[audioholic]

Originally Posted by vinit.merchant

Dear friends,
Currently I am on Airtel 8 mbps plan which was quite sufficient till now, but an upgrade to V-fibre is being offered free of cost, what with Jio lanch just around the corner.
But till now, i was using the Dlink 2750 something ADSL modem/router. This, I understand, will not work with the newer V-fibre. The newer setup will require VDSL modem/router. The last time I checked, Airtel was providing Binatone modem/router, and on reading reviews, it seems to have a few issues, including the range.

I was in the same boat as yours. I had a Dlink 2750 U earlier and then switched to Airtel VDSL. They provided me a Huawei modem + router which was pretty decent until the number of wireless devices became more than 10. So I added a router as explained below:

Originally Posted by sagarpadaki

Which VDSL modem+router are you using? The lower range ones become a bottleneck if more than 5 devices start accessing them simultaneously for high bandwidth. .

Thanks for the tips. I had a Huawei router/modem supplied by Airtel. I ordered a TP Link Archer C60 dual band router yesterday. It was delivered today and I set it up. The response times have definitely improved though I am not sure of the performance under full load. But there is a noticeable difference between the performance in 2.4G and 5G bands. Should see if this works or I need a different strategy. Later on I am thinking of moving the two routers to opposite ends of the house and then setting up both of them to run simultaneously, so that a single router is not fully burdened and the Huawei modems wireless capability is not left unused.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by vinit.merchant

... ... ... Later on I am thinking of moving the two routers to opposite ends of the house and then setting up both of them to run simultaneously, so that a single router is not fully burdened and the Huawei modems wireless capability is not left unused.

Don't mind leaving the Airtel's wireless/router functions unused and keeping it just as a modem! You can decide what functions and features you want in the router and buy that router.

[bluevolt]

I have a Dlink 2750u ADSL router which is not in use since I moved to airtel VFibre from MTNL ADSL broadband a couple of months back.

Can I use this router as a WiFi range extender in any manner? One or two rooms in the house are not able to catch Airtel Wifi signals.

Any alternative solution if the above router cannot be used as range extender>?

[diyguy]

Originally Posted by bluevolt

Can I use this router as a WiFi range extender in any manner?

You should be able to use it as an access point but you may need to wire this router to your main router using an ethernet cable. I have done this with Netgear routers at home but have also done it with basic modem routers in the past.

[itwasntme]

Our area is finally getting ACT Internet and I had a question:

One of the launch offers is a 'free WiFi Router' if you pay 6 months upfront. Any tips on what modem/router combo they offer? From various blogs, it could be the D-Link N300. Is this correct information and is it a good one?

[diyguy]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

From various blogs, it could be the D-Link N300. Is this correct information and is it a good one?

In my opinion you should not be at ransom of these service providers. I used ACT for about a year or so. They were always days of downtime and delays in resolution. They would be non-responsive to tickets raised and would close the tickets without any explanation. I always would pay by the month. For the past year I have moved to Hathway and they are a lot better. In the past year I have had downtime maybe twice for a few hours. However their billing sucks and I have still not moved to longer term advance payment schemes with them.
On the router front, the ACT router will be basic but usable in an apartment of maybe a 1000sq ft. I've also read that some of these telecom provided routers have limits to number of devices that can connect to them which are enforced in the firmware. I believe this limit is there with Hathway but cannot recall at this moment. I am not using the hathway router for wireless and only use it as a modem.

[Red Liner]

We are having some trouble in our office with WiFi access in hard to reach areas. We are about 5000 sq ft over 3 floors. This router TP-Link Archer C20 AC750 Wireless Dual Band Router is on the first floor.

Can we use wifi extenders to improve the range of the Wifi across levels? Is this a good way to go about it? These extenders seem cheap, and can I put one each on every floor and expect great wifi access/speed?

The other option is buying this Netgear Orbi Mesh system which will set us back by almost 23k.

Your advice?

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Can we use wifi extenders to improve the range of the Wifi across levels? Is this a good way to go about it? These extenders seem cheap, and can I put one each on every floor and expect great wifi access/speed?

