I give the solution a ten out of ten. New users should consider purchasing the latest edition. The outdated models lack the latest Wi-Fi band, rendering them a poor investment. I made the mistake of buying an outdated version on eBay for $500, which I only used for a single project. I eventually had to resell it since it was incompatible with the new Wi-Fi band that emerged in the past five years. Hence, it is advisable to invest in the new version.
Division Network Engineer at a healthcare company with 201-500 employees
Real User
2022-10-26T05:59:00Z
Oct 26, 2022
The advice I would give others looking into this product is to try it for yourself. If you are in constant need of performing troubleshooting for wireless at any point in time, especially for remote sites, or for yourself at a physical location, the product speaks for itself. It is one of those devices that, once you use it, you will not return to anything else. The biggest lesson learned from using the solution is that I should have tried it sooner.
Senior Network Engineer at a healthcare company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Real User
2022-08-15T14:31:00Z
Aug 15, 2022
I would advise thinking about the scenarios where you can use it. If you're looking for a pretty easy-to-use tool that has various functionalities, it is a fairly good tool for that. If this is going to be your exclusive, for example, survey tool, personally, this is not what I would use for that, but for a lot of packet captures, wire testing, rogue device detections, it does a really nice job. The form factor and the interface make it very easy to use. I haven't used its one-button AutoTest feature to identify common problems. I also haven't used the AirMapper function, which is a survey tool. That's mainly because, for me, personally, the screen is too small, and I have other solutions that can also use an iPhone screen. I personally find it too small to be effectively used for displays. I want a notebook-size display or at worst, a decent tablet size to do that. So, that's one function I don't use. I may try it. My concern is that generally, I'm doing pretty good size buildings. It might be decent for a small site, but I am not sure about big buildings. For example, it is a 5-story hospital and clinic we're doing this weekend. Those maps are pretty big. There are hundreds and hundreds of rooms. The size of this display doesn't really work for that map size. I need to be able to see just more than I can display on that size screen for me to do a survey. In general, it is by no means the only WiFi tool we use. I know that in G3, for example, they're just introducing a spectrum analysis function, which would be nice to have. G2 does not have that. That'd be nice to see for some non-WiFi interference, and obviously, if I was going to buy a new one, I'd buy G3, but WiFi is tough in that one tool generally can't do everything. Understanding what this tool is designed to do, I'm definitely satisfied, and that's why we bought it. I don't know if it has replaced other tools. I used to use a product called WinFi, which seems to have been discontinued. If I could still use it, I would, but AirCheck has partially replaced that for me. AirCheck provided a lot of the information that the tool did. I don't know if it has replaced many other tools because it is just another gun in the holster, but for some scenarios, this is the first tool I'll grab. I would rate it an eight out of ten.
Sr. Telecommunications Engineer at County of Hillsborough
Real User
2022-07-22T16:29:00Z
Jul 22, 2022
It's a good all-around tool for our purposes. I highly recommend it to all my contractors and everyone we deal with. It's a great tool and we haven't found any issues with it. Nothing is perfect, but along with Netally's EtherScope, it's probably the piece of test equipment that is closest. It does everything we need it to do and a lot more.
Engineering Director at Presidio Networked Solutions
Reseller
2022-07-11T17:14:00Z
Jul 11, 2022
I rate AirCheck 10 out of 10. It's awesome. Consistent tools are critical. When we transitioned over to AirCheck, we had several tools from various vendors, and each engineer was doing something slightly different. AirCheck allowed us to standardize operations because everyone uses the same tools, so my engineers can learn from each other.
RF Engineer at a energy/utilities company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
2022-06-15T01:37:00Z
Jun 15, 2022
I would advise focusing on whether it meets your needs, and if it does, I wouldn't hesitate to buy it. We don't use its one-button AutoTest feature to identify common problems. We also usually don't use AirMapper Site Survey's ability to create heat maps in the vendor's Link-Live Cloud service. We export it to AirMagnet and use AirMagnet to do it. If I was using it without AirMagnet, it would be a feature that would be nice, but because I have AirMagnet, I do it on my computer. It uses the same software. One is doing it on a dashboard, and the other one is doing it on your computer, and I like to bring it into the computing environment. It hasn't reduced troubleshooting time. It still takes the same amount of time. It is just that they've made it more convenient. It also hasn't enabled us to replace multiple other tools to find the same information. I'd rate it a nine out of ten because of the cost. If it was cheaper, it would easily be a ten. I'm a fan of it. We wouldn't have bought $30,000 worth of this product if we didn't think it was good. We tested it. The AirMagnet series of products and these handhelds as well as their software come from a very well-known and respected name. Since purchasing them, NetAlly has done a better job in keeping that image and tradition alive by standing behind this product. I'm very happy with it.
