User question
Hello!
Please tell me, with one problem ... I have an ordinary 2-room apartment, in one of the rooms there is a router - the Internet works well in it. In another room, the Wi-Fi signal is very weak and the laptop (and the phone too) is working very badly, the connection is often broken ...
How to strengthen the signal of the Wi-Fi network so that you can safely work with the Internet throughout the apartment? (I am already thinking of extending the wire - but this is very inconvenient)
Thanks in advance, Svetlana.
Good day.
In general, many factors can affect the speed and quality of Wi-Fi network reception: from the router model to the layout of your apartment (the location of walls, furniture, mirrors, etc.). Naturally, it is difficult to give specific recommendations for your case (without knowing how and what).
But in this article I will give all the main things that you need to pay attention to if you want to improve the reception and increase the range of your Wi-Fi network.
So...
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Ways to Boost Wi-Fi Signal
A few words about the important characteristics of the router
Many users choose too cheap router models, in spite of their characteristics. Meanwhile, quite often these budget devices often cannot provide the speed even in 2 ÷ 4 Mbyte / s, constantly cutting off the connection.
In general, here my short summary is this: for the network to work normally throughout the house, you must have a modern router (the word is underlined for a reason).
What to look for when choosing a router:
- support max. data transfer rates: from 300 Mbit per second (note: operating modes "AC" or "N");
- 2 or more antennas (the larger the antenna, the stronger the signal, as a rule);
- RAM: not less than 128 Megabytes is desirable;
- processor: with a frequency of at least 240 Megahertz;
- router brand from a well-known brand: Zyxel (Keenetic line), D-Link, ASUS, Tenda, Tp-link and Trendnet.
Tenda router: look for models with 4 (6) antennas. They provide the best signal strength
To help!
By the way, quite good routers today can be purchased in Chinese online stores - //ocomp.info/kitayskie-internet-magazinyi.html
Signal level in the router settings
In some models of routers, you can manually adjust signal strength (This especially applies to models with 4 or more antennas).
By default, usually, the signal level in the settings is set to an average value. If it is not enough for you, you should change the parameter to maximum .
Most often, this parameter can be changed in the wireless settings in the web interface of the router. How it looks in a Tenda device is shown in the screenshot below.
To help! How to open the Wi-Fi router settings (enter the web interface). What to do if the settings page does not open - //ocomp.info/kak-zayti-v-nastroyki-routera.html
Wireless signal strength / Tenda router
Please note that for some routers, in order to change the signal level, you need to use additional. tab (example - TP-Link, required parameter - "Transmitter power").
TP-Link - wireless setting
Important!
In the English version of the router firmware, the signal level is indicated as Transmit Power or Tx Power .
Where is the router located
The distance from the router to the laptop (phone or other device that receives the signal) affects the signal quality very much. Also keep in mind that walls, mirrors, glass, metal doors, etc. - can seriously reduce the signal level.
I do not know what layout the user who asked the question has, but in the article I will give one of the most popular (for 2-room apartments). In the figure below, I showed schematically two options for placing the router:
Option 1 (left): the router is in one of the rooms. Another room behind the wall, overcoming which, the signal will become weaker by an order of magnitude.The Wi-Fi speed of a laptop in this room is likely to perform significantly worse (slower) than a laptop in the same room as the router.
Option 2 (on the right): if you put the router in the corridor, then two laptops, in fact, will be in the line of sight of the router (except for the interior doors - which, usually, are not as dense as the front doors and do not have a significant effect on the signal quality influence). Naturally, this option is preferable.
The location of the router in the apartment: on the right - the option is much more successful
The layout is, of course, schematic and each case is individual. But try to place the router so that the devices are as close to it as possible so that the signal has to bend around as few obstacles as possible.
And one more thing: try not to place the router on the floor - it is much better to hang it on the wall a meter from the floor (or put it on a shelf, you can even on the highest one 👌).
Is the radio channel of your network the same as your neighbor's?
Surely, when you looked for and connected to your Wi-Fi network, you saw that in addition to your network, there are several other neighbors. Everything would be fine, but if the radio channels are the same for everyone, the quality of the network signal will be much lower (breaks are possible).
In general, 13 channels are used in Russia (from 1 to 13, respectively). In general, this is enough not to overlap with neighbors. ✌
To find out which channels are used by routers located near you (behind the wall 😊), you need a special utility - InSSIDer.
