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125-Mile WiFi Connection

Posted by timothy on from the beats-out-chinese-cookware dept.

Jason Striegel writes "Team iFibre Redwire smashed the WiFi distance record, successfully linking a distance of over 125 miles at this year's DefCon WiFi Shootout. They maintained a full 11Mbit unamplified connection for 3 hours using Z-com 300mw PCMCIA cards, surplus satellite dishes, Linux, and a great deal of hacker ingenuity. The best part: yesterday afternoon they said that they expect this rig would work at distances of over 300 miles. Here's additional team info, a couple pictures of one of their rigs, and some more technical details." I still wish I could find truly out-of-the-box Linux-friendly USB adapters, so I could get some tiny fraction of this distance, cheap.

10 of 222 comments (clear)

  1. The distance is... by hayalci · · Score: 4, Funny

    201.16800 km for us metric guys :)

    --
    hayalci
  2. The real question is... by Laivincolmo · · Score: 5, Funny

    .. were they allowed to use those illegal cantennas? :)

  3. Working at 300 miles? by MichaelSmith · · Score: 4, Insightful

    How are they going to wrap their wifi signal around the Earth, assuming that they don't have their own satellite?

    I don't think ionospheric propogation is going to work at wifi frequencies. And you won't get 11 Mb/s at 27Mhz.

    --
    http://michaelsmith.id.au
    1. Re:Working at 300 miles? by strider44 · · Score: 4, Informative

      Going from the top of one mountain to the top of another.

  4. And by a.different.perspect · · Score: 5, Funny

    2.12639285 x 10^-11 light years for us space-faring people. But we already have Wi-Fi anyway. Surrender your planet!

  5. 300 Miles? Not gonna happen by Bad_Feeling · · Score: 5, Informative

    There is just no way they can maintain 300 miles/480km without using relay stations. Multi megawatt FM stations cannot get that range simply because the curvature of the earth causes the signal to disappear into space before reaching its destination. 125/200km is about the maximum range that is possible on frequencies much higher than HF, even with captain picard's private satellite link to france they are not going to get 480km out of it.

    --
    Disclaimer: On the other hand, I am kind of a psycho...
  6. I can just see the spam now by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    inCREASe your WIFI distance NOW!

    Over-the-counter WIFI enhancers!

    Make it go FARTHER!

  7. 500 miles also done by bvdbos · · Score: 5, Interesting

    At whatthehack there was someone telling about how he managed a 500 km connection (which is 311 miles says google)...

  8. Good for Cuba? by J.+T.+MacLeod · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Perhaps this could mean real internet connections for some Cuban citizens again. It's close enough to Florida, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic to make it feasable.

    Not many would be able to make use of it, of course, but every bit helps when you're living under a government such as that.

  9. 125 Miles tropospheric propagation by kalevi · · Score: 4, Informative

    All communication for longer distances than so called line of sight communication is due to tropospheric propagation.

    In summertime it is very common in areas of extreme high pressure condiftions. Today it might work just fine, tomorrowe no connection.

    Best of luck with your experments!

    Kalevi Nyman
    SM0NTE
    ---