Imagine: it’s a beautiful spring day. You are working inside behind your laptop and then see the sun clear, and the clouds disappear. With such nice weather, it’s much nicer to work outside, isn’t it? You take your laptop and put it on the garden table. You grab a fresh smoothie or cocktail and enthusiastically open the laptop again to continue working. Unfortunately, your laptop won’t connect to WiFi.😩
Since the emergence of wireless internet, it has become a well-known problem among everyone who uses it. A poor Wi-Fi signal is extremely frustrating. Everyone knows the corners in his/her house where there is no internet signal and usually tries to avoid these places or solve the problem.
Increase Your Wifi Range
Many factors determine the size of the range. There are also many ways to increase that reach. Both ways cost you nothing apart from some effort and ways that require a small investment.
Free ways 🤑
People whose internet is difficult and doesn’t reach far enough all too often immediately buy new hardware. Chances are huge that making a small adjustment to your current hardware will solve the problem. Still, it’s worth trying to explore the free options first.
The location of the router
First, read more about what a router is. This will give you some background information and make the rest of the article easier to understand. One of the most easily adjustable conditions is the location of the router.
It is probably placed somewhere near the modem. This modem is most likely also located in the meter cupboard. This is very normal. Whether it’s a good idea is another question. Here’s the answer: no, this is not a good idea. The metal cables and pipes disrupt the signal enormously.
The best location for the router is somewhere as open and central as possible. The fewer obstacles and obstacles the signal has to overcome, the stronger the signal is. So the basement is not a good idea at all.
You should also avoid other electronic devices if possible. These devices work with radio waves and thus also disrupt the signal.
Get the latest software
It’s no secret that ‘the internet’ is getting faster and faster and that people expect the internet to do the same. Not only the internet itself is getting faster and faster. Routers are also constantly being improved and can thus broadcast an ever larger network. If you are using an older router, outdated software may be the problem.
You can easily check which software your router is using by looking at the product description. The ‘connection’ section contains numbers. An example of this is 802.11.g. The letter it ends with is the variant. If this is ‘ac’ or now even ‘ax’, it is good. These are the two latest WiFi standards.
Use a quiet Wi-Fi channel
Think of wireless internet as a road vehicle. Just as there are different roads on which a road vehicle can move, there are also different channels that your WiFi can be on. Like roads, these channels are public and can be used by anyone. The more traffic there is on the road, the slower the traffic and vice versa. That’s how a WiFi channel works.
Changing channels can have a huge impact on your signal strength, especially if you live in a city or crowded area. If you want to avoid ‘traffic jams’ on the Internet by changing your Wi-Fi channel, you first need to find out which channels are used the most. This can be done through several programs such as NetSurveyor and Channel Scanner.
When you find a quiet channel you want to use, it’s time to do it. You can do this via the configuration menu of your router, which you can access by entering the IP address of your router. You can find this on a sticker on the router itself.
Enter the username and password of your router (also found on the router or in the user manual), and log in. Navigate to channel selection, click on the channel you are using and then choose the one you want to use. It can be that simple.
Don’t overload your internet
Something many people do is seriously overload their internet. They connect dozens of different devices to the same network and download overweight files like it’s nothing. Of course, this is not good if you want a large WiFi range.
Turn off the internet on all devices you’re not using, or turn off these devices yourself. This not only ensures a stronger signal but it is also even better for the battery and lifespan of the device in question. Also, try to time the downloads of large files when other devices are not using the internet.
Aluminium foil
It almost seems like a joke, but it’s not. Aluminium foil can greatly enhance the signal by reflecting radiation. So stick some aluminium behind or in front of the antenna. Where you place the aluminium depends on the location where you need WiFi coverage.
Manners with a price tag 💸
There are, of course, also ways to increase the Wi-Fi range that require a financial effort. Free is always nice, of course, but if free doesn’t work, you have to give up and be content with the limited internet access or invest money. The following ideas are particularly effective, but only for those who can be found for the latter.
A WiFi extender
A WiFi amplifier, also known as a WiFi repeater, is a device that has been specially developed to increase the range of wireless internet. It is the best-known and cheapest solution for limited internet coverage.
It’s also extremely simple. You just have to plug in the repeater and enter your password. The amplifier picks up the Wi-Fi signal and then sends it out again. Result: an immediate greater range.
If you want to get the most out of the repeater, I recommend placing it somewhere where your laptop still has about two to three bars of range. It is quite logical that the further you place the WiFi amplifier from the signal, the worse the signal it receives and the worse the signal it distributes.
This does provide a greater range but a lesser speed. The best WiFi amplifiers at a glance:
- Netgear Nighthawk EX8000
- Netgear Nighthawk EAX80
- TP-Link RE650
- TP-Link RE200
Access point
We find a separate access point less and less in our homes. It is still used at a large WiFi hotspot, such as the free WiFi network of Almere Centre.
This is because it used to be necessary and not anymore. In the past, a separate access point was required if you wanted wireless internet. Nowadays, a WiFi signal can also be broadcast by just a router; the access point is already built here. That’s a pity because an access point provides a wonderful WiFi range.
If you have a large room where the signal is too weak, an access point is still the best solution. Buy an access point, connect it with a network cable and surf!
The best-selling access points at a glance:
- TP-Link Omada EAP245
- Netgear WAC510
- TP-Link CPE210
- TP-Link Omada EAP225-Wall
- Internet via socket
A recent addition to the possibilities is the internet via socket, or the HomePlug or powerline adapter. This transfers the internet signal from your router to another room via your electricity wiring. It is important to go for a model that also has WiFi connectivity because not all of them have this.
It works as follows: you insert the first plug close to your router. You connect this plug to the router via an Ethernet cable. You insert the second plug somewhere in the same room to link the two plugs together via the pair function.
Once this is done, plug in the second plug where you have poor reception. Half a minute later, you have a local WiFi network. The result is close to the best multi-room WiFi.
Many of these adapters also offer a clone function, which allows you to copy the settings of your router’s WiFi network. This way, you don’t have to switch between your router’s network and the local network of the powerline adapter.
If you plan to change the WiFi name and give your network a custom name, do that before you get started with your adapters. This becomes a bigger hassle if you don’t do it until after you’ve installed your adapters.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are many ways to significantly increase Wi-Fi range. You can also improve your WiFi reception in various ways.
I can’t promise that all ways will work in all situations, but one from this list should do the trick. Isn’t this the case? Then it’s a lost cause and time for a new router. 🤔
When you decide to buy a new router, it is best to buy the best router right away. A good router can save you a lot of trouble. That’s why I always recommend starting with a strong router. Otherwise, you won’t get ahead, and before you know it, you’ll be reading this article again!
