README.md
February 16, 2025 · View on GitHub
What are Meshtastic Antenna Reports?
Meshtastic Antenna Reports contain the results of basic usability testing performed on antennas that have been purchased by community members for use with Meshtastic hardware. These test results are provided so that the community can benefit from the testing other community members have completed when selecting an antenna for their hardware.
Templates are provided (MS Publisher 2016 & fillable Adobe Acrobat PDF formats) for community members who have access to a vector network analyzer and wish to contribute by publishing the results of their own antenna testing.
Note: Antenna manufacturers often make highly-optimistic claims of gain. Gain figures listed are provided by the manufacturer.
915MHz Test Results Summary
Internal Device Antennas
| Brand | Model | Antenna Dimensions | Price | Suggested For Use? (Y/N) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TE / Linx | ANT-8/9-FPC-UFL-100 | 39mm (L) x 15mm (W) | $4.66 | ✔️ Yes |
| Molex | 206764-0050 | 100mm (L) x 16mm (W) | $3.76 | ✔️ Yes |
Portable Antennas
| Brand | Model | Antenna Dimensions | Price | Suggested For Use? (Y/N) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linx | ANT-916-CW-HW-SMA | 120mm (L) x 9.25mm (W) | $9.89 | ✔️ Yes |
| Linx | ANT-916-CW-RCS | 54mm (L) x 9.4mm (W) | $6.54 | ✔️ Yes |
| Taoglas | TI.92.2113 | 198mm (L) x 13mm (W) | $8.09 | ✔️ Yes |
| Pulse Larsen | W1063M | 195mm (L) x 13mm (W) | $7.04 | ✔️ Yes |
| Maxtena | MEA-915-SW-SMA | 113mm (L) x 9mm (W) | $10.50 | ✔️ Yes |
| CDEBYTE | TX915-JKD-20 | 200mm (L) x 12mm (W) | $7.55/5 | ✔️ Yes |
| GIZONT | Nb-iot | 200mm (L) x 15mm (W) | $4.58 | ✔️ Yes |
| Stock LoRa32 | Stock | 50mm (L) x 8mm (W) | Stock | ❌ No! |
| Stock T-Beam | Stock | 180mm (L) x 9.5mm (W) | Stock | ❌ No! |
| Stock T-Echo | Stock | 60mm (L) x 18mm (W) | Stock | ❌ No! |
| Tenmory | TB-CSA21 | 194mm (L) x 13 mm (W) | $11.99/2 | ✔️ Yes |
| Ziisor | TX915-JZ-5 | 50mm (L) x 10mm (W) | $2.38 | ❌ No! |
Fixed (Base) Antennas
| Brand | Model | Gain (dBi) | Pattern | Antenna Dimensions | Price | Suggested For Use? (Y/N) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seeed | 318020612 | 5 | Omni | 600mm (L) x 40mm (W) | $35.00 | ❌ No! |
| ARC Wireless | ARC-PA0913C01 | 13.2 | Panel | 389mm (L) x 389mm (W) | $37.50 | ✔️ Yes |
| RAK | 3dBi Fiberglass | 3 | Omni | 360mm (L) x 35mm (W) | $18.00 | ✔️ Yes |
| Rokland | 5.8dBi Large Profile | 5.8 | Omni | 800mm (L) x 25mm (W) | $22.00 | ✔️ Yes |
| Rokland | 6dBi Low Profile | 6 | Omni | 650mm (L) x 25mm (W) | $21.00 | ✔️ Yes |
| ALFA | AOA-915-5ACM | 5 | Omni | 177mm (L) x 21.5mm (W) | $4.97 | ✔️ Yes |
| ZDTECH | ZD-OA-915-7NM | 7 | Omni | 360mm (L) x 23mm (W) | $23.37 | ✔️ Yes |
| Canadian Amazon Vendor | B0BSXWY4G3 | 3 | Omni | 300mm (L) x 23mm (W) | $25 (CAN) | ✔️ Yes |
| Canadian Amazon Vendor (YAGI) | B0CLY5NPMQ | 7-9 | Yagi | 356mm (L) 94mm (W) | $29.90 (CAN) | ✔️ Yes |
| Taoglas (Omni) | OMB.915.B08F21 | 8 | Omni | 1474mm (L) | $233.68+tax (CAN) | 🤷♂️💸💸 |
Warning
The Seeed Studio antenna (318020612) listed in the 915MHz Test Results Summary is being marketed as covering 860 - 930MHz. The antenna which was tested had a VSWR of over 8 : 1 in the area of 860MHz and will cause damage to hardware. (Update 18Feb2022 - Seeed Studio insists that the antenna should perform well throughout their suggested frequencies. They are providing a replacement antenna for testing. Until that testing is completed please don't risk using this antenna.)
Vehicle Antennas
| Brand | Model | Gain (dBi) | Antenna Dimensions | Price | Suggested For Use? (Y/N) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laird | TRA9020S3CBN | 3 | 68.6mm (L) x 38.1mm (W) | $48.95 | ✔️ Yes |
| Laird | MA9-5N | 5 | 06mm (L) x 20mm (W) | $17.15 | ✔️ Yes |
| Eifagur | ALF1880 | 5.8 | 350mm (L) x 80mm (W) | $26.99 | ✔️ Yes |
868MHz Test Results Summary
Portable Antennas
| Brand | Model | Antenna Dimensions | Price | Suggested For Use? (Y/N) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DIYMalls | DIY0147 | 195mm (L) x 13mm (W) | $3.64 | ✔️ Yes |
| DSWF | DSWF-868-12dbi-37.5 | 375mm (L) x 13mm (W) | $3.44 | ❌ No |
433 / 860 / 863 Mhz Test Results Summary
No testing has been performed (or results submitted) for these frequency bands yet.
Contribution Guidelines
When performing tests with the intent to contribute please follow these guidelines whenever possible / practical:
- Perform SOLT calibration (short, open & load calibration) before performing tests.
- Perform your calibration with the coax cable attached that you will use for testing.
- Calibrate specifically for the frequency sweep you will be performing during the testing.
- Ensure no metal objects are within 2+ wavelengths of the antenna during testing.
Example: 915MHz has a wavelength of 33cm or 1.057 feet. Keep metal objects >2ft away.
- Sweep beyond the ends of the frequency band
Example: 800-1000MHz for the US915 band
- Set markers at the start, center and end of the band
Example: 902MHz, 915MHz & 928MHz
- Utilize your VNA's "time averaging" and "trace smoothing" functionality
Suggested: Averaging of 4, Smoothing of 2
- Include the manufacturer and model number as the caption in your captured VSWR graph.
Contributors are welcome to convert the provided templates to their preferred editor format, as long as the overall theme and style of the report remain the same. If you convert the template to another format (e.g., OpenOffice), please submit the newly created template to the /Templates directory for others to utilize.
Note
To make calibration / testing easier and to generate a cleaner final VSWR graph try using the NanoVNA App. A binary executable for Win32 is available under the Win32/Releases directory of that repository.
Copyright / Trademark Notice
All logos, brands, and content mentioned or used within the meshtastic/antenna-reports repository are copyright their respective owners. The reports and evaluations contained herein are published under the GNU General Public License (GPLv3).