In addition to any external antenna you'll require one of theseĪRGH! Antenna gains are measured in dB_ where _ is SOMETHING, usually dBi. This one is a 15dB gain and 1/2 the price.

There are also external high-gain WiFi antenna out there. Move your computer near a window, and put a cookie sheet on the side opposite of the coffee shop. RF is tricky and with issues you can't control like multipath, cars driving by, etc, there are no guarantees. Again, adding 8 more directional elements on the end like some people do won't buy you much, stick with proven designs. Keep in mind, without proper knowledge and equipment, you won't be able to tune the antenna much. You may want to buy some copper tape and try to make a Yagi-Uda (someone else suggested this). And don't go crazy, adding 5 extra cans isn't going to give you much more gain and will probably end with an antenna with lower efficiency unless you do it perfectly. This will kill your return signal unless you go with dual feeds though.įor something you will construct yourself, the Pringles/beer can antenna will probably be your best bet. And if this is a problem, put a low noise figure/gain amplifier right off the antenna to drive the cable. You may lose a dB or two with any distance you are likely using. And at 2.4GHz, I wouldn't worry much about cable losses over 10' unless you are using some really crappy cable.

Since the frequency is fixed (I'm assuming 2.4GHz? maybe I overlooked it), the major factor your can control is the cable type. The loss in cable depends on several factors, namely the quality and materials used in the cable and the frequency.

Wifi pringles can