MetaGeek Wi-Spy 2.4 GHz Spectrum Analyzer

Reviews: Networking

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Richard Poelling
Kurtis
MetaGeek
Jun. 19, 2006

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Testing

To test the Wi-Spy, I basically just plugged the unit in. It gives you a very simple, yet highly informative display. I personally live in a pretty clear area when it comes to the 2.4 GHz bandwidth range. Most of the signals that I was able to pick up were generated by me and I was able to move them at will. Although I had not experienced problems in the past, I had not realized that two access points were on very similar channels and were overlapping. Moving one of the AP's to a different channel showed improved spectrum characteristics almost immediately. I was able to drive up a major "average" peak by overlapping 3 separate AP's while transferring large files. Even though I did not have an initial problem, being able to "see" the radio effects was a fun and eye opening experience.

Even though most wireless is either 802.11b or g, there are some devices which use the 802.11a range. This analyzer will not detect the 802.11a frequency since it uses the 5GHz frequency, not 2.4 GHz. That said, the 5 GHz spectrum is far less crowded than the 2.4 GHz spectrum anyways and is far less common.

Three AP's on the same channel transferring information versus the same three AP's on separate channels. Notice the rising red "Average" signal"

One of the most important features of being able to "see" the 2.4 GHz spectrum, it allows you to truly see interfering radio signals. To prove this, I just fired up the microwave oven. Many people have experienced the effects of turning on a microwave oven while trying to use a Wi-Fi signal. Using the Wi-Spy, I can tell why. Upon initiation of the microwave, spikes will fly all across the spectrum. Most of the effects will depend on how old and what make and model your microwave is. Mine is a relatively new one, but it still put out considerable interference, mainly on channel 11 which happens to be the default channel for many wireless AP's and wireless devices. My microwave faired far better than an older model I tested which pretty much blew out most of the whole spectrum.

Exact same data, just different views. These are the beginnings of the microwave interference. Notice on the left that a large red average peak is starting to form.

Quality Check

It is hard to go into a great amount of detail on the quality of the Wi-Spy. Obviously it is two little pieces of plastic encasing a circuit board. I imagine that if I ran it over with a car it would break, but then again, it is not designed to withstand that kind of abuse. I will say that the unit has been banged around and dropped quite a few times and still fairs pretty well.

What I will get into is the software side of the Wi-Spy. Overall, the package is easy to use and very informative. Opening multiple traces creates tabs along the top which allows you to go back and forth between them. This is where the user functionality goes south. I would have liked to see a slider bar which would allow you to go back and forth in a recording, similar to what you might see when viewing a movie. They have a fast forward button, but no incremental rewind. The only rewind functionality takes you back to the beginning. I will say most users might not need this functionality, but I still think it would be helpful, especially if you are trying to pinpoint an interference peak that keeps popping up.

Software installation is not usually one of the items that merits discussion, unless of course something happens. The Wi-Spy software isn't bad, but the user needs to be aware that Microsoft .NET v2.0 needs to be installed on the machine. Even when running off the disc, a feature I really like, the machine still needs this installed. If you do not have the .NET 2.0 Framework installed, you will have to go to Microsoft's website and download it. This file is 22 MB in size. I would have liked to see it located on the CD such that a few clicks would get you running. Many software packages already require the .NET framework anyway, so it is possible you might have already installed it on your machine. Nothing aggravates me more than getting ready to play with something only to find out I have to install something else first.

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Page 1: Introduction & First Looks
Page 2: Installation & Software Overview
Page 3: Testing & Quality Check
Page 4: Conclusion

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Add Comment

4 User Comments

1 - Posted by Kurtis on June 20, 2006 - 12:04 am

DIGG it:
http://digg.com/technology/If_you_suffer_from_chro...

2 - Posted by PennyManDeux on June 20, 2006 - 12:58 am

Diggity dugg!

3 - Posted by Kurtis on June 21, 2006 - 3:27 pm

Cool, we got Slashdotted yesterday, thanks to PennyManDeux!
http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/06/...

4 - Posted by Rich on June 21, 2006 - 3:38 pm

Yes, those were some interesting comments on their site......

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