WiFi or CAT cable?

The title “WiFi extender” sounds a little bit like snake oil. Quite a bit different than a designed meshed WiFi network with dedicated backbone radios.

Nothing can be easy can it? :slight_smile:

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I’m thinking about just buying both kids their own homes instead… :rofl:

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I hear you can buy houses dirt cheap in Texas. :smiley:

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Something like, “It can be fast, easy, or cheap. Pick any two.”

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I have read about parents that built micro-homes for the kids out on their properties and had the kids “move out” (utilities are all still through the main property of course, properly connected via the appropriate professionals) and teaching the kids the basics of home ownership at a younger age. I think some things like laundry & dinner (still as a family) were done in the main home still. Kids basically got bed/bath/study area. Doing that you’d just run a buried ethernet connection out to each one, or to be more lightning-safe, fiber optic.

I have just described the optional route to select “none”. :crazy_face:

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Will I get arrested if I bury their homes underground so I don’t have to hear them yelling at each other as one or the other kills each other in FortNite?

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Can’t … stop … laughing …

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Officer, that is our fallout shelter! That shouting was our alarm system, it’s there so an intruder thinks someone is actually there!

Hopefully not. :rofl:

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I’ve used a wifi extender to cover upstairs at “5G” (quotes because I don’t know what ‘5G’ is). It worked great. I do now have my gaming (siming) pc connected on an ethernet cable just because it was already in the room. But wired or radioed, I don’t notice a difference.

5Ghz it should have been. 2.4Ghz is the older WiFi frequency - slower but more range.

With WiFi direct to my router (no extender here) I can ping it on average of about 17ms. Ping to Google’s 8.8.8.8 DNS server is about 27ms. Using my PC, which has to traverse three switches to get to the router it is average <1ms (max 3ms) and then 14ms to 8.8.8.8

Does this make a big difference? Depends who you ask. Normally, no not really. Under 100 is good enough, under 50 is great.

Although if @BeachAV8R is worried about Fortnite yelling, lower ping will make a difference! :smile:

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In your county? Call it prepping and you’ll get a medal.

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I just got Spectrum a couple of weeks ago to replace AT&T and my wi-fi speed for Spectrum is around 10 to 15% of my cat5e speed. There was only one unit using the wi-fi bandwidth and that was my Amazon Firestick that is connected to the TV. The TV is on the same floor and is only about 30 feet away from the wifi source.

AT&T
(I am paying for the Internet 25 package)
Web: Speedtest by Ookla - The Global Broadband Speed Test
Image: https://www.speedtest.net/result/10310524162.png

  • Ping: 110 ms (milliseconds)
    (The ping for AT&T is normally in the 10 to 20 range)
  • Download Speed: 22.21 Mbps (megabits per second)
    (Download speed is about normal.)
  • Upload Speed: 1.77 Mbps (megabits per second)
    (Upload speed is just a little below normal.)

Spectrum:
(I am paying for the 400 Mbps package)
Web: Speedtest by Ookla - The Global Broadband Speed Test
Image: https://www.speedtest.net/result/10310456296.png

  • Ping: 12 ms (milliseconds)
  • Download Speed: 321.75 Mbps (megabits per second)
  • Upload Speed: 23.59 Mbps (megabits per second)

Those were the wired speeds


The wi-fi speed was

  • Ping: 12 ms (milliseconds)
  • Download Speed: 45.?? Mbps (megabits per second)
  • Upload Speed: I did it on my TV using my Amazon Fire stick and it did not give me an Upload Speed.

List of AT&T Internet packages.

Wheels

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I think the general consensus is wired>wireless, but wired isn’t always an option for various reasons (just ask the other half about the holes in the wall just to have better interweb speeds).

A modern combined 5Ghz/2.4Ghz router definitely works and some mesh extenders can assist with reaching the outer areas of the house. Keep the shorter range and higher bandwidth devices on the 5Ghz and the longer reach lower bandwidth devices on the 2.4.

It’s not necessarily the perfect solution but it’ll work.

(Or…keep the kids on the 2.4 because what do they need the connection for anyway…)

I’m using a 5GHz wifi mesh system and it’s really good.
Now, a CAT6 cable will be the best solution, but comes with the hazzle of…a cable.

I used powerline adapters (expensive ones) for two years. It was not a good experience as it was slow and unreliable. Frequent packets drops when gaming, quake3 had a nice netgraph to show it.

A good wifi network can do better. Depending on how congested your area is. Not a problem for Beach.

But cable is still soo much better, and depending on how well you can manage yourself it‘s way cheaper. Does not even have to be Cat6. Cat5e is still miles ahead of anything that uses thin air.

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While I read this on my iPad having morning coffee. Across the room three kids are are watching YT videos on separate devices. Not sure if we are on the same access point, but we are sharing the same Internet connection.

image

Latency is lower on my gaming rig on the top floor, which is cabled to an Orbi satellite that sites on the desk behind it. So it’s using the WiFi backbone to the Orbi router/firewall.

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FWIW, I have Power Line Adapters and used them for maybe 20 minutes.

15MBps vs 575mbps on my wifi from the same router.

there was also packet loss.

what we ended up doing is flat white cat6 along all the floor boards and under the rug and coming up 12 inches from the floor on the walls to a 3/4 inch thick terminal to plug a LAN cable into. no one ever sees them along the floor boards and we eventually bought covers to go over them.

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5Ghz WiFi doesn’t get through obstructions well, as has been my experience. 2.4Ghz seems to work better.

Cat5, Cat5E, or Cat6 is always best.

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Wifi Mesh works the best,

Mom’s apartment had Router in back bedroom, which had a hardwire wall w/ shielded circuit breaker box, followed by a bathroom with a 5x7 wall mirror, followed by a closet w/ HVAC in it.

Lets just say, outside of that room, there was crap wifi signal,

Bought a Wifi Mesh kit, which was able to make the signal go around all those obstables by placing a unit on the wall in the hallway, living area and room, creating one large mesh web of wifi.

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