Wireless Access

Hey All, I was wondering if I could get some advice on provding outdoor coverage for a customer. The customer has numerous existing sites all running either AP105 or AP205 at their deployment. The customer has a new site where Wifi coverage is required outside for around 40 clients or so. The existing site already has existing AP105's installed with the possiblity of upgrading to 205's at a later date. 

I've been looking at all the coverage and so on within VisualRF and alll looks good using the AP275. However I'm trying to decide what would be the best type of AP for this enviroment.  I'm attempting to decide if a 105/205 in an outdoor enclosure would be suitable or to supply an AP275 to cover the area. Essentially trying to think of any pro's/con's with the exception of the price.

So first, what is the coverage area size and where can you put the AP? Will the AP have line of sight to the entire coverage area?

Secondly, putting indoor APs in outdoor enclosures is a bad idea for a number of reasons:

* Indoor APs have a much narroer range of permissable temperatures, so it can easily get cold enough that the temperature drops below what the AP can suport and it will fail

* The upper temperature range is also pretty low, so left outside in the summer, the outdoor temp could exceed what the AP supports, and it could get too hot and fail.

* Even if the outside temp stays close to but just below the max temp of the AP, both solar loading (the sun heating the enclosure) and self heating (the AP's own heat acts like a space heater heating up the inside of the enclosure) which then kills the AP.

* Indoor APs mounted outside are NOT covered by the lifetime warranty! The AP-275 mounted outdoors does carry a lifetime warranty.

* Indoor AP's max power ouput is much lower than the outdoor, and will offer 2-6x the range and performance (esp compared to a 205).

* You must use the external antenna version (AP-204) so that the antennas can be placed outside the enclosure.

* By the time you pay for the AP-204, the NEMA enclosure, the bulk head connectors for the ethernet/power and antenna connectors, buy the outdoor rated antennas and jumpers, and then install the entire thing, you will nd up paying the same or more than what an AP-275 would be with it's simple mounting bracket and the ability to connect Cat5/6 right into the AP without the need for all the ancillary parts.

Hey Jerrod, thanks for your response! I've also during the time of posting this come across the Outdoor Wifi VRD (which I believe you authored!) and has answered all of my questions. I'm going to go with the AP275 as it meets all the requirements. Thanks again!

Craig