When we talk about types of antennas, you’ll often hear about directional and omnidirectional antennas. The attached video will go more in-depth about the types of antenna installations you may encounter. Simply put, a directional antenna installation will be highly directive with high gain, whereas an omnidirectional antenna installation has a 360-degree radiation with lower gain.
Directional antennas can be compared to a laser pointer — a lot of energy in one narrow, focused band, but no awareness of what’s outside of the band.
You may be able to pick up weak signals that would be lost otherwise, but only within that narrow band. Similarly, an omnidirectional antenna functions more like a light bulb, with energy radiating out evenly from a central point. It’s not as focused, but it gives a wider picture than a directional antenna.
Antenna installations come in many forms, with various functions, but directional and omnidirectional are two of the main types you’ll see, so understanding them is key to understanding more about antennas and data transmission as a whole.
