So, you want to get a Wifi Connection, but my friend, are you confused about it? Having no clue what the WiFi antenna is all about and should you or should you not go for it? Freit, not my friend. We have got your back. To things more accessible and convenient for you, we have provided a complete guide.
What is WiFi Antenna, after all?
Well, WiFi Antennas are important for WLAN or the wireless local area networks. This kind of antenna facilitates the wireless signal and boosts the network range—for example, your downloading capacity on the internet increases.
Once you get a WiFi antenna, not only will your WFH become easy, but also you can stream movies at home, browse the web for as long as you want, play video games, host live streams, and live the digital world. The WiFi Antenna is also crucial in strengthening the signal strength and range.
But my friend, if you are looking to replace or improve your signal strength or create long-range wireless antenna networks, then the most important thing for you would be to choose the right kind of WiFi antenna.
So how exactly does the WiFi antennas work?
The WiFi antennas use radio waves for transmitting the signals. To make things easier for you, the antenna you would be using will communicate with electromagnetic waves or EM waves.
The WiFi antennas you will install or probably have will thus convert the EM waves into electrical signals and vice versa.
The laptops, smartphones, tablets, routers, hotspots, and everything that works with the aid of the internet works in this mechanism. The devices transmit and receive antennas that pick up the EM waves laced with all sorts of information and convert them into electrical signals. The mechanism works vice-versa, and thus my friend, you get all kinds of information at the tips of your fingers.
I got you! Now you have the question about the types of WiFi antennas, right! Be patient and read along.
What are the different kinds of WiFi Antennas?
Well, there are mainly two kinds of WiFi antennas- omni directional and directional.
Omni directional Antennas
This kind of wireless antenna radiates signals at a 360-degree angle to give out the most comprehensive signal coverage. This kind of antenna is an un-shaped incandescent lightbulb. Thus, much like the light-bulb, when you light one, it illuminates the entire room. Similarly, the WiFi antenna provides the most comprehensive signal coverage possible. However, the omnidirectional antennas have a shorter range than a directional antenna, but they have a wider coverage area. They are thus, often found both indoors and outdoors.
Here are the different kinds of omnidirectional WiFi antennas that are available in the market –
- Ceiling Dome Antennas- In this, the antennas are installed on the ceiling of the office house, or home, or a warehouse. Then via the aid of coaxial cables, the WiFi router gets access to the network.
- Outdoor Omni Antennas– This is used to improve the WiFi signal outdoors. They efficiently enhance the coverage and connectivity outside. The router thus has an outdoor access point.
- Dipole Antennas or Rubber duck antennas- This kind of antennas are found mainly in the routers, WiFi USB adapters, and access points.
Directional Antennas
As the name suggests, the directional antennas focus all their might towards a particular direction only. It works much similar to a flashlight.
When you turn on the flashlight, the light travels only in a specific direction, right? Similarly, the antenna’s power is more focused; they can effectively send and receive wireless signals from a further distance.
However, the coverage area is small. Unlike Omnidirectional antennas, they are primarily used for extended point-to-point network connectivity. It is used in multipoint WiFi networks where multiple directional antennas communicate with an omnidirectional antenna.
To make things easier, the list of the different kinds of directional antennas have been provided below –
- Yagi Antennas- These are by far the most popular directional antennas that are used. This kind of antenna is mainly shaped like arrows. The typical Yagi antenna has a radiation pattern of 45-degree.
- Panel Antennas- They, much like others, are used to send and receive signals from a far distance. They can be further connected to the routers to transmit data. The USB WiFi adapter can also be connected with this to receive data from further distances. They have a radiation pattern of 35-degrees.
- Mini Panel Antennas- The antennas are low-profile ones specially designed to transmit the radio waves to and from a specific area only. The antennas are primarily used to improve the WiFi signal indoors. The radiation pattern of this antenna is 60-degree.
- Parabolic Grid Antenna- This kind of WiFi antenna is highly directional and has an ultra-high gain. This kind of antenna is capable of withstanding extreme weather conditions. The antennas have a very narrow beamwidth, typically between 3-20 degrees. Hence, antennas can send and receive signals from miles away, which is perfect for point-to-point WiFi networks.
Now, to answer the most important questions-
Which Antenna should you go for?
See, the WiFi antennas may serve the same purpose, but the requirement for everyone is not the same. Different users will have different requirements. For example –
The user wants to receive better long-range WiFi.
- The requirement is for a point to multipoint networks to wirelessly connect multiple buildings to a central location.
- Some want long-range point to point WiFi networks
- The user wants to improve the WiFi signal in the office building
- Improving the WiFi signal at home.
Thus, depending upon your requirement and usage capacity, my friends, you can now easily choose the right kind of WiFi antenna connection.