rerouting the wires, and re-attaching to the base with new tie wraps. This location will also give me 8" clearance to the new bedroom AC unit I will be installing (another thread in this forum). I did order some butyl sealant. It came as a rope sealant, which I put under the outer ring of the base about 1/4" from the edge of the base. This sealant will squish to conform to the base and make a good seal. I also ran a length around the existing hole in the roof for added protection. I then mounted the base to the roof using the supplied screws. I gave the base several days for the sealant to squish (technical term ). I made one more turn on the mounting screws then sealed the entire base around the outside edge and over the screws with a roof caulk from the RV dealer. I used a tan color which matched that already up there. Question here... There are 4 screws that hold the dome to the base. Are these to be sealed also, or does the rubber seal around the dome take care of this?

            That completed the install. I now need to link up to the Gateway and get it set-up. Waiting for a cooler day to do this.

            Click image for larger version

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Views:	818
Size:	98.5 KB
ID:	67207Click image for larger version

Name:	gateway2.jpg
Views:	986
Size:	51.9 KB
ID:	67206
            This is similar to what I did with the Winegard Connect 2. But with the Connect 2 there is no need for the interior ceiling mounted Gateway. All you need: the antennas, router, WiFi and cellular sim-card etc. electronics, are inside the round self contained Connect 2. The 12 volt on/off switch is the only thing mounted in the ceiling. The Connect 2 is screwed to the roof. I used RV butyl tape and self leveling RV sealant on each of the mounting screws and the hole for the wiring into the trailer. It took less than 2 hours to install it all.

            Comment

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