Wireless vs. Wired Data Loggers: Which Is Right for Your Lab?

With mobile devices, Bluetooth, and more outside and inside the lab, we are technologically and culturally conditioned to think "wireless = good; wired = bad", but that's not always the case when it comes to the data loggers used in the modern laboratory.

Why? The primary issue can be boiled down to one word: reliability.

If you're on the phone chatting, or listening to music via Bluetooth, and a connection drops, no big deal. You call back. You restart. A brief break in connectivity is not the end of the world.

In the lab, however, it could be. A data logger that loses connection—say, one monitoring temperature stability in a freezer storing critical samples or tracking humidity in a controlled environment—could mean disaster. Equipment could drift out of spec, and you'd have no record of when or why. In the lab, being offline—even for a moment or two—leaves far too much to chance.

It's tempting, of course: going wireless looks clean and can save a few bucks upfront. But these short-run gains can be quickly eliminated should you discover a data gap in your logger's records because it was ever-so-briefly offline.

There are other issues, too—such as security and reliance on external networks—that we'll explore below.

Wireless Data Loggers Create Internet Dependencies

As everyone knows, having a stable internet connection is never guaranteed. If your lab relies on 100% wireless data loggers, that means it's also 100% dependent on a 100% stable internet connection.

Should you have a poor connection or a lack of connection entirely , data collected by your wireless logger will not be delivered. In some cases, depending on the wireless data logger equipment, it may not even be stored locally on the device.

Outside the lab, a "spotty" Wi-Fi connection in a conversation can mean you miss a few words, but you can generally understand the conversation. But unstable Wi-Fi can disrupt a data logger, causing missed data points that leave your audit trail deficient. Such connectivity issues can also result in alarms being overlooked, allowing preventable excursions to go unnoticed and potentially leading to the loss of research, samples, and more.

Lab work is complicated enough to begin with. It shouldn't be further complicated by whether or not you have a stable internet connection.

When your data loggers are wired, you eliminate spotty connections. Wired data loggers don't depend on the network and can continuously collect, store, and transmit data—even when nothing else is.

READ MORE: The Difference Between a Data Acquisition System & Data Logger

Gaps in Bluetooth Data Loggers

In our day-to-day lives, Bluetooth connections are great. They give us mobility, connectivity, and more. But when it comes to data loggers and lab environments, Bluetooth devices have gaps that make using them unfeasible in the modern lab.

According to the Federal Communications Commission, Bluetooth, as a wireless data transfer standard, can pose cybersecurity risks that should not be overlooked. And while the lack of security may be Bluetooth's most glaring deficiency, there are also connectivity issues, just like those discussed above.

Bluetooth connections—especially in data loggers—can be incredibly unpredictable and are not guaranteed. A logger's Bluetooth signal relies heavily on the distance between devices, and in a lab, such distances are rarely uncongested. The signal must traverse equipment, storage tanks, cabinets, appliances, and more to reach your receiver or hub, which often results in the signal not being received. And when it fails, your data logger sits silent.

The number of devices connected to a Bluetooth receiver can also weaken a connection. The more data loggers you connect, the weaker the connection is across all devices—a compounding problem as your monitoring needs scale.

Another critical issue with wireless data loggers, which often goes unaddressed, is the "alarm floods" that occur during connection drops. When a wireless device loses and then regains its connection, it can bombard users with hundreds of automated messages announcing the connection loss and recovery. 

This excessive volume of notifications creates significant noise, burying real, critical alarms that could otherwise go unnoticed. Not only does this expose labs to significant risk, but it also creates distrust in the monitoring system, leading to a "boy who cried wolf" scenario in which users are asked to sift through unnecessary alerts.

However, wired data loggers always have a direct, dedicated connection, ensuring that data transmitted from your sensor to your database or reporting dashboard travels from point A to point B without disruption or delay.

READ MORE: 7 Common Problems with Data Loggers — and How to Solve Them

Wireless Isn't All Bad

While we make the case for wired data loggers over wireless ones for most modern biotech, IVF, and similar laboratories, there are some cases where wireless may be a fit—such as smaller start-up labs with simple floor plans (ideally, no more than a room or two), few pieces of equipment, and minimal monitoring needs.

But for larger labs and facilities with data loggers distributed across multiple rooms or floors, a wired data logger system is a much safer solution. It also ensures the integrity of the data you're collecting—data that simply can't weather a spotty connection or a gap in your record.

For many large-scale laboratories, the primary obstacle to deploying a dedicated, hardwired data logger system is simply cost. And it's true: building and installing a wired system costs considerably more than going wireless. But there's a middle ground: getting a dedicated, hardwired data logger system delivered as a service. This approach brings the cost-efficiency of outsourced monitoring together with the reliability and security benefits of being hardwired.

READ MORE: Keeping Your Science Safe With Laboratory Monitoring

Final Thoughts

The work your scientists do in their labs—gene therapies, sequencing, in-vitro fertilization, cryobank storage, and more—is far too critical to be subject to the risks of wireless uptime and security vulnerabilities. And we know that "wiring the lab" yourself can be costly. 

But when you combine the cost-efficiencies of data logger monitoring as a service with the security and reliability benefits of being hardwired, you create a lab monitoring solution that delivers the best of both worlds.

Learn more about how to protect your valuable samples, IP, equipment, and data integrity in the white paper "How to Secure Critical Life Science Assets and Environments"