Cradlepoint MBR1200 WiFi Range Testing

3Gstore · EVDO Addict Joined: 19 Sep 2006 Posts: 3160

We've recently taken the time to do quite a bit of WiFi range testing with the Cradlepoint MBR1200 and posted our results at:

Cradlepoint MBR12000 WiFi Range Test Results

the testing compared the MBR1200's internal WiFi antennas against the optional external omni antennas,
as well as the Hawking 15dBi high gain directional/corner WiFi antennas,
and the MBR1000's triple-attached antennas.

im_electronic · Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2009 1:40 pm Post subject:

could you try an MBR1000 with these: http://www.freeantennas.com/projects/template/

and compare?
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PortoBatMBR1000

mcubed4130 · EVDO Newbie Joined: 26 Mar 2010 Posts: 2

Would have been nice if you all had posted a bit more detail on your external antenna setups.

By the look of the article you placed the 2 antennas just about on the outside edges of one of those kitchen step stools.

So now I'm trying to find a kitchen step stool to measure the distances.

-M3

Maureen · Posted: Fri Mar 26, 2010 3:45 pm Post subject:

The antennas were placed on that step-stool just during testing - we wouldn't recommend using these antennas outside.

The main point of this article is to get a general idea of the comparative WiFi ranges possible from the MBR1000, MBR1200, MBR1200 + Cradlepoint's WiFi antennas, and MBR1200 + Hawking antennas. It is impossible to predict an exact number of feet/yards/etc that you will see from any router, because so many factors can effect WiFi range (from buildings to electronics).

Our testing did confirm, however, that the MBR1000 and MBR1200 both provide virtually the same WiFi range (even though the MBR1000 has the built-in antennas); when adding the $39.99 Cradlepoint antennas the MBR1200's range improved significantly, and when adding the Hawking antennas the MBR1200's range improved dramatically.

mcubed4130 · EVDO Newbie Joined: 26 Mar 2010 Posts: 2

Maureen appreciate the quick response.

Perhaps I should have clarified... this is my 1st time having external WiFi antennas. And... I don't know what the proper distance should be between them... [[ I just bought a Cradlepoint MBR1200 w/ the external antennas from the 3Gstore a few days ago ]]

So before I start drilling for the mounts, I was attempting to figure out how far apart the antennas should be from each other optimally speaking.

I dug around and found a step stool that looks nearly identical to what you all used in your tests.

So I assume the answer is - about 10" between antennas is what was done in the posted test.

Shall I also assume both antennas should be at the same height relative to each other?

-M3

Maureen · Posted: Mon Mar 29, 2010 10:05 am Post subject:

Per Cradlepoint, there is technically no minimum requirement for separation between the two WiFi antennas - they should work even right on top of each other. However, for BEST performance you would want to separate them at least a bit - the 10" you mentioned is what we did in our tests and that worked fine for us.

As for the relative height, that shouldn't matter.

jfg118 · EVDO Newbie Joined: 23 Apr 2010 Posts: 1

Since these need to be used in pairs with the MBR1200, do they need to be aligned in the same direction, or can I point them in 2 different directions?