 cellphone, Xbox, etc.), for measuring the total radiation load in a room, they can be very time-consuming.
- What’s the range of radiation the meter can measure? Again, the cheaper meters often only measure up to 3 GHz, so while they will pick up on most cellphones, many other types of radiation (from certain cordless phones, new generation cell phones, baby monitors, WiMax, etc.) will not be detected. To measure the current full spectrum of microwave radiation from all the different types of devices, you need a meter that goes up to 8 GHz.
- Can the meter also measure magnetic and electrical fields and how wide is the range? For people who are hypersensitive, they are affected not just by microwave RF radiation frequencies, but by electrical and magnetic fields as well.
If you can’t be bothered to read through the detailed meter descriptions below and you just want to know: What’s the cheapest, easiest meter that can measure pretty much everything? Then this Cornet 8 GHZ RF Meter (Uni-directional $179.90 + free shipping) will cover all your needs. This meter is much cheaper than the Tenmars below because it only measures radiation coming from one direction, whereas the Tenmars meter below measures radiation coming from all sides. This meter also only measures electrical and RF, wheras the Tri-Field measure magnetic fields as well. However, if price is key, then this is a very good choice, since it measures all RF devices (cell phones, cordless phone, WiFi, surveillance bugs, microwave ovens, etc.) from 1 MHz – 8 GHz. If you want the full-service radiation meter, so that you can measure everything in every situation, from one spot, then the Tenmars 8 GHZ RF Meter (3-directional, $345 + free shipping) is your best choice.
Here’s an In-Depth Description of the Various Radiation Meters and their Pros and Cons:
1. Simple Radiation Finder ($39.95) – this is your most basic digital RF meter. It will not tell you the exact level of radiation, but will simply light up a warning if the radiation falls at pre-determined categories of green-safe, yellow-caution, and red-unsafe.
The downside of this meter is that it is only a single-axis meter. This means it can only read the radiation coming from the direction you are pointing it. So if you want to measure the radiation in any given spot, you need to rotate and point the meter at 8 different points/directions around in a complete circle – pausing at each new point to let it pick up the new reading. Obviously, this is going to be very tedious. But if budget is your primary concern, then this may be the option for you.
Also, for me, the other big drawback of this type of meter is the range it reads goes from ‘less than’ 20 microwatts/cm2 – ‘over’ 100 microwatts/cm2. Well, in Canada and the U.S., the upper allowable radiation limit is 1000 microwatts/cm2, so whilst this meter would be fine for Europe, Russia etc (where the upper limit is only 10 microwatts/cm2) it doesn’t provide enough information for North America. And yes, whilst obviously, anything over 10 microwatts/cm2 is not safe, I still want to know HOW much radiation over the safe limit my kids (and I!) are being exposed to.
The other feature about this meter you need to keep in mind is that it reads BOTH RF (radio frequency) microwave radiation and magnetic fields. So if you get an unsafe reading in your child’s classroom, for example, you won’t know whether that’s due to the WiFi or the lighting in the room – so you would need to turn off all the lights and unplug anything in the room. But again, if you don’t care about the details and budget is key, then this one may meet your needs.
This meter covers 50 Hz – 3 GHz – so it will give you readings for most cell phones, wireless computers and cell towers. However, the newer generation of cordless phones and other technology on the 5.8 GHz frequency will not be picked up by this meter. More details here… (scroll down the page)
2. E-Alert Meter ($29.95) – Another really simple RF meter – but like the one above, this one also measures magnetic fields, which is either a benefic