Perimeter WiFi Dog Fence
Pros
- Rechargeable Collar Battery
- Boundary Challenge Alert
Cons
- Inconsistent Boundary
- Frequent Signal Drops
- Difficulty With Obstacles
- Cannot Overlap Base Stations
Rating
Retail Price
$399.95
Our Price
$329.95
Availability: In Stock
Orders before 1pm ship same day
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The Perimeter Technologies introduced a wifi wireless dog fence to compete with Petsafe’s wireless dog fence in June 2009. Perimeter Technologies uses WiFi technologies and boasts a range of useful features never before seen in a dog fence. We see the WiFi fence as a real innovation in dog fencing because it actually alerts you as to where your dogs are and if they are challenging the fence. We have had the unit for a couple of months now. See the following link for an an initial wifi fence review. It has a lot of good features, but unfortunately it is not ready for primetime.
Summary: The Perimeter Technologies WiFi Dog trumps the PetSafe Wireless. The added range and the extra features make this a clear win. In particular we like the addition of the alert when the dog challenges the fence and the provision of rechargeable batteries. We do have some reservations around initial units, particularly their ability to penetrate walls, respond quickly to breaches, and give a crisp boundary. In-ground systems are still clearly the better technology for the moment.
We start by noting that there are a lot of features that making the WiFi really tempting:
First, range is significantly boosted over the Petsafe model. The system claims a range of 200 feet, giving it a coverage over 2.5 acres. Our early tests show range was in fact better, but we struggled to get a range better than 150 feet in typical conditions. A significant increase over the PetSafe model which has a maximum radius of 90 feet. So the range is much better but not quite as good as claimed. In particular the unit has a lot of trouble where it has to go through multiple walls. Where there is a clear line of site it shines, but put it in a large house and you get lots of dropouts and the range plummets. Also not that the unit, like the PetSafe model can only project circular boundaries and does not work well in a house with metal siding or a metal roof.
Second, the WiFi Fence has two way communication between the collar and the base unit, a first in the industry. This allows you to use the base unit to determine how far away the dogs are from your home. And even more importantly you can be alerted when your dogs attempt to challenge the fence, when their battery is low or when they are no longer in communication with the base unit for any reason. In our tests, this worked really well. It was a nice feature to be alerted when the dog challenged the fence because we could go outside straight away and investigate. The feature that gives you the distance the dog is from the base station provided some entertainment but was of little practical use because it does not tell you in what direction the dog is relative to the base station.
Third, Perimeter Technologies lets you adjust up to two collars independently. The model cannot support more than two collar per base station. We are not sure if you can use multiple base stations to overcome that limitation. So at the moment it is not for people with more than two dogs.
Fourth, batteries for this model are rechargeable. In fact you get two rechargeable batteries, one for the base station (in case of a power failure) and one for the collar. This puts the Wifi Fence further ahead of the PetSafe model which is not rechargeable. (rant warning) We are big proponents of rechargeable batteries. Not only are they convenient, and better for the environment but they are also safer. Proprietary batteries often lead to situations where people’s dogs are in danger because the batteries are flat and they have to wait to get new batteries in the mail. (rant over)
Battery life seems decent, we got over a week with the collar without needing to recharge the battery.
But, ultimately we don’t think the WiFi is a good buy yet. Early customer opinions on the unit are hit or miss. We are hearing more complaints about these units than we do about all other systems combined. Complaints seem to center around use where there is no clear line of site, signal dropouts, and the unit being slow to respond when the boundary is breached.
The wifi does not seem to be very good at penetrating walls in many installations. Metal is it’s kryptonite. If you have a metal roof or metal siding, it will not work. Even without metal it doesn’t get through walls for a lot of people and has a lot of trouble with other obstacles like trees.
Lots of people have dropouts, where the unit looses communication with the base station even in plain line of site. Our test unit did not have the dropout problem, but we have noticed this problem in subsequent units.
