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Old 01-14-2021, 01:03 PM   #41
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A wired connection is going to give you faster and more reliable service if you have that option. My wife uses a USB3.1 Hub for her home office computer and obtains our full 80-100Mbps download speed. I don't see why a dedicated USB-C to ethernet adapter would work any different. Such as this one:

https://www.amazon.com/Ethernet-Adap.../dp/B077KXY71Q

If you need (or prefer) a wireless connection, you should probably buy a new Wi-Fi router that supports newer protocols and locate it as close to the center of your house as possible.

I bought this one last year and placed it in our attic in the center of the house. I removed all of the other access points to prevent conflicts and avoid having to switch WiFi points as I move through the house:

https://www.amazon.com/TP-Link-AC190.../dp/B07NF3K74H

I have been quite happy with it. I get 60-70Mbps in most places around the house, and around 30-40Mbps out in the back yard. It is much faster than my old Netgear router and D-Link access points ever were.
For our situation a wireless solution is best because DS also would like his phone to get a respectable wifi connection. Connecting the laptop via ethernet cable does fix the primary concern, but would not help his phone connectivity problem.

Tell me more about replacing the router. The router we use is the one supplied by AT&T. It is Pace 5268AC. We also have VoIP phone service going through this router. I wouldn't begin to know how to select something different.

We might have to do some tests this afternoon with moving the router. We'd have to use the powerline adapters to do so, since we only have one wired connection into the house in my home office. DH is not keen on drilling holes to run wire above or below the house.
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Old 01-14-2021, 02:15 PM   #42
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It may be possible to configure anything to work anywhere, given enough time and knowledge. But you're out in the wild with a 10-year old device, and a product line that died out.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AirPort_Extreme

The recommended tool to troubleshoot WiFi and wired is called WiFi Analyzer. It shows the signals in an area, their strength, and protection status. Documenting all of your network devices with model no. and specifications is also part of troubleshooting.
Old Shooter also recommended WiFi Analyzer but it looks like this is a Microsoft tool that does not run on MacOS or iOS. Any suggestions for a Mac compatible product? I've been looking in Apple store, but to be honest, this is all a foreign language to me. I downloaded one yesterday called Fing - Network Scanner, but I didn't know how to read the data it was giving me. Looking again at it today, I don't think it does signal strength scans, just speed tests.
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Old 01-14-2021, 02:27 PM   #43
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I like an app called WiFi Scanner.
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Old 01-14-2021, 03:44 PM   #44
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That's what I have and I'm very happy with it for around two years now.
We've also had an Orbi mesh tri-band system for the past two years and are very happy with it. The new models have gotten very pricey though.
The "main unit" is upstairs in the office next to the modem, and the satellite is downstairs. Our house is about 2700 sqft. and we get good performance everywhere including the basement and about 80 ft. into the backyard. Both units have a couple of ethernet ports for wired connection. I have two 5-port switches attached to the main router unit and have DW's work computer, our main TV and a few other non-moveable items wired to it. I tried to wire anything I can to lessen the number of items on wi-fi to manage congestion. We have too many electronics in the house, especially with home automation. :-)
In the mornings when I walk the dog, I listen to a morning talk radio show on my phone. I disable the wi-fi on my phone before I leave the house, otherwise the phone will hang onto the wi-fi for almost a block and the last several feet hangs up the program.
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Old 01-14-2021, 04:15 PM   #45
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Old Shooter also recommended WiFi Analyzer but it looks like this is a Microsoft tool that does not run on MacOS or iOS. Any suggestions for a Mac compatible product? I've been looking in Apple store, but to be honest, this is all a foreign language to me. I downloaded one yesterday called Fing - Network Scanner, but I didn't know how to read the data it was giving me. Looking again at it today, I don't think it does signal strength scans, just speed tests.
WiFi Analyzer is an Android app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...hl=en_US&gl=US I don't know if there is a iThings version or not. From the page I linked you can scroll through sample page displays and get an idea of what the tool does. It sees like a no-brainer that someone would offer a similar Apple capability.

I use Fing from time to time and it is a useful tool, but not for this kind of thing.
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Old 01-14-2021, 09:13 PM   #46
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And then there's WiFi. OMG, how does anything work without a network admin?
After spending a good part of today learning more about wifi networks than I ever wanted to know, moving the router, running network scans (yes, the dBm rate in the back bedroom is really crappy) I've come to the conclusion that Target2019 is exactly right...How do we do this without a network admin? So the Airport Extreme is going to be retired to the E-waste pile and I'm ordering a TP-Link Access Point. I selected this brand because in a couple of review sites they are rated similarly to Netgear products but are a bit cheaper and offer a 2 yr vs 1 yr warranty. I don't know if this type of equipment fails within a year, but just in case. Also the powerline adapters that I ordered last week are TP-Link, so I'm trying to stay within the same product line for better compatibility.


