Most wireless network detectors tend to err on the useless side. Many detect if you're in range of a wireless network, or measure the signal strength if you're lucky, but nearly all of them leave off important features I want to know before I up my laptop. Before I put my bag down and set up shop, I need to know if the wireless network is encrypted and by what method (WEP, WPA or open) whether it's broadcasting its network name (SSID) or if it's hidden, and how strong the signal is where I'm sitting. So far, the Digital WiFi Detector is the only Wi-Fi detector I've seen that tells me all of these things, and is small enough to be portable.

The Digital WiFi Detector has a backlit LCD screen that shows the wireless network's signal strength, and also what the network name is (if available), whether the network is encrypted and by what method, and even the channel on which the network is broadcasting. The Digital Wifi Detector also lets you scroll through all of this information and more for each network when it finds several, and can differentiate between 802.11b and 802.11g networks.

At $69.99, the Digital WiFi Detector might not be for the occasional wardriver, but it's a relatively affordable price compared to other, less functional wireless network detectors, and might even pay for itself with the money you save connecting to free available wireless hotspots.

Post by Alan Henry