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Bea
Advocate

Wifi range inexistent

Hi,

I signed up recently with NowTV. The wifi doesn’t reach 4m away with no obstacles more tan a couple of thin walls. Wifi only really works in the room where the router is. I have tried splitting 2.4 and 5 and nothing changes.

I wouldn’t like an extender as this is a very tiny house and any other router would simply work. Would NowTV change my router? If an extender is finally needed, would NowTV supply it?

Such a scammy service if they don’t help with this. 

Thanks.

3 REPLIES 3
chilli2
Elite

Now will not help with this, you could try calling them, but the routers poor perfomance generates plenty of posts on here .

 The best way to look at this is to see Now broadand as an old fashoined ISP where you had to provide your own equipment , if you do get your own router then the cost of that, plus the now subscrition over 12 months will still probably work out cheaper than other ISPs

 

 

I posted this a while back on another thread regarding the rubbish wifi from the now router, hope this helps:

 

 

There are a few things you can do to improve things, as youve probably guessed the now router doesnt have a good reputation with regards to wifi - if it works for you then thats great, if not then its not the end of the world

First of all to see if its the wifi on the router, or the connection you should try a speediest while connected via Ethernet and not wifi

 

If thats OK, then its the wifi, there are a few steps you can take here.

First of all in the router settings separate the bands the now router puts out two frequencies for wifi 2.4ghz and 5ghz . 5 is faster than 2.4 and less prone to congestion and/ or interference - however it doesnt go as far . 2.4 can be more congested is a fraction slower but goes further .

for most situations 2.4Ghz will do , so once you have separated the bands you can ensure that devices connect to the 2.4 signal .

 

Still no luck?

Next you should look at the router position- while its not always that easy as your limited to the location of the phone socket, mains plugs etc a slight move can make a difference, keep it away from things like TV's microwaves, fish tanks etc, if you can dont put it in or on a window ledge

Another thing that can have an effect is the building itself, old thick stone walls dont help wtih wifi signals, and likewise modern foil backed insulation doesnt help either

 

Once you have tried everything with the now router, and you are sure that its the wifi thats the issue then its time to start at looking to getting hold of your own kit .

one thing that i would avoid is wifi boosters ( put rubbish wifi in get rubbish wifi out)

So here are a few options:

Wireless access point/router this plugs into the now router via Ethernet and effectively provides a secondary wifi signal, the advantage here is that its location is only limited by the Ethernet cable you need to connect it up.

 

Homeplug set up with wifi built in, these are basically large plugs, one plugs into the mains and has an ethernet socket that you plug into the router, the other you can plug in almost anywhere else typically if purchased in a pack the second unit has wifi built in and this then provides a wifi signal fro that location .

the only real downside with these things is that performance can be affected by how the house is wired

 

If your previous router provided a good signal and you still have it its also possible to use that as a wifi access point in conjunction with the now box.

 

However if you dont have it, and it still performed well then you could look at getting your own all in one router and put the now router back in its box ( dont check it away you may need it if theres a fault)

one thing to be aware of is that not all routers work with Now or Sky and likewise not all models from the same manufacturer may work it will need to have option 61 or MER log in available, as well as a built in modem - the give away on this is that it will have an RJ 45 jack on the back to connect to a phone socket - often marketed for phone line conections

As far as i know some devices from TP link, D link, Asus work and you will need to consult the relevant manufacturers to find out.- most have support forums like this one for Now where you can ask/research

I use a TP link Archer VR2800 and i discovered how to set that up via the tp link dsl modems and routers support forum

Jayach
Elite 3

Get a Sky SR203 off a well known auction site, probably cheaper than an extender.

forestdweller
Scholar

... which will work without any setup requirements. Just swap with the NOW router 😊