Most maddeningly, the boundary is vague and can take a couple of seconds to respond once the boundary is breached. This makes it hard to train the dogs as they aren’t regularly getting the correction. We only get a lag of 2-3 seconds at normal ranges but have got reports from customers of 10+ second especially when at the maximum range. This also means you need a larger safety buffer between the boundary and the street to feel comfortable that the dogs are going to be kept safe from harm.
There is promise in the units, that later versions will fix these bugs. But until then, our advice is to stick to wired units.
The WiFi Dog Fence base unit will be $299 (including one collar). Additional collars will be $149. You can use two collars at the same time. At least with initial units, you will not be able to overlap base stations like you can on the PetSafe Wireless PIF-300.
Summary: The Perimeter Technologies WiFi Dog trumps the PetSafe Wireless. The added range and the extra features make this a clear win. In particular we like the addition of the alert when the dog challenges the fence and the provision of rechargeable batteries. We do have some reservations around initial units, particularly their ability to penetrate walls, respond quickly to breaches, and give a crisp boundary. In-ground systems are still clearly the better technology for the moment.
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Model |
Perimeter Technologies Wifi Fence |
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Type |
Wireless |
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Collar Battery |
Rechargeable – Lithium Ion |
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Correction Levels |
8 Levels |
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Beep Only Training Mode |
Yes |
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Collar Warning beep |
Yes |
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Collar Vibration |
No |
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Independent Correction Levels |
Yes |
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Collar Dimensions |
??” (L) x ??” (W) x ??” (D) |
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Collar Neck Size |
??” – ??” |
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Collar Water Resistance |
Waterproof |
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Collar Fit Test |
No |
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Maximum Number of Dogs |
Two |
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Minimum Dog Size |
20 lbs |
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Minimum Age |
6 months |
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Maximum Containment Area |
2.5 acres |
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Boundary Radius |
0-200 feet (adjustable) |
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Control Box Dimensions |
??” (L) x ??” (W) x ??“ (D) |
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Control Box Power Source |
Wall Outlet (110V) |
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Control Box Battery Backup |
Yes – rechargeable lithium ion |
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Indoor Pod Compatibility |
No |
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Outdoor Pod Compatibility |
No |
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Included Boundary Wire |
n/a |
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Included Boundary Flags |
50 |
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Training Materials |
Manual |
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Other |
n/a |
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Package Dimensions |
12” (L) x 8” (W) x 6″ (D) |
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Package Weight |
4 lbs |
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Warranty |
Limited Lifetime |
For the Wifi Fence Manual click here. (PDF)
You can order a Wifi Fence from our online store, here. They will typically ship out the next business day.
{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }
I’m interested in how customers are liking the wifi pet fence. In the review it said there would be an update. Just wondered how it’s going.
How old should the dog be to use this type of fencing (or any electric fencing)? Also, is there a dog size issue like the Petsafe wireless system? We have a lab puppy and she is very active. I want to purchase the best system. I appreciate any information!
Thanks!
ADMIN – Hi Giles,
You should avoid using an electric dog fence on a puppy under 6 months old. (If you absolutely must, you can do 4 months provided they can perform the training basics, sit-stay-come with ease). But try and wait.
You can use the WiFi or PetSafe on dogs 15+ pounds.
As to the best system, I would always choose one of the wired systems (e.g. Innotek IUC-4100) over the wireless. You get a much cleaner boundary line and a much more reliable easier to train correction. It is definately worth the one day of work installing a wired system. But if wired doesn’t suit your property – I would lean toward the WiFi over the PetSafe.
We purchased the WiFi system only to be disappointed. The above review of the system mentions that the Wifi has problems maintaining its signal through walls. (“Complaints seem to center around use where there is no clear line of site, signal dropouts, and the unit being slow to respond when the boundary is breached”. )This definitely was true for our situation. We could only get a signal when the front door was open and that was in a straight line from the base. We couldn’t get ANY signal in any other direction. We ended up getting the PetSafe wireless system yesterday and in 5 minutes the system was completely setup and there’s no problems with dropped signals through walls, etc. I’m so satisfied with the PetSafe product and have the Wifi boxed up and ready to head back company.
