8 reasons to turn down the transmit power of your Wi-Fi

[spaceelf]

3 minutes ago, tmorris1 said:

Most used band is 2.4.  A lot of devices don't support 5GHz. 2.4 has the best range too.

It also brings congestion issues, much lower speeds, a lack of beamforming... (though to be fair a lot of AC kit hasn't used that, much of it does today.)

 

I mean if you're stuck on 802.11N I might see your point, but using an AC router and not using AC seems a bit weird.

[+BudMan MVC]

7 minutes ago, tmorris1 said:

A lot of devices don't support 5GHz

Not sure I would agree with that statement to be honest.. OLDER, Cheap IOT ok sure.. What current phone would you be buying that does not support 5ghz?  The only things using 2.4 are my CHEAP, older wifi lightbulbs and smart plugs.. And the Harmony which is getting a bit old in the tooth.. All the echo's are 5ghz, even my nest thermostat are 5ghz..

[Mindovermaster Moderator]

48 minutes ago, BudMan said:

What current phone would you be buying that does not support 5ghz?

A dumbphone? (like my Mom uses...)

[adrynalyne]

1 hour ago, LostCat said:

People still use 2.4?  Yeesh.  (I mean yeah phones but anything else I'd be using a wire to AC bridge or a USB or PCIe card.)

Yeah they do. I can show you a scan of my surroundings, I pick up like 80 different 2.4 networks.  

[Brandon H Supervisor]

1 hour ago, BudMan said:

Not sure I would agree with that statement to be honest.. OLDER, Cheap IOT ok sure.. What current phone would you be buying that does not support 5ghz?  The only things using 2.4 are my CHEAP, older wifi lightbulbs and smart plugs.. And the Harmony which is getting a bit old in the tooth.. All the echo's are 5ghz, even my nest thermostat are 5ghz..

A lot of Android phones outside of the flagships are still 2.4 N only ; it's getting a bit silly honestly that some phones still don't have 5ghz support even for N

 

my Honor 6X is a good example; it hit the market just a couple years ago and doesn't have a 5ghz wifi radio

[+BudMan MVC]

Makes zero sense to be honest.. My $49 echo dot has 5ghz   That I got on sale for $29....

[Brandon H Supervisor]

1 hour ago, BudMan said:

Makes zero sense to be honest.. My $49 echo dot has 5ghz   That I got on sale for $29....

my thoughts exactly; why all wifi devices don't support at least 5ghz N by now is beyond me 

[spaceelf]

 

5 hours ago, adrynalyne said:

Yeah they do. I can show you a scan of my surroundings, I pick up like 80 different 2.4 networks.  

Well, AC routers also support N, so that doesn't say much.

 

I mean the only semi common current (non phone) thing I can remember that doesn't do 5ghz is the original PS4.

[adrynalyne]

2 hours ago, LostCat said:

 

Well, AC routers also support N, so that doesn't say much.

 

I mean the only semi common current (non phone) thing I can remember that doesn't do 5ghz is the original PS4.

It says just what I said: a bunch of people, considering surrounding 2.4 networks. Which was in response to your question of: People still use 2.4? AC or N isn’t relevant to that question. 

[spaceelf]

4 minutes ago, adrynalyne said:

It says just what I said: a bunch of people, considering surrounding 2.4 networks. Which was in response to your question of: People still use 2.4? AC or N isn’t relevant to that question. 

Having it enabled doesn't mean you use it.  My Google Wifi kit doesn't have an option to turn it off.  Most people wouldn't even know that you can.

[adrynalyne]

1 hour ago, LostCat said:

Having it enabled doesn't mean you use it.  My Google Wifi kit doesn't have an option to turn it off.  Most people wouldn't even know that you can.

Riiiight. Considering I’m the neighborhood goto for network issues, I can tell you, they are in use. Even if they weren’t, they still provide interference for those who do. Most people, at least here don’t have a powerful enough AP to blanket their homes in 5Ghz. Which means 2.4 gets used. 

[spaceelf]

35 minutes ago, adrynalyne said:

Which means 2.4 gets used. 

Considering the original question you're challenging was a joke...sheesh.  I am aware that some people use it.  I'm just generally not sure why.

[adrynalyne]

55 minutes ago, LostCat said:

Considering the original question you're challenging was a joke...sheesh.  I am aware that some people use it.  I'm just generally not sure why.

I challenged nothing? I answered you...

[+BudMan MVC]

8 hours ago, adrynalyne said:

at least here don’t have a powerful enough AP to blanket their homes in 5Ghz

Doesn't matter if the AP was throwing out a gigwatt.. Your client not going to going to be able to talk back.. This is the whole point to be honest.. 1 AP to cover a house is not the correct solution to start with

 

If 802.11ad takes off your in the 60ghz range - this is per room access..  You don't just get 1 AP place in corner of your house where your internet comes in and expect to have good wifi coverage everywhere.  Finally the mesh setups are starting to take hold.. Multiple makers doing it now.. Which is better than just trying to turn up the power on your 1 AP..  Your still better off running a wire and placing the APs correctly for coverage.  But this is above many users ability be it they do not own the home, do not have the skill set or even desire to hire someone to do it for them... So they drop a few bills on devices they place around the home..

