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I'm not a WiFi expert and I don't claim to be one, but I will try testing the cAntenna to the best of my ability. I will be comparing both the 10" Deluxe cAntenna and the Mini-Tenna cAntenna. I will also be comparing the results, without any external antenna. I tested the signal on three channels and recorded the signal strength and the noise (dBm) on each channel (1,6,11). After gathering the results, I calculated the overall average of the signal strength and the noise. The building that I tested this at, is surrounded by concrete walls and also a hill. I was unable to go very far away from the Access Point since there wasn't much line of sight (which is required with Wifi). Here is the results I came up with:
| Device |
Signal
|
Noise
|
SNR
|
| No Antenna |
-53
|
-119
|
49
|
| Mini-Tenna 5" |
-43
|
-117
|
74
|
| cAntenna III 10" |
-39
|
-105
|
79
|
| Device |
Signal
|
Noise
|
SNR
|
| No Antenna |
-51
|
-107
|
54
|
| Mini-Tenna 5" |
-43
|
-119
|
75
|
| cAntenna III 10" |
-44
|
-118
|
71
|
| Device |
Signal
|
Noise
|
SNR
|
| No Antenna |
-49
|
-94
|
41
|
| Mini-Tenna 5" |
-39
|
-114
|
70
|
| cAntenna III 10" |
-41
|
-116
|
66
|
| Device |
Signal
|
Noise
|
SNR
|
| No Antenna |
-51
|
-106
|
48
|
| Mini-Tenna 5" |
-41
|
-116
|
73
|
| cAntenna III 10" |
-41
|
-113
|
72
|
Conclusion
| |
I did more tests (real world tests) over the last month that I have had the cAntenna's and I have learned that I like the Mini-Tenna better than the Deluxe. While war driving in my local city I found that the Mini-Tenna is much better at finding Wireless networks abroad, than the Deluxe model. The reason behind this is because the Mini-Tenna has a wider "beam" where it can take in more radio waves than the Deluxe model. I believe the Mini-Tenna would be more suited for war drivers and the Deluxe would be more suited for Point-to-Point connections and security assessments. I also took the cAntenna's with me on a trip up to Virginia and I set the Mini-Tenna on the dash of my car to see how many networks it could find while driving down the interstate from Alabama to Virginia. It found 957 wireless networks (one-way) and only 36% had encryption turned on.
I did a search on some price comparison engines to find out how the cAntenna's compare (price wise) to commercially available 2.4Ghz Antenna's. I quickly found that you could easily pay well over a $100 bucks for an Antenna with the same dBi gain as these two cAntenna's. At $30 for the 5" Mini-Tenna & $35 for the 10" Deluxe, they're much more cost efficient way to expand your wireless network, use for war driving or for security assessments. Sure, you could probably make a cAntenna yourself. I even found some guides on google that shows you how to do just that, but if you're not that great with a soldering iron then the cAntenna's from EtherDesigns is your best bet.
Pros
- Inexpensive
- High dBi Gain
- Durable & Weatherized
Cons
- None
