Peplink routers are excellent for mobility. You get an industrial form factor, native DC power, a pile of WAN and failover options, and SpeedFusion bonding for when your connection simply cannot drop. You also pay for every bit of that. The MAX BR1 Pro 5G runs $999, and it is our favorite router for mission critical mobile deployments. We ran a bunch of them with the Rahal Letterman Lanigan IndyCar team earlier this year.
Most people don't need that level of robustness. If what you want is reliable internet for your family when you take the RV out, there's a much cheaper way to get nearly all of the same WAN options. That's the GL.iNet Spitz AX, it's $379, and it's what I run in my own RV.
You never know what you're pulling into
The problem with mobile connectivity is that you're mobile. Every time you pull into a new campground you inherit a new set of internet problems. Maybe you're nowhere near a 5G tower. Maybe there's too much tree cover for Starlink. Maybe the campground Wi-Fi is technically there but unusable. You need options, and in my RV that means cellular, Starlink, and campground Wi-Fi.
1. Cellular, on a Crosstalk Mobile unlimited SIM
I start with a Crosstalk Mobile 5G unlimited SIM. The Spitz AX has dual SIM slots plus eSIM capability. It only has a single 5G modem, so you can't run both SIM slots at the same time, but you can keep two SIMs on different carriers in there and switch to whichever one has the stronger signal where you're parked.
2. Starlink Mini, hardwired to the Ethernet WAN port
I run 50 foot power and Ethernet cables out through ports I installed in my RV storage compartment, so I can walk the Starlink Mini out to the clearest patch of sky at whatever site I'm in.
I don't use the Wi-Fi from the Starlink Mini itself. If the dish ends up 50 feet from the camper, every device inside has to punch through the RV walls to reach it. Instead the Mini goes straight into the Spitz AX Ethernet WAN port, and the Spitz AX puts out the Wi-Fi from inside the coach where my devices actually are.
3. Campground Wi-Fi, as a WAN connection
Campground Wi-Fi usually leaves a lot to be desired. I've only ever found a handful of parks that do it right. But when it's good, it's free bandwidth, and the Spitz AX repeater mode lets you connect to it and test what you can actually get before you commit to it.
Side note, if you own a campground or another property that needs a Wi-Fi design that doesn't frustrate everybody, that's exactly what we do at Crosstalk. Come find us at crosstalkmobile.com and we'd love to help you sort it out.
Why I'm not using UniFi in my camper
I'm a UniFi guy, so I get this question every time I show the RV. It comes down to cost and repeater mode.
On cost, the UniFi 5G Max costs more than the Spitz AX on its own, and you still need a router to pair with it. The Dream Router 5G Max is $499, which is well past the Spitz AX, and it's an awful form factor for an RV. It sits upright with no real wall mounting options, and it can't take an external 5G antenna. You spend more and get less.
The bigger issue is Wi-Fi as WAN, which the Spitz AX calls repeater mode. No UniFi device can connect to an outside Wi-Fi network and use it as an internet source. For a mobile deployment where campground Wi-Fi is one of your three possible connections, that's a hard stop.
Power matters when you're mobile
Mine is running on the included 12 volt, 2.5 amp AC adapter, but the Spitz AX also takes direct DC input anywhere from 9 to 36 volts through a standard barrel jack. So you can run it straight off 12 or 24 volt DC in a camper or a van without an inverter in the middle. You don't get that with UniFi either.
So the Spitz AX comes in cheaper, gives you more WAN options, runs off DC, and takes an external 5G antenna.
How I have mine wired up
I used the included wall mount bracket to put the Spitz AX on the wall. Off the top there's one Ethernet connection, which is the 50 foot cable that stows in the pass-through storage compartment and runs out to the Starlink Mini when I'm using it.
Then there are the antennas. The Spitz AX has six antenna connectors, four cellular and two Wi-Fi, and it ships with paddle antennas for all six.
You can just use the included cellular antennas, but then your cell signal has to fight through the walls of the RV to get to open air, and you lose real signal doing it. The better answer is a rooftop antenna. All those black cables on mine run up to a low profile cellular and Wi-Fi antenna on the roof.
The two Wi-Fi leads are a judgment call. Do you run them up to the roof antenna, or leave the included paddles on the router? I leave mine on the router, because I'm mostly serving the phones and laptops living inside the RV. Running them to the roof would be better for Wi-Fi as WAN and worse for my own devices. Either way one Wi-Fi signal or the other passes through the wall, so pick the one you use more.
Dialing it in at a new site
This part takes about a minute. Cellular is built in, the Starlink Mini plugs into the WAN port, and you connect to whatever campground Wi-Fi is available. Then in Multi-WAN you drag the three connections into whatever priority order makes sense for where you're parked, and the router uses them in either failover or load balancing mode.
If you want the full step-by-step, I recorded a complete setup walkthrough for the Spitz AX covering the first boot wizard, the APN, antenna leads, AdGuard, and VPN. It's also linked on the product page and in the video description.
What the Peplink still does that this doesn't
When Starlink drops and the Spitz AX fails over to cellular, you're offline for a second while it switches. Surfing the web or watching Netflix, you won't notice. Pushing a live broadcast or sitting in a Zoom call that can't blink, you absolutely will.
That's what SpeedFusion solves. Peplink bonds your connections together, which combines the bandwidth while both are up and hands you seamless, uninterrupted failover when one goes away. SpeedFusion plus the industrial build is what the extra money buys, and if you need it, the Peplink is hands down the right call. Our technicians can help you work out which side of that line you're on.
For me, pulling into a new campground, the Spitz AX covers it. I've got three ways to get online and I can prioritize whichever one is giving me the most reliable connection that week.
Getting one
The Spitz AX is now in the Crosstalk Mobile store, and we put together a discounted bundle with the router, the low profile roof mount antenna, and truly unlimited 5G, all in for less than the cost of the Peplink router by itself.
You don't need a thousand dollar router to get connected this camping season. Take a look at the Spitz AX bundle and the rest of our mobility solutions, or call or text us at 888-381-7750 and we'll help you figure out the right setup for how you travel.
