Mac mini M1 picks up less wifi than Android phone...

[rogerdugenou]

Hi. My study is located apport. 15 ft from the router (with concrete walls and wooden doors in between) and my Android phone picks up WAY more signal than my 2021M1 mini (in the exact same spot). I mean that most of the time, the download speed indicated in the test app is over 50% higher on the phone than on the Mac. Which makes the intervent experience somewhat annoying at times... On the Mac, I mean. Does anybody have any idea way this is happening and how I can fix it?
My mini runs Ventura 13.0.1
No monkey business in my system, it's fairly simple and I had the same problem with my Imac before I switched to Mini.
Thanks

 

[IWT]

I'm not really helping in this, but for the record, the latest version of Ventura is 13.3.1

It is just within the realms of possibility that having the latest version of Ventura may improve your WiFi problem. Best to try that first?

Ian

 

[krs]

Hi. My study is located apport. 15 ft from the router (with concrete walls and wooden doors in between) and my Android phone picks up WAY more signal than my 2021M1 mini

Can you be a bit more specific?
What WiFi level are you getting at the Mini?
What S/N?
What WiFi band are you using?
Does orienting the Mini differently make a difference?
What are the actual speeds you're getting?

 

[Shazaam!]

Placement is important. The WI-FI antennas are located at the bottom of the mini so avoid metal objects that block this region.

 

[Rod]

Is the router a dual band like mine? I have 5G and 2.4G bands, my iPhone picks the strongest while my MBP uses 2.4G in the bedroom and 5G in the lounge but I have to swap manually.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

...Does anybody have any idea way this is happening and how I can fix it?

macOS has wireless diagnostic capabilities built in.

Hold down the option key and click on the WiFi icon in the menu bar, then select "Open Wireless Diagnostics...".

Go to the Window menu and choose Scan.

The report will give you the Best 2.4 Ghz and the Best 5 bGhz channel.

Once you have those, log into your router (entering (bad link removed) into your web browser will probably work) poke around in WiFi settings and figure out how to change the channel.

Here is an Apple Document setting out how to investigate and solve WiFi issues on a Mac.
How to troubleshoot Wi-Fi connectivity
Scroll down to: "Symptom: The Wi-Fi network seems slow"

If none of the above works for you, you can scan your immediate WiFi environment and find the best placement for your Mac and other wireless devices with:

iStumbler ($15)

iStumbler Labs

Handcrafted Tools for Better Computing

istumbler.net

 

[rogerdugenou]

WOW! Franky, I didn't expect so many answers. Thank you all. I'm going to try all your suggestions and will let you know if they helped.

 

[Jimmysb]

macOS has wireless diagnostic capabilities built in.

Hold down the option key and click on the WiFi icon in the menu bar, then select "Open Wireless Diagnostics...".

Go to the Window menu and choose Scan.

All these snippets of information, hidden somewhere, but too many to remember, very useful

 

[Randy B. Singer]

All these snippets of information, hidden somewhere, but too many to remember, very useful

I have hundreds of them that I keep in a database.

I was thinking of publishing all of them in a book, but a friend actually did that, and the book was not a big seller. So at this point I don't think that I'll ever do that.

 

[pm-r]

I was thinking of publishing all of them in a book, but a friend actually did that, and the book was not a big seller. So at this point I don't think that I'll ever do that.

Just the thought of having to do all the various revisions needed with all of Apple's various updates and OS changes would be enough to put anyone off doing so I would think. ;-)




- Patrick
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[krs]

I have hundreds of them that I keep in a database.

I was thinking of publishing all of them in a book, but a friend actually did that, and the book was not a big seller. So at this point I don't think that I'll ever do that.

I have been thinking to suggest to the admin of this forum to consider setting up a resource section.
Many types of questions come up over and over again, so instead of someone having to post the information again, one can just point to the resource info.

In this case for example how to access the Mac built-in WiFi diagnostics which gives signal level, noise level, S/N ratio, band and channel used etc.
I have been using a Mac since, it seems, forever and only discovered that WiFi diagnostic that provides real measured values, a few years ago.
"Get Info" is also a very useful tool that a lot of "newbies" may miss.
Or the various boot options and methods to reinstall macOS

 

[ferrarr]

Finder > Help > macOS Help gets you the macOS User Guide right on your system. Many answers right at your finger tips. Or should I call it Finder tips????

 

[krs]

Finder > Help > macOS Help gets you the macOS User Guide right on your system. Many answers right at your finger tips. Or should I call it Finder tips????

I tried using that Mac Help option a few times in the past - never got me a useful answer for the problem.
Try it for the question of this thread.
I typed in "Slow WiFi" and got nothing useful
That is on Mojave which I;m running, maybe "Help"on later macOSs is better.

As a test, I also tried "Slow Mac" to see what would come up.
Not any better.
One of the first comments was that the hard drive may be too full.
Yes.....
But what is "too full"?
There is no clue like a percentage for instance.

 

[Randy B. Singer]

I have been thinking to suggest to the admin of this forum to consider setting up a resource section.
Many types of questions come up over and over again, so instead of someone having to post the information again, one can just point to the resource info.

I've suggested setting up a FAQ (frequently asked questions) section here before. If nothing else, I think that would draw a huge number of new users to this forum after they have done a Google search to answer their questions.

A Tips & Tricks section would also likely be really popular.

 

[pm-r]

I've suggested setting up a FAQ (frequently asked questions) section here before.

...

A Tips & Tricks section would also likely be really popular.

+1.

I would totally agree.

I'm sure even a lot of older well experienced Mac users would appreciate having a chance to look over such info.



- Patrick
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