Expanding Raspberry Pi 3 WiFI range with external antenna

The Raspberry Pi 3 Model B uses standard 2.4GHz 802.11n wireless technology, which typically has a range of up to 30 meters (98 feet) in open space. However, the range can be affected by various factors, such as the presence of walls and other obstacles, interference from other wireless devices, and the sensitivity of the receiving device. Therefore, the actual range may vary in different environments. As wardr states: β€œIt’s not clear why an external antenna is not an option for the Pi 3 ”. He thought, why not including one by himself. He found that there can be two options for including external WiFi antenna. One could be more barbarian – just remove chip antenna and solder it to left top mount pad. This is more messy part as you need to scratch ground plane to make it possible to solder copper mesh. Another way is more civilized. On the bottom side of Raspberry Pi, 3 are two exposed pads where U.FL connector almost fits. Yet you still need to clear some solder masks and rotate one zero ohm…

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