Switchbox Troubleshooting

[peevee]

5 hours ago, Marauder said:

You forgot the remaining line... "And sells it to idiots like Marauder".

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It is what it is. For a time it was the cheapest option out there. 

I would do something different if you have wifi access in the hangar. A $5 raspberry pi, the power switch tail I posted before and you're in business. 

[Yetti]

I think to be UL rated, There would be another terminal block and no soldering and heat shrink.  The wires are a bit small to be running a hair dryer/waffle maker type load.

[peevee]

Hell, I'll build a Web based setup and sell it to you for parts cost if you're interested and it works how I want. Be a fun project. Probably cost fiddy bucks. 

 

 Might be awkward to set up for the first time as you'd need a keyboard and display device unless you ssh in but very manageable. Or I can set up the ssid and pass before I send it and hope it works. 

 

At least it'll be safe 

[Steve W]

19 hours ago, peevee said:

I would do something different if you have wifi access in the hangar. A $5 raspberry pi, the power switch tail I posted before and you're in business. 

As much as I enjoy building random stuff. I'd just use one of the already created WiFi switches. (Belkin WeMo, D-Link Smart Plug, Ubiquiti mFi, probably others)

[tigers2007]

I had to awake this thread due to the season. PTK - how is that switch working? Where did you find those lighted plug ends - were you able to buy them like that or did you sacrifice a cord? 

I found this kit to be the cheapest option: Vellerman MK160.  Looks like something you would find in a terrorist supermarket. But for $12, you can't go wrong. It works by a light sensor detecting the backlight activation of the phone to trigger a switch. You could even say that it is compatible with 3g, 4g, 5g, 7g etc. (considering that AT&T is phasing out 2g in a couple weeks). Vellerman also sells a DTMF switch for about $50 that I could hook up to a Verizon Home Connect and associate with PagePlus wireless for $80/year 2000min plan (this is what I use for my landline at home). Now Verizon says this CDMA unit is not compatible with DTMF, home alarm, or faxes but it seems to work fine. That might be a viable option for those outside of AT&T's horrible GSM coverage.

[PaulM]

I suggest you go through this thread:

A number of us use the device. 

Instructions for configuration are later in the thread.   I have been using it for the past year with only minor issues. 

[tigers2007]

Thank you for the link. Looks like the biggest issue will be if any of those work in January after AT&T kills their 2G network. I know that TMobile can roam with AT&T but that is worthless if someone lives outside of the Tmobile network (me). I'm curious to what base module the expensive guy is using that works with 4G. He wants $350 for it.


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[Marauder]

Thank you for the link. Looks like the biggest issue will be if any of those work in January after AT&T kills their 2G network. I know that TMobile can roam with AT&T but that is worthless if someone lives outside of the Tmobile network (me). I'm curious to what base module the expensive guy is using that works with 4G. He wants $350 for it.


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If you are talking about the a SwitchBox. A self modified China box with no electrical safety listing (no UL, CSA or even a CE).


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[Hank]

I bought one from phillipny in the Classified section here. Worked great! Let me stay at home in those cold WV Saturday nights and just call in to start the preheat before Sunday morning breakfast runs. Or I could call from work and she'd be ready to go when I got there in the evening--very handy when taking IFR instruction!

Never had a single problem with it. One summer I let the SIM card expire, a quick online call to Phillip and for $20 a new one, loaded for the next three months, came promptly.

Nothing to put together, nothing to figure out, no worries about functionality, good service in the middle of nowhere. Quick, easy, painless. Highly recommended!

[tigers2007]

I have no access to WiFi at the hangar. It seems that there is no assurance that any of the cheap CHI-COM units are compatible with AT&T's 3g/4g GSM. What I do know is that Verizon (CDMA) has a tower either at the airport or very close (100% signal in the hangar). AT&T coverage up here is horrible. No T-Mobile service for 200 miles or so. This brings me to installing the Velleman MK160 "Al Qaida IED" kit paired with PeeVee's reference to the PowerSwitch Tail or even the cheapter Iot Relay. The Velleman MK160 is compatible with any cellphone as it is activated by the LCD screen backlight (which activates on most phones when a call is received and shuts off after a few seconds). So if I call the phone twice within one minute, it will turn the Reiff on. If I call it once within a  minute, it will shut it off. Now, it would be nice to find a Verizon phone that has liberal options for controlling when the LCD backlighting activates. Obviously, random calls from wrong numbers and spam text messages could be annoying (thus shutting the device off). But hey, for $12 + $19 = $31 for remote control? Can't beat that. I have about four old Verizon phones in boxes. I think PagePlus wireless has a pay-per-call plan that is $0.25/min, zero monthly fee. Technically, it would cost me zero as the phone never actually picks up a call. I would just have to add a few bucks ever 90-days or so (or whatever their minimum fill is).

The passenger terminal about half a mile or so away has free WiFi. If I got fancy, I could put a directional aerial on the roof and point it at the terminal and setup a DD-WRT router. Use heavy magnets to hold everything to the hanger walls (non-invasive and not destroying airport). But then I would have to figure out how to keep the thing connected to the free WiFi if it drops out or is logged out, etc. Getting quite technical. OR get a $30/mo WiFi hotspot or a pay-by-the-Mb hotspot.