Wi Fi Signal Booster?

by fordo123 Apr 20, 2008 1:49PM PDT

Hey guys,

Fordo here with her 5th tech question of the weekend. Will Slikkster go for 3 with this one??

A friend that I am staying here with in Los Angeles has a really poor wi-fi signal. The router is upstairs but the signal is very weak downstairs. He cant use his laptop downstairs but, even more importantly, his new Wii cant receive the signal downstairs so he cant get online using the Wii. Not good.

I have heard of people using signal boosters to boost the signal coming into their home so they can get better tv reception. But I didn't know that one could use that to get better wi-fi service. If a wi-fi signal booster does exist, has anyone ever used one? Do they really work? Can anyone recommend a reliable brand?

Thanks a lot.

Fordo

Discussion is locked

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We have a forum sticky about wifi setup.

by r. proffitt Forum moderator Apr 20, 2008 9:33PM PDT

I find if I setup the router proper it often helps. Read http://forums.cnet.com/5208-7589_102-0.html?forumID=62&threadID=264135&messageID=2584349 and try another channel.

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WiFi booster

by quasarboy Apr 20, 2008 10:31PM PDT

Hey dude, these do in fact exist. I use one at home from netgear. It plugs into my wall socket half way along my hallway and gets its own IP address that connects to the main network in the house. The my further away PC's connect to it on route to the main box and out the wall to webland.

Funny thing is that my MAC laptop picks up the home wireless 100% and it is the furthest away. My Sont desktop and compac laptop even though closer have crap connections. Begs to wonder what they put in those PC boxes. The MAC seems totally superior in it's reception of the signal.

So check out netgear for a solution.

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A few options.

by thesatguy Apr 21, 2008 1:51PM PDT

There are a few things I can suggest. The first is a higher gain antenna to replace those little ones that come on the router.
http://www.google.com/products?hl=en&rlz=&q=wifi+router+antenna&um=1&ie=UTF-8

The second is a wifi repeater, which will is probably overkill for your (friends) needs.

My last and cheapest method is to build your own antenna from aluminum foil. They don't work half bad, and it may just be worth a try.
http://www.freeantennas.com/projects/template/

-Kyle

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wi-fire

by jaymac5684 Nov 23, 2009 6:06AM PST

I would look into getting a wi-fi booster. I use the one from hfield technologies called the Wi-Fire. Works great!! I am able to pick up more wireless hotspots and obtain a strong signal from a few hundred feet away from my access point. It was cheap to, I think i only paid $60. You can check them out at hfield.com hope i could help

jay

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Check the placement of the router?

by mattlp Nov 23, 2009 10:10PM PST

We have a Linksys router on the second floor. Our Mac on the first floor wasn't getting a good signal and was getting no signal half the time. I was thinking of getting a repeater until I read the placement of the router is paramount. We kept the router on the back of a file cabinet, almost touching the wall. I moved it to the front of the file cabinet and put it on two books. The Mac now gets a respectable signal.

Wi Fi Signal Booster?

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