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If part of your home or office has weak Wi-Fi, two products claim to solve it: a range extender for the price of a dinner out, or a mesh system for several times as much. The extender is tempting. Sometimes it is the right answer. More often it becomes a second purchase, made after the first one disappointed.
How a range extender works
An extender is a small box that plugs into a wall socket. It listens to your router's Wi-Fi signal and rebroadcasts it.
The drawbacks all come from that design:
- It repeats what it hears. Most affordable extenders use the same radio to talk to the router and to your devices, taking turns. Expect roughly half the speed through an extender, and sometimes less.
- It can only repeat the signal it receives. Put it in the dead spot and it has nothing to work with. It must sit where the signal is still good.
- It often creates a second network, with a name such as
HomeWifi_EXT. Phones and laptops cling to whichever network they joined first, so you end up switching by hand as you move around, or stuck on the weak one. - One extender is the practical limit. Chaining them together makes everything worse.
How a mesh system works
A mesh system replaces your router's Wi-Fi with two or three matching units placed around the building. One connects to your modem, and the others spread out.
- One network name everywhere. The units cooperate and hand your devices from one to the next as you move. You stop thinking about it.
- A separate channel between the units. Better systems keep a dedicated radio for the units to talk to each other, so your devices keep their full speed. When comparing models, look for the words tri-band, or dedicated backhaul.
- Managed from one app, which updates the units itself. That matters for security, because old routers that never get updated are a common way in for attackers.
- You can add a unit later if you build an extension or move the office.
When an extender is enough
- One room has the problem, and it is next to an area with a strong signal.
- You only need light use there: browsing, email, a smart speaker.
- The device stays put, such as a television or a printer in a back room.
- You are renting and cannot move or replace the router.
If that is your situation, buy an extender that supports the same Wi-Fi generation as your router. Place it halfway between the router and the problem room, and give it the same network name and password as your main network if its settings allow that.
When you need mesh
- Two or more rooms, or a whole floor, have poor coverage.
- The building is long, has several floors, or has brick, concrete or plaster walls.
- People move about while on video calls.
- Many devices are in use at once. A family's phones, laptops, televisions, cameras and smart gadgets easily pass thirty.
- Your router is more than five or six years old in any case.
- It is a small office, where a dropped call costs more than the equipment.
A mesh system with two units covers most homes. Three units suit larger or awkwardly shaped buildings. Do not buy more than you need, because too many units close together interfere with each other.
Better than either: a cable
If a network cable can reach the far end of the building, use it. A mesh unit or an access point connected by Ethernet cable delivers close to full speed, because nothing is being repeated over the air. Many mesh systems support this, and call it wired or Ethernet backhaul.
Running a new cable is not always possible, and there are two alternatives that use wiring already in the walls:
- MoCA adapters send the network over the coaxial cable installed for television. If there are coax sockets in the right rooms, this works very well.
- Powerline adapters use the electrical wiring. Results vary widely from house to house, from good to unusable, so buy them from a shop with an easy returns policy.
Where to put the units
- Put the main unit as near the middle of the building as the internet connection allows, up high and out in the open.
- Place each extra unit about halfway to the area with the problem, not inside it. It needs a strong link back to the main unit.
- Keep units off the floor, and out of cupboards and the space behind the television.
- One floor apart is fine. Two floors apart is usually too far.
Using mesh with your internet provider's box
Most providers supply a combined modem and router. You can plug a mesh system into it, but you should then either switch the provider's box to bridge or modem-only mode, or turn off its Wi-Fi. Two routers both trying to manage the same network cause odd problems that are hard to track down. Your provider's support line can change the setting for you.
The decision in short
- One nearby room, light use: an extender, placed halfway.
- Anything more than that: a mesh system.
- If a cable can reach the far end: use it, whichever you choose.