A top performer even without ground plane connection
The GW.05 dual-band WiFi Hinged Rotatable Antenna is a high-efficiency monopole antenna. Compared to other much larger antennas on the market, it has superior wide-band high-efficiency characteristics. The bright green colour of the antenna adds a unique quality look and feel to any modern WiFi application point, device or router. It also provides differentiation if using Taoglas other similar looking antennas (such as the black color Taoglas TG.09 cellular antenna) on the same device. The connector used is Rev SMA(M), the standard mating part for an antenna to most WiFi application points and routers in the market.
The GW.05, as all monopole antennas, works best connected directly to the ground-plane of the device’s main PCB or to the outside of a metal housing. However, it still has very good performance (>50%) even without connecting to a ground-plane, making it the best all-round small WiFi terminal antenna on the market. In the un-grounded installation condition, it also comes below the max peak gain requirements for most WiFi modules which are usually 2dBi, so it can comply with FCC regulations.
The GW.05 is for Wi-Fi, WLAN, Zigbee, Bluetooth, and 802.11a/b/g/n/ac applications
Many module manufacturers specify peak gain limits for any antennas that are to be connected to that module. Those peak gain limits are based on free-space conditions. In practice, the peak gain of an antenna tested in free-space can degrade by at least 1 or 2dBi when put inside a device. So ideally you should go for a slightly higher peak gain antenna than mentioned on the module specification to compensate for this effect, giving you better performance.
Upon testing of any of our antennas with your device and a selection of appropriate layout, integration technique, or cable, Taoglas can make sure any of our antennas’ peak gain will be below the peak gain limits. Taoglas can then issue a specification and/or report for the selected antenna in your device that will clearly show it complying with the peak gain limits, so you can be assured you are meeting regulatory requirements for that module.
For example, a module manufacturer may state that the antenna must have less than 2dBi peak gain, but you don’t need to select an embedded antenna that has a peak gain of less than 2dBi in free-space. This will give you a less optimized solution. It is better to go for a slightly higher free-space peak gain of 3dBi or more if available. Once that antenna gets integrated into your device, performance will degrade below this 2dBi peak gain due to the effects of GND plane, surrounding components, and device housing. If you want to be absolutely sure, contact Taoglas and we will test. Choosing a Taoglas antenna with a higher peak gain than what is specified by the module manufacturer and enlisting our help will ensure you are getting the best performance possible without exceeding the peak gain limits.
It is better not to select an embedded antenna with very low free-space peak gain (<2dBi) directly, as this antenna would have worse performance in your device, and lead to compromised performance compared to using a Taoglas antenna. It also comes as a standard SMA(M) version.
