Improve WiFi

SK0602

I’m a very untechy person so bear with me…
we’ve got sky broadband, works fine- speed test is very fast (when lap top is plugged in). 

However the WiFi is just a bit rubbish. We can barely get it upstairs and kitchen is intermittent, when we do connect it’s very slow. We’re in a standard Manchester 3bed semi, the router is in the hall on the shelf. Pretty much the most central, accessible place. Walls not particularly thick.

I also bought a cheap WiFi extender for the kitchen- which is ok but not great plus annoying as we have to keep manually connecting. 

I realise quite a lot can be connecting at anyone time (2iphones, tv, Alexa, laptop, kids iPads etc). Although we on the sky plan for multiple items connecting.

Is there a something to buy which will help with these issues? I don’t mind spending a few hundred to upgrade but I don’t know where to start. I did briefly ask in curry’s but the teenage assistant didn’t fill me with confidence.

any advice greatly appreciated 

Neil_Jones

Which Sky router do you have?  It should have a model number somewhere on the unit.

If its the SR101 or the SR102 then not only are these old models but the wifi was crap on them from the off.  The SR203 is better (supposedly).

neilmcl

As above, which version of router/sky hub do you have?

SK0602

The model number says ER115, so none of the above mentioned?

neilmcl

Yeah, the er115, or Sky Q hub is a bit pants tbh for WiFi. You could try and improve things by connecting via 5ghz if your device is capable. The SR203, which you can pick up on eBay fairly cheaply, is also an improvement.

Do you have a cordless phone handset near the router as this can interfere with your WiFi.

SK0602

Cheers forgive me for asking but connecting via 5ghz?? What does that involve doing?

I’ll have a look on eBay and see if I can pick one up 
thank you!

neilmcl

Your router is dual band, ie, it can transmit at two frequencies; the standard (and often congested) 2.4ghz band as well as the less used 5ghz band. If your device(s) support you can quite often get a better signal and speed via 5ghz than 2.4ghz as it transmits data faster, albeit over shorter distances.

In order to connect via 5ghz your device must have a WiFi card that is designated as 802.11ac.

CoastingHatbox

Before recommending that you spend any money, there are a few questions I would ask.

1. How many WiFi clients are connected to the Wireless Access Point

2. Are the internal walls in your house brick/breeze block or are they stud walls?

3. Are there any devices situated by the router that emit RF, for example cordless phones?
4. Download a WiFi analyser app from the app store on your smart phone, Fire the app up and look at the channel graph. Locate your WiFi network on 2.4G and 5G. Are there networks on the same channels that contend? Are there any channels that look like they might be free or less contended? For 2.4Ghz you ideally want to stick to channels 1, 6 and 11 to reduce channel overlap. It might be worth posting a couple of screen shots.

5. Use the WiFi analyzer app to do a bit of a survey of your home. What signal strength and contention are you seeing in each room. Ideally signal strength needs to be above -70dBm in each room you want the WiFi to work and around -50dBM in close proximitiy to the WiFi Access Point.
6. Are you able to run any Ethernet cables through the house, or do you have any already installed?

I don't really know what a typical Manchester semi is like. When I lived there, there were lots of "factory homes" still in use which are not WiFi friendly at all.

Myser

If you have Sky's WiFi Guarantee, you can request WiFi boosters.

That hub does have poor WiFi coverage. If you are out of contract and don't have WiFi Guarantee, you can call the cancellations department and see if they will offer a free upgrade to a newer router with WiFi Guarantee.

getmore4less

SK0602 said:

I’m a very untechy person so bear with me…
we’ve got sky broadband, works fine- speed test is very fast (when lap top is plugged in). 

However the WiFi is just a bit rubbish. We can barely get it upstairs and kitchen is intermittent, when we do connect it’s very slow. We’re in a standard Manchester 3bed semi, the router is in the hall on the shelf. Pretty much the most central, accessible place. Walls not particularly thick.

I also bought a cheap WiFi extender for the kitchen- which is ok but not great plus annoying as we have to keep manually connecting. 

I realise quite a lot can be connecting at anyone time (2iphones, tv, Alexa, laptop, kids iPads etc). Although we on the sky plan for multiple items connecting.

Is there a something to buy which will help with these issues? I don’t mind spending a few hundred to upgrade but I don’t know where to start. I did briefly ask in curry’s but the teenage assistant didn’t fill me with confidence.

any advice greatly appreciated 

I read this deal and thought for £36 this might fix your issues.

https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/tenda-nova-mw5c-ac1200-wifi-mesh-range-extender-kit-200m2-2000ft2-twin-pack-ps3599-with-code-at-tab-retail-ebay-3824308

worth a read of the posts there are other suggestions.  

CoastingHatbox

getmore4less said:

SK0602 said:

I’m a very untechy person so bear with me…
we’ve got sky broadband, works fine- speed test is very fast (when lap top is plugged in). 

However the WiFi is just a bit rubbish. We can barely get it upstairs and kitchen is intermittent, when we do connect it’s very slow. We’re in a standard Manchester 3bed semi, the router is in the hall on the shelf. Pretty much the most central, accessible place. Walls not particularly thick.

I also bought a cheap WiFi extender for the kitchen- which is ok but not great plus annoying as we have to keep manually connecting. 

I realise quite a lot can be connecting at anyone time (2iphones, tv, Alexa, laptop, kids iPads etc). Although we on the sky plan for multiple items connecting.

Is there a something to buy which will help with these issues? I don’t mind spending a few hundred to upgrade but I don’t know where to start. I did briefly ask in curry’s but the teenage assistant didn’t fill me with confidence.

any advice greatly appreciated 

I read this deal and thought for £36 this might fix your issues.

https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/tenda-nova-mw5c-ac1200-wifi-mesh-range-extender-kit-200m2-2000ft2-twin-pack-ps3599-with-code-at-tab-retail-ebay-3824308

worth a read of the posts there are other suggestions.  

Need to know what the RF environment is like before making those sorts of recommendations. It could potentially make things a lot worse for the OP or their neighbours.

Myser said:

If you have Sky's WiFi Guarantee, you can request WiFi boosters.

That hub does have poor WiFi coverage. If you are out of contract and don't have WiFi Guarantee, you can call the cancellations department and see if they will offer a free upgrade to a newer router with WiFi Guarantee.

The drawback with this suggestion is that it will inevitably mean signing up to a new contract / lock in.

I think it is actually much better to get your home WiFi connectivity sorted independently of your service provider.

The leaves you free to change provider and get the best deals without having to go through the motions of "fixing" the WiFi with each new provider. For example, by running your own Wireless Access Points and using the provided "hub" as a bridged modem, or if not using Virgin Media using your own modem.