Wifi Extenders

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We have 3 floors in our house. Cable (Spectrum) guy said I would get a better wifi signal by plugging my router (Airport Extreme) directly into the back of my iMac and turning off wifi - so I’ve done that. (Is that what you all would recommend?) I have an older Airport Extreme that I use as a wifi extender on the top floor and it gives me adequate wifi into bedroom where I use my iPad. I’m considering getting another extender for the main floor because the signal isn’t too good in our kitchen (I use iPad in there also). I’m looking for recommendations for a wifi extender reasonably priced (under $100) that is VERY simple to install. I’d like to be able to purchase one at our local Best Buy and they sell so many, I’m overwhelmed. Is there any one brand/model that works best with a Mac?
 

Raz0rEdge

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Directly plugging into the Ethernet port is always going to be faster than WiFi (which is over the air and susceptible to interference from other devices, walls and so on).

If you intend to stick with the Airport Extreme, then you can pair them up to with as many Airport Expresses as you want to get the coverage you need.

However, know that the entire Airport line of hardware is no longer manufactured by Apple and isn't getting any updates at all. There are a lot newer routers that have much newer technologies (beam forming antennas, for example) and faster WiFi standards that you might want to explore.

I had the Airport Extreme Base Station and one Airport Express serving my house and doing it well for the past decade or so. I recently switched to TP-Link Archer 20 and the accompanying wireless extender and the overall performance boost has been great.'

The TP-Link broadcasts 2 5G networks and 1 2.4G network. So I can isolate certain devices on different networks. I've put my consoles and mobile devices (iPhone, iPad) on 1 5G network and the computers on the second 5G network.
 

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I would suggest to the OP to try to understand why the WiFi is not adequate.
I have an HH3000 installed in the basement and it covers the two storey house plus all of the yard just fine without any extenders.
When I used older routers with cable internet where the antennas were accessible, changing the orientation of the antennas made quite a difference in receive level.

The Mac has some basic tools built in if you go under WiFi in the toolbar while holding down the option key.Then under 'wireless diagnostics' there are a few options under 'Window' where you can see the receive levels of your WiFi signal plus any others in the vicinity - also the S/N ratio which in my case is around 20 dB
 
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Thanks for the info! I had no idea that Apple wasn't manufacturing the Airport Extremes any longer. I'll look into the TP-Link brand. I think Amazon sells them.
 
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Thank you so much for taking your time to reply. The reason (I think) my reception is not so great in my kitchen is because there are a couple of metal cabinets nearby that probably are causing some interference. The wifi signal there is usually just 1 or 2 bars on my iPad Air and things run pretty slow. It's not a biggie - but since I dropped our morning newspaper delivery and went to reading it online at the breakfast table on my iPad Air - I'm beginning to wish the signal was a little stronger. However, with the nearby metal cabinets, an extender might not make that much of a difference. Solution - read paper online in another room (I actually haven't tried that yet - I like reading at the table during breakfast!). As far as looking at the wireless diagnostics, I wasn't aware of that option. I started to - and then the intro message said that if I clicked "continue" that "Wireless Diagnostics may temporarily change your network settings when running diagnostics tests." That scared me a bit. Would my configuration automatically change back to what it was?? I'm not knowledgeable enough in the wifi environment to know what I'm doing as far as reconfiguring anything.
 

krs


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When the wireless diagnostic window opens, don't click on continue - just look at the toolbar at the very top and click on "Windows"

You then get a number of options you can check which give you the levels of the various WiFi signals that your device sees.
Gives you an idea if there is some other signal that causes interference or the quality (which is actual the S/N ratio) is poor.
That's on a Mac, don't know if you get the same options on an iPad Air
 

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Hello Nancy. One important aspect of WiFi signal strength is how your home is laid out (room layout, wall layout, etc.)...and possibily materials the home is built with.