I am using an extender because none of the routers, single or dual band that I used made any difference in terms of offering good signal strength and range to my working desk. For a fact the 5G signal/SSID of a dual band network by default offers less coverage than the regular band SSID of the same Dual band router.

Finally, only because I was hopeful that a range extender would solve my problem, I picked one and it worked wonderfully that I am using it since more than 18 months now. This is for a flat.

A friend who stays in a duplex (2 floors) home had faced similar problem and I had advised him to go for an extender and he continues to use it even today without any issues.

Regarding the speeds, remember that the speeds when connected to the extender will drop easily by 30-40%. With a 100 Mbps connection, I get 98/99 when connected to the main router and within good range and around 45-60 Mbps when connected to the extender where I can no way connect to the main router.

What would be really important here is the placement of the extender. After couple of trial and errors, I placed the extender in my Bedroom itself although the signal from the main router here is very weak. Placing the extender outside my room was reducing the signal strength of the extended network itself.

The other option is buying this Netgear Orbi Mesh system which will set us back by almost 23k.

There are ways to leverage a spare router for extending the existing WiFi network. You can try that too. I didn't try this and neither would I have opted for it because the extenders are quite compact and look less clumsy (no cables) when plugged to that wall socket.

[binand]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

We are having some trouble in our office with WiFi access in hard to reach areas. We are about 5000 sq ft over 3 floors.
[...] Can we use wifi extenders to improve the range of the Wifi across levels?

In an office where I imagine you have maybe 50-60 Wifi clients (laptops, phones etc.) I don't think this is a good idea. You are better off engaging a professional Wifi deployment agency.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by binand

In an office where I imagine you have maybe 50-60 Wifi clients (laptops, phones etc.) I don't think this is a good idea. You are better off engaging a professional Wifi deployment agency.

My bad! I completely missed the fact that the ask was for office and not for home and I totally agree with your view there!!

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

We are having some trouble in our office with WiFi access in hard to reach areas. We are about 5000 sq ft over 3 floors. This router TP-Link Archer C20 AC750 Wireless Dual Band Router is on the first floor.

Adding my vote: it is a huge area for one domestic unit. Go for pro equipment and pro setup.

[diyguy]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

The other option is buying this Netgear Orbi Mesh system which will set us back by almost 23k.

I have been living in a duplex for about 15 years now. Moved home twice and all have been G+1. I have used two or at times three routers distributed between the two levels. Currently I have two, a Netgear R7000 and a Netgear XR450. Been meaning to add one or two more routers but haven't gotten around to doing it. I have some areas of poor coverage but not a show stopper. I have about 35+ devices overall including smart switches, sockets, gateways, bulbs, security cameras, phones, tabs, fire sticks, tvs, echos, Nas and laptops. I would recommend a similar wire networked router mesh. I had setup wireless router networking in the past, but the connection would drop occasionally and it just wasn't stable enough to run movies from my NAS. Went wired and everything has been great since.
The orbi mesh should work too but I think the wired gives me peace of mind.
The one complication is that I have separate ssid names for each level. There may be a way to have the same name but I also like the separate names to load balance my traffic.

[rdst_1]

I have been using the TP-link 941HP in a 3 floor house with the router kept at the ground floor. Total area is 3600sq ft over 3 floors. Get good strength at all corners of the house and even in my fields 300ft away.

[sinharishi]

Originally Posted by rdst_1

I have been using the TP-link 941HP in a 3 floor house with the router kept at the ground floor. Total area is 3600sq ft over 3 floors. Get good strength at all corners of the house and even in my fields 300ft away.

Mind sharing the cost?

I am looking for a router that has a wide range, something that can cover up a 2,500 sq feet duplex apartment. Will one router setup be better or should I go in for 2 routers, 1 for each floor? All rooms in my apartment have LAN drops, connected to the ONT box.

[rdst_1]

I bought it from 3250 IIRC. I don't have insane bandwidth demands that some modern households might have. I only need the router to share my 4Mbps internet connection. Hence I made this choice as this router has a great range. All the high end models focus more on bandwidth. So if your needs are similar then a single router like mine can suffice.