If you're lucky enough to live on a large block of land or have 2 or 3 storeys in your home, you might find that your internet signal isn't the same in every location, or may not exist altogether, whether that's because your wireless signal from your router will only go so far or you don't have enough internet access ports throughout the house.

There are 2 main ways that you can extend your internet connection.

Use a wireless repeater. You would typically place the repeater as far as your current signal will reach. The repeater will then take the signal and as the name suggests, repeats it again extending the signal by double. Sounds great, but it does come with a downside. Once you repeat the signal, the speed of the connection will drop by half, and will keep dropping by half every time you repeat the signal. You can repeat the signal up to 4 times, before the speed is gone altogether. A wireless repeater can also be used to build a wireless bridge between Wireless Access Points.
Use Ethernet-over-power (EOP) technology. This will eliminate the need for extra cabling in your home, by simply converting your existing power points into an Internet access point for you. You can have multiples of these scattered around your house, but they must run on the same electrical ‘phase’ (electrical frequency).

This is also recommended as good practice if you love to stream movies, music, play online games etc as it will provide you with a better internet connection experience overall.

November, 2011

Extending your internet connection

Have more questions or need help? Contact Gizmo on 1300 275 449 or help@gizmo.com.au