Some USB
wifi dongles are much more powerful than the built-in wifi radios in laptops. And can be put on the end of a USB extension to be it at a better height.
I have the Ubiquity Bullet, installed on my first spreader, and never used it once during a four-month
cruise this summer. For the rare times when there was decent wifi around, the dongle was fine. 95% of the time we used mobile
phone based
internet -- a mifi device and a new SIM card in every country.