I'm somewhat familiar with networking but haven't set up a WiFi extender before. My parents have one to help cover their large ranch house, which has a decent router but lacks range for their 200mb download plan. The extender they have claims to boost speeds up to 300mb on 2.4 GHz and cover about 3000 sq ft. However, after setting it up right next to the router, the internet speed tests at around 7mb, and just moving a couple of rooms away drops it to less than 1mb. The original network also keeps dropping out until I unplug the extender. Am I missing something? Could the extender be defective?
5 Answers
For larger houses, I often suggest getting another router and running a CAT 6 cable from an open LAN port on the main router to the WAN port of the second router. Set the second router to a different channel from the first, and give them the same SSID and password. This way, your devices will switch seamlessly between the two routers without losing speed.
True, but it works well for basic internet usage. Just remember that if you have devices needing local network access, there might be some issues.
It's essential to evaluate what kind of router you have. Does it support mesh networking? Can you set up a wired backhaul? Ideally, place the extender in an area with a decent signal to begin with instead of a weak spot. If your original router isn’t mesh-capable, it could be causing problems with overlapping signals. Consider using different SSIDs for each device to prevent interference. Mesh systems will allow devices to communicate effectively and switch based on signal strength, which should resolve those connectivity issues.
It sounds like that WiFi extender is really underperforming. Generally, extenders can be hit or miss, but yours seems particularly ineffective. I’d recommend returning it and investing in a mesh networking system instead, as they handle large spaces much better.
Keep in mind that extenders usually halve your bandwidth. So whatever speed you get on 2.4 GHz gets cut down significantly—probably down to about 75mb at best in ideal conditions. Plus, interference is a major issue on that frequency. What speed do you get on the 2.4 GHz when connected directly to the router? Also, the dropping might be because the extender is broadcasting so strongly that devices are connecting to it instead of the main router, which can mess up performance a lot.
Unfortunately, what you’re experiencing is common with extenders. They might work okay in theory, but in practice, they can cause a lot of headaches. For reliable service, switching to a mesh system or using a dedicated router as an access point will likely improve everything.
But then you'd be double NATing over half the house, right?