Wifi extenders

Graymare wrote:

I got a tp-link AC1200 (RE300) to work in the den. The n/w names have _ext after them but it is ok for that room. The AT&T streaming tv works now. $34.99 on Amazon.

Is this connected to the cylinder Gateway or the square white LTE gateway?

I got a tp-link AC1200 (RE300) to work in the den. The n/w names have _ext after them but it is ok for that room. The AT&T streaming tv works now. $34.99 on Amazon.

I second the opinion of anyone who suggests using a mesh Wi-Fi router system. If you’ve got T-Mobile’s home Internet then putting the gateway and Wi-Fi off mode and the routers and access point mode is going to give you the best benefit. When not using T-Mobile home Internet and perhaps using a regular cable ISP, you’ll definitely get better performance with a mesh system.

Most replies are recommending a mesh network addon rather than a Wi-Fi extender.   

With an extender, you almost always must use a different SSID than the Gateway.   If you have more than one extender, then as you move around the house you have to manually connect to the SSID in that part of the house.

With a mesh network, moving around the house allows your device to seamlessly connect to the strongest signal.

Wi-Fi Range Extender vs. Mesh Network: What's the Difference? | PCMag

This article also recommends a few extenders if you choose to go that way.

If your already getting a good to a very good signal then you don’t need one only add the WiFi extender If your getting a very poor signal otherwise just leave It alone.

Need to know which IP it is using.  Depending on the mode it is running in, it is either acting as the gateway for your devices, or as basically a switch with it's own sort of "sideline" IP addresss.

Check the network config of a device connected to find it's gateway address, and try connecting to that in a browser.

For example, on a Windows system, can open a command prompt window and run the command "ipconfig"... running "ipconfig /all" will give even more detail.

Hitting this address in a browser should prompt you for a login, either for the router or the modem, depending on how things are setup.

If it is the Asus, done and done.  If it is the TMO modem, then login to it and check the connected clients list to see what IP got assigned to the Asus and use that IP instead.

syaoran wrote:

Personally, i would just disable the WiFi from the T-Mobile modem and use a good router, like an Asus RT-AX86U in Access Point Mode, to have better, stronger, and faster WiFi by connecting it to the ethernet port on the modem.

I can connect the asus to the nokia but I am not sure which settings to toggle off on the TMobilw gui. I can’t seem to access the Asus gui now.

Would second the recommendation to use a quality Asus router connected to the TMO unit viaethernet and disabling the TMO wifi.

My first gen AC router from them can still crank 2.4g wifi to the Walmart parking lot about a block away at full power.  At half power, the 5g band hits the central mailbox 3 doors down (live in a condo complex, router is on 2nd floor).  That thing is 7 or 8 years old, and STILL running strong.

The Netgear Nighthawks have pretty solid wifi on them as well.

The woman tech I talked to said that any Wifi extender is fine and that there’s nothing to worry about and that they strongly recommend using a Wifi extender so this information is misleading.

I’m using the eero mesh system. The first eero is connected to the T-Mobile gateway via ethernet cable. The remaining eero’s are all wireless spaced to provide max coverage to my property. I placed the eero network into bridge mode to prevent double NAT. So far, all is working fine.  Be sure to name your eero mesh WiFi network differently from the gateway’s built in WiFi network.  This will prevent your devices from accidentally connecting directly to the gateway wifi (which defeats using the mesh set up).