Internet speed worth having for wi-fi

[skaertus]

I currently live in a 1200-feet apartament. I have a 100 Mbps Internet plan, and I only use wi-fi. No wired connections at all. My Internet provider installed a wireless N router which I have been using. My Apple TV, which is sitting right next to the wi-fi router, can get up to 50 Mbps. Other devices are not so lucky, as they can get a maximum of 35 Mbps. In the bedroom, my iPhone X can get only 15 Mbps. So, the theoretical speed of the wireless N router seems to be very far from practice.

I am moving to another apartment now, which is slightly larger (1300 feet). I will have another Internet plan, and I wonder what I should have. Would a wireless AC router make all the difference? Or I should I go for some wi-fi extender? Any particular models?

I was thinking of a 150 or 200 Mbps Internet plan. However, I would need a wi-fi connection that takes advantage of this speed. Should I just settle with a slower Internet plan, as it would not be possible to get the advertised maximum speed anyway?

 

[VirtualLarry]

You're really making it hard on yourself, limiting yourself to wifi.

Do you own a desktop PC? Do you game on it? You should really have it wired.

Wifi is mostly for portable devices, laptops, phones, and the like. Maybe smart TVs and Roku boxes, but really, those should be wired too.

Don't forget about Mesh networking, (Google Mesh, Asus AiMesh, Velop, Orbi, etc.)

I wouldn't necessarily limit your internet plan, just because you use wireless.

3x3 stream AC wireless, WITH a "media bridge", or "media extender", or router acting in "Client Bridge" mode, can be fairly fast. (600Mbit/sec+), although my apt is small.

I would seriously think about Google Mesh, or Asus AiMesh, and go that way, and then have mesh nodes around the apt, and wire the PC and the smart TV / Roku to the mesh network extenders with an ethernet cable, and keep the phones, laptops, and iPads on the wireless.

 

[razel]

Move to your new place and wire up as many devices as you can with your existing router. Your Apple TV since it sounds like it'll be close enough to your router would be a prime candidate for wiring. Streaming is a constant strain on WiFi. If you want the best signal elevating your router and treating your WiFi like a light is the easiest thing to do. And yes, moving to AC router isn't expensive. We're talking starting sales prices of about $75 for ones I would recommend.

 

[Moana]

You're really making it hard on yourself, limiting yourself to wifi.

Do you own a desktop PC? Do you game on it? You should really have it wired.

Wifi is mostly for portable devices, laptops, phones, and the like. Maybe smart TVs and Roku boxes, but really, those should be wired too.

Don't forget about Mesh networking, (Google Mesh, Asus AiMesh, Velop, Orbi, etc.)

I wouldn't necessarily limit your internet plan, just because you use wireless.

3x3 stream AC wireless, WITH a "media bridge", or "media extender", or router acting in "Client Bridge" mode, can be fairly fast. (600Mbit/sec+), although my apt is small.

I would seriously think about Google Mesh, or Asus AiMesh, and go that way, and then have mesh nodes around the apt, and wire the PC and the smart TV / Roku to the mesh network extenders with an ethernet cable, and keep the phones, laptops, and iPads on the wireless.

Hey Virtual Larry,

I have a 300 Mbps Internet contract with my telco, and a router that's made by and given to me by the very same telco. It is dual-band and supports 2.4 and 5 GHZ networks simultaneously. Nevertheless, I am only getting 25Mbps when testing on my Android tablet (it is connected to the 5GHZ network). I've not changed any router settings so I'm wondering why. Plus, I live in Singapore where Internet speed is one of the fastest in the world.

I understand you are great at routers, definitely more than I am, so I was just wondering if you could suggest a few reasons why Internet isn't that fast in my home. (my home is an apartment with 2 bedrooms, living room and kitchen). Speed testing was done in my bedroom. router is in the living room.

Thanks in advance.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Well, hmm. 5Ghz signals propagate less far than 2.4Ghz signals, and don't penetrate walls as well. If you have more than one wall between your test location, and your router, that could explain it.

Honestly, though, it sounds like a 5Ghz N connection, 1x1 stream, and not a 5Ghz AC connection, 2x2 or 3x3.

This is a cheaper tablet, no? Check the specs on both the tablet and router, and see if they both support 802.11ac, and if your router is configured to use it.