Site Administrator at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
2020-07-16T06:21:00Z
Jul 16, 2020
Thoroughly research the functionality and features of this particular tool. I am finding that the tool itself has so many features and so much functionality that the cost benefit could be missed. A client looking into the device might not realize its potential or ability to solve certain niche problem. It is easy to use. A novice would have to get used to trusting the tool. More advanced technicians would find this tool extremely helpful. The learning curve depends on the level of the technician. If you are a novice, then the learning curve might be overwhelming. However, for an advanced technician, the learning curve is pretty quick and intuitive. I would rate this solution an eight (out of 10). If they fixed the battery, it would be a 10.
Wireless Network Engineer at a hospitality company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
2020-05-28T06:26:00Z
May 28, 2020
I have learned that I can use G2 for more than I thought. Initially I thought, "Okay, I can go and check the coverage." But actually, there are so many things you can use it for. Sometimes you quickly need the MAC address of a wireless client. You take the G2 and you see that straight away. That's one of my favorite things. It's like having a multi-tool. We often use it for quickly finding information while we are doing other tasks, things that are not necessarily support. Suppose we are testing a new access point and it is mounted on the ceiling and we need to get its MAC address quickly. It's quicker to look at the G2 than to log in the controller (or use a software scanner) and find the MAC address. We also bought the LinkRunner testers and we use them a lot. I was also looking at the OneTouch because at one point I was approached by a vendor that was offering a massive discount (it was going end-of-life) and it was a very attractive price. The OneTouch, from a wireless perspective, does more or less the same thing as the G2; I couldn't justify this expense to my manager. As far as maintenance of the G2 goes, it's very easy. You don't need to know anything, other than checking for software upgrades. I believe you still need a laptop to upgrade the firmware, unless they've changed something recently.
Systems Engineer at a consultancy with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
2020-05-27T08:03:00Z
May 27, 2020
It has provided tremendous education about how WiFI works. I understand Ethernet fairly well ... but WiFi is remarkably complicated: I am a novice. But, with the AirCheck, you get this graphical interface which packs a lot of education and teaching into it, as well as diagnostic capabilities. The UI takes the theory that I've studied and helps me understand, "Oh, that's what they mean." It's sort of like an educational tool in addition to something that helps you solve problems. The multi-technology functionality is certainly convenient to have on the wired side. However, I have a lot of tools that to do wired analysis, so I rarely use it. Then again, the functionality is convenient and saves you the time of carrying two tools. For some people that will be a powerful use case. Whereas, myself, I prefer to just carry a lot of weight (i.e. multiple tools). I would rate this solution as an eight (out of 10).
AirCheck G3 is the most cost-effective hardware-enabled site survey solution for Wi-Fi 6/6E networks. It provides network professionals of any skill level with complete and accurate information to survey and validate Wi-Fi deployments and changes, resolve connectivity and performance problems quickly, speed up closure of trouble tickets, and ensure your Wi-Fi network meets end users’ needs.The new and improved battery life of 10 hours (3 - 4 hours charge) lasts you and your teams throughout...
I give the solution a ten out of ten. New users should consider purchasing the latest edition. The outdated models lack the latest Wi-Fi band, rendering them a poor investment. I made the mistake of buying an outdated version on eBay for $500, which I only used for a single project. I eventually had to resell it since it was incompatible with the new Wi-Fi band that emerged in the past five years. Hence, it is advisable to invest in the new version.
The advice I would give others looking into this product is to try it for yourself. If you are in constant need of performing troubleshooting for wireless at any point in time, especially for remote sites, or for yourself at a physical location, the product speaks for itself. It is one of those devices that, once you use it, you will not return to anything else. The biggest lesson learned from using the solution is that I should have tried it sooner.
I would advise thinking about the scenarios where you can use it. If you're looking for a pretty easy-to-use tool that has various functionalities, it is a fairly good tool for that. If this is going to be your exclusive, for example, survey tool, personally, this is not what I would use for that, but for a lot of packet captures, wire testing, rogue device detections, it does a really nice job. The form factor and the interface make it very easy to use. I haven't used its one-button AutoTest feature to identify common problems. I also haven't used the AirMapper function, which is a survey tool. That's mainly because, for me, personally, the screen is too small, and I have other solutions that can also use an iPhone screen. I personally find it too small to be effectively used for displays. I want a notebook-size display or at worst, a decent tablet size to do that. So, that's one function I don't use. I may try it. My concern is that generally, I'm doing pretty good size buildings. It might be decent for a small site, but I am not sure about big buildings. For example, it is a 5-story hospital and clinic we're doing this weekend. Those maps are pretty big. There are hundreds and hundreds of rooms. The size of this display doesn't really work for that map size. I need to be able to see just more than I can display on that size screen for me to do a survey. In general, it is by no means the only WiFi tool we use. I know that in G3, for example, they're just introducing a spectrum analysis function, which would be nice to have. G2 does not have that. That'd be nice to see for some non-WiFi interference, and obviously, if I was going to buy a new one, I'd buy G3, but WiFi is tough in that one tool generally can't do everything. Understanding what this tool is designed to do, I'm definitely satisfied, and that's why we bought it. I don't know if it has replaced other tools. I used to use a product called WinFi, which seems to have been discontinued. If I could still use it, I would, but AirCheck has partially replaced that for me. AirCheck provided a lot of the information that the tool did. I don't know if it has replaced many other tools because it is just another gun in the holster, but for some scenarios, this is the first tool I'll grab. I would rate it an eight out of ten.
