Do I need a Wifi-Extender or something else?

Hoseman

My router is at the front of the house and we sometimes struggle to get a connection at the back of our home. We've been using a wifi-extender up until recently but it has got damaged and seems to be on its last legs. Therefore, do I get another one and if yes which one? Or is there any other tech I should consider?

I was looking into wifi-mesh but its really pricey and I don't really want to spend that much (+£150) tbh. 

flaneurs_lobster

If a wi-fi repeater was doing the job OK then just replace it with the same one.

Deals around (Black Friday innit) on all things tech. The Amazon eero kit seems to do well on review sites.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09315JRBC?tag=rtings-u-rt-21&ie=UTF8&th=1

Newcad

What type of extender was your old one?

Hoseman

Thanks @flaneurs_lobster, that Amazon mesh thingy looks good until you read the 1 star reviews... shame. The extender I have is OK but the performance can be patchy.

@Newcad, the one I have is probably about 8+ years and the brand is Netgear. Its a Wifi 5, 300mbps.

Newcad

Thanks but I meant was it wifi to wifi, or a powerline extender, or ......

If you have a number for it that should tell us what type of Netgear extender it is/was.

Cisco001

Mercusys AC1200 Mesh WiFi, 3 pack £50, it is cheap if you don't mind the speed...

What is your boardband speed?
8 years old router may need changing, 300mbps router is slow by today standard...

Hoseman

Newcad said:

Thanks but I meant was it wifi to wifi, or a powerline extender, or ......

If you have a number for it that should tell us what type of Netgear extender it is/was.

Its a wifi range extender which I plug into a socket. This is the model: Netgear ex2700

Hoseman

Cisco001 said:

Mercusys AC1200 Mesh WiFi, 3 pack £50, it is cheap if you don't mind the speed...

What is your boardband speed?
8 years old router may need changing, 300mbps router is slow by today standard...

That speed is for the wifi extender not the router. The router isnt that old/dated. 

Just did a test and the results I got back are:

DOWNLOAD - 31.60 Mbps

UPLOAD - 15.42 Mbps

Newcad

Hoseman said:

Its a wifi range extender which I plug into a socket. This is the model: Netgear ex2700

That's a wifi-wifi unit.
It picks up the wifi signal from your router, amplifies it and sends it out as a new signal.
Usually with the same name as the router but with "_EXT" added to the name (although you can rename it).

If that was OK then just get a similar new one to replace it.

If it wasn't so good for your needs then you might want to look at a Poweline extender instead.

Those are 2-units, one unit connects by cable to the router and plugs into an electrical socket.
It then sends the broadband through the house electrical wiring to the remote unit, which can have a cable socket to connect to the remote device, or can broadcast a wifi signal, or both.
You can normally buy extra remote units if wanted in other rooms and just plug them in where wanted.
Because the signal is going down the wires between the units they can be further apart than a wifi-wifi setup.
Something like one of these contains the 2 basic units: https://www.amazon.co.uk/TL-WPA4220KIT-Powerline-Broadband-Configuration-UK/dp/B01LXOZ4EN/
(Netgear do powerline adaptors too if you want to stick with the brand).

flashg67

I've used this (relatively) cheap mesh set up successfully after having the same issue as you - https://pacetech.com/strong-atria-ac1200-whole-home-mesh-wi-fi-system-up-to-5-000sq-ft-uk-3-pack.html

Have a google for suppliers as I've seen it Under £20 for a twin pack on occasion

spile

I I would always recommend a wired (Backhaul) wireless point. You can always repurpose an unused router for this at little or zero cost.