[Brian Lacey]

If I plug one of these...

Wifi 802.11g Hi-Gain USB Adapter With Antenna PSP / NDS on eBay (end time 12-Jul-10 07:31:25 BST)

into my laptop will it increase the signal strength that the laptop gets from the bthomehub ?

Cheers

Brian

 

[yorkshire forester]

it's designed to be an aerial but I don't know if its application will bypass the existing wi-fi aerial you already - presumably - have built into your laptop.

A better alternative I would say would be a signal booster or boosters for the wireless router. You can put one on each floor of your house, or each room, etc....

mike

ps the above could be absolute twaddle. i only speak from personal experience, i'm not a tech.

 

[jkoppee]

what seems to be the issue with the wireless signal you have? How big is the house and what kind of wireless router do you have now? One of the main things to consider is if you have wireless house phones as most times I've helped friends the signal is weak because of wireless phones messing with the signal. Like yorkshire said you are normally better off upgrading the router but for 5.99 it wouldn't hurt to try it

 

[MikeD]

As a former communications engineer I agree with the advice above. You might be able to improve reception by re-siting your router, buying a better one or using a booster but this gadget is too cheap to be any good. If it does provide any worthwhile gain it will amplify the interfering signals as well.

 

[Gigsy]

Unless it acts as either a) a signal booster or b) it's own wifi card then no.

As Mike says, a range extender is you're best bet - this effectively relays the wifi signal so you can be further away from the main router (BTHomehub). I use a range extender to boost the signal in my office which is about 100 feet from the house and doesn't have a clear line of sight so the signal is quite degraded.

Interference can also be an issue as jkoppee says though in the UK, I think our cordless landline phones run on a different part of the radio spectrum so most interference actually comes from other WiFi networks.

To solve this, you can change the band/frequency that your router runs on to a less congested frequency (typically, they're set to band 11 IIRC - been I while since I last configured my setup).

Each router is different but BT Tech Support should be able to talk you through the process - it's quite easy to do in most cases but you'll need to be cabled to your router when you change the frequency since you may need to update your PC's wireless settings too.

EDIT:

Or as MikeD says, re-siting your router can well work too.

 

[MikeD]

To solve this, you can change the band/frequency that your router runs on to a less congested frequency (typically, they're set to band 11 IIRC - been I while since I last configured my setup).

Each router is different but BT Tech Support should be able to talk you through the process - it's quite easy to do in most cases but you'll need to be cabled to your router when you change the frequency since you may need to update your PC's wireless settings too.

I'm not familiar with BT's home hub, but normal routers can be set to a fixed channel number or auto select. The remote PC's don't need to know the channel number because they scan anyway.

 

[NorthDownsScooby]

Brian, I think that device is just designed to "WiFi up" laptops that don't have a WiFi card already.

Quite how they think it's applicable for a PSP though I've no idea !

This adapter is for use for: NDS / PSP / Wifi - if anyone thinks "NDS" is me, they had better think twice before attempting to shove that up my arse. The reception WILL NOT be good !!!! :biggrin:

 

[agkq62]

This is what I use in my house and I have installed in quite a few other premises for our village broadband.. The first unit you connect to the homehub and then plug in the mains. This feeds the broadband through the ring main. Then plug the unit with the aerial into any other socket in the house where you are using the laptop. Works a treat.

http://www.solwise.co.uk/net-powerline.htm

Excellent firm to deal with.

Max.

 

[Gigsy]

I'm not familiar with BT's home hub, but normal routers can be set to a fixed channel number or auto select. The remote PC's don't need to know the channel number because they scan anyway.

True, though I always prefer to be hard wired when I edit my router config just in case as it saves a lot of hassle - esp. if your connection drops out part way through an edit and the router keeps your HTTP session open and won't let you back in until you do a physical reboot of the router (which is not always wise midway through an update) or wait for the session to timeout :biggrin:

 

[NorthDownsScooby]

This is what I use in my house and I have installed in quite a few other premises for our village broadband.. The first unit you connect to the homehub and then plug in the mains. This feeds the broadband through the ring main. Then plug the unit with the aerial into any other socket in the house where you are using the laptop. Works a treat.

14Mbps, 85Mbps Turbo, Wireless, AV, GIG PLC, MediaXtream, Home Plug/PowerLine adapters from Solwise

Excellent firm to deal with.

Max.

Be aware though, it will only work if the sockets you are using are on the same ring. !! Most houses have several.

 

[Brian Lacey]

Right e o ! Thanks for such a quick response.

It would probably help if I give you the full details !!!

We have a BT homehub v1 upstairs connected to the desktop mac via ethernet cable. The layout of this room limits choice for moving the Hub.
I use the macbook downstairs using the wifi. House is 200 + yrs old so signal has wooden floor and 20 inch stone wall to pass through.
Signal varies, sometimes good, sometimes very weak. Daughter sits in same room as me, uses her PC and signal varies on that. She has loaded inSIDDer but it shows no other wifi in the vicinity.
Hub is set to channel 1 according to inSIDDer. I cant get into the hub system to play with the channels as every password I use fails !
Did wonder if a reset would take it back to the original BT passwords which are in the user manual ?
I have a v1.5 hub also and wondered if this might be a better one to use but not sure if it is a plug and go jobbie or password protected ?
I know that there are solutions I could try but was looking for the very simplest one.

