Many older commercial Motorola 900Mhz canopy radios are getting extremely cheap on Ebay. I’m talking like $35-50 for the subscriber module and $60-150 for the access points. My house is located at one of the higher points around the local area. I also have the ability to put an access point radio in a tree roughly 75ft AGL.
My idea is to setup an Omni direction antenna on my Honda Element and use that as an internet source instead of paying $50 a month for a cell modem. Sounds crazy, but for the hardware price, it may be worth looking into…
Any thoughts, ideas? Am I completely mad and insane for thinking this might work?
I once got to talk to this Network engineer for verision who had an idea to use old decomissioned bands like 2G, for IoT devices. Because the infrastructure was already built and nothing uses it anymore.
From my WISP days I think they get 1.5 up/down in long range mode. Which is perfect for web browsing, streaming Pandora, or other crazy low bandwidth shenanigans when needed.
Hmm I might give it a try.
Anyone know of any other 900mhz hardware outside of the canopy equipment? It's the only brand I'm familiar with.
i wish i could do the same thing. may your adventure in self contained networking be successful way to go sticking it to the cell phone providers with there low ass caps and high ass prices. ( side note please run all data encrypted and try to make it so only your devices connect protect your privacy)
I have been looking at Ubiquiti's 900Mhz AirMax systems. The software/tech is much newer than the Motorola canopy equipment. However, the typical CPE's for Ubiquiti do not have an option to attach an antenna. I've been reading as much as I can find, and it would seem that I could use two Rocket M900 and connect them together (almost like a bridge). At my base station I would have a 120 degree sector antenna and an omni directional on my vehicle.
The only two differences are cost and potential throughput available. Cost-wise, Ubiquiti is looking around double the cost of the canopy equipment.
2x M900 on Ebay ~ $290
Ubiquiti Networks AM-9M13 120 degree ~$185
Still unsure about an omni antenna for the vehicle.
I have also found that they make DC to DC POE adapters....Great for that 12v car battery to 24v POE requirement. I may use a small 12v capacitor to smooth out the spikes. Cars are notorious for imprecise voltage and small electronics prefer stability.
I never got to buy one but I liked the look of these: http://www.mini-box.com/OpenUPS2, I don't have any of that type of battery yet.
Also, regarding input voltages, it's worth checking the components because the regulator on the input may have a wider range, for example Mikrotik units work 8-30V, but always come with 24V PSUs so you can put them on long cables.
For passive PoE, IMO, its more fun to make the stuff, I've got some XL6009 SEPIC modules for when I rewire, very cheap from China, there are 2 variants, step up and down (SEPIC) and step up only. 5 to 32V converted to 1.25 to 45V
I looked over Topo maps and compared 2.4ghz vs 900mhz propagation patterns for my location. I must be crazy....What the heck am I thinking?! Over the past week I have gone crazy researching WISP forums. Well, after a lot of reading, waiting, nervous anxiety, could I seriously spend all this money for a potential flop?
The answer is yes, because I am an absolute junkie for doing stupid things! I decided to go with a pair of Ubiquiti M900's and a 120 degree sector antenna for the base. I still haven't quite figured out the vehicle antenna yet so I purchased a short mag mount 3db antenna.
All the hardware should all arrive within the next week or two. Primarily waiting on the large sector antenna from Florida.
So far, I'm glad I'm not married(yet)....otherwise I'm sure these shenanigans would cease rather quickly.
I am really interested in how this project plays out. I used to be with SATCOM/Radio for the Air Force Reserves and from a spectrum standpoint this is a really awesome idea.
Yup, I remember that. In fact I was active duty in Sacramento when 900Mhz cordless phones were all the rage. Depending on what make/model you had, it could pick up someone else's wireless conversation from time to time. :-P
You know it would be easier asking for a entry level ham license and just run 2.4 GHz with the phenomenally better antennas you can use once your licensed. Its an unlicensed band but if you want to use it for very long distance communication AKA above 1 watt EIRP you have to get certs... 2.4 is pretty ideal. Its very long range even at the higher frequency. For example LTE runs on 2.1 ghz for those who dont know (there are other bands but this is the fastest).. you could also ask to enter the 1.9 ghz spectrum but all of these are used for mobile. Im not sure about the 3.6 ghz spectrum Id have to look into that but with proper antennas you could easily have faster long range internet. Still wouldnt be spectacular.. Probably talking ehh 50-60 mbps at the theoretical best?
If you wanted very fast point to point.. then your looking into the millimeter band (24 ghz) dual pad antennas similar to the air fiber 24's on ubiquity's site
I have a General license for HAM use. The only problem with HAM bands is that you can't use them for personal gain. Plus if you are running a station there cannot be any (real) encryption, and there needs to be a beacon every so often; if you are following the rules.
The large problem for me is foliage interference and I am not using a fixed point at one end. Its a Fixed point to roaming point. Another is flatly costs involved with licensed equipment. I really didn't want to spend $500-1000 for each radio+antenna combo. So far I am around $450 with the hardware I've purchased so far. Even if I only get 1 to 5Mbps that is perfectly fine for "free" streaming of internet services.
Fixed to roaming would be very slow... and not effective for internet to be honest. 900 mghz was only used for old CDMA and EVDO.. (basically min 3g or less).
Your honestly better off putting up cheap access point or making your own little mini base stations with high gain antennas and just using the wifi standard. You could create your own large municipal wifi network. For the record as I am sure you know outdoor AP's need lighting arrestors and permits by the town though interestingly enough some power companies are totally down with people asking to use their poles to place there stuff on especially if you give them a cut. lol