Internet speed upgraded - new router?
 

I have Spectrum internet. A couple of years ago they upgraded the speed from about 25 mbps to 100 mbps. All worked well, and the increased speed was welcome.

Today I got a letter telling me that their internet speed has been increased to 200 mbps. Oh good.

I reset the modem and tested the speed. Hmm. It looks like it's still at about 100. The router is a Cisco WRT120N. I use that one because it's wireless N and I had thought the LAN ports were gigabit, but apparently not.

They said they would let me know if I needed to upgrade the modem (for free), but I'm thinking I'll need to upgrade the router, too. Any suggestions?

ETA: Connected directly to the modem, and sure enough I get download speeds of about 220 mbps. So, I guess it's off to the router store.

Time for a new router if you want increased wireless speeds. Many newer routers are available with mesh points to provide solid coverage throughout the house. Below is the Google result for your router. Max speeds are rarely achieved.

The N150 router is compatible with IEEE 802.11b/g/n standards, and the maximum speed that you can get with WRT120N is 150 Mbps.

https://routerchart.com/linksys/link...20n-wrt120n-68

Not yet. Check the devices connecting to the home network first.

Of course - the router can impact how fast you can get. But also - the adapters can impact as well. So when you get a "not-as-fast-as-wired" wireless speed, it is possible that your devices are the culprit, not the router.

Also - because you are using 2.4GHz instead of 5Ghz, inference can also impact your speed and/or quality.

Yes it is possible that his laptop/pc wireless is also slow, but he really needs to upgrade his Cisco WRT120N first. That thing needs to go LOL.

You'll need to use 5.8GHz bands to get speeds above about 75-100 Mbps most likely. The good news is that most modern routers will be fine for you and support dual band. The TP-Link Archer A7 is a very popular model. I use Ubiquiti EdgeRouter and Unifi wireless, but that's a bit more involved.

Google Eero, Netgear Orbi, and Ubiquiti AmpliFi are popular mesh wireless router options too.

edit: you might also check out updated models that include WiFi 6, the newest standard. Within the next couple years a lot of devices will support it.

Granted, I have no idea of OP's networking/footprint needs, but I personally think that $300-500 wifi mesh systems are overkill for 90% of home internet users.

You can pick up a decent WiFi 6 router for $130-200, and it should suffice. That said, I'm pretty happy with my $170 mesh system (TP-Link Deco M9+) from Costco, but it doesn't have WiFi 6.

My EA7500 has been superseded by the AC1900 - $130 for 1.3Gbps 5GHz/600Mbps 2.4GHz MU-MIMO and covers my entire house. If 100mpbs isn't fast enough.

Sounds like you’re on the right track with a new router. It sounds like you’ve plugged directly into the modem via hardware and gotten 220 Mbps, which clearly indicates Spectrum is delivering 200+ Mbps to your home and your device is not limited to 100 Mbps.

If you plug your device in to the router’s wired LAN ports and it drops down to 100 Mbps then chuck the router. Same thing happened to me, Comcast delivers gigabit to my outlet. Confirmed directly at the wall. There’s a bit of overhead when plugging directly into the modem but I still got the substantial majority of that speed. I had an Asus RT-AC68U and despite being advertised as having gigabit LAN ports, the hardware wasn’t actually capable of delivering those speeds. Not sure if it was lacking CPU or RAM or what, but I topped out at about 300 Mbps after plugging the router into the cable modem and my computer into the router. Bought a new router and now I’m cruising at 750+.

Beware that you very well might also have to upgrade the wireless on whatever device you're using--and that very well might not be possible.

I don't actually use the wireless in my home. As I've stated before, I'm the only computer nerd in the house, and my daughter's laptop is stuck on Facebook most of the day. It used to be wireless, but my extender crapped out, so I just extended the cable to where she sits. Her printer is wireless, but it connects OK with the router.

I did pick up a TP-Link WDR3600. Oldie but goodie (I almost never buy anything brand new). Gigabit all around and dual-band wireless, supposedly can provide up to 600 Mbps Not sure how many (if any) of my laptops/desktops are dual band, but from a usage POV I don't really care.

With my current addiction to procrastination, I'll probably get around to testing it sometime this week. Can't rush into this stuff, y'know. :)

Then you don't even need to do anything at all. Why bother?

OP stated in the post above your's that there is a wireless printer in the house.

OP, have you considered powerline ethernet and powerline wireless extenders to connect throughout the house?

I simply can't see the importance of upgrading the network for the sole purpose of wireless printing. FWIW - spooling takes time as well.

At the margins, wanting a networked wireless printer could be reason enough for some others to upgrade the network equipment with a new router system. Some houses nowadays have so many wireless internet-connected devices that adding one more device to the wireless network can be the proverbial straw that breaks the camel's back and provides reason enough to upgrade the network equipment. Too many wireless devices isn't the issue at BigLar's casa.

I tried them in the past. Not sure they carry more than 100 mbps, but wiring is easier and more secure. Since most of the need is concentrated in one room, there's not a lot of pressure to find alternatives

It's not the sole (or really a major) consideration. I actually have two wireless printers (a Dell and a Brother AIO), but since they're in the same room, wired is much easier.

Most routers come with wi-fi built in. On occasion, I like to use a laptop out at the pool, or friends dropping in (not much of that these days) can access the internet wirelessly with little hassle, so there's that.

At any rate, my prime concern was accessing the 200 mbps speed.