Asus N551J: overcoming WiFi stability issues

[metropolis.jd]

Hello there,

I own an Asus N551J since 3 years, and I always had WiFi issues, specifically while streaming music via AirPlay to my Musiccast Yamaha devices. I also noticed sudden drops of the internet connection while other devices did not present such issue.

Being the N551J known for its infamous WiFi connection, I was wondering whether the only chance to fix this is to replace the WiFi card inside the laptop, or whether also an external USB WiFi adapter would do the trick of improving the stability of the connection.

Thank you in advance for your replies.
Cheers,
Daniele

 

[MLG_No_Scope]

i really dont know if you could change the wifi card in the laptop. but i think that wifi card has been intergrated on the motherboard, so i think replacing it inside is a no no. but not sure if it is a card inside the laptop or intergrated onto the motherboard.

but buying an external usb adapter isn't a bad idea if you have problems with wifi connection.

also checked the router itself if that is not the problem? could you maybe make a screenshot of the result after the test on this website: http://www.speedtest.net ?

 

[metropolis.jd]

i really dont know if you could change the wifi card in the laptop. but i think that wifi card has been intergrated on the motherboard, so i think replacing it inside is a no no. but not sure if it is a card inside the laptop or intergrated onto the motherboard.

but buying an external usb adapter isn't a bad idea if you have problems with wifi connection.

also checked the router itself if that is not the problem? could you maybe make a screenshot of the result after the test on this website: http://www.speedtest.net ?

I checked and it is indeed a card inside the laptop. Therefore my question is: does it give the same effect if I change the WiFi card inside the laptop, or if I plug in a good USB adapter? Not being an expert of the subject, I'm afraid the issue may be related to the interaction between the components inside the laptop, which an additional external WiFi adapter cannot solve.

With regards to the Speedtest.net, I already used it before, and it usually shows me that normal devices like my smartphone get up to twice as much Mbps in download compared to my ASUS (last try was 5.8 vs 13)

 

[MLG_No_Scope]

In theorie, a better Wifi card will improve the wifi connection, but it really depends what is more affordable?

 

[das_stig]

Changing the wifi card may improve performance, but also depends how it will work with the antennas, as they could be limited to 1x1 streams while the new card may support 2x2 mimo or more, so improvemnet may be limited. Also, if the old card is G and new one N, would help, but also ensuring the channel you use is set to 40Mhz wide frequency for N and disbale support for older G wifi systems.

 

[metropolis.jd]

Changing the wifi card may improve performance, but also depends how it will work with the antennas, as they could be limited to 1x1 streams while the new card may support 2x2 mimo or more, so improvemnet may be limited. Also, if the old card is G and new one N, would help, but also ensuring the channel you use is set to 40Mhz wide frequency for N and disbale support for older G wifi systems.

I had a look at the card currently on my laptop, and it turns out to be the following one:
Atheros AR9485 802.11 b/g/n WiFi Adapter (1x1)

More than an actual improvement in internet bandwith, my biggest and only issue would be to improve its stability, meaning that it won't lose connectivity so often, even if it means that it won't be working any faster.
With regards to the antenna (1x1 in this case), does it mean that if I buy an external USB adapter, I won't be fully taking advantage of the device's functionalities?