Problems this unit is junk. They need to take it off the market. From the first day it would drop signal and my dog would be off and running. I can’t see they ever tested this junk. Very disatisfied with unit.
I have had problems with this unit penetrating any wall in my house. It is sitting in the box right now. I would not purchase this if you are looking to buy a wireless fence.
I got one a few days ago. I have a farm, the dog keeps chasing the neighbors cat. He’s a nice guy but our dog is not nice to his cats.
We have several Large horse trailers and several vehicles on the property. Not to mention the barn is sided and roofed in metal.
Initial test are proving pretty well. We can reliably get about 285 (so says the base unit). Seems to work even with a horse trailer in the way. With several horse trailers in the way there are holes in the signal.
This is with the unit on the roof of my truck parked in front of the barn. The barns metal siding may be acting as a reflector aiding in picking up the signal.
Some of the things I think are awfull about the WiFi fence system.
-No on/off switch on either the base station or the collar. Not very well thought out at all.
which I can barely feel. Level one on this collar lights me up like an electric fence! And when it hits him he yelps like he’s just been kicked. So I’ve been using just the tone, it works well for him. Please fix this problem!
-Build quality is not very good. The unit looks/feel very cheap.
-Collar does not beep for any amount of time before the dog gets correction. It tones and zaps a the same time.
-Correction level 1 is far too harsh! On my sportdog sd1800 collar my dog responds well to level 2 (out of
-You cant set the range from the base station. This is just silly. You should be able to set the range from the unit if you like.
-Would like to be able to ‘call’ the dog from the base unit with tone. But thats not really needed.
-The system menus are not exactly easy to maneuver through.
I am currently working on a Range Extension unit for the WiFi fence to increase the power for sending and recieving and also adding a external antenna on the unit for mounting away from the base station. Tests should be completed by next week. If anyone is interested in this you can email me Nojunk81@gmail.com
I like the idea of wireless, but this wireless dog fence did not work at all. As the reviewers above note it drops out and starts beeping a lot, scaring the hell out of the dog and me! This happens even in plain sight. I called Perimeter Wifi and they were nice, but could not fix the problem.
I exchanged it for a wired system and it worked perfectly, wish I did this in the first place.
I just exchanged (not recevied yet) an earlier model of this unit for an updated version through the company. Jen in customer service was very nice and took care of it professionally; with no issues.
Serial# on the base station was 939.
We have purchased this product ( Perimeter Wire Free WiFi Fence ) for our dog.
Setting up is not that bad once you get the hang of how to do it, did not like the fact that the boundary is in a circle which went into our front yard, but we managed. For the first week we thought it was pretty good, our dog would hear the beep and run on the back deck, as long as he was on a leash he would respond. The first time we took him off the leash he ran right through the boundary and got shocked but kept running. We knew we had more training to do with him. After 2 weeks the unit would not even shock him and the batteries would not keep a charge, so we sent it back and recieved a new system. We have had the new system for a week and a half now and the new system is not working now. It beeps, charges the batteries but does not shock him, he has even went past the boundary with the colar beeping a just laid down. I have just contacted the company for a full refund. I can not see spending $300.00 for this product and have noting but problems and not working for us. I am looking now for another way to find something else for our dog. I have been reading many reviews on different products wire less and wire fences, only to see many bad reviews with the same problem I am having with this product ! Might just save up for a fence atleast I know that to work ! This product is not worth the money just a bunch of headache.
After reading the negative reviews, I was nervous to take the plunge. But with a 30 day money back guarantee I figured why not?
My first impressions are quite different than other reviewers – I thought the product appeared well built and did not appear at all cheap, in fact it seemed robust.
