Any thoughts on wifi booster or repeater to solve my streaming issue

[mrnaturally]

I live in a building which provides wifi. 3bb  +- 14 ping 25 down 35 up via speedtest on HP elitebook 10/64 no VPN. My issue is that in order to watch my 8-3 Browns or stream Pluto and Peacock I need to be behind a VPN. I have Pure Vpn it came with good reviews, I just ran it from Dallas Tx metro 5 times w the eye ball average of 250 ping, 8.5 down, 4 up.  Its inclimate weather outside but in my experience its a 50/50 affair, at best, as to whether I can stream and, if so, at what bit rate (my Nitro 5 is 1080p and I need high def to see on a 15 inch screen) My question is thus: I dont have access to the modem and I'm not convinced that a booster or repeater would, actually, help because my understanding it that they dont actually boost but rather expand ones signal strength and I have a modem outside my door 15 ft from where I sit. Can anyone offer personal experience on how they solved a similar issue? I'm willing to throw a few bucks on a fix, for sure, if one is out there but I'd rather spend it on something else if i'm not going to get what I need. Thanks for reading.

[shady86]

How big is your building and what is your current router/modem? Wifi doesnt like walls so getting a repeater would help.

[RichCor]

Building-wide WiFi Internet access is never a great option, especially if you stream.

 

One option is to torrent your media content and watch it once it's been downloaded. Another option is to purchase a 4g/LTE WiFi Hotspot with 6-mo or 12-mo prepaid SIM.

 

To answer your original question:

A WiFi 'booster' or repeater work best in situations where extending the reach of your wireless internet connection is desired, but normally do so at the cost of reduced data speed as the additional device has to spend half its time listening for and half its time sending on the data. Though, this half-speed limitation can be somewhat eliminated if the both the original and repeater WiFi devices have dual-band 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz radios and the 5Ghz spectrum reserved as repeater link and 2.4Ghz dedicated to end-device client interaction.

[soi3eddie]

My experience of shared WiFi either in an apartment building, hotel or coffee shop is that it is almost always virtually unusable. For that reason I always carry an unlimited 10Mbps prepaid sim for use in a phone hotspot or 4G/LTE router. This gives a "clean" direct connection and I can connect to a VPN with no loss of speed. I have used booster/repeaters in the past and as written above they can halve any available speed though they are good for extending range.

[mrnaturally]

Thanks for responding. A couple of questions were asked and I will answer as an all in one, If I can remember all.  I have a D- Link1900 WiFi USB Adaptor DWA-194. Im on the 3rd of 4 floors. This is a Hotel/Apartment Bld and I am on an apartment floor. There are seven rooms with 2 TP-link  routers on each floor and it has been myself and one other long term dweller on my floor, one at either end of the hallway , exclusively for the better part of two years with a router just outside either door. I have an update regarding modem access. The modem outside my door is strictly dedicated w not even a plug its hard wired in. My update is that I spoke to the owner (who's English is pretty okay) and with the help of a visual aid broached the notion of buying a D-link modem to mesh w my usb adapter and thus have more space between myself and the modem (the hub is on the 2nd floor about directly below me.) She was okay with it on premise but I want to make sure that if I buy that modem and do as I indicate that its doable and I havent been able to look at the actual setup yet. My assumption was that it should be plug and play but Im having some doubt because of the hardwired modems on every floor that it may be a closed system w no cat5 plugins. If I go to 3bb and ask Im wary that they will want 600bt a month setup. Also, someone mentioned a mini router and I have one (The battery swelled up and would needs to be replaced but I am guessing it still works.  However, it was costing me 1000bt a month and I think thats too much. I had my own account set up at my prior place (in a Thai friends name) 600 a month, no set up which seems pricy when (if my router to hub notion is doable) a very good D-Link is 2500bt on Lazada and I own it when I leave. Thanks for chiming in and feedback would be appreciated

.

 

Edited December 5, 2020 by mrnaturally
It took the wrong picture and I cant get the right one to load

[tweedledee2]

Clearing the cache on the modem might improve your wi-fi speeds. Chances are the last time the cache was cleared was only during an electrical power failure.

