Wi-Fi that works everywhere

Bad Wi-Fi is almost always answered with another device. That is understandable, and it often makes things worse.

Why repeaters disappoint

A classic repeater receives the signal and sends it again, over the same radio link. It shares the available airtime with the device it is boosting: every packet crosses the air twice. In practice, noticeably less throughput survives.

On top of that, a repeater amplifies what it receives. Put it where reception is already poor and it spreads a poor signal over a larger area.

What mesh actually solves

Mesh systems solve two things above all: the nodes coordinate with each other, and the handover between them is designed for client devices rather than left to chance. Better systems use a dedicated radio band for the link between nodes, which removes the halving problem.

What mesh does not solve: too little bandwidth at the line, interference from neighbouring networks, thick walls. It makes coverage more even, not physics friendlier.

The most common causes, in this order

1. Where the router sits. In a cupboard, in the basement, behind the TV: each of those positions costs more than any extra device can recover.
2. Channel choice. The 2.4 GHz band has practically three non-overlapping channels. Everything else interferes.
3. Too many devices on one access point. Airtime is shared; a single slow device holds everyone up.
4. Old client devices. A device that only speaks the old standard occupies the air disproportionately long.
5. Expectations about range. Two floors and three walls is a lot to ask of a single access point.

When a cable is the right answer

Whenever a device sits still and generates load: workstations, printers, network storage, televisions. Every device on a cable is one that consumes no airtime. The Wi-Fi gets better for everyone else without adding another radio.

That goes double for connecting additional access points. A second access point on a cable beats almost any wireless mesh. Where no cable exists, a powerline link is usually a better middle road than a repeater.

A pragmatic approach

1. Put the router in the open, centrally, not in a cupboard, not on the floor.
2. Measure with a phone app where reception is actually poor, impressions often mislead.
3. Cable everything that can be cabled.
4. Only then think about additional access points, and connect them by cable where possible.
5. Separate networks for guests and for devices that only need the internet.

The first three steps cost nothing but an hour and resolve the majority of the cases that reach us.