Had some intial troubles setting up (I am not the most tech savy) but the person I reached on the customer service 1-800 number was most helpful. Seems placing the unit next to the fridge was not the best idea. Moved to a different spot and easily got a decent boundary (70′). My property is a little over a hundred feet wide so any more range and my dog would be in the neighbors yard. I did play around and got 100 feet, but reset to 70′. I do agree that it would be nice to just “dial in ” the range instead of running in and out of the house.
Battery life has been around a week, though my dog “bumps” the boundary quite a few times a day. It is really nice to know what he is doing! I would consider a wired product if it offered the feedback, I just like to know all is well.
I was leery of rechargeable batteries, I hate throwing away a product because the batteries die and you can’t replace them. The batteries in the Wire Free wifi fence are replaceable (thats how you charge them, you take them out and charge in the base) – and you can buy replacements on the web.
I found the lower shock levels to be too low (tried them myself and they were only a tingle). Setting 3 and 4 will get your attention, setting 5 hurts! However setting 5 works well. Maybe when he starts challenging less I will back the setting down a little.
The only time I experienced issues similar to the other reviewers was when I placed the base next to the fridge – ever since moving it all has been well. I am really pleased I decided to take the plunge and my neighbors are amazed with the system. I am worried that neighboring systems will interfere, but the girl at customer support assured me they would not.
This product is easy to setup with a preset distance already built in. Moving in and out of the menus was easy as well as changing the corrections. I found no problems walking around my house with the collar and also noticed that it started beeping within 3 feet of where I set the boundary. I set the boundary to be 100′. Being able to setup the system by myself was very simple. The rechargeable batteries have been lasting me about 7-10 days.
The thing I really like the most is being alerted to when my dog challenges the system!
Due to the negative feedback in regards to problems transmitting through walls etc… It sounds like the system should have an external antenna that could be positioned in the center of a roof. My house is situated in the center of the area where i would like the dog enclosed, so this would be perfect… until this problem is resolved i will not be purchasing this product!!
America Outdoor, an internet merchant, failed to fully refund the price paid for a defective Perimeter WiFi Dog Fence System. The merchandise was returned within 20 days after purchase, carefully re-packed in the original box, clean and in new condition. Following is an excerpt from the letter to America Outdoor requesting a full refund and explaining the defective system.
This system does not perform as it claims. We spent an entire day trying to set the perimeter.
There is no consistency in the distance from base station to the Activation Zone. Most of the time it is not even close, sometimes varying more than 30 feet short of or beyond the point of initial activation — much greater than the claimed Activation Zone of +/- 3 feet. Sometimes, it will not even activate at all anywhere along the line extending from the base station and through a previously-set activation point, allowing “holes” in the fence where it does not
activate.
Additionally, there are extreme variations in the width of the Correction Zone, well beyond the claimed width of 5 feet to 10 feet (diagram says 3 feet to 10 feet). As with the Activation Zone, the variation of the Correction Zone is random and often exceeds 30 feet. These substantial and randomly-occuring inaccuracies result in an extremely irregularly shaped Safe Zone whose boundary is ever-changing and totally unpredictable. If I cannot predict where it will activate, our dog certainly will not be able to do so.
Such an erratic system will be impossible for even the most intelligent dog to learn because the boundaries are always changing. In order to avoid the unpredictable, unfair, painful corrections, it is reasonable to expect that our dog would cower at the side of the house, as close as he can get to the base station inside, terrified of moving too far.
Well after reading all these reviews it’s all truth. As someone who has this system since july 2009 till today let me put some things i do like about it. After i trained my doges for a while and made sure they know there boundaries(of course they got shocked few times)I decided to use this system only with the buzzer correction since the system is really not consistent with the corrections distance. The good thing about it is my dogs know when to come back to our yard without getting shocked and we know where the dogs are at all times.
And most important the customer service is really the best out there. I had the whole unit and collars replaced recently to more updated one, so i hope one day they will get it to work right.
This unit should have never been placed on the market. It was totally useless and a major waste of time. I bought this unit from an online store “Pet Street Mall” . They only refunded $260 of my original $300. So add a waste of money to the list!