Choose The Best Helium Antenna

8dBi Helium LoRa® Antenna – 868MHz

Helium Antenna Direction: The Differences Between Antennas.

The first thing you want to know when choosing the right Helium Antenna, is what type of antenna you need.

We can choose between an Omni Directional Antenna, and a Directional Antenna. Below you find both of them explained.

In most cases, the best choice is to use an Omni Directional Antenna for your Helium Hotspot. With the Omni Directional Antenna you can reach all the hotspots in your surroundings. But, there are some cases where a Directional Antenna is the better choice.

For example, when the Antenna is placed at the edge of a mountain, you simply can’t send any signals through the mountain. The signal just isn’t strong enough to reach the other side. In this case it would be the better option to focus your signal strenght the other way, away from the mountain, with an directional antenna.

Helium Antenna Gain: How Does Gain (dBi) Work?

The second thing you need to consider when choosing a Helium Miner Antenna, is the Antenna Gain.

The Antenna Gain is mostly described as the dBi of the antenna. Every single decrease in the dBi, makes a big difference in the strength of the Helium Antenna. Likewise, when the dBi increases, the signal strength will also increase rapidly.

But the dBi of the Antenna also has a huge effect on where the signal is being send. Importantly, no Antenna can create more signal strength, it can just focus the signal in a certain direction.

To clarify with an example, above you can see how the radiation pattern changes when the dBi increases. When the dBi of your antenna is low, the horizontal reach of your antenna will also be low. The antenna will cover a more vertical area (up and down), like in the first image.

Secondly, the antenna with a higher dBi will have its power focussed to cover a more horizontal area and will reach hotspots much further away. However, it will also cover less vertical area. 

Does High dBi work with EU Radiation Regulations?

So the question is: Why should I get a high dBi antenna, when the signal is reduced to fit radiation regulations?

The answer is very simple, with your output of 16,5 dBi and the more focussed antenna you can reach much more Hotspots. But, when your transmitted signal reaches more than 14 Hotspots, the network will select only 14 to communicate with. 

So, for what do you need a higher dBi Helium Antenna? Most money earned with a Helium Miner, comes from witnessing other Hotspots. (Average 80%)

When you get a high dBi antenna, you can also witness more Hotspots. This is because your receiving signal will also be focussed.

When you can receive more signals from other Hotspots, your Helium Miner will be chosen as Witness much more and your rewards will go up!

Helium Miner Antenna Placement

Most importantly, Antenna placement. The location of your Helium Antenna might be the most important aspect, because the location dicates which type and gain antenna is best for your situation.

Indoor Or Outdoor Placement

When you want to get the most out of your Helium Hotspot setup you need to place your Helium antenna outside. The difference in your earnings between indoor and outdoor placement can be very high. This is because a wall of 20cm / ~8″ thick will reduce the signal by 27 dBi.

The Best Helium Miner Antenna: Conclusion

Finally, the conclusion. In most cases, a high dBi  (8-10) Omni Directional Antenna is the best choice.

However, every setup is unique and to optimize your earnings, you need to make the right choice for your location.

You have learned about Antenna Types, Antenna Gain, Antenna Placement and the Antenna Location. With this knowledge you should be able to choose the right Antenna! Are you wondering if you chose the right Antenna? Ask the Official Helium Community to help you out, or contact our support team, we’ll be happy to help you out!