Using an antenna in terrible reception areas to make your phone or broadband work is a good idea. But will using an antenna in an area where you already have reception make a significant difference to your internet speeds if you’ve already got fair reception?
To test this theory, I took the Sierra Wireless Hotspot that Telstra sells as the Ultimate 4G Wireless up to the Kickstart Media conference on the Sunshine coast recently.
It’s an area that, according to Telstra’s coverage maps, should be blanketed in rich, fast, comforting 4G coverage, but as we’ve seen many times before, there can be a massive gulf between coverage maps and coverage reality.
Also, I was going to be in conference rooms packed with IT journalists, and there is no finer force in the galaxy for bringing a mobile data network to its trembling knees. As such, I also packed a MIMO antenna (disclaimer: Sierra Wireless provided it to me for the purposes of review) into my bag. It’s not the smallest of creatures, but I was curious to see whether it could make a difference to the overall Internet connection.
I ran three sets of tests in total using the Speedtest.net running on a connected Macbook Air. Each test was run three times in quick succession and averaged with as fast a switchover to the antenna as feasible to ensure that figures were as close as was practical.
The first test was deliberately brutal, conducted inside a conference room during bad weather with heavy set doors, because 1800Mhz signals don’t transfer through buildings all that well. The hotspot never managed anything but a 3G signal, even with the antenna attached.
| Device | Ping (ms) | Download (Mbps) | Upload (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| WiFi Hotspot (No Antenna) | 80.3 | 9.62 | 0.63 |
| WiFi Hotspot (With Antenna) | 96 | 9.12 | 0.29 |
The next test was performed in a restaurant with mostly glass windows and plenty of exposure. Here the hotspot could see Telstra’s 4G network.
| Device | Ping (ms) | Download (Mbps) | Upload (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| WiFi Hotspot (No Antenna) | 76 | 11.5 | 14.65 |
| WiFi Hotspot (With Antenna) | 73.6 | 12.43 | 17.87 |
My final test was run at Maroochydore airport while waiting for a delayed plane, although it once again struggled and couldn’t find the 4G network, although other devices nearby could.
| Device | Ping (ms) | Download (Mbps) | Upload (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| WiFi Hotspot (No Antenna) | 54.3 | 10.55 | 1.06 |
| WiFi Hotspot (With Antenna) | 59.66 | 4.22 | 0.69 |
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again; mobile broadband can be great — I certainly couldn’t do my job without it — but it’s highly variable stuff. Still, the figures do strongly indicate that if you’ve already got signal the differences made by an antenna are likely to be minimal. I have seen this exact antenna work well in areas of poor reception, but in areas where you can expect decent signal, all you’re doing is lugging around an extra gadget with no real benefit.
Lifehacker Australia contributor Alex Kidman never leaves home without at least two forms of wireless broadband. The Road Worrier column, looking at technology and organising tips for travellers, appears each week on Lifehacker.
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