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Forum Discussion
WNDR3400v3 - wireless devices connect to network but internet not working; intermittent issue
Hardware Version WNDR3400v3 Firmware Version V1.0.1.42_1.0.68 GUI Language Version V1.0.1.24_2.1.28.1 When I first set this router up it worked great, but then started getting inter...
Phlegmbot wrote:
If it would be a reliable hotspot, I'd be happy to use it for that and just buy an 8 port router... but I have zero faith that it would be any better that way since it's the wireless devices having troubles.
I have never seen a Netgear "eight-port" router. Other brands maybe, but at a price, and they will all be GB ports. Four is the usually maximum. The easiest way to add LAN ports is a cheap switch. Mine is 16.
Phlegmbot wrote:
Yes, it's still under warranty and still on shelves for purchase at retail.
But not from Netgear. I guess there may be loads of old things lying around in the retail chain.
The modem is a Motorola MB7621, also purchased new, still available on retail shelves and Amazon, still specifically recommended by my cable provider, and functioning perfectly well.
That looks like a decent modem. But you are throwing away some of its capability. The modem supports GB LAN. You may not have an Internet service that is faster than 100 Mbps, but your modem will still want to talk to the router as quickly as it can. It isn't just the single traffic stream that it handles. There is more going on than that.
Then there is the local traffic. If you have a couple of PCs on a network, they probably have GB ethernet and could hit the speed limit when talking to each other.
It is surprising that Netgear still sells 100 Mbps LAN devices,
Yeah, I have a switch for that purpose but figured if I’m being hosed by the router and not necessarily the wireless itself I could just replace that function. Not really necessary though.
michaelkenward wrote:I have never seen a Netgear "eight-port" router. Other brands maybe, but at a price, and they will all be GB ports. Four is the usually maximum. The easiest way to add LAN ports is a cheap switch. Mine is 16.
True enough. I actually got this one at Target just because I wanted it quickly; I was fooled by the “Visit the NETGEAR Store” link and the features listing saying “Discontinued by manufacturer- NO” and didn’t consider it was an antique.
michaelkenward wrote:
Phlegmbot wrote:Yes, it's still under warranty and still on shelves for purchase at retail.
But not from Netgear. I guess there may be loads of old things lying around in the retail chain.
I also read in the ad that it’s gigabit WAN and 100 for the local side, which I really figured was adequate for my purposes. Appears that ad copy has now been corrected. Oh, well. If I have to get something newer to have a reasonable expectation of functionality I guess that’s what I’ll do. Just frustrating, especially in light of even new products reporting similar issues for some users. Luck of the draw, I guess.
michaelkenward wrote:…There is more going on than that… It is surprising that Netgear still sells 100 Mbps LAN devices,
Phlegmbot wrote:
Luck of the draw, I guess.That, and [other] users who have a hard time getting this stuff to work. We see a lot of "user error" here, from people who make the usual mistakes. (Modem/routers are a constant.)
Usually not the users' fault, the people who make this stuff can be their own worst enemies when it comes to user friendliness.
Remember, people turn up here because they have problems. For everyone who visits this community there may be hundreds, maybe even thousands, of people with no issues.
In your case, the strange intermittent wifi problems are a puzzle. You have a decent modem-only front end and a moderate load on the network. No obvious pinch points.
Did you ever say what Internet speed you pay for?
michaelkenward wrote:
Phlegmbot wrote:
Luck of the draw, I guess....In your case, the strange intermittent wifi problems are a puzzle. You have a decent modem-only front end and a moderate load on the network. No obvious pinch points.
Did you ever say what Internet speed you pay for?
Was at 80 until I got an offer for 200Mbs for a lower price, which I was on until a couple weeks ago when I dropped it to 100 on a new lower price offer just because I don't use more anyway. I've never achieved a full speed connection outside of plugging a device directly into my modem and bypassing the router completely, and with the router it was still never over about 75Mbs to a single wired device within three minutes of a fresh reboot.
Phlegmbot wrote:
Was at 80 until I got an offer for 200Mbs for a lower price, which I was on until a couple weeks ago when I dropped it to 100 on a new lower price offer just because I don't use more anyway. I've never achieved a full speed connection outside of plugging a device directly into my modem and bypassing the router completely, and with the router it was still never over about 75Mbs to a single wired device within three minutes of a fresh reboot.Using a 200 Mbps Internet service with a WNDR3400v3 router is just wasting money. The internet is twice as fast as your router can handle.
Even 100 Mbps for your Internet is unnecessary with a WNDR3400v3. As I explained eariler, that router can deliver nothing faster than 100 Mbps. And that is probably pushing it.
That 100 Mbps is promises has to handle all the housekeeping and traffic management. That wired connection also has to handle the wifi traffic. Just a few wifi connections at 20 Mbps, itself a athetic speed, will quickly overwhelm that "pipe". It all has to cram into the 100 Mbps that travels between the wire that connects the modem and the router. So that explains your top speed of 75 Mbps. It is designed into that ancient 2010 hardware.
Get rid of the WNDR3400v3 and buy something designed for the 21st century and you might be astonished by the difference. It might even get rid of the intermittent connection problems. Your slow router is inviting traffic jams on your network.