will a separate router help my wifi range?

[titaniumhold]

I have time Warner cable in my apartment with an arris dg860 modem/router combo that was setup when I moved in. wired download speeds~15mbps. The problem is that the wifi works near the router but not further away such as in my bedroom. What are my options to increase my wifi's range?

 

[g90814]

getting a separate router for wifi would likely give you better range. You'd turn off the wireless in the arris device and set up the new router as an access point, and use it's wireless for your new wifi networking. Give us a budget and we can make some recommendations.

What are your wireless settings now? there may be changes you can make to get better range. You should be using wireless N for mode (unless you have older devices that need wireless g), WPA2 security with AES encryption. Set the channel to 'auto', with 40Mhz channel width.

Positioning is also important, it shouldn't be low to the ground, or near metal cabinets, or behind other electronic devices. All of those can cause interference and low signal strength/quality.

 

[titaniumhold]

Thanks that's what I was wondering. My current settings are wireless B/G/N mixed mode with WPA2 and AES encrpytion. Channel is auto and channel width is 40Mhz. Based on your recommendations should I change from wireless B/G/N mixed mode to N only? All connected devices are modern enough to use N. With most devices able to use Wireless AC, Would a new 802.11ac router be useful? or perhaps a new dual band option? The current position of my router is on top of a desk, with decent line of sight to my bedroom (60-65ft away) but 2-3 walls impede its path depending on the angle. My goal is to be able to stream at least 720p video in my bedroom- I can stream 1080p without buffering near the router. My budget is $100-150

 

[g90814]

Wireless AC uses 5Ghz, which doesn't go through obstacles too well. Not too many devices use this yet, except for newer high end computers. Many can use 5Ghz, but not the AC part (above 300Mbps, which most people don't even use).

Just as a note: Dual Band =/= Wireless AC. A router can have dual band (2.4/5Ghz) but not be "AC". AC is when you can have more than 300Mbps on the 5Ghz frequency.

Yes, try changing your settings to wireless N only, and you may see some improvement.

If you want to go with a new router, here's a link with recommended brands, you can sort on price/ratings/etc.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100010076%2050001015%2050001233%2050012120%2050001413%2050001315%2050001646%204017%204027&IsNodeId=1&srchInDesc=dual%20band

I'd go with a device that has the external antenna as you can position them for better range/coverage more than one that does not have them.

I just got a refurb ASUS RT-AC68R for $135 (they seem to have gone up a bit now) and it works great. Of course I have a small apt so no idea on range at this point 😉