With more and more connected devices in our homes (phone, tablet, laptop, computer and now even TV for lots of us) it’s becoming more necessary for us to have a good, reliable Wi-Fi connection throughout the house and even out into the garden for those long hot, Facebook messenger filled nights!
Whilst many of you have nice fast broadband internet connections, I am still hearing complains about the range of those networks. People are telling me that their Wi-Fi is great in the living room but maybe in the bedroom it’s not great and outside is almost impossible to use.
This month we will review MESH networks as they are almost always the answer to most people’s Wi-Fi woes.
In traditional Wi-Fi, the router provides the signal, and that signal gets weaker as it spreads (mushroom-cloud like) around the house, meaning that in locations above and away from it the Wi-Fi signal is at its poorest quality.
Many people put in Wi-Fi extenders (which is fine and works for some). The way that they work is to receive the signal from your router and boost it, however most phones “know” whether they are connected to the main router or not and refuse to drop that connection even though there might be a much better boosted connection right next to it. They end up hanging onto the routers connection until its lost and out or range, and then, only then, do they search for another connection and find the booster – this results in a very poor Wi-Fi experience.
The way that a MESH system works is that each node of the MESH “talks” to each other node (usually there are 3 nodes in a normal sized house) and they agree between them which one has the most efficient signal for the device connected (be it your phone or tablet, laptop or computer) and the nodes move your connection seamlessly between each other as you move around your house.
You can buy more nodes and easily add them to your MESH network at any stage, or you can move nodes around as you notice poorer coverage around your house and garden as you use the network.
There are lots of different systems out there, but I use the TP LINK system as it fits in a sweet spot for me of being affordable but also providing a good quality service. You, of course, should do your own research and get the best for your needs. Once you’ve installed your MESH network I would recommend that you switch off the Wi-Fi part of your router so that its not interfering with your nice shiny new MESH network.
Of course if you’d like to find out more or have a system installed then just get in touch and we can help you through the process.