Paradar868Mhz LoRa antenna, weatherproof for harsh outdoor environments, for HNT, LoRaWAN and FLARM – 8.5dBi

With my meshtastic connected I am getting 50 odd miles really pleased.

Quick delivery superb quality!!!

This antenna is not performing as well as the small paradar whip but it should be. I probably wouldn’t buy again

The RF 868MHz is a public bandwidth European Low Power Networks (LPWAN) such as Sigfox and LoRaWan are using for communicating. I'm residing in a null to low signal zone (beautiful valley though) and I needed something to give me the extra dB push from my security system. I've had too many failed tests on my existing antenna, so I thought I'd give this antenna a run.The antenna is well constructed and is robust enough for heavy external duty and I hope all weathers for a while to come. As with many 868 applications, you want the data to be transmitted and received with total reliability.The antenna appears to be well made, terminating at the bottom end with a female n-type connector. This has no weatherproof shrouding, which is somewhat disappointing as the thread can collect water when exposed to elements. I used an RP-SMA male connector, but I will have to use self-amalgamating rubber tape or shrink tubing for this connection to be 100%.There are some other negatives that I'm pointing out because this is not a cheap antenna and we want it to be secure and reliable.There is a flat plate steel mast clamp securing the antenna. If this is intended to clamp directly onto a curved tubular mast, there should have been 2 x curved-to-flat brackets included in the mounting kit to give a solid clamp without risk of movement. This is needed to prevent the flat plate from being distorted when tightened up against the tubular mast. (see my photos)The flat plate is also slightly off-center, perpendicular to the antenna tube. I personally prefer a proper 90 degree fixing that I can manually adjust or rake as required. This just appears to be a template drilling problem, rather than an intentional offset.Fitting problems aside. I managed to inject a bit of DIY and get a good fixing, correctly water-proofed, with a lightning arrestor and with a proper vertical offset. The signal gain was very impressive and certainly a worthwhile investment.MY final comments would be: this is a good antenna, and with a better fitting kit and connection shroud would be a first-class buy. I would have preferred a better fitting kit, considering the price of the product.

This antenna seems to be (currently) aimed at HNT mining via the helium network. I do not have any suitable equipment to test this though others seem to be having great success with this antenna in their setup. I have tried it with a LoRa device and the connection quality has vastly improved over my previous 30cm unit. This has reduced my need for data retransmission and is saving battery life (which is very important on this device as it is installed remotely).The antenna was easy to mount but I will be replacing the bracket with a much sturdier one. Also, there is no cable included, so you will need an appropriate length for your device. I don't recommend making your own cable unless you have experience in this area - you may reduce your signal quality.

Designed for the 868MHz band, we use this for our helium miner. We saw an improvement of 2db over the old aerial we had been using, which means we collect more HNT

This is professionally made ADS-B 868MHz 1.2m weatherproof external antenna that is strong. It has standard N type 50 Ohm connection and its 8.5dBi performance on a beamwidth of 360° horizontal and 10° vertical. Wide use professional and ameture radio. I used this as an active antenna and also as a monitor aerial. In both modes i found the performance exceptionally good, even mounting this on a non-ideal ground plane. The seals are extremely good and its largely a self cleaning outer tube casing. Easy to clean and mounting extremely good double C clamps to standard masts. 50W maximum transmit power gives you great performan on LPWAN applications. The female N type you need to use a weatherseal boot or add your own weatgerproofing but that is a common feature on many dipoles. Great well made product and happy to recommend, Andrew

Unable to use the device as the antenna makes a rattling noise as it has internal damage. When opening the box I notice it had not support at the top to protect it in transit, open emptying the contents of the tube I noticed 3 small black bits of plastic that had clearly detached from the 3D printed top protection.Obviously this wasn't adequate to protect the antenna from damage, a small amount of paper or thicker 3D printed protection would've prevented this.Please do not take the rating as the antenna doesn't work but has the packing was poor, luckily I have an additional one I can use for the time being. However based on this experience I think I'll look elsewhere.