wifi signal

[georgeriley]

Ive just installed a usb network card into my Dell 5150 dektop which works fine until i move it into my outside studio about 80 metres away from router .I do get a signal and connected but its not a great signal maybe 1-2 bars.Any help would be great please

 

[tom_gr7]

I'm going to be honest. Wifi is rubbish, anything and everything can disrupt the signal and ranges are often poor. I'd suggest either getting a better router - gonna cost. OR getting a set of homeplugs - homeplugs send the internet through the electrical wiring in your house, gives you a wired connection direct from your router to your desktop/laptop/other device.

 

[Rainy]

I find USB Wifi adapters to be better than cards, I use one for my desktop, a Netgear WNA3100. My router is downstairs at the back of the living room whilst my desktop is upstairs at the front of the house, I still manage to get full signal and it's pretty stable.

There are a lot of things that can interfere with your Wifi signal though, it also depends on how far the wifi adapter/card states it can be whilst still giving a good connection. Mine is the medium, usually 150 cards/adapters are the lowest range, 300 medium and 500+ long range.

 

[ubuysa]

80 metres is a long way for wifi so there may not be much you can do without investing in a high-power USB wifi adapter. They key thing to remember is that the 2 bars you see is the strength of the signal your computer can see from the router, but the router also has to be able to get a good signal from your computer (wifi is a two-way thing) and that's typically where the problem lies. There is no measure you can get at that shows you how strong that signal is.

My best advice is either go down the homeplugs or wired Ethernet route, or invest in a high-power wifi adpater.

 

[Androcles]

80 meters away is where your issue is, that's a long way for wifi, what I would recommend is to buy some wifi booster plugs, you can get a set of two three prong electrical plugs that boost wifi, the first plug connects to the router directly via a cable and plugs into the mains, the second plug plugs into another electrical plug socket closer to your PC and broadcasts the wifi signal (the signal is transmitted through your electrical wiring between the two plugs), I was sceptical of them for ages until I tried a set a while back and they work pretty well.

 

[georgeriley]

Thanks guys ive bought a booster now set it up 1 question does it need to be connected to my router via the ethernet cable at all times?