Jamatu
Casual Member
I recently purchased a Bluespot Mini 5G antenna and a MU5001 mobile router and thought I'd share my experiences.
I'm using Three as my ISP and have been using the mobile hotspot feature from my mobile to run my home network for a while. Using a hotspot from a phone comes with a number of drawbacks, and so I was in the market for a 5G router. The MCT801A was my main choice, but then a cracking deal came up on a Vodafone branded MU5001 mobile router that I just couldn't ignore, so I bought it. After it arrived and was setup I undertook a few speed tests to determine throughput. The speeds were similar to my mobile phone at 10-30mbps down and 1-3mbps up.
One of the reasons I wanted to get a 5G router was the ability to use an external antenna. I live at the edge of a city centre with several masts within range. I get a good signal outdoors but indoors the signal is quite weak. The MU5001 has two TS9 external antenna ports so ticked that box. I had been researching antennas and had my eye on the Bluespot Mini 5G antenna. My thought process behind choosing this being
Next project will be opening up the MU5001 to gain access to the internal antennas!
I'm using Three as my ISP and have been using the mobile hotspot feature from my mobile to run my home network for a while. Using a hotspot from a phone comes with a number of drawbacks, and so I was in the market for a 5G router. The MCT801A was my main choice, but then a cracking deal came up on a Vodafone branded MU5001 mobile router that I just couldn't ignore, so I bought it. After it arrived and was setup I undertook a few speed tests to determine throughput. The speeds were similar to my mobile phone at 10-30mbps down and 1-3mbps up.
One of the reasons I wanted to get a 5G router was the ability to use an external antenna. I live at the edge of a city centre with several masts within range. I get a good signal outdoors but indoors the signal is quite weak. The MU5001 has two TS9 external antenna ports so ticked that box. I had been researching antennas and had my eye on the Bluespot Mini 5G antenna. My thought process behind choosing this being
- It's a 5G only antenna (the frequency response is advertised as 3.3-3.8Ghz). The biggest chunk of frequency allocation (and therefore throughput) is in band N78. This is especially true for Three who have the largest amount of spectrum in this band and lowest combined in other bands. Band N78 utilisation should also be lower as it's still relatively new in addition to reduced penetration into buildings due to the higher frequency.
- It's an outdoor antenna which should help improve RSRP. Signal attenuation inside buildings is shocking, more so for the higher frequency of band N78. With my balcony doors shut (which are double glazed glass doors) I usually get no signal for 5G. Sometimes it will linger around -120 RSRP for a bit and then fall back to 4G. With the balcony doors open open I get around -94 RSRP.
- It's a directional antenna (advertised as 65 degree horizontal beam) so I can point it in the general direction of the mast I want to connect to. This should both improve RSRP and increase SINR by attenuating unwanted signals
Next project will be opening up the MU5001 to gain access to the internal antennas!
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