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2.4GHz Wi-Fi Detector Ring Project

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the check-out-my-bling dept.

mohrt writes "The Wi-Fi detection ring was developed to give mobile computer users the ability to detect 802.11b/g signals, while providing a unique, fashionable and ultra-portable product package. The prototype circuit collects and rectifies an RF signal in the 2.4GHz range, whereafter an Atmel Tiny microprocessor, detecting the presence of a DC voltage, thusly engages a flashing LED. For those of you who have no excuse to wear a ring, well here it is."

33 of 248 comments (clear)

  1. The One Ring! by ackthpt · · Score: 5, Funny
    That is just SO damn cool! It is clearly the One Ring and easily shows the bearer as ubergeek.

    The last time a ring was this cool was with a decoder and a whistle and came in a cereal box.

    i see you, too, have the schwartz

    --

    A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    1. Re:The One Ring! by cayenne8 · · Score: 5, Funny
      Why don't they invent one even more useful to:
      • Detect when women are horny
      • Detect when a woman has had enough to drink and will sleep with almost anyone
      • Detect when a woman has just broken up with a boy friend, and wants to 'show him' by sleeping with another man..
      • Warn you when YOU are drunk and hitting on the boss's wife at a party
      • One that shows she's gonna sleep with you, and not just leeching drinks off you at the bar
      Just a few suggestions...
      --
      Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
    2. Re:The One Ring! by Tackhead · · Score: 4, Funny
      > Why don't they invent one even more useful to: * Detect when women are horny * Detect when a woman has had enough to drink and will sleep with almost anyone * Detect when a woman has just broken up with a boy friend, and wants to 'show him' by sleeping with another man.. * Warn you when YOU are drunk and hitting on the boss's wife at a party

      Because of convergence.

      You see, if you buy the WiFi detector ring that shows you when you have ready access to pr0n, you have one device that eliminates the need for all four of these separate devices.

      > * One that shows she's gonna sleep with you, and not just leeching drinks off you at the bar

      Speaking of convergence, I built one of those last week. All it took was about 3 inches of wire, a 3V battery, a current-limiting resistor, and an LED.

    3. Re:The One Ring! by xargs · · Score: 5, Funny

      And using the One Ring Lord Sauron ventured into the hotel lobby in search of a hot spot. There shall be no WiFi outside his reach.

    4. Re:The One Ring! by StalinsNotDead · · Score: 3, Funny

      Speaking of convergence, I built one of those last week. All it took was about 3 inches of wire, a 3V battery, a current-limiting resistor, and an LED.

      Please excuse my ignorance. But would that just be a lit LED, thus indicating that the subject is always just leeching drinks with no intention of sleeping with the bearer of said device?

      --
      Thanks to the internet, we can now all die alone together! -SomeWoman
    5. Re:The One Ring! by The+Tyro · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Too funny... though I think you're aiming too low. Desperation is rarely attractive to a woman, and trolling for drunks and barflies is likely to be unfulfilling.

      I'd suggest holding out for some quality women instead of going for the low-hanging fruit... the fruit can be sweet, but the aftertaste can be permanent. Despite the commercials you see on TV, herpes still isn't curable, and taking valtrex every day for suppressive therapy is a drag, and expensive (not to mention what happens when your next hot date goes snooping in your medicine cabinet)

      --
      Even if a man chops off your hand with a sword, you still have two nice, sharp bones to stick in his eyes.
    6. Re:The One Ring! by proverbialcow · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Why don't they invent one even more useful to: ... Detect when a woman has had enough to drink and will sleep with almost anyone

      Liability, probably. Sex with someone who is not able to give consent is rape. Legally (though IANAL), a woman who's had enough to drink so she'll sleep with anyone is not sober enough to give consent.

      --
      The only surefire protection against Microsoft infections is abstinence. - The Onion
    7. Re:The One Ring! by ilikecaffeine · · Score: 5, Funny
      Please excuse my ignorance. But would that just be a lit LED, thus indicating that the subject is always just leeching drinks with no intention of sleeping with the bearer of said device?

      Yeah, but eventually the battery dies. And *that's* when you make your move.

    8. Re:The One Ring! by suckmysav · · Score: 4, Funny

      "So it will keep me from cooking my cohones along with my microwave popcorn [...]
      Disclosure: I do wear a pocket protector.'

      You wear a pocket protector AND worry about your fertility?

      Love your optimism dude!

      --
      "You can't fight in here, this is the war room!"
    9. Re:The One Ring! by Steffan · · Score: 4, Funny
      "Why don't they invent one even more useful to:
      * Detect when women are horny
      * Detect when a woman has had enough to drink and will sleep with almost anyone
      * Detect when a woman has just broken up with a boy friend, and wants to 'show him' by sleeping with another man..
      * Warn you when YOU are drunk and hitting on the boss's wife at a party
      * One that shows she's gonna sleep with you, and not just leeching drinks off you at the bar"
      Answers:
      • 1. If you have to ask, she isn't
      • 2. If you need a ring for this, it won't be with you, anyway.
      • 3. See #2
      • 4. If you don't know if you're hitting on a woman or not, the answers to 1-3,5 shouldn't surprise you.
      • 5. She's not going to sleep with you, and yes, she is just leeching drinks off of you.
  2. Lack of range by fembots · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The maximum detection range appeared to be roughly 40 feet (line of sight), which is not exactly great, but this can likely be blamed on the antenna...

