FAQ

Frequently asked questions about WLAN Pi Go

Q: How is WLAN Pi Go powered? A: It is powered via USB from your phone, tablet, or computer.

Q: Does it have a built-in battery? A: No, it doesn't by design. It makes the Go lighter, easy to ship, and safer to travel with. And you don't need to worry about charging yet another device and monitoring its battery health.

Q: Does the Go connect wirelessly to iPhone? A: No. It uses USB-C connection for data communication with your phone and it is also powered from the phone. We maintain a list of supported devices here.

Q: How much power does it draw from my iPhone? A: Idle WLAN Pi Go uses about 1.5 Watts. Scanning for Wi-Fi networks, it uses about 2 Watts. During the USB Power Delivery negotiation, it requests up to 900 mA.

Q: Any advantages over WiFiMan Wizard? A: Yes! WLAN Pi Go has Intel BE200 Wi-Fi adapter and supports Wi-Fi 7 including the 6 GHz band. It allows you to scan or capture frames on either 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, or 6 GHz channel. With the optional Oscium Lucid spectrum analyser, it also supports tri-band spectrum analysis. Same as all other WLAN Pi models, the Go is open source. Its API allows you get raw data off the unit, and use them in your script or app.

Q: How to update software on my Go? A: The WLAN Pi iOS and Android app allows you to upgrade software of your WLAN Pi Go. Connect your Go to your phone, connect your phone to a fast Wi-Fi network, and kickstart the update from the app. Follow these instructions. This process retains home folder of the wlanpi user on the Go. Contents of the boot and root partitions will be erased - that shouldn't be a problem at all unless you have customised some system-level settings manually.

Q: Can I connect it to a laptop? A: Yes, you can. Not all features will be supported though. It is designed to be a mobile tool. WiFi Explorer Pro on macOS and Windows, and Airtool on macOS, allow you to connect to the WLAN Pi Go via USB and perform Wi-Fi scanning and packet capture respectively.

Q: What iPhones does WLAN Pi Go support? A: Please review this list. If you are using a device which is not on our list yet, please do let us know. We will add it.

Q: Can it scan using the iPhone built-in Wi-Fi adapter? A: No, Apple doesn’t provide access to the built-in Wi-Fi radio of the iPhone.

Q: Where can I learn how to use WLAN Pi Go? Is any training available? A: Attend our WLAN Pi Go Deep Dive at the Wireless LAN Professionals Conference, learn everything about the Go by doing, and walk away with your very own unit. That’s 6 hours worth of hands-on training and practical labs.

Q: Can I label my WLAN Pi Go? A: Yes, here are the dimensions of the recessed area on the back side of the unit.

Q: What is the male USB-C port for? A: It takes Oscium Wi-Spy Lucid USB tri-band spectrum analyser and enables spectrum analysis (not just Wi-Fi) on WLAN Pi Go. Software support for this feature is coming later.

Q: Oops, something has gone wrong, how can I restore factory defaults? A: Yes. But before you continue reading, save any data you might have saved on the Go. This process wipes all contents and data stored on the Go unit. Restore factory defaults by flashing the original software image by following these instructions.

Q: Why are only some Android devices supported? A: Not all Android devices support Ethernet over USB-C (also known as OTG). Also, not all Android devices provide enough output power via USB-C. Check list of supported mobile devices which we have tested for compatibility with the Go. From software perspective, some mobile apps like WiFi Explorer Pi are currently only available for iOS devices.

Q: Do you plan to develop WiFi Explorer Pi for Android? A: No, we have no plans at the moment. Are you interested in developing one? Let us know.

Q: What mobile apps support WLAN Pi Go? A: It supports the WLAN Pi App, Airtool, and WiFi Explorer Pi.