Tenda O1-5G — 1km 5GHz 9dBi ac 867Mbps Outdoor CPE

Buying it, and when not to

The O1-5G is a 1km 5GHz 9dBi 11ac 867Mbps outdoor CPE. It is the short-range member of the O-series: a directional outdoor radio for carrying a connection up to about a kilometre on a clear path.

This is the unit for the short hop that copper cannot make - across a compound to a back building, from a shop to a flat above a different unit, from a gatehouse to a main house, between two market stalls on opposite sides of a line. At 867Mbps class it has enough capacity to carry a whole premises' connection, and at 5GHz it is far faster than the 2.4GHz O3 over the same distance. Remember a link needs two units; the O1-5G 2-pack exists for that reason and is the cheaper way to buy a pair.

Over a kilometre, or on a path that is borderline, this is not the unit - the 12dBi O3S reaches about five kilometres, the O6 about ten, and the O9 about twenty-five, and using a longer-range unit on a shorter link gives headroom that keeps the link up in rain. If the path has trees or partial obstruction, 5GHz will struggle and the 2.4GHz O3 is more tolerant. And this is not an access point: for coverage in an outdoor area, use the OAP1200.