extending wifi range?
 

Is there anyway to extend the wifi range on the n800? I don't even know if such a thing exists. I don't mean to extend the range my wireless router sends out, I want to extend the range my n800 can pick up. Let me know if it's possible, and if so, a kind push in the right direction would be much appreciated. thanks

Re: extending wifi range?
 

Make a parabolic reflector out of aluminum foil. Aim it at the router and place the N800 at the parabola's focus.

Re: extending wifi range?
 

So much for a "kind push".

I thought I had read somewhere here that you can set the power output of the WiFi chip in the connections settings, but I can't remember and don't have my NIT with me.

Re: extending wifi range?
 

I looked around in the connection settings in the control panel but didn't find anything that would allow me to turn up the power output

Re: extending wifi range?
 

The setting is in the "Other" tab of the Advanced Settings in Connection Setup. The setting is called "WLAN transmission power", but it only allows you to reduce the power from 100mW to 10mW to save battery power if you have a good signal.

Regards,
Roger

Re: extending wifi range?
 

By default the power TRANSMISSION is set to 100mW but can be dropped down to 10mW to conserve power. I personally drop mine down to 10mW since I am really not too far from my router and it really saves on the power usage.

You can find it here:
Control Panel -> Connectivity -> Connections -> (edit any existing connection) -> Next -> Next -> Advanced -> Other -> WLAN Tranmission Power

But, you were asking about reception rather than transmission. Both are still important since you have to have enough transmission to send handshaking/data back and forth.

I personally have done the parabolic idea with success. The only problem is trying to hold a metal bowl while working with your NIT. Plus, it looks goofy and suspicious. :)


Ooops: Eiffel beat me by three minutes. Sorry for the double answer then.

Re: extending wifi range?
 

Or you could try this >> http://j-walk.com/other/wifispray/

It might help, IDK for sure. :)

Re: extending wifi range?
 

so changing from 100mw to 10mw, is the opposite of what I'm asking correct? I'm looking to extend the range so i can pull signals in. With greater signals

Re: extending wifi range?
 

It's not going to happen internally with the hardware and there is no external antenna port. The only way is via some sort of external "helper". All of which seem pretty dubious to me.

Re: extending wifi range?
 

Ok, I found a couple things searching and want to run it by you guys before wasting any money.
First, on this page http://tabletschool.blogspot.com/200...nnect-usb.html
It explains how to connect a usb flash drive to the n800. I also found this device called wifire
http://www.hfield.com/the-wi-fire/
I am wondering if something like this would work. I am curious if once i got everything setup, how i would go about getting the n800 to use it.

Re: extending wifi range?
 

If you are thinking about going this direction then might as well put a high powerfed external USB wifi card on the N8x0. search this forum for "packet injection" chats and you will find some people using the external wifi for hacking into secured wifi connections. They already have some type of driver working but please research this before taking any action.

Here are a few examples of using just a parablic dish to amplify the wifi strength without spending much money. Yes it actually works with the NIT too, just you have to hold it in the center of the dish.

http://www.usbwifi.orconhosting.net.nz/

Re: extending wifi range?
 

the n800 doesn't have very much power available on its usb port, barely enough to drive a lower-power flash drive (it won't even drive my microSD card in a Sandisk USB card reader), so I doubt you'd get enough to run a usb wifi adaptor.

my guess is that if you're really dedicated, adding an external socket is viable. Someone added an external wifi antenna to their Zaurus 6000. Mind you, it was a pretty fugly hack!

Re: extending wifi range?
 

ace gave the only realistic answer.

If you got a mesh of routers with hi gain extra sensitive antennas they could use the signal that IS reaching them better, so a parabola at both ends.

the aim is to focus the beam towards the target without wasting it in the other directions.
I've seen people use parabolic woks to do long range bluetooth snarfing and wifi connections.
If you don't have a wok or sat dish handy you could rig something up with a couple of pringles cans and enjoy a nutritious meal in the process :D

Re: extending wifi range?
 

Define dubious.

You can use an external router (with its own power) which functions as AP (using WDS). With a good antenna you can reach quite some distance. But it might not be portable enough for your liking.

You the get something like Bakscii.

Alternate might be 3G phone + tethering, N810EWME, or the NIT to be released in 2009.