Nuts About Nets AirHORN: Signal generator for predictive testing

Company: Nuts About Nets
Product: AirHORN
Verdict: Signal generator for predictive testing

AirHORN isn't a site survey tool in the sense of the other products reviewed here; rather, it's signal generator packaged as a USB dongle with, in the model we tested, an external antenna.

It can be programmed to output a signal with essentially constant amplitude in a particular 802.11b/g Wi-Fi channel (or scan over a set of channels) for the purpose of providing a known signal source useful in site survey, antenna alignment testing, interference analysis and many other applications.

Thus a notebook computer can be turned into a generator of a stable and accurate wireless signal and used in place of a real access point for placement purposes, or for generating interference to evaluate that condition during site surveys. While it would be nice to see a version of this product with variable power output, so as to simulate a given distance from an access point, this is a clever little product that will be right at home in the toolbox of installers everywhere.

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