Measured Marina WiFi Speeds

[WindDriftn]

New to the forum, always been a fan of you all!

I’ve been coastal cruiser near nyc for 10 years and now it is time to look yonder

Does anyone have measured WiFi upload and / or download speeds at any marinas in Panama and / Or Colombia ?

I am trying to understand if video calls would be possible / reliable ...

Thanks! Happy to be here!

[EarlWer]

Any measured number you get would not be very useful. Signal strength and bandwidth are variable. There are many factors that could change the connection quality. Distance from antenna, other users, electrical interference, etc...

[LoudMusic]

Wifi at marinas is extremely unreliable.

[WindDriftn]

Sorry, an actual data point would certainly be a piece of information that could be helpful as part of a larger analysis .

Are you saying you don’t have any examples ? If not that’s ok, but please don’t suggest that data aren’t useful - (although I agree I wouldn’t draw conclusions from one example)

[WindDriftn]

Can you provide a specific example at a specific marina in the countries requested ? I wasn’t requesting a summary analysis ... just data

[cofc]

Can’t speak to WiFi speeds, but the cellular network in Panama was pretty great when we were there last year. Reasonable rates and plenty of speed for FaceTime.

[Montanan]

FYI, half the determination is knowing what the minimum and recommended internet speeds are for specific video conferencing applications. Wifi connectivity at any marina is highly variable for many reasons, there is no way one can post specific data for a marina. Direct cellular network is likely to be much more reliable and available.

Good luck.

[Mickeyrouse]

Just this morning my brother told me about an app called “ speedtracker” that measures real time WiFi transfer rate. I haven’t got it yet, but I am told the rate can vary wildly in static locations. This sounds like a helpful tool. Anyone have any experience with this?

[Apollo366]

I use SpeedTest all the time, appears to be accurate and reliable.

SpeedTracker is hard to use & have never had a successful test by it.

Currently using COX 1Mbps service in San Diego, CA;
PING ms
16
DOWNLOAD Mbps
2.14
UPLOAD Mbps
11.01

[j.g.evans]

I like www.speedtest.net by Ookla. Free. For years I watched movies on 300-700Kbps downlink and 50-75 kbps uplink DSL. There were occasional buffering interruptions. For many high resolution pictures I would put them on a CD and mail them.
Get a good external and high booster such as the Bullet HP.

[Apollo366]

My experience on the Eastern Seaboard of USA is very spotty and very dependent on distance from local antenna.

[chasfgr]

Marina wi-fi is usually so poor that trying to use for internet is a fool's game.


I always use a cellular data SIM in a 12v Huawei router. This allows cellular phone use as well as adequate wi-fi speeds. I have yet to find a marina with inadequate cellular cover, but at anchor you can be less lucky.


You are, of course, buggared if there is a poor cellular connection, which is not uncommon in the UK but very uncommon on the European continent.

[Apollo366]

I always use a cellular data SIM in a 12v Huawei router. This allows cellular phone use as well as adequate wi-fi speeds. I have yet to find a marina with inadequate cellular cover, but at anchor you can be less lucky.


You are, of course, buggared if there is a poor cellular connection.[/QUOTE]

Chas, I'd love to know the details of this set-up, I'm not familiar with a "cellular data SIM in a 12v Huawei router. "

Could you point me to how to do this please?

Many thanks,

Apollo Wayne

[WindDriftn]

Originally Posted by Apollo366

I always use a cellular data SIM in a 12v Huawei router. This allows cellular phone use as well as adequate wi-fi speeds. I have yet to find a marina with inadequate cellular cover, but at anchor you can be less lucky.


You are, of course, buggared if there is a poor cellular connection.

Chas, I'd love to know the details of this set-up, I'm not familiar with a "cellular data SIM in a 12v Huawei router. "

Could you point me to how to do this please?

Many thanks,

Apollo Wayne[/QUOTE]

What a great idea! Thanks!

[EarlWer]

Originally Posted by WindDriftn

Chas, I'd love to know the details of this set-up, I'm not familiar with a "cellular data SIM in a 12v Huawei router. "

Sounds like this:
https://consumer.huawei.com/en/routers/4g-router-2-pro/

Does it work like this?
Get a local micro-SIM and plug it into router.
Connect laptop and phone to router over wifi.

What is the advantage over using your smartphone and creating a mobile hotspot? If you put the SIM in your phone, you can use the phone if you go ashore...