Wi-Fi walkie-talkies

There are many different walkie-talkies in the world. Most walkie-talkies work via wireless signals and thus make a mutual connection via RF technology. Some walkie-talkies work via an amplifier, also called a repeater. This amplifier ensures that the wireless signals have a large range and it is possible to provide coverage for large objects.

WiFi walkie-talkies are walkie-talkies that at least use the WiFi network to increase the range. In most cases, these are not traditional walkie-talkies, but so-called PoC walkie-talkies. With this, the WiFi connection ensures that the walkie-talkies can make contact with a central server. 

There are different brands and manufacturers that supply WiFi walkie-talkies. Firecom is a platinum reseller of Motorola solutions and therefore a big supporter of the WAVE PTX system. These walkie-talkies work wherever there is a WiFi connection and also use the GSM network to guarantee sufficient coverage.

In theory, these walkie-talkies would therefore work well in, for example, an underground mine where only WiFi networks are available. Wherever there are WiFi points, this system will work. This guarantees an international operation.

Wifi walkie-talkies certainly exist. There are several brands that have WiFi walkie-talkies in their range. Always keep in mind that WiFi walkie-talkies use the WiFi connection to make contact with a central server that organizes the conversations and distributes them to the various users. The WiFi connection is therefore purely a transport medium to spread the conversations over the different users. 

When purchasing WiFi walkie-talkies, you should note that the walkie-talkie may have even more ways to transfer the calls to the server. Some walkie-talkies use their LTE connection for this and connect to the GSM network. Other walkie-talkies can switch to traditional RF technology to distribute the conversation to the other users. Most WiFi walkie-talkies automatically switch between the LTE network and the WiFi connection. You will therefore not easily come across walkie-talkies that only use the WiFi connection.

Advantages of WiFi walkie-talkies are:

• Large range, everywhere there is WIFI
• Lots of data transfer possible
• High audio quality

The disadvantages of WiFi walkie-talkies are:

• Usually monthly or annual licenses
• Possible short outages when switching between WiFi and LTE network
• Does not work if internet connection fails
• More components means less operational reliability