Need Long Range Solution

K

Klade

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jul 21, 2004
Messages
158
Hiya,

Some very good friends of mine have a brand spanking new laptop. I made sure said laptop had a wireless n card built in when they bought it. Now they want to use the laptop in their house away from their router. The router in question is in their office which is detached from their house (about 80 yards away with some trees inbetween). Their current "g" router is not cutting it, it didn't work at all when the leaves were on the trees and now that the weather has turned cold its performance has improved to the point where it can be called "spotty."

So I'm thinking a wireless n router is the way to go. But as I explained to a friend of mine choosing one of these devils is a bit like trying to choose which goat will chew up your rose garden. I mean, who knows what to look for in a goat, and regardless which one you pick the outcome will be less then desirable. I think I might be better off with a 5ghz router some of which can be had for around $100. If I can get away with less then that I'm more then happy to shoot for it.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
240 feet is long. i dont think a wireless n will be reliable enough.

dig a trench, run a wire, add access point in house.

a wireless bridge mite work with some bigger antena.
 
Keep in mind that a G works when the leaves are off the trees some of the time. An N is supposed to have better range (I don't own an N so I have no first hand experience, but all reviews seem to agree that better range goes with the program). Also keep in mind that this is a rural area so theres not as much signal interference. Basically I'm looking for someone to recommend me a good wireless N router. I probably need one capable of 5ghz and also around 100 dollars or less. I know there are multiple 5ghz wireless N routers at that price but each one seems to have folks saying they don't work very well. Most reviews are over a year old and I also know theres been some good advances with this technology in the last year.

So anyone have any help?
 
try it, people like the dlink one. get it at a local shop - bestbuy, try it out if it works great return it and buy off newegg or keep it, if it doesn't work return it.

if that was my house, i would dig a ditch and run some outside rated cat5e or cat6 would cost about $100-$200 and then get a second access point. so $250 max maybe.
 
detached office, who knows if the power is run from building to building?
 
im using a WRT300N as an access point from my landlords router and shooting the signal from his house to mine. i'd say its about a 150ft shot with some small trees in between and i keep a constant 86%+ signal.
i was able to see their G router(and use it) during fall/winter when no leaves were on the trees and that is about 50ft. further away than the N router they let me install in their house.

they also use the G signal from their router and it doesn't seem to interfere with the N signal of my router.

I'm using a WMP300n wireless card(external antenna)...i havent tried a laptop with just a pcmcia card...

if the buildings are on the same power circuit, then powerline adapters might work also.
 
Unfortunately there is just no way I'm going to be able to convince them that laying down cat5 wire is a good idea. These people are not gamers, they just want to be able to check email and surf the internet from inside their house when having a cup of coffee in the morning.

I was not really sure about the linksys routers because I keep hearing mixed reviews. The WRT310 is there consumer model currently in production. I'm weary of a router that doesn't have antennas I can see. Some people have suggested the unit overheats if you leave it right side up so you need to turn it upside down or it will fry itself. Again this setup is not for computer geeks, its for the more casual user which means I need a router that can be setup once and then promptly forgotten.

I was thinking about something like this:

http://www.amazon.com/D-Link-DIR-62...ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1227841073&sr=1-8

or possibly even this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833122224

I'm open to other suggestions of course. What I like about those routers is that they have 5ghz options.
 
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