Via Arstechnia.com -
It sounds like something the MythBusters "Build Team" could have busted or confirmed in a couple of hours. Holiday decorations... Christmas lights, garland, those big blow-up snowmen... they're all putting the hurt on WiFi?
That's the word from AirMagnet, Inc., a company that develops and sells WiFi networking analysis and troubleshooting tools. The company says that it monitored office WiFi health before and after holiday decorations were deployed, and their survey found that Old Saint Nick has some splainin' to do.
According to the survey, the addition of Christmas and holiday ornamentation (trees, decorations, etc.) to a standard office setting reduced wireless signal strength by 25 percent. Furthermore, AirMagnet claims that signal deterioration was increased by a factor of one-third, and made signal distribution more uneven, reducing strength by an additional 10 percent in different locations.
"When new elements are introduced into an enterprise environment they have the potential to seriously affect the performance of the Wi-Fi network, by deflecting, absorbing or otherwise interfering with the wireless signal," said Chia-Chee Kuan, CTO and vice president of engineering for AirMagnet. "During the holidays, it could be the decorations in an office, at other times it could just as easily be a new microwave oven or a metal shelving unit." AirMagnet's ploy in all of this is to draw attention to the company as a developer of WiFi analysis tools, and to be honest, we find it pretty humorous.
It's the metal contained in many Christmas decorations that is the culprit for these wireless shenanigans. Whether or not this spells bad news for those of you planning to erect a Festivus pole is anyone's guess, but at the very least you'll have the chance to air your grievance in ritual fashion.
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