It's a good all-around tool for our purposes. I highly recommend it to all my contractors and everyone we deal with. It's a great tool and we haven't found any issues with it. Nothing is perfect, but along with Netally's EtherScope, it's probably the piece of test equipment that is closest. It does everything we need it to do and a lot more.
I rate AirCheck 10 out of 10. It's awesome. Consistent tools are critical. When we transitioned over to AirCheck, we had several tools from various vendors, and each engineer was doing something slightly different. AirCheck allowed us to standardize operations because everyone uses the same tools, so my engineers can learn from each other.
I would advise focusing on whether it meets your needs, and if it does, I wouldn't hesitate to buy it. We don't use its one-button AutoTest feature to identify common problems. We also usually don't use AirMapper Site Survey's ability to create heat maps in the vendor's Link-Live Cloud service. We export it to AirMagnet and use AirMagnet to do it. If I was using it without AirMagnet, it would be a feature that would be nice, but because I have AirMagnet, I do it on my computer. It uses the same software. One is doing it on a dashboard, and the other one is doing it on your computer, and I like to bring it into the computing environment. It hasn't reduced troubleshooting time. It still takes the same amount of time. It is just that they've made it more convenient. It also hasn't enabled us to replace multiple other tools to find the same information. I'd rate it a nine out of ten because of the cost. If it was cheaper, it would easily be a ten. I'm a fan of it. We wouldn't have bought $30,000 worth of this product if we didn't think it was good. We tested it. The AirMagnet series of products and these handhelds as well as their software come from a very well-known and respected name. Since purchasing them, NetAlly has done a better job in keeping that image and tradition alive by standing behind this product. I'm very happy with it.
Thoroughly research the functionality and features of this particular tool. I am finding that the tool itself has so many features and so much functionality that the cost benefit could be missed. A client looking into the device might not realize its potential or ability to solve certain niche problem. It is easy to use. A novice would have to get used to trusting the tool. More advanced technicians would find this tool extremely helpful. The learning curve depends on the level of the technician. If you are a novice, then the learning curve might be overwhelming. However, for an advanced technician, the learning curve is pretty quick and intuitive. I would rate this solution an eight (out of 10). If they fixed the battery, it would be a 10.
I have learned that I can use G2 for more than I thought. Initially I thought, "Okay, I can go and check the coverage." But actually, there are so many things you can use it for. Sometimes you quickly need the MAC address of a wireless client. You take the G2 and you see that straight away. That's one of my favorite things. It's like having a multi-tool. We often use it for quickly finding information while we are doing other tasks, things that are not necessarily support. Suppose we are testing a new access point and it is mounted on the ceiling and we need to get its MAC address quickly. It's quicker to look at the G2 than to log in the controller (or use a software scanner) and find the MAC address. We also bought the LinkRunner testers and we use them a lot. I was also looking at the OneTouch because at one point I was approached by a vendor that was offering a massive discount (it was going end-of-life) and it was a very attractive price. The OneTouch, from a wireless perspective, does more or less the same thing as the G2; I couldn't justify this expense to my manager. As far as maintenance of the G2 goes, it's very easy. You don't need to know anything, other than checking for software upgrades. I believe you still need a laptop to upgrade the firmware, unless they've changed something recently.
It has provided tremendous education about how WiFI works. I understand Ethernet fairly well ... but WiFi is remarkably complicated: I am a novice. But, with the AirCheck, you get this graphical interface which packs a lot of education and teaching into it, as well as diagnostic capabilities. The UI takes the theory that I've studied and helps me understand, "Oh, that's what they mean." It's sort of like an educational tool in addition to something that helps you solve problems. The multi-technology functionality is certainly convenient to have on the wired side. However, I have a lot of tools that to do wired analysis, so I rarely use it. Then again, the functionality is convenient and saves you the time of carrying two tools. For some people that will be a powerful use case. Whereas, myself, I prefer to just carry a lot of weight (i.e. multiple tools). I would rate this solution as an eight (out of 10).