Source: Tom's Guide | Keywords: wifi, wireless, detector | Themes: Networking
6. Conclusions
Neither of the devices we tested in this review is perfect - neither of them positively and correctly identified Wi-Fi signals 100 percent of the time. They both did, however, identify signals properly most of the time, and they both likely would save users the time and effort of booting up a PC just to see if there is wireless access in an area.
The Kensington WiFi Finder Plus really is a simple device, and could be the right fit for certain uses. For more robust identification, though, the StarTek WIFIDETG Wi-Fi Detector is a reasonable choice. Its greatest drawback is likely power use, and lack of a facility to use some kind of easily replaceable battery. Sure, it’s great to be able to just recharge via USB, but that’s not always an option. It also would have been helpful to have an auto shutoff as well as some kind of power switch lock, since it’s easy for the device to stay on by accident while it’s sitting in your pocket.
Thus far, 802.11n has not yet really made its way into public hotspots, so only having 802.11b/g isn’t a major shortcoming - yet.
Those minor issues aside, over the course of our testing period, we found the Wi-Fi Detectot to be an invaluable aid in locating hotspots without a PC.
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Great review and very helpful. Thanks!
Would have been nice to see how they stack up to the internal catcher you have integrated in notebooks.
That's it? Only 2 devices tested? I am disappointed.
Yeah, I'm with Droseph on this. Surely there are more than 2 of these devices on the market.
And I owned the Kensington detector. It was a useless piece of junk.
Yeah, I'm with Droseph on this. Surely there are more than 2 of these devices on the market.
And I owned the Kensington detector. It was a useless piece of junk.
There's really little point in Carrying one of these devices nowadays anyway. Many Nokia N & E series mobile phones have WiFi built in and come with an app on the main screen that constantly scans for access points, lists their names & allows you to dive in to find out what encryption & signal strength is available. Even older Nokia (WiFi enabled) mobiles that didn't have this as a main screen app allowed you to do the same by loading the "connection manager" app. Far more convenient than carrying an extra device.
Save yourself the money and hassle and buy a Nokia N95
...or you could just open Safari or Mail on your iPhone and it will tell you for certain not only what Wi-Fi is available, but which are locked for security which the other devices won't do. Keychain devices have a bad habbit of picking up WiFi that has no SSID broadcast so even if it claims there's a clear signal, dragging out the notebook usually results in finding out you can't log on anyway.
Most people with a notebook and a need to use WiFi in multiple places typically have PDAs or smartphones anyway, so who do these keychain devices really target anyway? They're just an accessory for retailers to push on people buying a new laptop, or on a kid starting college...
...or you could just open Safari or Mail on your iPhone and it will tell you for certain not only what Wi-Fi is available, but which are locked for security which the other devices won't do. Keychain devices have a bad habbit of picking up WiFi that has no SSID broadcast so even if it claims there's a clear signal, dragging out the notebook usually results in finding out you can't log on anyway.
Most people with a notebook and a need to use WiFi in multiple places typically have PDAs or smartphones anyway, so who do these keychain devices really target anyway? They're just an accessory for retailers to push on people buying a new laptop, or on a kid starting college...
If you have set your router to not broadcast it's SSID, will they show up on either of these units?
If you have set your router to not broadcast it's SSID, will they show up on either of these units?
I personally how this device
http://trendnet.com/langen/product [...] 9UB&cat=84
And it works great
I also own this cheapo D-Link hotspot detector
http://www.dlink.ca/products/?pid=618
One thing, the more expensive TrendNET base itself on the SSID, so the SSID-off access point won't show up. The D-Link will show the presence of an access point even if the SSID broadcast is disabled, but will indeed not show the access point SSID name, only the signal strengh.
try it first