Here's what I'm ordering: https://www.amazon.com/TP-Link-Wirel...s%2C247&sr=1-2


thanks all for your help. I'll let you if this resolves it in a couple days.
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Old 01-15-2021, 07:52 AM   #47
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Originally Posted by ocean view View Post
After spending a good part of today learning more about wifi networks than I ever wanted to know, moving the router, running network scans (yes, the dBm rate in the back bedroom is really crappy) I've come to the conclusion that Target2019 is exactly right...How do we do this without a network admin? So the Airport Extreme is going to be retired to the E-waste pile and I'm ordering a TP-Link Access Point. I selected this brand because in a couple of review sites they are rated similarly to Netgear products but are a bit cheaper and offer a 2 yr vs 1 yr warranty. I don't know if this type of equipment fails within a year, but just in case. Also the powerline adapters that I ordered last week are TP-Link, so I'm trying to stay within the same product line for better compatibility.


Here's what I'm ordering: https://www.amazon.com/TP-Link-Wirel...s%2C247&sr=1-2


thanks all for your help. I'll let you if this resolves it in a couple days.
I've noticed several posts by forum users about POE working well. I've never used, but it seems practical and worth a small investment.

Sorry about mentioning WiFi Analyzer, which is a Windows and Android application. Someone mentioned an Apple analyzer that should help you.

If you're like me you'll get bored by the 5th page of the 50-page manual and start plugging in. But I think it is wise to read that manual once or twice before going at it.
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Old 01-15-2021, 08:45 AM   #48
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Use a mesh wifi system instead for a long term solution. No more messing with extenders and signal issues.
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Old 01-15-2021, 08:53 AM   #49
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Use a mesh wifi system instead for a long term solution. No more messing with extenders and signal issues.
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Old 01-15-2021, 09:31 AM   #50
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For our situation a wireless solution is best because DS also would like his phone to get a respectable wifi connection. Connecting the laptop via ethernet cable does fix the primary concern, but would not help his phone connectivity problem.

Tell me more about replacing the router. The router we use is the one supplied by AT&T. It is Pace 5268AC. We also have VoIP phone service going through this router. I wouldn't begin to know how to select something different.

We might have to do some tests this afternoon with moving the router. We'd have to use the powerline adapters to do so, since we only have one wired connection into the house in my home office. DH is not keen on drilling holes to run wire above or below the house.
I'm no expert, but it would simply be a matter of selecting a new router, unplug everything from the old router, and plug them into the new one. New routers support faster wireless protocols, and have more antennas and other techniques to improve signal quality. In general, the more you pay the better the router is. The TP-Link router I chose was kind of middle ground. I suspect ANY new router will perform better than your old one.

If you can't move the router to a more central location, at least try to mount it higher up (on top of a bookshelf or something). Then the signal won't have to pass through all of the furniture and whatnot to reach your devices.

I started out by adding access points too. Unfortunately, this meant two different WiFi signals in the house. For instance, I would need to connect to the access point in our living room (stronger signal), and my main router on the other side of the house. Our newer cell phones handled the switch automatically, but our old tablets required us to manually choose a different WiFi connection when the signal got weak.

The solution I use is to disable the WiFi signal in my main router, so I could leave all of my current devices connected (it effectively just became an ethernet switch). Then I ran an ethernet cable from the old router to my new router for the WiFi signal. It works great, and prevents the two routers from competing over available WiFi channels.

As others mentioned, you could try a mesh network. Most people have good results with them, but for some reason they didn't work well in my home. I got a good connection everywhere but the speeds were quite slow. I get much better results with a single strong WiFi signal in the house.
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Old 01-17-2021, 01:32 PM   #51
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I'll let you if this resolves it in a couple days.
The access point arrived late yesterday afternoon. I had it installed before dinner. Needed to make a few tweaks to the set up after dinner and now it’s working fairly well.

DS reports speed test results of 65+Mbps and 50+Mbps for his phone and laptop, respectively. This compares to <5Mbps before. The RSSI is now -40 dBm, was -82 dBm.

He said he had a late zoom thing with a bunch of friends last night and it worked flawlessly.
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Old 01-17-2021, 02:05 PM   #52
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... DS reports speed test results of 65+Mbps and 50+Mbps for his phone and laptop, respectively. This compares to <5Mbps before.
Nice. Try the same tests with the laptop physically very near the router and with the laptop connected with a cable. Also try wired connection using the fastest computer you have, which should read pretty close to the speed you are paying for. Those three numbers will tell you whether the WiFi is limiting speed, or whether the laptop is limiting speed. WiFi connect and test the fast computer with a wire to get a fourth test number.

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...The RSSI is now -40 dBm, was -82 dBm.
Almost unbelievable numbers - 10,000 times more signal! My new router gave me about 10db more signal and I thought that was an amazing deal.
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