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WIFI extender/repeater


Auchlossen

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I have a studio flat separate from the house.

The Apple Airport fixed up by my son is not working.

I wish to replace it with a reliable device.

Internet is provided via ethernet cable directly from the router provided by the Broadband ISP: So wired input.

Is the Netgear Nighthawk X3 mesh extender a recommended device? Or is that a bit over the top [£96!] for the service required.

Should I also upgrade the base router?

I am not a techie, so please simple language.

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I have BT WiFi extenders that you just plug into the ring main in whichever room you need a signal, works great.  However my cabin is on a different power supply  so I ran a length of armoured cable out along the hillside from the main house and made a WiFi box that beams into the cabin from 40 feet away, works great. 

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I have tried restarting Airport, changing to allow IP6, and a few other internet fixes, to no avail.

It seems that all I really need is [maybe] a cheapish Repeater, so I have ordered this e'en which seems to work off a network cable

 

image.png.f18d8b31b9fa7d1233e5f366f083c817.png

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+1 

 

A pure wireless extender has the same problem connecting to a distant router as a phone/tablet. So I always recommend either..

 

A WiFi Access Point connected to the distant router by a network cable

Or

A WiFi Access point connected to the distant router over the mains.

 

If you really must use Wi-fi then you might need special aerials to set up a point to point link between AP and router.

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I agree with @Mr Punter and @Temp

 

There are specialised matched base-station/extender pairs that transmit the signal between a base station and its extender on a different frequency from the usual WiFi frequencies, which gets around the problem of an extender halving a network's bandwidth. But in my opinion these solutions are far inferior to Temp's suggestions. And besides, such solutions require both the base station and extender to be made by the same manufacturer and are expensive.

 

Furthermore, most generic cheap extenders do not actually facilitate roaming. There is no "handoff", even if the extender is set to mimic the original network's name (SSID). A device will hold on to the original router's signal for far too long. You may be standing next to your new extender but your device will still hold its connection to the distant router located all the way across the house until its dwindling signal is finally lost, which is long after the speed of transmission has dropped to useless levels. An unsatisfactory experience.   

Edited by Dreadnaught
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On 31/05/2019 at 15:16, Auchlossen said:

The Apple Airport fixed up by my son is not working.

 

Which model of Airport do you have? I can probably guide you through its setup if you want to fix it. You can PM me if you wish.

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I have helped install a few extenders and repeaters for friends and family.

 

Recently installed the Tenda Nova MW3 and have to say it is probably the best bit of kit <£100 (~£50 for 2 satellite version). Everything is configured and controlled via a neat little app.  Was so impressed I ended up changing my netgear setup over in my house.

 

 

 

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On 03/06/2019 at 20:10, Temp said:

+1 

 

A pure wireless extender has the same problem connecting to a distant router as a phone/tablet. So I always recommend either..

 

A WiFi Access Point connected to the distant router by a network cable

Or

A WiFi Access point connected to the distant router over the mains.

 

If you really must use Wi-fi then you might need special aerials to set up a point to point link between AP and router.

Devolo plug

 

2nd plug isn’t a repeater - it connects to the base devolo via mains wiring .

2nd unit actually transmits a new signal . Handoff between the 2 is seamless .

In my HMO - works a treat !

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