Product Reviews

The best things in life are wire-free, as anyone who has installed an AirPort-based home network will confirm.

However, if at its best Wi-Fi networking can be liberating, a frequent source of disappointment lies in the gulf between a wireless network's stated range and its real-world reach. Interference from nearby concrete walls or other structures, mobile phones or baby monitors hinders the optimal range of Apple's AirPort Extreme Base Station - already a more-than-optimistic 150 feet at 11Mbits/sec (802.11b) or 50 feet at the faster 54Mbits/sec (802.11g) speeds.

Dr Bott's ExtendAir Omni and ExtendAIR Direct are two external aerials designed to work exclusively with AirPort Extreme Base Stations in order to improve their reach. Both connect directly to either the high-end Base Station's small antennae connector or to the connector on the Power Mac G5. Other than this simple connection, neither device requires any configuration aside from the second or two it takes to restart the Base Station.

Each aerial is designed to suit a specific wireless environment. The ExtendAIR Direct, which looks like a small, flat satellite dish, focuses its increased wireless connectivity across an adjustable 70-degree horizontal arc and boosts the Base Station's built-in 15dbi power by a further 6dbi, making it work best when a wireless boost across a long, narrow path is required.

The Omni, reviewed here, features a less powerful 3.5dbi aerial, but this more limited signal strength is available through 360 degrees, so it is a better option for a home network where access may be required from a number of different locations in a restricted

ADVERTISEMENT

area.

Although the ratings boosts supplied by the aerials may appear minor, the practical improvement is instantly noticeable. It's claimed the Omni can extend the range of a typical AirPort configuration to around 75m and Direct can provide an effective range of 150m, but these figures are gained under optimum conditions, with the aerials wall-mounted. Even so, MacStumbler (www.macstumbler.com), a utility that measures wireless network activity, reported a near doubling of signal strength throughout our test network when the Omni aerial was attached. In real-world use, an ExtendAIR-enhanced home network managed to comfortably penetrate two thick walls that had tripped up the standard AirPort network, enabling us to connect to the Base Station from every room in a two-storey house; previously, only half were reliably accessible. Just as impressively, the AirPort connection remained resolutely stable over a three-week test period, which is the sort of reliability that might tempt those still stubbornly clinging to Ethernet connections to finally make the switch.

Cheap and cheerful

That said, there are two drawbacks to these aerials. First, neither is cheap, especially if you're setting up a wireless network and planning to buy them alongside the more expensive Base Station. Against that, compared to the conventional method of extending a wireless network - buying additional 'bridging' Base Stations - the £75 price tag for the Omni seems a positively frugal investment.

A second problem is, ironically, triggered by the effectiveness of the ExtendAIR aerials. Owners of traditional home wireless networks haven't really had to worry unduly about network security. However, given the increased range provided by these aerials, particularly with the less controlled boost provided by the Omni, you'll have to secure your wireless connection against unwelcome outside access.

The Omni is a worthwhile addition to most home wireless networks. If you've found your AirPort connection is frequently unworkably slow or is dropping out altogether, this neat, unobtrusive aerial will prove a reliable, if not inexpensive, way of rectifying matters. It's also significantly cheaper than most solutions.