[soi3eddie]

6 hours ago, mrnaturally said:

Thanks for responding. A couple of questions were asked and I will answer as an all in one, If I can remember all.  I have a D- Link1900 WiFi USB Adaptor DWA-194. Im on the 3rd of 4 floors. This is a Hotel/Apartment Bld and I am on an apartment floor. There are seven rooms with 2 TP-link  routers on each floor and it has been myself and one other long term dweller on my floor, one at either end of the hallway , exclusively for the better part of two years with a router just outside either door. I have an update regarding modem access. The modem outside my door is strictly dedicated w not even a plug its hard wired in. My update is that I spoke to the owner (who's English is pretty okay) and with the help of a visual aid broached the notion of buying a D-link modem to mesh w my usb adapter and thus have more space between myself and the modem (the hub is on the 2nd floor about directly below me.) She was okay with it on premise but I want to make sure that if I buy that modem and do as I indicate that its doable and I havent been able to look at the actual setup yet. My assumption was that it should be plug and play but Im having some doubt because of the hardwired modems on every floor that it may be a closed system w no cat5 plugins. If I go to 3bb and ask Im wary that they will want 600bt a month setup. Also, someone mentioned a mini router and I have one (The battery swelled up and would needs to be replaced but I am guessing it still works.  However, it was costing me 1000bt a month and I think thats too much. I had my own account set up at my prior place (in a Thai friends name) 600 a month, no set up which seems pricy when (if my router to hub notion is doable) a very good D-Link is 2500bt on Lazada and I own it when I leave. Thanks for chiming in and feedback would be appreciated

 

A couple of points and possible solutions;

If what you are calling a "modem" but it's actually a router, on your floor has no LAN "Cat5" connections then that's already likely a bridge or satellite of the existing network.

It may be possible for you to buy a router to connect wirelessly as a bridge to the hub/modem on the second floor however that would likely need admin access to change settings etc. and your building owner may not allow or even know the credentials. There's also a chance that networking for the whole building could be messed up.

 

Personally, and I have been in your situation, I would go with either of the following solutions:

1) Buy a 4G LTE router (about 2,600 Baht) - I bought the TP-LINK TL-MR6400 and inserterted an AIS 4G sim with unlimited internet at 10MBps for 200 Baht/Month

2) As you have already been there 2 years are you going to be there for another year? If so talk to your building owner and ask them if they will allow 3BB (or another ISP) to install a direct Fibre connection to your room. 3BB will give you 1GB down and 500MB up for about 700  Baht/Month and will give a month discount if paying for a full year. No fee for modem/router. They will also give you their latest WiFi 6AX modem/router - Huawei OptiXstar HG8145X6 with blazing speeds.

 

[RichCor]

Before doing anything you really need to determine if an issue exists, and what the issue is.

 

You initially stated that you had a VPN streaming issue, not necessarily a WiFi connection issue (even though the WiFi connection or signal strength may be the culprit). If you have consistent speed tests and mostly no issues surfing the web when not on VPN then I'd suggest the issue is with your VPN, or the end-point you're choosing to use.

 

If, instead, you are having difficulty with the local provided WiFi then this can be verified by temporarily moving your connecting device as close to the WiFi source as possible and see if the issue is resolved. If it is, then running a CAT 5 connection into your apartment, or deploying a MESH extender may be the answer. Another alternative, as previously mentioned, would be to subscribe to a mobile Internet 4G/LTE service, something similar to this AIS 4G Home Router, that can be easily purchased for 4000 THB for 1yr access.

