I have a virgin media 130meg connection which is plenty for me, I live alone, general internet browsing & the odd online gaming session I live in a large ish’ 1950’s 3 bed semi, so the walls between rooms are of brick construction etc, the hub is in the front room downstairs, wireless connection is fine to the back room, no issues with gaming etc , however when watching the tv upstairs in the back bedroom the signal can drop & I get annoying buffering on you tube etc I have been using a cheap net gear booster the last couple of months, but I still get drop outs Can someone recommend a good wi-fi range booster ?
Look into a Mesh system A couple of years ago I picked up a 3 pack TP-Link Mercusys in the Amazon Black Friday event for £25.00. Covers the whole house, including outdoors.
Have a similar situation. Router in front of living room. Rear bedroom reception is poor, in back addition also with a blind-spot where I tend to sit in there, lines up with brick wall in line with Virgin Media router... I tried a TPLink extender my GF had kicking around, that wasn't much good TBH. Then saw a Netgear one, used, in a local CeX for £5. Works really well boosting both extension and rear bedroom. It does run a different SSID but my phone seems to manage with switching that OK.
I use these plugin things as WiFi Access Points. Broadband over mains - works well in my detached garage (obvs part of house ring main).
If you are struggling with Wi-Fi blackspots, stop buying cheap extenders or powerline plugs. A Mesh system is vastly superior for a few simple reasons: 1. No more dropped connections (Seamless Roaming) Extenders force your devices to manually jump between different networks. You end up stuck on a weak signal from the living room while standing next to the kitchen extender. Mesh uses a single network name and intelligently hands your device off to the nearest node with zero dropouts. 2. Full speed, not half speed Standard extenders cut your bandwidth in half because they use the same wireless channel to talk to the router and your phone at the same time. Good mesh systems use a dedicated "backhaul" channel just for node-to-node chat, keeping your speeds high. 3. Immune to dodgy household wiring Powerline (internet over mains) relies entirely on your home's electrical circuits. If you plug them into extension leads, or turn on a heavy appliance like a washing machine, your speeds and stability tank. Mesh is completely wireless and dynamically reroutes traffic if one node faces interference. It costs a bit more upfront, but it is the only real fix for reliable, whole-home coverage.
I use Mercusys mesh network, ive even plugged one unit into my detached neighbours house it's got their CCTV plugged into one of its Lan ports so they can access their CCTV over the internet, the mesh adapter in their house reaches mine and forms part of the mesh network. Its pretty much a 5 min set up using the App and then forget about it
A TP-link RE605X works well in my house: Good indoor coverage: 200 Mbps down, 50 Mbps up Outside (40ft away, poor coverage): 40 Mbps down, 10 Mbps up Outside with TP-Link extender (about halfway at 20ft): 130 Mbps down, 70 Mbps up Figures are approximate, as you can tell from the 50/70 Mbps, but it definitely gives a decent boost. Drop-off is still 40-50%, depending on hop distance, walls etc. It's a couple of years old, so there may be better value ones now, but it's works well - good enough that I'd buy a TP-link again, maybe the TP-Link RE715X Max.
TP-link RE605X Will do the job but you are actually reducing your broadband bandwidth by 50%. This is where mesh systems have the advantage. They are a breeze to set up. If you name the mesh the same as your primary router and then switch off WiFi in the primary router then the mesh system behaves as a single WiFi router. If you move around the house or outside the system behaves as one. You just need convenient places to put the mesh devices. One has to plug into the main router with an Ethernet cable. You can also connect devices like your TV to them by Ethernet cable (or WiFi if you so wish)
I got 2 mesh routers with my line last year but I already had a mesh system so I have them in the loft. They go for about £50 each. I someone wants them £75 the pair including postage. New, never used but one package was opened. 2 is enough for most houses but more can be added. They are Linksys MX56 from memory and are WiFi 6 routers. They plug straight into the box on the wall if you have a full fibre system from Gigaclear or community fibre etc. but if you had, you wouldn't be asking. They also work with any more conventional modem/router which is how I got my system in the first place. All you do, once set up, is to switch off the WiFi on your old modem/router and use the new network. They look like this.