- In my previous home (a pretty large square footage...open concept type of home)...I had my WiFi router & cable modem in our finished basement...and had no problems with good WiFi on any of the three floors in a large 3000+ square foot home.
- In our present 103 year old home...which is only 50% the size...with a much more traditional layout. Rooms are much smaller...stairways are more narrow & enclosed...lots & lots of wall's...maybe thicker/heavier construction materials. In this layout my cable modem & WiFi router are on the first floor right at the base of the stairs to the 2nd floor...and my home office is basically at the top of the stairs on the 2nd floor...and I get only fair to good (but not excellent) WiFi in my 2nd floor home office. And I'm using a pretty good $300 D-Link router (probably about $200 now).

Home layout & home construction materials can make a big difference. If your home has some layout/design "challanges" to good WiFi...this could part of the issue.

- Nick
 

chscag

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@Nancy:

Thank you for remembering your user name and password after so many years! :D
 
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KRS - When I turn wifi on at my iMac, I do see options in "Windows" on the toolbar, but there is no way to check wifi signal on my iPad that I'm aware of (other than observing the number of curved "bars").
pigoo3 Administrator -I, too, live in a 100+ year-old-house and my modem & router are in my finished basement. The kitchen is on the floor above, then I have my second Airport Extreme router on the 3rd floor which gives me adequate wifi there. I carried my iPad Air from room to room on the main floor and the signal is fine until I go into the kitchen and the signal drops to 1-2 bars (mostly 1 bar) - so there just must be too much interference in that room (maybe from the several nearby metal cabinets). Otherwise, I'm pleased - especially with the fact I can take my iPad out into the front porch and get a good signal. Next, I'll try moving my Airport Extreme router from the 3rd floor into the kitchen and see if that improves the signal there, but I'll tackle that after the New Year. Thanks you two - I've learned a little more about wifi now! I love this forum!
 
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chscag - Ha! Gotten it written down in a safe place, along with a couple hundred more and I never use the same password twice.
 
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I'm wondering what I would do if I got a car such as a Tesla that wanted Wi-Fi connections. From my apartment, I can see my garage which is not connected to the Wi-Fi in the building.
 
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Hello Nancy,
I am a total amateur and, thanks to the guidance from people here, I got brave and bought my own router. It is Archer C7 AC 1750.

If you're considering an Archer, perhaps this amateur perspective data will help:
Set up was very easy, although I skipped the fancy features, such as remote access.

It is a nice unit with very good coverage from the basement in this 100 + year old house, constructed similarly to what you & Nick described. I did have to experiment around with antenna positions until signal was good everywhere we wanted it. (The antennae come off so you can use extension cables, but I learned here that there are trade-offs in doing that.)

I also learned here, that higher is better for signal coverage-
Signal is not so great in the back yard, but it has to go up one floor and pass through a metal-lath-and-plaster wall, so that's understandable. Experimenting with the unit on the second floor gave great coverage to the yard- as well as far down the street. I believe that is because the signal is going down instead of up.


Extra Security, as Ashwin mentioned-
It has (2) 5GHz networks & (2) 2.4 GHz guest networks. I put the less secure items (television & treadmill) on the guest network. The 2.4 networks can not access the 5 GHz networks or items unless you specifically allow it. They all can have separate passwords, too.

While trying to figure out some of the fancy (optional) features, I did contact technical support twice. They were prompt, helpful and accurate- so that's a good sign.

It's been 11 months of ownership and I have had no glitches. I do have it set to automatically re-boot itself once per day to clear the cache. I'm sure that helps eliminate problems.

I would imagine you will be pleased with an Archer unit and if you have trouble with set up I know the people here will help out- they always are generous with advice and education.

I hope my "Amateur's Perspective" is helpful to yoy with making a decision.
Enjoy This Day!
Paul
 
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Hi Nancy
There is a free app on app store called AirPort Utility
install this on your iPad when you open this app
you can see top right in blue Wi-Fi scan there you
can see all the networks recieved this will tell you
which wifi chanel the network is on and the signal
strength RSSI in db the lower number the better
anything around 40db is good over 60db not so good
 

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