 

[mrnaturally]

Thank you both again...  I'm going to need to read those again a couple of times because I hadn't thoroughly wrapped my mind around the set up. I have not, I suppose, been in a building that was totally hard wired or as you said and I'm believing, more accurately, stocked with satellites emanating from a central source (my concept was the "home Version" only supersized) it never crossed my mind that it would be a different set up all together. So, this is Thai visa and my presumption was that I'm speaking to expats living in Thailand but that may not be true. In any case, I'm American and I need to be presumed as in America to get the channels I want but, in truth it would sting to pay 700 a month at 3 or 350, I would do it. As far as the vpn goes I got a great 5 year deal and checked reviews (all positive) and I've also tried two others (I have four devices here so I have tried to measure one next to another but I mostly end up not even bothering or using opera with the built in VPN, however, opera isnt target specific so it couldn't be relied upon. My first target is to speed up my connection to where I can afford latitude then look a bit harder at the VPN should the numbers upon testing dictate. Okay, now I'm going to meditate a bit on your proposed  solutions and try to visualize them all the way through and get a definitive look at what the set up, really, is. I appreciate the the knowledge to have been kind enough to pass my way.

[KhunHeineken]

You mentioned you are willing to throw in a few bucks, plus, you are a long term tenant, so what about you get permission from the owner to pay someone to run an ethernet cable from the modem in the hall way into your room. 

 

The modem will most likely have 4 ports on the back, and if used as a wireless bridge, some ports would be free, and even if used as a wired bridge, there should still be some free ports. 

 

With a cable in your room, you can plug it directly into your computer, or plug it into a router that you buy just for your apartment.  Or, plug it into a little 5 port internet switch and run a cable to your TV, a cable to your computer, and anything else you need, and do away with WiFi. 

 

Depending on the construction of the building, this could be a cheap option with great results. 

 

I would buy a cheap 1m or 2m cable and plug it into the modem in the hall way and then into your computer and test the speed first.  

 

 

Edited December 7, 2020 by KhunHeineken

[LPCustom69]

700 baht is only about $20!

 

Dawgs won, so we’re now 9-3!!

[cormanr7]

I have a HP desktop which are notorious for poor Wifi-cards. I have apartment-wide internet with a hotspot just outside my room. Nevertheless, signal was poor and internet slow. After buying a (350 Baht) TP-link TL-WN722N V3 USB wifi-adapter, the signal increased from 3 to 5 bars and it detects about 20 spots vs 10 with the computer's wifi-card. Not sure if this would help you. Also note that for Windows 10 you need version 3, 1 does not work.

[Delight]

 The answer is for  you to have your own router.

Typically this will be a ceiling mounted,

This ,however,is of no use unless you have access to an  internet signal and AC electrical outlet -closeby  to the signal.

 

A LAN POE adapter is required -see attached jpeg

 

Assuming that on your floor both are available -then an internet cable(probably not it's correct name) carrying both signal (light) and 48v dc  (from the POE) supply has to be  brought into your apartment. It will end up above ceiling level in the room adjacent to your balcony ( typically)

This cable will connect to the router.

 

I understand that POE stands for 'Power Over Ethernet'

  

[Bruno123]

On 12/3/2020 at 3:41 PM, mrnaturally said:

I live in a building which provides wifi. 3bb  +- 14 ping 25 down 35 up via speedtest on HP elitebook 10/64 no VPN. My issue is that in order to watch my 8-3 Browns or stream Pluto and Peacock I need to be behind a VPN. I have Pure Vpn it came with good reviews, I just ran it from Dallas Tx metro 5 times w the eye ball average of 250 ping, 8.5 down, 4 up.  Its inclimate weather outside but in my experience its a 50/50 affair, at best, as to whether I can stream and, if so, at what bit rate (my Nitro 5 is 1080p and I need high def to see on a 15 inch screen) My question is thus: I dont have access to the modem and I'm not convinced that a booster or repeater would, actually, help because my understanding it that they dont actually boost but rather expand ones signal strength and I have a modem outside my door 15 ft from where I sit. Can anyone offer personal experience on how they solved a similar issue? I'm willing to throw a few bucks on a fix, for sure, if one is out there but I'd rather spend it on something else if i'm not going to get what I need. Thanks for reading.

 

It is clear from this very first post, that the issue is with the VPN and latency. If you are getting 14 ms without VPN, but 250 ms with...

 

https://support.purevpn.com/how-to-turbo-charge-your-vpn-speed

 

Run a speed test with https://testmy.net without VPN and with VPN.

 

Latency is your issue.