Your wired connection may be one of the fastest in the world, but if your wifi client device is limit to a single stream, and only N standard, rather than AC, then 25-35 Mbit/sec may be all that it is capable of.

I have a few laptops like that, only N150, and to my router, only around 35Mbit/sec.

But my router is an AC1900 3x3, so my desktops with AC 3x3 wifi cards in the other room get 500-600Mbit/sec

Edit: Oh! And make sure that your router is not on the floor, that it's on a table or shelf or something slightly elevated. That can make a difference. Also, the orientation of the antennas, if they are external.

 

[HutchinsonJC]

Wireless speeds are dependent upon the wireless tech on both sides of the connection, the distance between the two devices, and congestion on that frequency.

The 2.4GHz band is capable of less bandwidth than the 5GHz band, but the 5GHz band does not penetrate walls/objects as well as the 2.4GHz band and nor does it travel as far as the 2.4GHz band.

When a signal is not strong enough for max bandwidth, the algorithms for getting that data between devices can literally change, making for a slower, but more stable connection.

Your bandwidth concerns could be that one of the two devices in the connection isn't capable of faster speeds, or because the signal is too weak, or because there are too many transmissions using that frequency already in the area.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Wireless N is definitely a bottleneck here.

Real-world throughput of wifi is almost always less than half of the maximum theoretical connection speed.

If you are happy with how your internet works, then you don't need to be paying for a >50mbps connection. If you want it to be faster for some reason (HD streaming or something) then you'll need a new AC router to go with that faster connection.

1200sqft is pretty small. We're in a 1600sqft townhome and get pretty good 5GHz signal everywhere from a centrally located AC WAP. But that's definitely a YMMV situation - you just need to try it and see how well it works.

 

[skaertus]

Thanks for all the answers. It seems that the N router is really the bottleneck. I may be able to get one wired connection (with an Apple TV or my desktop), but the vast majority of the devices (iPhone, iPad, laptop, Chromecast, other Apple TVs and so on) will all have wireless connections, so I cannot simply ignore it.

With an AC connection, what would be the recommended speed to get? Would it be able to handle a 100 or 200 Mbps connection well, in every room of the apartment?

On another note, I do not live in the U.S. I live in Brazil, so my router options would be quite limited here. I will have to stick to the basic.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Thanks for all the answers. It seems that the N router is really the bottleneck. I may be able to get one wired connection (with an Apple TV or my desktop), but the vast majority of the devices (iPhone, iPad, laptop, Chromecast, other Apple TVs and so on) will all have wireless connections, so I cannot simply ignore it.

With an AC connection, what would be the recommended speed to get? Would it be able to handle a 100 or 200 Mbps connection well, in every room of the apartment?

Depends on what your walls are made out of, no way to guarantee it. But I get pretty reliable ~150Mbps everywhere in my house on 5GHz AC.

On another note, I do not live in the U.S. I live in Brazil, so my router options would be quite limited here. I will have to stick to the basic.

https://www.fastshop.com.br/web/p/d...mbps-dual-band-com-3-antenas-externas-dir-819

Looks like that's the only model they carry, but it would at least be a step up from what you have. There's nothing wrong with D-Link. I'd want at least a three-band WAP, myself, but if your hardware is only single or dual-band, then you're fine.

 

[skaertus]

Thanks for the input. Here I can basically buy a router from D-Link or TP-Link. TP-Link is generally considered to be better than D-Link (which has a pretty bad reputation in Brazil due to past routers). Linksys used to be popular, but they did not release an AC router here so far.

The feasible options would be:

TP-Link Archer C60 (AC1350)
TP-Link Archer C50 (AC1200)
TP-Link Archer C2 (AC900)
TP-Link Archer C20 (AC750)
D-Link DIR-822 (AC1200)
D-Link DIR-809 (AC750)

There are other options, but they are significantly more expensive. I could buy one of the more expensive choices, as long as it is really needed.

 

[JackMDS]

I would go with TP-Link Archer C50 (AC1200)


BTW The Internet speed is a very Minor variable in setting a Good Wireless Network.

One should maximized the Wireless as a LAN (File/Info transfer) getting the best Bandwitdh internally.

Then, make the decision about the Internet "Speed".