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Old 03-16-2010, 03:32 PM   #1
cdaniels
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Verizon Air Card Lost Signal-Antenna???

I live way out in the country and internet service has never been available except dial up. I tried the Verizon Air Card and it has has min. signal 1-2 bars but has worked great for the last 6 months on the 1-2 bars. The problem is since last Fri. it has been horrible getting a signal. I have unloaded the Verizon software and reloaded it. Called Verizon a hundred times. No reason why the signal has been decreased. Tonight working better. This afternoon took 15 min to get on line. Frustrating. Would a antenna help my issue?
 
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Old 03-16-2010, 03:37 PM   #2
sola123
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We also have the Verizon aircard and live way out in the country....we experience good signals and bad...all the time on the same day....but better than dail-up service...most of the time....great when you travel near big cities etc....always get great signals at 2-3 am and very early morning....nights are not good
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Old 03-16-2010, 04:16 PM   #3
swanny
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I use the same setup. Tonight after being on the computer on and off today it wouldn't connect. Tried three times and then got a message for an update. did the update and all is well.

Ps: I also use and antenna that plugs into my modem.
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Old 03-16-2010, 04:32 PM   #4
exav8tr
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You might consider calling the 3Gstore.com guys and discussing the possibility of a 3 watt amp and a Wilson, or other antenna. I have gotten signals with my setup when others cannot. I fulltime in my 3400 and have been around the US and usually get a signal everywhere I go. Of course, I don't boondock or park on lonely roads as others do, but I am happy with my setup. Hope this helps!!!

Phil
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Old 03-16-2010, 05:10 PM   #5
jordjd
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Have had Verizon air card for 2 or 3 years, while in Surprise AZ had trouble getting on line, called Verizon and they sent me an antenna (free) that hooked to my card and works great,they have been great to work with. JD
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Old 03-16-2010, 06:53 PM   #6
Imp
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We use a Wilson antenna with good results with our Verizon aircard.
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Old 03-17-2010, 03:12 AM   #7
adelmoll
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We also use the Wilson Antenna with our Verizon air card and Cradlepoint router that we bought from the 3G Store. We spend a lot of time at our place in the middle of a National Forest and the antenna really helped our signal.

Helen
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Old 03-17-2010, 04:05 AM   #8
simonsrf
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We also use the Wilson antenna with a 3-watt booster connected to a cradlepoint router.

We have found that if the signal is poor....go to the closest spot that the signal is decent (usually near a town), then do an update to the card. We have found using this process that the signal is usually improved when we get back to our rig.

We also found that updating the card during poor reception actually hurts the signal.
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Old 03-17-2010, 12:45 PM   #9
cdaniels
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Thank you so much. I can see it is not uncommon for this to happen. I am going to look into boosting the signal with an antenna. There is a solution to the issue I am sure after hearing your replys.
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Old 03-18-2010, 04:12 AM   #10
Alex Sian
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Quote:
quote:Originally posted by cdaniels

I live way out in the country ... This afternoon took 15 min to get on line. Frustrating. Would a antenna help my issue?
antennas and amps should improve the signal you have to the tower, but the problem may be the actual tower, and not just your signal to it.

aside from adding an external antenna, you can easily improve signal by driving closer to the tower. i don't mean this as a permanent solution, i'm suggesting it as a way to test if signal is your problem or not.

if you drive close enough to tower to get 5 bar signal and you STILL have frustrating time connecting, its entirely possible that tower is having issues, and you could expect to still be frustrated if you bought antenna and/or amp.

if your testing suggests the tower is the problem, i'd make sure you have the latest PRL and if you do, then you should call verizon persistently until you get someone who says they'll do something about it.

you may want to also rule out the possibility that your aircard is failing. you can do that by driving to a more populated area with more/different towers and ensuring that with good signal in that new/other area, your aircard works fine. if it doesn't perhaps the problem is your aircard?

all i'm suggesting is, folks in rural areas suffering with issues should do some fairly easy testing before they spend money on antennas and amps. once you know that better signal actually gives you better results, then it makes sense to buy the antenna and/or amp.

hope this helps.
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Old 03-18-2010, 01:46 PM   #11
richfaa
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I wonder if something is up with Verizon... We have never, never dropped a signal but in the last two weeks we are
dropping signal at least once a day. Nothing has changed. We are in the same place????
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