WiFi: High Bandwidth, High Power, Limited Range
WiFi (802.11) is ideal when sensors need to send large amounts of data (cameras, acoustic sensors) and are within 30–50 metres of an access point. Power consumption is too high for battery-operated sensors — use WiFi when sensors are mains-powered. Factory floors with metal structures and moving equipment interfere with WiFi significantly — plan access point placement carefully.
Zigbee: Low Power, Mesh Network, Short Range
Zigbee operates at 2.4 GHz with a range of 10–100 metres per hop. Its key advantage is mesh networking — each device relays data for others, extending coverage without additional infrastructure. Battery life of 1–5 years for simple sensors. Use Zigbee for temperature, humidity, and door sensors distributed across a factory where running power cables is impractical.
LoRa: Long Range, Very Low Power, Low Data Rate
LoRa (Long Range) can penetrate walls and cover entire factory campuses with a single gateway. Battery life of 5–10 years for simple sensors. The trade-off: low data rate (typically 0.3–50 kbps) and high latency. Perfect for: energy meter readings every 15 minutes, tank level monitoring, environmental monitoring across large sites.
Our Recommendation for Factory Use Cases
Real-time machine monitoring: wired Ethernet or WiFi (latency matters). Temperature and humidity across the factory: Zigbee mesh. Outdoor or campus-wide monitoring: LoRa. Machine vibration (high frequency): wired only — wireless cannot handle the sampling rates required for vibration analysis.
Match the wireless protocol to the use case. There is no single winner. Most factory IoT deployments use 2–3 different wireless technologies alongside wired connections for different sensor types.
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