    He doesn't mind

    However, who would want to detect a Wi-Fi if he's not going to use it? If you're already a mobile user, it might be easier to just use your device's auto-detection software.

    I agree that there are times when I wish I could have detected the signal before I take out my laptop, but I usually solve that problem by starting up my PDA first.

    --
    Rock that crushes, Paper & Scissors that don't matter.
  3. The ring's oath by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    In brightest day, in darkest night
    No Wi-Fi shall escape my sight
    Let those who worship broadband's might
    Beware my power, my ring's LED light!

  4. But that's not all! by b1t+r0t · · Score: 3, Funny

    It also can tell you if your microwave oven is working! (and how much leakage you're absorbing by standing in front of it)

    --

    --
    "Open source is good." - Steve Jobs
    "Open source is evil." - Microsoft
  5. Wedding ring? by Jason_D_Berg · · Score: 5, Funny

    The perfect nerd wedding ring!!! Now all I gotta do is find a girl that'll be ok with that.

    1. Re:Wedding ring? by kernelfoobar · · Score: 3, Funny

      Nah! Sheep don't have fingers...
      Monkeys do though...

      --
      Here we go again!
  6. My fiancee thinks she wants a diamond... by mfender9 · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...but I'm sure she'll prefer one of these!

  7. Cordless Phones by ThurstonMoore · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Wouldn't cordless phones set this thing off constantly?

    1. Re:Cordless Phones by SlayerofGods · · Score: 5, Funny
      How many people use cordless phones in public?
      You may not have heard about this, but radio waves go through walls now.
      --

      Technology, the cause of and solution to all of life's problems.
  8. Re:Ironically... by merlin_jim · · Score: 4, Funny


    if it can light up an LED with the juice it's pouring into the air, what else might it be doing that we're not aware of yet?

    Did you even bother to look at the prototype? It's mostly battery. I mean come on, you click the link, and there is ONE, count them ONE image on that page.

    Let's not make fear inciting "radiation is bad" posts without AT LEAST reading the story first? Just a suggestion...

    --
    I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
  9. Don't forget microwaves... by PMJ2kx · · Score: 4, Informative

    From the article: "Due to the simplicity of the circuit design, the prototype unit does not discriminate between other sources of 2.4GHz RF, eg. "leaky" microwave ovens, cordless phones, etc. Future production units would feature surface-mounted components to decrease the detector profile and microcontrollers that discriminate between other RF sources, as well as indicate whether the Wi-Fi nodes are open/closed/encrypted, etc."

    Yes, but they're going to fix that.

  10. Re:Perfect gift.. by Neon+Spiral+Injector · · Score: 5, Funny

    Propose to her. Get down on one knee and ask, "will you...tell me when we near a 2.4GHz signal?"

  11. Married by MonkeyCookie · · Score: 5, Funny

    Perfect for the geek who wants to be married to technology rather than another person.

    Nothing says commitment to your true love technology like one of these rings.

    1. Re:Married by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      'Wifi is forever'

  12. And... by jfroot · · Score: 4, Funny

    it looks great too!

  13. It's a Reverse Wedding Ring by Rude+Turnip · · Score: 5, Funny

    Rather than signalling to women around you that you've already got someone willing to spend the rest of her life with you, this ring indicates (and guarantees) that pretty much that no woman will ever want to be with you.

    --
    Bill Clinton: Pimp we can believe in. - The Shirt!!!
  14. should make a watch instead by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The designers should consider making this a watch instead of a ring. That way they can also design a UI for the watch's display, and you would have more room for bulk on your wrist than on your finger.

  15. Finally by Elwood+P+Dowd · · Score: 4, Funny

    Finally, a resolution to all those wedding ring & diamond related discussions on slashdot.

    --

    There are no trails. There are no trees out here.
  16. Three rings by rlp · · Score: 3, Informative

    That'll look real nice right next to my Java ring. :-)

    --
    [Insert pithy quote here]
  17. Silliness. Using a processor is massive overkill! by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Why use a microprocessor when you can have the DC voltage from the rectified 2.4Ghz signal turn on a transistor which activates a flashing LED (or an analog flasher circuit). Surely that kind of arrangement would use much less power than running a processor (even a "tiny" one) all of the time.

    -b.

  18. A whistle? by Mr.+Underbridge · · Score: 3, Funny
    The last time a ring was this cool was with a decoder and a whistle and came in a cereal box.

    Let me guess what frequency it blew, Cap'n...

  19. Wrong solution to wrong problem by Locke2005 · · Score: 3, Funny

    I'm married. I need a reason NOT to wear a ring!

    --
    I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
  20. Precious by Petronius · · Score: 3, Funny

    ubergeek is when you go around calling it "my precious".

    --
    there's no place like ~
  21. Ob. LOTR by xRelisH · · Score: 3, Funny

    One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them (Wi-Fi networks)
    One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them. ( Download porn! )