For most of us, our in home WiFi network is something that we use every day. Everything from our TV’s, Phones, Consoles, and in a lot of cases basic hardware in our home relies on it to connect to the outside world. As an authorized contractor for Comcast, I have installed thousands of modems, routers, and combinations over the years. Over that time, approximately 40-50% of the service calls that I have been sent to have been for customers experiencing slow or inconsistent connection. So that begs the question, why is that?
In order to understand the answer, we must first talk about how the system works. From a hardware perspective you have two main pieces of equipment in a residential system: Your modem, and your router. A modem is what takes the coaxial or fiber connection from your service provider, and translates that into a signal or gateway that your router can use to connect devices. The router is what actually creates a network between the devices in your home either by a wired or wireless connection. For most of you, you more than likely rent a device from your service provider that combines both of these pieces in one device, called a combo.
The problems begin with those combo devices. While they function well to provide a basic connection, they are designed to connect a limited number of devices at a time, and they allocate the speed that you pay for from your provider to each device. While a common router such as the XB3 family which is used by many cable companies is designed for up to 8-10 devices, many households today have many more devices than that connected. The easy fix if you call your cable provider is for them to tell you that you need more speed, which will of course cost you more. However, if you have a larger number of devices you can also improve performance by utilizing dual frequency routers.
What are Dual Frequency routers?
Most modern routers operate on two sets of antennas, which broadcast the WiFi network on two different frequency bands. The first band is the 2.4Ghz range, which is also what older routers used exclusively. While the 2.4Ghz frequency is slower by modern standards, because it using a lower frequency it does have a larger transmission range. This makes this frequency ideal for connecting to while out in the outer edges of your home, or for exterior devices such as security cameras or video doorbells. The other frequency is the 5Ghz band. This does have a smaller transmission range, but is notably faster. While not all devices are able to take advantage of this greater speed due to their internal network cards or low bandwidth needs, those devices that can see a noticeable increase in performance when completing tasks such as video streaming or gaming. Depending on your needs, you may gain better performance by having your router transmit two separate networks so that you can choose which devices connect to each frequency. In other cases, using a single combined network with your router programmed to automatically shift devices from one frequency to another based on signal strength and network load is the way to go.
Range
Depending on your home’s size, layout, and construction you may find that you have dead zones or areas of poor performance. This can cause a lot of frustration when you are trying to use devices that are in or around those areas. There are two things that can help this problem, depending on the root cause. If your router has sufficient power for the area you want it to cover, it may be as simple as needing to relocate the router to a more central location. However, if the poor performance stems from the size of the coverage area or the construction of the home, you may instead need to change from a single router to what is called a Mesh Network.
A Mesh Network is a series of routers that communicate with each other and the modem, and are placed in separate locations around your home. They all work on the same network name and password, and are designed that as you move through your home your devices will switch automatically from one set of antennas to another based on the signal strength at any given location. For many clients, this creates a much more seamless experience that improves speed and coverage.
Here at Tech Bro’s we have the tools to be able to come in and see how your network is set up, and where performance could be improved. Call us today for a free consultation and evaluation of your home network!