Note. Similar information can also be found in the settings of the router (at least, your channel).
InSSIDer
//inssider.ru.uptodown.com/windows
A simple free utility. Once launched, select your adapter (wireless or Wireless) in the settings, and click the scan button. In a moment, you will see all Wi-Fi networks in your area, their name, speed, channel, etc. properties (see the screenshot below). See which channels are not busy and remember them (or those that are least used).
In my example below, 12, 7, 5, 2 channels are free.
Wi-Fi channels
Now, having determined the more or less optimal channel, you need to go to the router settings.
To help! Instructions for entering the router settings - //ocomp.info/kak-zayti-v-nastroyki-routera.html
In the web interface of the router, open the section "Wireless Settings" (if you have an English version of the firmware, something like "Wireless Settings").
Next, find the line "Channel" (for English - Channel) and change the value from "Auto" to your optimal (for example, "5" ). Save the settings (the router should go to reboot).
Configuring a channel in a TP-Link router
Is your Wi-Fi network password protected?
Of course, this advice is trivial, and yet ...
Some users, for some reason, do not set a password on their Wi-Fi network (some - to make it easier and faster to connect to their network, others - believe that they have nothing on the network that should be protected).
Here the fact is that your network can simply be occupied by downloading any files (movies, games, etc.). Thus, the access speed will drop ...
A similar case happened with one of my acquaintances, who every evening complained about his network. And the reason was that in the evening a neighbor connected to his network and downloaded torrent files ... 😊
Below is a link to an article on how to set or change a password for a Wi-Fi network.
To help!
How to set or change the password for Wi-Fi - //ocomp.info/kak-postavit-parol-na-wi-fi.html
Antenna on the router - shouldn't you replace it?
Any antenna has such an indicator as signal gain, and it is measured in dBi (dBi). For standard router antennas, this figure is usually 2-5 dBi (which is not very much).
To strengthen the antenna - many "craftsmen" suggest fixing various things on it: most often, cut from aluminum cans (as in the photo below). As a rule, they give minimal effect ...
An example of an antenna on an aluminum can router
A much greater effect can be obtained by purchasing and installing a special antenna at 10-20 dBi (i.e., the signal gain will be several times higher).In addition, such antennas come with an extension cord, and you can place it in a more convenient place than right next to the router. In general, a good way out, in my humble opinion ...
Note! How to order an antenna (or other product) on AliExpress at a discount (online purchase with savings) - //ocomp.info/kak-zakazat-tovar-na-aliekspres.html
Antenna at 10 dBi
Repeater (signal amplification and extension of the network radius)
In addition to buying an antenna, you can think about buying repeater ... A very useful thing in large houses and apartments.
For reference
A repeater is a special device that is designed to increase the range and improve the signal of a Wi-Fi network. The point of the device is that it receives a Wi-Fi signal from a router and distributes it. Thus, thanks to this device, it is possible to expand the Wi-Fi zone to the entire large house (apartment).
The layout below shows a large two-story house with a repeater installed by the stairs: to amplify the signal on the second floor and in the room around the corner.
How the repeater works (sample diagram)
By the way, the repeater is a small box (something like a power supply) that is connected to a regular outlet (example below). Its settings are very simple, so I don't even dwell on them in this article ...
TP-Link repeater
The price for an average repeater in Russia fluctuates around 800-1500 rubles. (relatively inexpensive when compared to the cost of a new router or wall drilling and cabling).
Wi-Fi adapters test: an external adapter wins by an order of magnitude
And the last thing I wanted to dwell on.
The Wi-Fi adapter built into the laptop (with which it receives the signal) is not very powerful (usually). And the results of a small test using standard Windows tools fully confirm this (look at the screenshot below - it shows the results):
- on the left - the most ordinary laptop found only one Wi-Fi network (note: the router was behind the wall);
- on the right - external Wi-Fi adapter Alfa 036H found 8 wireless networks (note: under the same conditions)!
A regular laptop and Wi-Fi adapter Alfa AWUS036NHR (not advertising, given as an example!)
The logical conclusion follows itself: if you want to improve Wi-Fi reception on your laptop or PC (TV) - maybe you should think about a normal external Wi-Fi adapter ?!
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In general, the choice is yours. All the options proposed in the article give real results and directly affect the quality and speed of your Wi-Fi network.
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Add-ons are welcome ...
And that's all for me, good luck!
👋
First publication: 28.07.2017
Correction of the article: 08/10/2019