 

But a true mesh setup will use a different radio and even band as the wireless uplink, etc.  You could use 2.4 as your uplink while use 5 to serve clients around that specific AP.  Serving clients on the same radio as used for uplink is where there is your performance hit in bandwidth..

[spaceelf]

2 hours ago, BudMan said:

If 802.11ad takes off

AX is whats meant to replace AC.  AD is...you know, I barely even care enough to look it up.

[+BudMan MVC]

The future   is what you meant to say I believe..

 

While ax will be the intermediate.. ad is around the corner.. and not going anywhere, tie that with ay and your talking like 20gbps phy..

 

https://wikidevi.com/wiki/List_of_802.11ad_Hardware

[spaceelf]

5 hours ago, BudMan said:

The future   is what you meant to say I believe..

 

While ax will be the intermediate.. ad is around the corner.. and not going anywhere, tie that with ay and your talking like 20gbps phy..

 

https://wikidevi.com/wiki/List_of_802.11ad_Hardware

meanwhile, AX is already here.  https://www.asus.com/us/Networking/RT-AX88U/ though it's probably draft or something.

[+BudMan MVC]

And so is AD

 

But there are really no clients using either of them.

 

http://www.ca.netgear.com/landings/ad7200/default.aspx

Quad-Stream 802.11ac + 802.11ad

 

Which you can buy right now on amazon.. Your RT-AX88U is not even available yet nor is the spec be finalized while 802.11ad was final n 2012

[spaceelf]

5 hours ago, BudMan said:

Your RT-AX88U is not even available yet nor is the spec be finalized while 802.11ad was final n 2012

https://www.amazon.com/Quad-Core-Wireless-802-11ax-Adaptive-RT-AX88U/dp/B07HM6KJN8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1538754405&sr=8-1&keywords=ax88u

 

Not available yet doesn't mean much when it's available next week.

[+BudMan MVC]

None of which means anything since what clients are shipping that support AD or AX

 

Sounds like you think ad is not happening or something... Sorry but it already has   Unlike ax which is still draft and no current routers even shipped yet..  the nighthawk X10 ad router came out 2 years ago in oct of 2016...

 

When you can buy some device that supports it, say a tablet or phone or some sort of iot device is when it can start to take off.  You do understand that ax and ad are not really competing they both have use.

[spaceelf]

1 hour ago, BudMan said:

You do understand that ax and ad are not really competing they both have use.

Yes, I know that.  But to me AD seems like a solution without a problem.  Use a frickin wire if you're in the same room.

[Brandon H Supervisor]

8 minutes ago, LostCat said:

Yes, I know that.  But to me AD seems like a solution without a problem.  Use a frickin wire if you're in the same room.

you want to have a wire on a laptop/tablet/phone/watch? these are the types of devices that will take advantage of AD

[spaceelf]

19 minutes ago, Brandon H said:

you want to have a wire on a laptop/tablet/phone/watch? these are the types of devices that will take advantage of AD

I doubt it.  AD is basically being skipped for the consumer market...it probably uses too much power for smaller devices.

 

Those devices will likely use N or AC for a long time, and AX will likely start being introduced on the higher end stuff in 2019/2020.

 

 https://www.wi-fi.org/news-events/newsroom/wi-fi-alliance-introduces-wi-fi-6

[+BudMan MVC]

I think someone really needs to do some more research.. There is phone that supports ad, there are laptops that support ad - ALREADY!!

 

My point is they are not mainstream - when the new galaxy or iphone has it, or the next console game comes with it... This is when wireless standards start to get traction...

 

Asus has a 802.11ad phone - the zenphone 4 pro

https://www.asus.com/Phone/ZenFone-4-Pro-ZS551KL-SE/Tech-Specs/

Wireless Technology

WLAN 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ad

802.11ad Wi-Fi (DL 1 Gbps)

Bluetooth 5.0

Wi-Fi direct

NFC

 

For now its niche products that the masses do not have..  Acer had a laptop couple years back, etc..  Will it take off?  Will it be years before mainstream - will something else take its place?  All good questions.. But sorry your not going to get the highspeed connections you want through walls at 300ft away, etc.  If you want good wifi - its going to be be per room at some point..  Or damn close to it... ###### I have pretty small house - only 1 floor and I have 3 AP..  Comes down to multiple factors - for starters wifi is SHARED!! bandwidth... I don't want all the wifi devices all on the same radio - where some talk really slow speeds and other can talk faster, etc.. When you have 20 some clients in your typical house these days that might be on wifi.. More even if you fully smart, etc.  Do you really want all of those devices on 1 AP all sharing the same limited bandwdith?  NO!!!

 

Lets be clear I am all for ax - it brings some great stuff to the table for sure.. But I really don't think its got the top end speed in the long run..  So there will be for sure use for ad, if not something else outside of the 2.4 and 5ghz ranges.

[spaceelf]

2 hours ago, BudMan said:

I think someone really needs to do some more research.. There is phone that supports ad, there are laptops that support ad - ALREADY!!

It's only been available what eight years now, and it's got what to show for it?  Almost nothing.