Wifi Signal Extenders

[BobH]

Oh ye great and mighty gurus of the mystical network management clan, what say ye about devices to boost a wifi signal?

OK, I've recently purchased a wifi enable thermometer to measure the temperature of the cooking chamber and items being cooked in the smoker. It is wifi enabled, not BlueTooth, but I have some problems with signal strength it seems. 'Er indoors also likes to sit outdoors in the shade in good weather and surf the net on her iPad Air. She complains about - blames me for - the sometimes very weak signal strength.

It seems that our wifi signal strength varies directly with signal variations from Time Warner, our ISP and cable TV provider. When their signal weakens, we see degradation in picture quality on our 55" LED Smart TV and note that wifi signal strength also is iffy or weakened. That aside, I thought it might be worthwhile to explore wifi extenders (which, in my understanding, are signal repeaters while enhancing signal strength, ie, power; but I know little about radio technology and forgot most all I ever knew).

In looking online to see what is available, there are many choices. I even went to how-to-geek and read a couple of articles but nothing seemed current. I'm looking for advice on the best price performance product that will be simple to install, easy to use, and that will extend the signal that we get to a greater range.

Anyone??

[Claude]

My daughter bought a Linksys RE4000W extender, plugged it in and it worked without any configuration requirements, I'm still puzzled trying to figure out how it works, but, having said that, I can highly recommend it. Just plug it in to the powerpoint and get on with life, SSID etc is all copied automatically.

[PJ_in_FL]

If your signal is "weakening" without a direct cause such as running a hair dryer or blower motor next to the receiving device (TV, thermometer, etc.), then there may be other networks nearby on the same channel that are interfering.

If you have a WiFi-enabled smartphone, download one of the WiFi network analyzer apps and check for other networks near the TV and any other device that appears to be getting a poor signal. I'd suggest WiFi Analyzer by farproc. I just tested it and it provides a clear graphic of the detected networks, signal strengths and channels.

If that is the case and you have lots of interference in one area of the spectrum (channels), see if your WiFi router can be set to another channel.

[HansV]

I use WiFi Analyzer by FarProc too on my Android phone. It helped me select a channel with less interference from neighbors (I live in an apartment building).
It sometimes displays advertisements, but not intrusively.
See https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... yzer&hl=en" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[BobH]

Thanks for the info. I didn't know that I could detect what channels neighbors might be using. In the past I've used trial and error, mostly the latter.

I'll download the app and see what I can discover.

[BobH]

A follow up post in case anyone else wanders through Eileen's Lounge searching for information about Wifi signal extenders/boosters.

I downloaded the Wifi Analyzer app to my iPhone but didn't really find any competing modem. Might have been my inexperience and lack of knowledge.

However . . . I bought a Linksys RE4000W refurbed from Amazon for USD35.00. It came today.

I ran the Setup.exe on the enclosed CD. It didn't work the first time, but the instructions warned that might happen and told me to reset the device and run setup again. On the second try it found my networks and setup everything in the extender. At the end of the setup process it informed me that I could now move the extender to a different location without having to go through set up again.

I don't know yet if this is going to resolve my remote digital cooking thermometer issue and that it will satisfy 'Er Outdoors iPad issue, but I can already see a greatly improved signal strength on the network indicators on this desktop.

Thank you to all you gurus and Zen Masters who gave me wise and wonderful counsel.

[Rudi]

Thanks for sharing your experience Bob. Its always of value to get someones comments based on experience.
Hope it benefits both your cooking and 'Er's iPad experience.

[StuartR]

I could never get a decent signal at both the front and rear of my house, so I bought a Netgear EX7000 WiFi extender. This has such a great signal that I have disabled WiFi on my wireless router and this one device provides perfect WiFi coverage for the whole house (and the garden, and the car outside in the street).

[Rudi]

I could never get a decent signal at both the front and rear of my house, so I bought a Netgear EX7000 WiFi extender. This has such a great signal that I have disabled WiFi on my wireless router and this one device provides perfect WiFi coverage for the whole house (and the garden, and the car outside in the street).

...and for the neighbours, and for the shopping mall, and for the public swimming pool down the road....

[HansV]

I'm 100% sure that Stuart has set a strong password...

[StuartR]

I have set a most exceedingly strong password Hans. I haven't changed it for a while though, so maybe it's time...