FAQ: Do I have to worry about WIFI interference?

FAQ: Do I have to worry about WIFI interference?

Answer:

Yes. In today’s society, all handsets, regardless of who you purchase them from, operate on the 2.4 GHz band.

This 2.4GHz band happens to be the same bandwidth that WIFI devices use. So, if you have a cell phone, laptop, or other WIFI device that is communicating with the internet using wireless signals directed to a WIFI access point, it can cause interference. As a result, the busier the traffic gets to be on the 2.4GHz band, the more competition there is for signal which slows all the devices down. Just like a crowded highway gets slowed down when there are a lot of cars, the 2.4GHz band highway is slowed down when there are many devices in the same general area operating on it.

What We Do About It:

Our devices are not WIFI; they use a completely different channelization. They are not on the same set of 16 channels that WIFI communication uses; however, they are on the same spectrum. Our devices happen to use a method known as Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum (FHSS) when transmitting. This means they rapidly switch frequency channels while transmitting by using proprietary and secure algorithms. This allows them to hop around the various frequency channels hundreds of times per second. There are multiple channels available which allows many keypads to be used in the same venue as well as allowing our devices to work better with other devices on the 2.4 GHz band. Our system is allowed to have ten times more power than other handsets that are not using FHSS radio chips.

There can be very busy traffic on this 2.4GHz band; therefore, it is something you need to monitor. However, you (or us with a turnkey rental) can configure your system to avoid certain channels as well as configure the WIFI to different channels which allows the 2.4GHz spectrum to be shared very well between our systems and WIFI devices.

In addition, we offer a VIP polling system that runs on any browser equipped device allowing you to use your own smartphone or tablet for voting or polling. We even offer a rental fleet of iPads for any event using this system add-on. This option also seamlessly supports the use of both keypads and browser equipped devices.