Low Wifi single strength...what to do?
 

I have my wifi router in my office, but I want to work on my balcony and the signal strength is poor.

Other than physically moving the router closer to the outside, what can I do? Are wifi routers rated by strength? Can you buy a stronger one? Can I get a repeater? Can I put a wire on the antenea and hang it around my room to make the signal stronger?

Suggestions?

Have you checked on the signal intesity settings? maybe you just need to set it higher.

You could get a bigger antenna...or maybe an access point?

Just go on ebay and buy a Wifi Booster last time checked they were only like 20 bucks.... Also see here for other things you can do...

http://compnetworking.about.com/od/w...dwifirange.htm

Lmao....

:1orglaugh:1orglaugh:1orglaugh

Throw it acros the room

Haha, ok this made me laugh...

If you have an old receiver card it can make a huge difference. My old laptop could barely catch a signal. My new laptop seems to pick up a signal anywhere.

Also you can look up tutorials on how to optimize your router such as turning off unused protocols. You can get a signal booster and/or a better router. The new ones are much stronger than anything that is a couple years old. You have to read the reviews though and figure out which is best.

Also check to see if there are any major thick walls blocking the signal. I can't remember which computer mag it was but they had a really good tutorial for getting good signals through all kinds of tough spots.

You can also look up your specific router / wireless card and see if other people have similar problems. That will give you a good idea if it is your equipment or if it is a point a to point b problem.

Pringles Can

http://www.wifirepeater.org/

I never tried one but was close as we had a similar problem in a property we owned. That was the best solution I came up with. We eventually hard wired the place instead.

If your router has an the screw on antenna these work superbly.

http://www.rfsupplier.com/product_in...dgouq9s7puv8j0

forget about the amplifiers, go with a better antenna

Install Tomato firmware if your router supports it and boost the signal. Throw in a Linksys wre54g repeater and you'll be all set.

I used to have problems with my interweb wireless dropping every 10 seconds. I replaced my router with one that has a GIANT antenna. I also found that setting my work PC at a certain angle meant that it wouldn't drop nearly as often. Now it's basically up 24/7 unless I start downloadnig something on this computer, in which case I am on this one, so the other one can crash and burn for all I care.

Put cable around cell phone and make dish around antenna o yea!

:1orglaugh

get a better router, which one do u have now?

Go buy a clue

I actually whipped up one of these:

http://www.freeantennas.com/projects...surfer_Pic.JPG

I didn't think it would work but I got a solid extra bar out of it! Still not good enough though - still only 2 bars.

But now I know the problem is not the router or location. I am trying to work outside, and when I brought the laptop from outside to inside it immediatly went from 2 bars to 5. I realized that I have metallic tint on my windows, so I think I need to find another solution - like actually putting a wire from the antenna to the outside back portch and see if that works. If it does, I could just make a line to my attic, run it across the attic then poke the line to the outside somehow.

Here is a genius idea I just thought of, hook the atenna to the ground wire of the house. Ok, I'm kidding but it just came to mind as something you would see on fark.com :-)

camper, go buy yourself an antenna with gain, if you are trying for one area, a directional antenna is the way to go

that little thing gave you an extra bar, but that is still an extremely poor antenna, you will be amazed how much a good directional antenna will help

and the ground idea is no good, antennas work by reflecting off the ground, by attaching directly to the ground you are sinking the whole signal into nothingness

get one of these: http://i42.tinypic.com/14tr9r4.jpg

amazon.com has a bunch like that, this one is called "Cantenna", I've used them and it works great, often you can get a signal half a mile away

Check out youtube, lots of info there:2 cents:

***** out of 5 Stars
Best answer!!

I belong to Monteregie Sans Fils - a non-profit wifi alliance here in the Monteregie region of Quebec - and I install wifi in many restaurants, coffeshops, libraries and bars.

One of our rules, is clients must use our supplied routers ... and the only router we use, is the Linksys WRT54G, or WRT54GS (version 4 only).

This router can be flashed with Tomato or DD-WRT, if your inner geek wants to turn up the RX/TX power (be sure you read the documentation for the firmware replacements and understand the risks/pros/cons) - but is a very capable router that, in ideal situations, will throw a usable signal in a 150 meter radius of the router - right out of the box without any firmware flashing.

You can find these routers on ebay for usually less than $50

http://www.gadgetguy.com.au/assets/i...ys_WRT54GS.jpg

Those suck...

You need to upgrade.
http://gearcrave.com/wp-content/uplo...102008_msp.jpg

:1orglaugh:1orglaugh:1orglaugh

:thumbsup

Like I said ... we are a non-profit wifi alliance that provides free wifi hotspots for local businesses and their customers.

There is absolutely no need - nor justification for the added overhead - to provide wireless 802.11n (300 draft).

They may not be the newest technology, most expensive, gaming routers, but the WRT54G/GSv4 are the Sherman tanks of retail Linksys wireless routers. Their track record speaks for itself, and they most certainly do not suck. LOL

edit: in AC's defence ... yes a wireless N router may give you a greater range if you want to spend the extra bucks, but a decent wireless G router should still suffice for going from your office to your balcony.

I will probably buy one of these because it is so nice outside here in San Diego, and I want to work outside.

But I still think the problem is related to the metallic window tint, and the wire mesh I have that makes up the stucco on the house.

I will return with results.

camper .... do you have an outdoor 120v AC outlet that is on the same electrical box as your office?

If so, this will solve your metallic window tint/stucco problem quite nicely:

http://www.netgear.com/Products/Powe...s/WGXB102.aspx

These work very well ... I had this given to me a couple years ago, and it gave me the same 100% signal strength in my living room, as I had in my office clear across the house.

I did the same thing and it works like a charm...the whole kit cost me about $100.
Those so-called boosters don't always work as well as they sound.
Anyways, I have a Mac as well and the wifi works better than al the pc wifi's I have (3 pc's)

Another angle if you are comfortable opening your lappy ... if you have an Athreos wireless card in it, go on ebay and buy a broadcom card and swap it out.

But honestly If its just the reception on your balcony you are trying to improve, go the Netgear Powerline route

The cheapest thing you can do is pick up a used Buffalo WHR-HP-G54 router on ebay, its about $50 shipped or so, many come pre-flashed with dd-wrt

set up bridge repeater, and there you go wifi signal amplified :D

I have one of these from hawking technologies
http://www.amazon.com/Hawking-HWREN1.../dp/B001DMEYCY



its bad ass and works very well it will create a larger range then your wireless router

my house has 4 floors and the wireless router is in the basement. I put mine on the second floor and its the strongest signal in the house even in the basement

That just made my dick hard. :thumbsup

I have that exact same one...I've had it for a couple of years.

It works fine for me....I play xboxlive with it and everything.

I'm hard. :pimp

I have no idea. Maybe a bigger antenna.

http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:P...AHGHBH6HUZ.jpg

scrape your walls.. fucking lead paint!

a bigger antenna is easiest and costs just a few bucks

may be to change router

Update: I got a 802.11 N router (as opposed to the G mode router I had). Surfing speed is WAAAAY faster. I confirmed that the laptop and router are communicating in N mode using the status option on the router.

But it still only gives me 2/3 bars when I go outside. Which I guess is better than 1/2 bars...

go to the store and try again