What a great movie title, am I right? WiFi is a blessing and a curse. Our phones, tablets, TVs, laptops, doorbells, and Amazon Echo™ all use WiFi. Every single day more and more products are WiFi enabled. Sure, it makes our lives easier and more connected, but it also means WiFi coverage needs to be at the top of its game. I am not talking, "Hey, I won my High School Championship" type of game. I'm talking, " I’m Tom Brady and I just won my 6th super bowl ring" type of game.
So, let’s demystify what WiFi is. WiFi works through radio waves. These waves are encoded and decoded at each point. The waves are on a certain frequency; 2.4GHz and 5GHz. 2.4GHz network waves travels over a larger distance, but are larger, slower waves. 5 GHz network waves travel much less distance, but are smaller, faster waves. All radio frequency waves have some problems going through certain building materials. Things like appliances, mirrors, energy efficient windows, metal studs, and reinforced concrete, all contribute to hindering WiFi signals. Most people today use the modem given to them by their internet service provider; and most of these units are in our basements. Asking these units to support a home's WiFi will not cut it any longer. Symptoms of poor WiFi coverage include buffering, bad video quality, slow web browsing, drop outs, and higher data bills. These are issues that most of us cannot live with on an ongoing basis. Luckily, there are solutions which include access points or a mesh WiFi network. Let’s explore how both of these solutions work:
Access points are units that are placed around the house. All these units are hard wires and most require a POE source (Power over Ethernet), which usually comes from a network switch or power supply. These units serve as independent WiFi hubs. They send out their waves in a 360-degree spread. These units ping your devices and talk with the other access points in your home. When one access point has a better signal to your device, the access points “talk” and when the weaker signal drops your devices, the other picks it up. This results in a smooth transition connecting to a new hub. The access points transfer the data from your device and the web back through the routers. The different access points do not exchange any data between each other.
WiFi Mesh products perform in a different way than access points. The units are spread out within the home. After initial setup the units talk to each other. For example, if you are connected to one of the units upstairs and using data, it will transfer that data through the other units the fastest possible way to the router. This also means that all the units do not have to be wired, just one. This allows ultimate flexibility and faster data transfer within your home network. The WiFi Mesh is a more cost-effective option since you do not need to wire new locations. They are also transferable. If you feel a location is not getting the coverage you would like, you can simply move the unit to achieve the desired coverage.
WiFi can be frustrating and overwhelming, we know. But it is all too crucial a component to our every day lives to live with an inefficient system. If you are experiencing poor WiFi, need help with your home network, or just want to learn more, E-Style Home Systems is here to help.