Wireless Signal Boosters

Is there any equip we can buy to boost a signal from a nearby town to my laptop on the beach in Yucatan MX?

No phone lines for dial up in our area. There are phone lines and high speed in the next town west of Progreso which is Chelem. However, Telmex does not provide any service to the beach area. We are further west of Chelem near Chuburna. Could a signal from nearby Progreso be boosted through the use of some equip? Is it possible to bring the signal that far by getting a local internet cafe in Progreso to allow us to connect to their Wi-fi for a fee and what type of equipment could facilitate that? The only other thing we have heard is the possibility of some internet provider placing repeater towers along the beach to bring the signal down there. We have a Blackberry but coverage is sketchy through T-Mobile. We have heard that perhaps a cellular company could facilitate something that plugs in to the laptop by subscribing to some kind of service?

Public Comments

1. Yes friend, you can get a few things to help you out. Firstly, you can get a wireless PCI card for a dekstop or laptop through your phone company (sprint is GURANTEED, I don't know about any others) that will allow you to have internet access anywhere you have phone service. Secondly, if you have a friend in the town who uses the same internet as you, you can have them put a 15-20 DBI antenae ontop of their building.
2. Probably the best solution would be to purchase a repeater or some type of signal booster, sometimes called "range expanders". The farther the signal travels, the weaker it becomes, until finally it loses its integrity. This is known as attenuation. Yes, you can boot signals, even replace wifi antennas to larger exterior ones, bi-directional too, but it depends on the terrain and other man-made obstacles that might block the signal from say the cafe to where you are located. There are wireless broadband services out available for your computer but you would need to contact each one and see what they offer for your area in terms of coverage and speed. It might end-up slower then a dial-up modem. Why don't you contact a professional wireless network person out there, or one that will visit you, and ask them? Most likely they have experience in this area of remote connections and boosting signal quality. Maybe you could create a community co-op with the cafe and others and invest in expanding the service out there by establishing some infrastructure, poles, antennas, access points and then charge subscriptions or create a membership to those who invest? Just a thought.