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EE 5G home router with external antenna installation

beneaththeocean

Casual Member
Hi everyone,

Hoping some people may have some advice on the following. On the buy page for the 5GEE Home Router with Antenna (https://shop.ee.co.uk/dongles/pay-m...g=CT_Ser_5GRouter_Bottom_Shopnow5GHBB_Q4_2020) there is a paragraph that states:
The internal antenna that comes with your router will help give you the best 5G signal in your home.
But you can boost your signal even more with a compatible external antenna: it picks up outdoor 5G signal and feeds it to your 5GEE Home Router. So if there’s 5G signal outside, you’ll get it inside – even the thickest exterior walls aren’t a match for it.
Call 0800 079 0131 to learn more.
I'm really curious how well such an external antenna may work and was wondering whether anyone may have any experience with this service?

I am tempted to give them a call but am asking around first in case there are aspects I haven't really thought about myself. I'm in Bath, an area that EE classifies as having "good" (whatever that may mean) outdoor signal currently.
 
Go here and check your coverage, what does it say for 5G and 4G?

An antenna may make a difference for 5G (the router does not use it for 4G, relies on the internal ones), depends on your location, house etc.
 
Go here and check your coverage, what does it say for 5G and 4G?

An antenna may make a difference for 5G (the router does not use it for 4G, relies on the internal ones), depends on your location, house etc.
Hi Lucian,

Thanks, sorry could have mentioned this already, it says good coverage outdoors for 5G (2 out of 5 bars) and excellent coverage indoors/outdoors for 4G (5 out of 5 bars). I'm actually running a 4G router at the moment (Huawei B618) and I'm not too bad off with that one to be honest, but handling large files (>1 GB) whilst working from home is a bit of an issue, hence I'm looking to the 5G as a potential upgrade (no alternative high speed options currently unfortunately).

As a layperson it's rather difficult to get an idea of how robust those external antennas will be. From the page it looks like they'll install quite the box but I'm not sure whatever that means..
 
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Yes, 5G should help, definitely.
I was getting ~150Mbps on 4G, upgrading to 5G (with an outdoor router, though) more than doubled the speed.

It's possible you will need the external antenna. I believe what they sell is this model, which isn't too bad and kind of small (15x15cm).
https://panorama-antennas.com/site/2G-3G-4G-5G-LTE-Antennas?product_id=304&limit=100

First try to put the router in a room or near a window facing the tower (if you know where it is), if you are still not happy with the speeds, feel free to fit the external antenna and plonk it outside the window.
BTW, the router's web UI should have a "positioning" page telling you if it's in a good one or not, basedon RSRP, RSRQ and SINR values (that are also available if you can interpret them, see attached).

Do note you need to go in the settings of the router and change the antenna type to "external".

HTH

PS: it looks like that antenna is not actually for outdoors, it says it's window mount (but probably what they mean is mount it internally, not out in the rain). It's possible what they provide is a different model that is weather proof, so do read the manual.
 

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Thank you for your reply! Looking at that page it's like a whole new world opens..! :)

Thanks for the edit about those values, will have a closer look.

PS getting 150 Mbps on 4G sounds pretty good btw! I get about 60-70 if I'm lucky..
 
Thank you for your reply! Looking at that page it's like a whole new world opens..! :)

Thanks for the edit about those values, will have a closer look.

PS getting 150 Mbps on 4G sounds pretty good btw! I get about 60-70 if I'm lucky..
Here's the 'positioning' doo dah Lucian was referring to.

This is from the Huawe AI app, but the router web UI just looks almost identical.

It's a handy little tool, and I might add that moving the router even half an inch to an inch can make a huge difference in signal reception, so have fun trying it in every nook and cranny you can find.

Mine works best in a corner, signal is strongest there even compared to my windows.
 

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Here he is in his corner, you can just about make him out.:giggle:
 

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Here's the 'positioning' doo dah Lucian was referring to.

This is from the Huawe AI app, but the router web UI just looks almost identical.

