Question WiFi Extender

Tuddy

Prominent Member
Joined
Aug 17, 2005
Messages
993
Reaction score
708
Points
405
Location
Bury St Edmunds
Could anyone give a recommendation for a WiFi extender around £30 or less. I have an Amazon voucher to use and this is the only thing I think could be of use for me to spend it on.:)

Many thanks.
 
It would be worth exploring how you intend to establish the "backhaul" link between the "extender" and the rest of your network.

"Proper" cabled ethernet would be best, in which case you need something called a Wireless Access Point (AKA "WAP" or "AP.") Or you can "cripple" and old SOHO router and use it as such (see "Using Two Routers Together" FAQ pinning in this forum.)

If domestic harmony precludes installig ethernet cables, then a backhaul tunneled over the mains electricity supply using HomePlug/Powerline technology is (probably) next best. In which case, have read of the "HomePlugs" FAQ pinned in this forums. Though it's doubtful you'd do it for GBP 30 unless you buy really old & slow variants.

If you are intending to use Wi-Fi for the backhaul then you need something called a Wi-Fi "repeater." These work by listening to the airwaves, copying each Wi-Fi transmission, waiting for the airwaves to go quiet, then broadcasting an almost verbatim copy of the original transmissions. Trouble is, Wi-Fi is an "only one thing at a time can transmit" technology and as such the "original" and "repeats" cannot occur at the same time, so repeaters can half, or worse, the throughput ("speed.") Thusly, repeaters have their use case, but we generally regard them as "least good" and to be avoided unless there is no alternative. Therefore, unless you have a "problem" with coverage, you wouldn't want to deploy a repeater "for the hell of it" as it would (probably) make your speeds worse, not better.
 
I can get a signal upstairs be it weak, it's just that one of the TVs in the extension is unable to pick up a signal I was wondering if this would be the answer.
 
I'm in the same boat on this. TV in master bedroom has some buffering issues with Amazon Video. I'm looking at the TP-Link range of Wi-Fi extenders as a quick fix by placing one in a socket on the landing to give better coverage upstairs. Amazon carry the full range and also have a number in the warehouse deals. Any thoughts @mickevh ?
 
I can't really add much to what I said in post 2. I wouldn't use a repeater (ever) unless there's no other alternative. But then I do networking for a living and I don't mind getting the drills out and running cables where they need to be.

If your TV has an ethernet socket, you could forego Wi-Fi all together and use either a direct cabled ethernet connection or a link over the mains using HomePlugs. You could even look for a combination ethernet/Wi-Fi HomePlug for the bedroom and get the benefit of both.

Of course, you are assuming your buffering issues are down to Wi-Fi - have you done any testing to determine that is the case, there are other reasons for it occurring.
 
Limited on a few things. Can't get a run to this location as I'm out of space on the router and I'm not chasing this location due to mess involved. Can't use the power lineeded either as TV is wall mounted.

Tried a TP-LINK link RE210 and it ain't made no difference so the problem is elsewhere I'm guessing
 
If you've bought a repeater, you might try experimenting a bit with physical positioning (and the antenna orientation.) The repeater needs to "in range" of a good signal from your "base" router as well as the coverage hole (TV.) Otherwise the repeater will suffer all the same issues as any client device if you locate it in the poor coverage area.

So if R is your router, T is your TV and X is your repeater, you need to be more like this...

R-----X-----T

not this....

R---------X-T
 
Only got one plug halfway in between. If I change to an AC1200 from an AC750 would that make any difference?
 
Nah - the Wi-Fi protocols will automatically step down to slower modulation schemes (speeds) if the signalling conditions cannot maintain the best possible (in all Wi-Fi protocols, not just AC.) It might surprise a lot of readers that the initial Association rates are a nominal figure anyway - actual Wi-Fi transmit rates can vary moment to moment as signalling conditions change. On posh enterprise class gear we can run all sorts of reports that give break downs of what percentage of packets were sent/received at what rates. (It's something to do on Friday afternoons when we've been down the pub for lunch and don't want to do anything "dangerous." :D )

Sometimes if we've got a really dodgy connection, we can try and "supress" some of the faster modulation schemes thereby forcing use of the lower ones. However, I suspect SOHO gear lacks the capability to do this sort of thing (and there's only 2 out of 9 you can suppress in AC anyway - indeed some SOHO kit doesn't offer the 2 fastest AC schemes in the first place.)

If you don't have any clients that use particular protocols, and your kit will let you, you could try and turn off some of the protocols. For example, if you don't have any "B" clients, turn off B, if you don't have any "G" clients, turn off G, etc. At time if writing, it's good bet most of your kit is either N and/or AC.

But this is all in the realm of "forlorn hope" unfortunately, if you've got crap signalling conditions, you've got crap signalling conditions and the only "real" fix is to improve the signalling conditions and that almost always means getting the communicating peers closer together with fewer obstructions.
 
Last edited:

The latest video from AVForums

Is 4K Blu-ray Worth It?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom