Product Spotlight: Alfa AWUS036ACH

A question we often get asked is "what product provide the best combo of range and speed for newer 802.11ac routers?" The answer is Alfa's AWUS036ACH. With power close to the max allowable by the FCC for dual band radios, it gets great range.

And with two 5 dBi dual band antennas, you get two separate transmit and receive streams that can provide fast connection speeds on both 2.4 and 5 GHz networks.

From time to time you may encounter a campground Wi-Fi network that does not use traditional encryption where you enter a password/passkey at the time of connection. Instead, the campground may be using a captive portal login system, where the network is technically open (no password protection), but once you connect and try to go to a web page, you get redirected to a screen where you have to accept a Terms of Service, enter a password, or do both.

Usually with the Alfa WiFi Camp Pro 2/Camp Pro 2 Mini and R36A router, you simply will not see the "hotspot password" field during setup and will proceed to complete setup as if it were an open network. When finished, if you try to go to a web page you will be redirected to the campground's captive portal page to sign in.

But because captive portals are not standardized technology, at some parks this may not happen, and you may be able to see a Connected status on the Camp Pro status page, but you won't be able to get redirected to the captive portal sign in page and thus no web pages will load.

A new workaround to this is to use the R36A router's MAC ID cloning feature.

The first step in this process is to connect one of your devices, such as your laptop or tablet, directly to the campground network and sign in via the captive portal page. Once signed in, you will need to obtain the MAC ID, aka MAC address of your device. MAC means Media Access Control, and is not related to Apple Mac computers FYI.

Determining your device's MAC ID may involve Google. Here is how to find it on some more common devices:

MAC IDs consist of letters and numbers with a colon between every two characters, such as 12:1A:12:A1:A0:12 (this is just an example, do not try to use this one), and in order for this feature to work, you must enter the MAC ID correctly during the R36A setup. Therefore we recommend making a screenshot or writing it down and double-checking it. Even one wrong character means this solution will fail.

Once you have the MAC ID of your device, login to your R36A setup area and go through Easy Setup as normal. After you have selected the network and are on the final page of setup, enter the MAC ID where it says "Clone Mac address".

Then complete setup. The campground should recognize the R36A and grant it immediate Internet access without you needing to go to the captive portal page. This can also be a useful feature if your park network restricts the total number of devices you can connect to their network- with MAC cloning, the R36A does not count against your device limit.

If you encounter any problems, repeat the setup process and remove the MAC ID you entered from the Clone MAC address field and complete setup. This will cause the R36A to join the campground network again with its own MAC address as normal. If problems continue, engage a factory reset per the instructions.

Summary: MAC address cloning on R36A will help you get around captive portal network login issues. First you must connect a device like a laptop or cell phone to the campground WiFi network and signin at the captive portal page. Then locate that device's MAC address, and enter it during R36A setup in the Clone Mac Address field. The process will not work if you mistype the MAC address, or if you are using the MAC address of a device that has not successfully joined the campground network already.

The Alfa WiFi Camp Pro 2 Mini works just like the full size Alfa WiFi Camp Pro 2, but with smaller pieces designed for indoor use or smaller spaces.

It includes the same R36A USB Wi-Fi router that is in the Alfa WiFi Camp Pro 2, but instead of the larger outdoor USB tube and antenna, it includes an indoor USB receiver (model AWUS036NH) and a smaller 5 dBi antenna.

Use inside RVs near a window if you don't want to mount an outdoor antenna on the outside of the RV. Use on small covered decks at apartment complexes where the HOA rules may prohibit the installation of larger outdoor WiFi antennas. Or take it with you in a laptop travel bag and use in a hotel or on the road.

While you can also buy the R36A and AWUS036NH SKUs separate, the Alfa WiFi Camp Pro 2 Mini includes two additional accessories not in the individual SKUs. The first is the suction cup and clip mount which lets you fasten it to a window. The second is a 10ft USB cable. This longer USB cable allows for placement of the AWUS036NH further away from the R36A router and higher up off the ground where it can get better range.

Having the AWUS036NH and R36A too close together causes interference and limits performance. With this longer cable, you can change the location of the AWUS036NH easier and get better performance.

As of July 2019, every product imported into the USA from China will face up to 25% in tariffs, including electronics and Wi-Fi items. This is due to President Trump's announcement of new tariffs on 200 billion dollars more in Chinese imports. This fourth round of tariffs means every product imported from China will cost more.

Some companies including Walmart and Macys have announced that prices will be going up as a result, because many of their items are made in China,

Prices on our Alfa Network Wi-Fi products will not be increasing, because Alfa products are made in Taiwan and not subject to these tariffs. Taiwan companies tend to use better quality control mechanisms and pay better wages to workers too. Keep these facts in mind when deciding between Alfa products and other WiFi products that are made in China.

In the coming years we will also be partnering with Alfa to manufacture some items right here in the USA. Our distribution operation is already based here in Florida and more jobs are on the way.