[SOLVED] Internet extenders, Repeaters vs. Powerlines vs. Mesh networks

[mtw1]

Hi, We have blackout spots with my wireless internet coverage in our house.

Our provider says we should get 72mbps, beside the router which is in a room that used to be a garage and has thick walls we can get about 55mbps. In the room beside that it goes down to about 50, but in some areas of the house it goes to 20 and in one of the upstairs rooms down to 3 mbps!

The router they provided is apparently pretty ok, it's an The Huawei HHG2500 and is of the abgn+ac variety. It would be difficult to move the router without some major rewiring so I was thinking of getting some extenders for the house, but am curious to know which type to get. Powerline or mesh or repeater?

My budget is about up to £120, and we'll mostly be using the internet while stationary so moving about isn't an issue. I know mesh setups can be expensive and but have the advantage of being able to set up multiple bases to cover all the deadzones. On the otherhand if I had a decent powerline extender I could put it inbetween the two main problem areas as they aren't too far apart from each other, also the powerline would negate the problem of the thick walls where the router is situated, but would it do it any better than a mesh set up?

Any help/recommendation for extendors would be greatly appreciated

Thanks for reading

Mark

 

[bill001g]

In general you want to avoid any form of mesh/repeater unless you have no other option. No matter how fancy they make the mesh units they all suffer from now having multiple radio signals that can be interfered with rather than one. There is a difference between signal strength and signal quality. Key to high speed it the quality. A low power signal with good quality can get better speeds that a high strength signal with lots of interference.

That said there is no way to actually predict how well any solution will work in your house....unless you run actual ethernet cables.

Power line networks tend to work better for passing through very dense walls/floors/ceiling. There are units with the remote end has wireless but you could also put a cheap router as a AP into normal powerline units.
With careful placement you might solve both your problems, use the powerline to get to the remote room and the new wifi radio provides better coverage. This solution does not have as much interference issue because there is no wifi signal back to the main router. If you go with powerline units look for the AV2 based units.

 

[mtw1]

Ok, thank you for your in-depth reply.

So just to clarify the set up you're suggesting is an AV2 base powerline unit beside my main point router in the converted garage, then having the couterpart powerline unit in or near the problem room with another router plugged into that one. Is that right?

Also would that create a new internet connection to connect to or just rebroadcast the one thats coming into the counterpart powerline unit?

Thanks again for your help.

Mark

 

[bill001g]

Yes the av2 models are just newer and work better. If you justify the price look at the 1200 ones.,..of course that number is marketing. You might get 150.

You are correct but call the remote "router" a AP. They will share the same internet connection but if you run it as a router there will be a different LAN network which can cause issue with file sharing etc. Many routers have a AP mode if not search how to run a router as a AP. It is fairly trivial to run any router as a AP.

 

[mtw1]

Ok great, sounds like a plan. Thank you