antena for wi-fi reception

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mikeyny

Feeling the Heat
Nov 16, 2007
294
upstate ny
I was wondering if it is possible to build an antena to capture a wireless signal that is broadcast for public use from a distance. Surely someone must have figured this out by now.
 
They are so friggin cheap to buy. Why waste your time? Seriously, search for a wineguard of the proper size and it should be under 100$.
 
I still worry that the SWR on a cantenna would be too high. You risk damaging the transmitter on your wifi radio.

I'd prefer to use a commercially available antenna if I could afford it.

-SF
 
USB antennas are available these days for under $30 that will pick up wifi signals great distances away, check with online retailers like newegg or buy.com, etc.
 
Keep in mind, it's not just an antenna that connects to the USB port. It's a complete USB network card.

-SF
 
Thanks for the replies folks. I think I will just bite the bullet and buy one off the shelf. Especially if a homebrew one will do any damage to my system.
 
I can't guarantee that a home brew antenna would damage your equipment, but without the proper equipment to test the antenna to know for sure, I wouldn't trust it.

-SF
 
Mike, I live in the Richfield Springs/Cooperstown area and my closest stations are Utica (45 miles) and Albany/Schenectady (75 miles). I had to purchase the best? Winegard off the air (OTA) antenna (about 15' long) and mount it with a rotator on a 25' tall abandoned power pole about 200' from my house. Installed a preamplifier on the antenna, used the best digital RG6 cable, ran it underground through plastic conduit and connected it to a distribution amplifier in my basement.

I added the digital/analog converter box about 3 months ago. The whole project was a lot of work and cost about $800 but the perfect picture I am now receiving easily makes it all worthwhile. Good luck. John_M
 
I'm a little confused . . . are we talking about wireless internet . . . or high definition TV?
 
radiolabs.com Great site, great support.
 
firefighter, you raise a valid point. I was and still am assuming mikey wants to receive a strong OTA television signal. Heck, now I am confused too. Shows what I know!
 
There are two threads... This one is about public WiFi (or at least that's how I interpreted the question). The other one is about digital TV.

-SF
 
Where in upstate ny are there wireless signals that are broadcast for public use from a distance?
On a perhaps related note, I can't get cable where I live but it turns out I'm near a Sprint tower and have great wireless internet access now.
 
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