Issues with my Netgear router

[seym56]

I am having issues with my Netgear router. My signal loses strength the farther away I get. I pretty much have to be next to the router to have a good connection (Which sort of defeats the propose of a router). Forget trying to connect from my bedroom which is only 20 feet from the router with a direct line of sight with the doors opened.

 

I tried getting a new router from my cable company and I am having the same issue on the new one. The new model is the exact same as the old one. I am even using the same power cord on it. My PC and Apple TV have no issues connecting to it as they are plugged into the router. 

 

When I first plugged it in it worked fine but later in the day I had the connection issue again.

[m0k]

Which router are you using ? i own a Netgear R7000 and am familiar with their advanced settings

[seym56]

I am currently at work so I'll double check that when I go home for lunch. But my cable company website says that I have a WNDR6300C.

[m0k]

Actually this might be best once i get home from work too lol. 

probably in 7hours though

[seym56]

bout the same for me as well, Lol

[kelly.clubb]

The first thing I notice is that there is not any physical antennas attached to this router (they are all internal) which means they are likely to not go as far in range.  Any router should be able to get 20 feet in range though for a connection.  This is also a dual band router which means it has 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz.  If you can see the 5 GHz network I would suggest attempting to connect to it first it will not have the range as the 2.4 GHz network but would be less congested of neighboring networks.

 

Interference can play a big part in connectivity and range.  If you have more than 5 other networks (2.4 GHz) in the area you're bound to run into some kind of interference from other wifi networks.  There is only 3 good channels in which you can connect on 2.4 GHz that don't overlap other frequencies.  Channel 1, channel 6, and channel 11.  You can get apps on your devices that will show you all the wifi networks in the area and what channel and how strong the signal is.  If you have a lot of networks using the same frequency all their devices (not just the router) are sending data and that will make your range significantly smaller to get a good connection with the router.  Also test with multiple devices.  TV's typically have some of the worst quality range of any wifi devices next to laptops and then tablet/cell phones which usually get some of the best for range.  I would check other devices to see if the issue is the same.

 

This is at least a start to troubleshooting.  If you only see a couple of networks and you still have issues, I would suggest a factory reset to the router (typically holding in reset button/pinhole for 30+ seconds).

 

Hope that helps

[kelly.clubb]

Materials around your router make a lot of difference too.  Don't leave near glass, and away from metal as well, 2 items that are bad and blocking signal.  Also what are your walls made of?  If it's plaster vs drywall then is going to block a lot more of your signal.

[seym56]

As I said earlier I have a direct line of sight to the router unless I close 2 internal wood doors. There are only a few signals near me. This issue only started happening with in the last few months. Before that I had a good connection. I have had the same issue on 2 different routers with different logins. Same models though.

 

I can see the connection but I can't connect to it due to signal strength.

[kelly.clubb]

is it just 1 device having the problem or you have multiple devices that have the issue?  Do you have more than 1 device to test it with?  Are you attempting to connect to the 2.4 GHz network or the 5 GHz network?

 

If single device and you have no other devices to test it with then maybe you can have a friend bring a wifi capable device over and compare.

[seym56]

I have a iPhone I can test it with. The device I am having issues with is a RCA Viking Tablet. I'll test it when I go home for lunch.

 

[kelly.clubb]

sounds good