Will a new AC wireless router really help?

glb613 · ‎03-09-2010

I'm thinking about buying a new router but wonder if it will really help. All of my devices are connected to the internet via wireless except my iMac. When I compare speed tests, I get twice the speed on the wired iMac than I do on the other devices. I know a new AC router is faster but, will my older devices (N adapters) be able to take advantage of the faster speed?

I find myself streaming programs more and more and I've been having problems with lag and buffering especially my iPad. Resetting my iPad has helped but, I still get the spinning circle at times. "House of Cards" starts next week, I am signing up for Netflix and I don't want buffering. Thanks.

Java · ‎08-13-2010

Ok this really isn't going to help much, and my son is still asleep. But, he was all excited about some new google thing(I think) where you buy the router and then can add on access points throughout your home(for an additional purchase) that is what I want. He should be up in about 5 hours(lol) I will ask him.

gardenman · ‎03-09-2010

Wired is always going to be faster. If you're upgrading from a very old router you might see an improvement, but don't expect much. The optimum use of the AC routers is with an ethernet bridge (essentially two AC routers) and then hard wiring the devices to the bridge router. This lets devices in a media room (smart Tv, blu-ray, etc) have a hard wired connection while still distant from the main router. Some devices are now coming equipped for AC so buying a new AC router won't hurt anything and should be future proof. (For a while anyway.)

Fly!!! Eagles!!! Fly!!!

Rabid1 · ‎12-10-2012

If you already have N an AC isn't going to change much. If any of your devices support dual band you would likely see better performance switching to a nice dual band N router and putting a couple devices that can on the upper 5ghz band. Your internet speed is what really determines how well your devices receives stream. If signal strength isn't an issue a bridge won't help much, nor will range extenders or repeaters. An AC to AC bridge can't make any real difference if your devices are all N. Before buying a new router one thing you can do is download a WiFi analyser app to one of your devices. This will show you signal strength and also channel overlap. Overlap and interference are the two main reasons for WiFi problems. You can then set your router to an empty channel or the least used. You might find your existing setup is fine just needed some tweaking.

glb613 · ‎03-09-2010

I recently negotiated with Comcast to lower my bill and part of that included a slightly slower internet. I dropped from 50 mbps to 30 mbps. I have an "N" router, I got into the router settings, changed it to "N" only and that did help.

When I do a speed test, I get 30 mbps on my iMac and 15-16 mbps on my wireless devices. I'm not sure how to test on my iPad. That should be enough but, there are times when it isn't. I'm sure some of the problem is when everyone in the neighborhood is online at the same time. When I've checked, there's at least 10 wireless networks I can see on my computer. Thanks.

jackthebear · ‎03-11-2010

For me a new router and extender made a huge difference, but a factor was also the design of my house. I can now get a good signal in a room where I could never before.

The extender boosts the signal.

We got a Netgear 6100 AC band and extenders, both for under about $150

okBlonde · ‎09-23-2013

Unless you also buy the wireless AC adapters, you won't see much difference. I was asked to review a $200 Belkin dual-band wireless AC router (also compatible with b/g/n) and I do notice a difference in my speeds. I have Comcast 25 Mbps internet and I consistently get 30 Mbps, sometimes higher over my old Cisco Valet router.

jackthebear · ‎03-11-2010

On 2/22/2015 okBlonde said:
Unless you also buy the wireless AC adapters, you won't see much difference. I was asked to review a $200 Belkin dual-band wireless AC router (also compatible with b/g/n) and I do notice a difference in my speeds. I have Comcast 25 Mbps internet and I consistently get 30 Mbps, sometimes higher over my old Cisco Valet router.

ITA

Rabid1 · ‎12-10-2012

On 2/22/2015 glb613 said:
I recently negotiated with Comcast to lower my bill and part of that included a slightly slower internet. I dropped from 50 mbps to 30 mbps. I have an "N" router, I got into the router settings, changed it to "N" only and that did help.

When I do a speed test, I get 30 mbps on my iMac and 15-16 mbps on my wireless devices. I'm not sure how to test on my iPad. That should be enough but, there are times when it isn't. I'm sure some of the problem is when everyone in the neighborhood is online at the same time. When I've checked, there's at least 10 wireless networks I can see on my computer. Thanks.

Speed tests really don't give you a true picture because they benchmark using small files creating unreliable averages. That's why you can have a great speed result and still get buffering. Extenders and repeaters can only boost range not speed. It seems you aren't having signal strength issues. That would show through things like connection drops or constant slow refresh in web browsing. The only Mac tester I know of is Network Analyzer Pro but I don't know if it shows channels. If you have an Android device WiFi Analyzer is great or if you have a PC or laptop Google Xirrius free WiFi tools or inSSIDer.

Nuttmeg · ‎03-09-2010

On 2/22/2015 glb613 said:
I recently negotiated with Comcast to lower my bill and part of that included a slightly slower internet. I dropped from 50 mbps to 30 mbps. I have an "N" router, I got into the router settings, changed it to "N" only and that did help.

When I do a speed test, I get 30 mbps on my iMac and 15-16 mbps on my wireless devices. I'm not sure how to test on my iPad. That should be enough but, there are times when it isn't. I'm sure some of the problem is when everyone in the neighborhood is online at the same time. When I've checked, there's at least 10 wireless networks I can see on my computer. Thanks.

This is a internet speed problem call Comcast. You maybe able to change your service.