Timeline for Which signals (Wi-Fi, mobile phone, and GPS) can reliably be blocked by aluminum foil?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
19 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Jun 8 at 7:57 | comment | added | CuriousIndeed | @richard1941 But how to test for GPS? | |
| Jun 6 at 21:44 | comment | added | richard1941 | Do some primitive tests. Otherwise you are just guessing. Put your cell phone in the microwave oven (don't turn the oven on, of course). Now try to call it from another cell phone. If it rings, you know the microwave oven idea is wrong. Try the same with tinfoil. For the next level of testing, use a handheld walkie talkie. Put one in the microwave and see if you can talk to it when you are close. Then try the same with aluminum foil. If any signal gets through, there is NO PROTECTION. Otherwise, you might have protection, and you might not. | |
| May 30 at 13:50 | comment | added | SteveSh | With GPS especially, it comes down to how good the receiver is. My GPS enabled watch, for example, has trouble linking up to satellites when it's foggy outside, because the fog attenuates the GPS signal. | |
| S May 27 at 21:59 | history | suggested | Peter Mortensen | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
Copy edited (e.g. ref. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi> and <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Positioning_System>).
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| May 27 at 21:19 | review | Suggested edits | |||
| S May 27 at 21:59 | |||||
| May 26 at 13:25 | comment | added | Kartman | It usually doesn’t take much to block GPS (GNSS). I’ve found trying to block cellular is the most difficult. It doesn’t help having a base station on the roof! | |
| May 26 at 7:01 | history | edited | CuriousIndeed | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
added 99 characters in body
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| May 26 at 7:00 | comment | added | CuriousIndeed | @SteveSh I meant blocking it as such that the service becomes unavailable | |
| May 26 at 6:53 | history | became hot network question | |||
| May 26 at 2:43 | answer | added | EricEverton | timeline score: 29 | |
| May 26 at 1:19 | comment | added | SteveSh | What do you mean by "effectively block"? EMC & RF engineers usually talk in terms of how much attenuation, usually specified in dB, is needed? | |
| May 26 at 0:43 | answer | added | Tim Williams | timeline score: 16 | |
| May 25 at 22:55 | comment | added | CuriousIndeed | @StainlessSteelRat Changed to aluminum foil, which is what I tested it for. | |
| May 25 at 22:55 | history | edited | CuriousIndeed | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
added 10 characters in body; edited title
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| May 25 at 22:54 | comment | added | StainlessSteelRat | Add this to your question to show what effort you have exerted to the problem. Download a wifi strength app and see if there is a change in signal strength. | |
| May 25 at 22:53 | comment | added | Transistor | Aluminium foil supplanted tin foil in the mid 20th century. In the United Kingdom and United States it is often informally called "tin foil". It might make a difference if you are looking up the electrical properties of the foil. | |
| May 25 at 22:51 | comment | added | CuriousIndeed | @StainlessSteelRat My experiments yielded the following results: Mobile phone reception is blocked, Wifi isn't. Could not test GPS however. I have read that GPS is blocked too because it is a weak signal, but it was not from a reputable source. | |
| May 25 at 22:49 | comment | added | StainlessSteelRat | Wouldn't this be easy to check? Get yourself a big roll and cell phone and have at it! | |
| May 25 at 22:46 | history | asked | CuriousIndeed | CC BY-SA 4.0 |