WiFi Speeds Slower Than Before

[ryanmac281]

Hi guys,

Last year I purchased a cheap wireless adapter for my PC from eBay which had both 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz capabilities. It has been working brilliantly for months on the 5Ghz band and I have been getting the normal speeds of around 70Mb down.

However I have noticed just lately that my internet seemed slower than usual and was sometimes struggling to load web pages. I was doing some ping tests last night, both to the router and to Google and both were giving regular intermittent timeouts, ranging from 5 to 10 seconds. After doing some speed tests I was only getting around 23Mb down also. So I decided to swap the wireless adapter as I had a spare laying around, and the exact same thing was happening.

I have done some more ping tests this morning with the original wireless adapter and it no longer seems to be dropping however the speeds are significantly slower than I mentioned before, in terms of download speeds I am still only getting around 25Mb down instead of the usual 70mb.

I have done a speed test on my phone from the same location as my PC and this is getting the usual 70mb. I also did a ping test on it along with when my PC ping test was timing out and it didn't drop a beat.

Please could you help me as to why all of a sudden the speeds seem to be slower than they have before?

Thanks!

 

[Ralston18]

Try tracert and pathping targeting Google or some other website of your choice.

Determine if the delays are within your network, at your ISP, or elsewhere.

If at ISP they may be able to help. If elsewhere then probably out of anyone's control.

 

[smorizio]

with the new windows spring update that was forced rolled out. it may have over written chipset drivers of the mb or the wifi adaptor. i would look at the chipset used for the adpator and download the newest drivers for it.

 

[ryanmac281]

I have downloaded all the latest drivers with the help of Driver Easy but nothing seems to have changed.

Pinging my router / Google's DNS I am getting 'request timed out' for intervals of around 5 to 10 seconds and the speeds are still less than half what they should be.

Any ideas?

 

[Ralston18]

Download the drivers via the applicable manufacturer's websites. Not a third party site and not until there are absolutely no other options left.

First focus on smorizio's recommendations.

Then run and post the results of tracert and pathping.

 

[ryanmac281]

Thanks guys, please see my MB details below. What's the best way to get the latest drivers?

 

[Ralston18]

You need to identify your network adapter.

Two ways to do so:
1) Device Manager

2) Run "ipconfig /all" (without quotes) via the command prompt.

Then go to the manufacturer's website and find the applicable drivers.

And please remember "cheap". The wireless adapter may be cheap in both price and quality. Probably built with the cheapest possible components.

May be nearing EOL (End of Life).

 

[ryanmac281]

Thanks Ralston18, I have downloaded the latest drivers for the device however the same thing is happening. Interestingly when I tried a spare WiFi adapter I had laying around, exactly the same thing is happening which makes me think something has changed on my PC. I did actually roll back a couple of Windows Updates however the issue is still occurring.

 

[Ralston18]

USB adapter? If so, use a USB extension cable to connect the wireless adapter and raise it up and about. Could help with signal transmission and reception.

Think about anything that may have changed in your environment. Does not take much to disrupt the wireless communications and slow things down. Some devices (e.g., your phone) may be more tolerant and not be effected while others (your PC) are impacted.

Try the Windows 10 built-in troubleshooters.

Then go into the adapter settings and compare those settings to those of another working computer on your wireless network.

Leave the IP address and subnet mask as is.

Check the various wireless options and properties. There are quite a number of them available via various windows and tabs.

Most can be and should be left as is.

The following link will help you understand the configuration in place:

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000005585/network-and-i-o/wireless-networking.html

May not fully apply.

That is okay as your objective is to just look first and determine what might be different on your PC versus the configuration of other working wireless devices on your network.

When ready, change only one thing at a time and keep notes in case you need to undo some change.

Sometimes you will need to change settings from "auto" to "manual" (or vice versa) to get an adapter to play well with the router.