So....a few more comments ????

Cheers

Brian

 

[Gigsy]

Yep, a 20 inch wall is going to be an issue. If you're on the same floor (and hopefully circuit) then agkq62's ring main system is probably your best bet.

 

[agkq62]

Be aware though, it will only work if the sockets you are using are on the same ring. !! Most houses have several.

Not true, I have installed this at my own house and a number of other properties and it works on all ring main circuits provided they are on the same fuse box. Even worked in someone shed which only had a 5amp socket wired into the lighting circuit. :biggrin:

It is ideal for houses with thick walls.

Try it and see, Solwise will refund if it doesn't work.

Max.

 

[NorthDownsScooby]

Not true, I have installed this at my own house and a number of other properties and it works on all ring main circuits provided they are on the same fuse box. Even worked in someone shed which only 5amp socket wired into the lighting circuit. :biggrin:

It is ideal for houses with thick walls.

Try it and see, Solwise will refund if it doesn't work.

Max.

Must be a new system then - the refund is a great idea :biggrin: Good call.

 

[mykp]

sorry brian, a bit late to this.

deal with lots of people with thick walls and the best bet is the wireless boosters, these are what i usually use but you'd need 2: Scan.co.uk: Newlink NL-HPW85 Wireless 11g & 85mbps Ethernet Homeplug

I would also recommend changing channels from channel 1 to something like 5 or 6, in my experience the BT home hubs, which I think are crap, dont run too well on the lower channels. The password should be written on the bottom, or use the serial number. From memory I think the default password was something like password1

I wouls also say that even buying a new router might not solve your problems as the wall thickness is definately an issue but you should be able to get a Mk2 bt hub off fleabay for about £10 or less.

BT Home Hub on eBay (end time 05-Jul-10 18:41:09 BST)

 

[mykp]

it might also be an issue with your Mac :biggrin:

you could try asking Steve Jobs for advice but he'd probably tell you your holding it wrong. BBC News - Apple issues advice to avoid iPhone flaw :crazy:

 

[peterk]

We have a BT homehub v1 upstairs connected to the desktop mac via ethernet cable. The layout of this room limits choice for moving the Hub.
I use the macbook downstairs using the wifi. House is 200 + yrs old so signal has wooden floor and 20 inch stone wall to pass through.
Signal varies, sometimes good, sometimes very weak. Daughter sits in same room as me, uses her PC and signal varies on that. She has loaded inSIDDer but it shows no other wifi in the vicinity.
Hub is set to channel 1 according to inSIDDer. I cant get into the hub system to play with the channels as every password I use fails !
Did wonder if a reset would take it back to the original BT passwords which are in the user manual ?
I have a v1.5 hub also and wondered if this might be a better one to use but not sure if it is a plug and go jobbie or password protected ?
I know that there are solutions I could try but was looking for the very simplest one.

So....a few more comments ????

Cheers

Brian

Brian
I'm happily using the latest BT Home Hub that's around 15m and 2ft stone wall away.
I think changing the channel will only benefit you if there are other networks on the same channel nearby.
I've just looked at the back of the older BT Home Hub (white with a grey aerial) and the default password if you do a full reset is the home hub wireless key printed on the label.
Changing hubs is not a big issue. It's transparent to the wired ethernet connection and your wireless connections will require their wireless security key changing to the one on the new hub. You also need to confirm that the wireless encryption (wpa or wep) is in agreement with the hub's setting.

Have you considered if making the Mac wireless would enable re-siting the hub to somewhere nearer the middle of your network

 

[Gigsy]

it might also be an issue with your Mac :biggrin:

you could try asking Steve Jobs for advice but he'd probably tell you your holding it wrong. BBC News - Apple issues advice to avoid iPhone flaw :crazy:

Macs rule!!!! ;o)

 

[MikeD]

I've used Homeplugs and they are good, but there are a couple of concerns.

First, your signal will not just be confined to your ring main. It will in fact travel up the road to other properties using the same phase of the mains supply. Given that it's encrypted this might not bother you, but if you're paranoid ...

Also, these units consume power and if you have enough of them it can be significant.

 

[agkq62]

MikeD,

In theory you are right and initially I was worried about this. However on a couple of properties where I have used these units I checked next door and, even without encryption enabled, I couldn't get a connection. I think the meter possibly blocks the signal.

The units themselves are 4.5w and use 0.06Amp so I don't see even three units using very much power.

Brian,

In reply to your PM you need a NET-PL-85PE_MK2 which you connect (using the cable provided) to a spare network port on the back of your Homehub.

If the PC and the laptop are in the same room you need a NET-PL-85PEW_MK2 as this unit has a network port as well as the wireless connection. Again use the lead provided from the unit to the PC. If the PC is in another room you need another NET-PL-85PE_MK2

The only problem I have had with these units is power transformer units for other equipment, if plugged in beside the Homeplug, can stop it working. Most transformers don't cause a problem but if they do then move them to a socket further away. I normal try to plug the unit direct into a double socket and then use a 4way extension for all the other gubins.

Hope this helps,

Max.