Wi-Fi Woes and other questions.

[hcn]

Hi Folks,

Got an extreme from my lovely wife as a birthday present. I've never used an android device btw and I'm running on the stock pre-load so apologies if this question is a repeat or just plain dumb.

I've a BT Homehub 3 and had no problem getting it to connect to the hub but the signal is best described as 'poor', in fact the only way I can get full bars is to sit next to it. This isn't an issue with the other wireless devices in the house (xbox, PS3, laptop etc) in fact my iphone can pick up a signal at the bottom of our garden, but if I move the tablet to our bedroom I immediately loose most of the signal - if not all. I get get 2 bars at best and constant disconnects.

I've run a scan to check my neighbours Wi-Fi channels - all were set to '1' or '6', mine was 1 so I moved mine to 11 - to avoid interference but still no joy.

Any suggestions ?

My dream is to watch netflix in bed on something other than my iphone.

Thanks !

[Trashcooky]

Whenever I hear similar accounts to this I always suspect the device, however some forum members have claimed great wifi improvements from flashing new firmware - but as this is a brand new device I doubt you want to go down that road yet.

There have been reported wifi problems which have turned out to be dry joints inside the unit where connections have not been made effectively - particularly to the piece of wire which runs around the edges inside the unit as an aerial.
If I was in your shoes I think I would contact Storage Options about this problem and see what they have to say.

Several forum members who have needed to return their Extreme tablet to Storage Options for replacement have been sent a Scroll Elite in its place as there currently appears to be a shortage of Extremes.

Let us know how you get on.

[hcn]

Thanks for this.

I've been sent a RMA form to fill in - any idea how quickly they can turn this around ? Reason I ask is I have to return my extreme within 2 weeks of getting an approval - but I'm off on holiday in just over a weeks time so there won't be anyone to sign for a replacement (if they agree to send one).

[BobC]

In the past the return has been very quick - I sent one off on a Thursday and got a replacement back on the following Monday - a pretty instant turn-round.

I had an Extreme and the Wi-Fi sensitivity was about the same as that of a laptop with an internal Wi-Fi adaptor - nowhere near as good as with an external adaptor with twin vertical antennas on the laptop but reasonable in parts of the house - I've added a Wi-Fi repeater now to reach the parts others can't reach as the house construction does impose problems with Wi-Fi penetrating throughout the building.

BobC

[Trashcooky]

If you want belt and braces - can you get a neighbour to take it in if you have to go away before it arrives?

Just to add to BobC's wifi comments I get about 3 bars on the fan display when I am in my bedroom which is about 30' and three brick walls away from my router and a full 5 bars when in my lounge at my PC which is about 12' away from router. I can also get a signal outside the house in my car when parked outside.

My Excel was taken apart because of poor wifi and the aerial lead soldered properly which did improve the signal notably.

[hcn]

Thanks for all your help. I returned it yesterday so hopefully I'll have a replacement early next week.

Funnily enough I tried the HDMI out to TV yesterday for the first time yesterday morning and that appears to be faulty too - could only get a picture occasionally if I twisted or jiggled the lead in the port. It was in as far as it would go so I'm guessing bad connection somewhere. Tried with a second lead too and same result, so added this to the RMA fault list.

Ho-hum !

If I do go down the Wi-Fi repeater route can anyone recommend a good one ?

[BobC]

If you do get a repeater don't try to use the "One Button" setup - you will finish up acting as a repeater for the Openzone or Fon (Open) networks.

I got a "plug top" unit but it went faulty the following day and Amazon refunded the price rather than replace it. I now have a TP Link unit (TL-WA830RE) that could also be configured as a stand-alone AP - it takes up more room but has twin external antennae and isn't stuck down on the skirting board. Although I haven't tried it I understand you can flash this unit with dd-wrt open source firmware.

BobC

[hcn]

Well... a nice shiny new Elite arrived on Thursday to replace my Extreme and interestingly enough the bit of paper explaining the upgrade says it has 'enhanced Wi-Fi'. Anyone know what that actually means ?

Anyway - initial feeling is that I do see a noticable difference with Wi-Fi signal stronger in all rooms - but it still cuts out inexplicably from time to time. One weird problem though...

HDMI port works on one TV but not the other. On my Samsung computer monitor I use for my Xbox etc it works fine (bar a bit of jiggling of the cable to get it to connect, but from what read thats fairly common). But on our older flatscreen TV downstairs it connects but I just great a grey snow storm - no picture.

Both are Samsungs the monitor is about 3 years old and the TV about 5 any ideas ?

[BobC]

I see that the Elite with the latest s/w supports peer-peer Wi-Fi, perhaps that is what is meant. I also had a feeling Wi-Fi signal is stronger than the Extreme.

BobC