It's a handy little tool, and I might add that moving the router even half an inch to an inch can make a huge difference in signal reception, so have fun trying it in every nook and cranny you can find.

Mine works best in a corner, signal is strongest there even compared to my windows.
Interesting, thanks for sharing! Funny how it works best for you in the corner, would have been the last spot I would imagine it would work!
 
Interesting, thanks for sharing! Funny how it works best for you in the corner, would have been the last spot I would imagine it would work!
Yes I know, it's the best place in the whole house beneaththeocean.

Tried every window, up in the loft, downstairs, but the signal in that corner is the best, it must be reflecting the signals best there.

If i even move it a couple of inches either way from where it is in the photo, the signal drops.

It's a magic corner. :giggle:
 
@TheWeeBear what speeds are you getting in that magic corner? :)

@beneaththeocean what router do you have currently? 60 Mbps is not bad, if you could catch a bit of 5G it should improve significantly.

BTW, what people usually do is get an EE unlimited SIM (£37 normally, they also have a business promotion for £25 these days) and then buy a router off the net. Might be more cost effective than signing up to their mobile broadband which is ridiculously expensive.
 
@TheWeeBear what speeds are you getting in that magic corner? :)

@beneaththeocean what router do you have currently? 60 Mbps is not bad, if you could catch a bit of 5G it should improve significantly.

BTW, what people usually do is get an EE unlimited SIM (£37 normally, they also have a business promotion for £25 these days) and then buy a router off the net. Might be more cost effective than signing up to their mobile broadband which is ridiculously expensive.
Hi Lucian, the magic corner gives me 90-130.
 
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Yes I know, it's the best place in the whole house beneaththeocean.

Tried every window, up in the loft, downstairs, but the signal in that corner is the best, it must be reflecting the signals best there.

If i even move it a couple of inches either way from where it is in the photo, the signal drops.

It's a magic corner. :giggle:

That's pretty precise! Just out of interest, why would that be? Is that due to (a combination of) coverage and local physical structures or something (sorry I'm a layperson).

@beneaththeocean what router do you have currently? 60 Mbps is not bad, if you could catch a bit of 5G it should improve significantly.

BTW, what people usually do is get an EE unlimited SIM (£37 normally, they also have a business promotion for £25 these days) and then buy a router off the net. Might be more cost effective than signing up to their mobile broadband which is ridiculously expensive.

I'm running the Huawei B618 actually indeed with what you suggest, an EE unlimited SIM only (4G one at the moment though).

I am very open to getting a 5G router on my own - though need to do a proper search of a good source with strong after sales service (any suggestions? :P) - and then just getting a 5G sim only, but I'm at the moment worried about the coverage indicator. I could play around with setting up an external antenna myself but need to research a bit more before I commit money to it. The website you linked to earlier with the various models of external antennas is something I will have a closer look at!

Can I ask, it looks like you're with EE as well and in a good location, what does the coverage checker from EE's website say regarding 5G for your location? Are you using the external router just to boost it even more or is your indoor signal poor?
 
@beneaththeocean

Must just be the reflectiveness of the corner where the signal is coming in I guess beneaththeocean.

I've even tried it outside in the garden, but no good there either.

So it looks like the magic corner is the place to be. :)
 
@TheWeeBear is that corner near the chimney stack by any chance? Many ppl report good performance near it.

@beneaththeocean EE's site says "You'll get good coverage outdoors on 5G-enabled devices" and shows 3 bars. I'm in N London.
See attached my radio signal values (for both 4G and 5G, as seen in HuaCtrl app) which are excellent according to the Huawei position locator.
 

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@beneaththeocean before investing in a 5G router which are pretty expensive and not so easy to find, you could ask a friend who has a 5G smartphone to come and test in your home with a EE SIM, see what you could expect performance-wise.
 
@Lucian No it's just a normal corner, no chimneys here. :giggle:

When I say normal, I of course mean a 'magic' normal corner.;)
 

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