NETGEAR is aware of a growing number of phone and online scams. To learn how to stay safe click here.
Forum Discussion
Slow speeds
My nighthawk is now up and running but is still is running at the same speed as my century link router. Is there anyway I can up the speed? I saw on here you can change the firmware but that was from ...
Brant_miller24 wrote:
I purchased the nighthawk to boost my mbps speeds, can it not do that?
Probably not.
A better router can certainly provide faster wifi. Not just the 5 GHz versus 2.4 GHz gain, but in the technology behind those frequencies.
Really flashy routers bristle with antennae and controls that can deliver faster wifi. But that happens only if you have wifi clients that can use that clever stuff. For example, today's new phones from Samsung and Apple, for example, will knock spots off something you bought 10 years ago.
One thing a new router cannot do is to squeeze more speed down your Internet connection from the outside world. That depends on various factors that have already been explained to you. But let's try again.
The speed is set by the technology that arrives at your front door. In your case, it seems to be DSL. That's a way of making an old telephone line, one that used to max out at 1200 KBps, squeeze up to around 70 MBps. But you'll only get that speed if you live in the right place and your ISP has installed the rights bits and pieces. You also have to subscribe to a sevice that give you that speed. Many ISPs charge more for faster connections with unlimited data use.
Buying a fancy router does not provide a short cut around the Internet technology that goes down your street.
People buy clever routers not basically for the speed but because they can get better wifi that can handle more clients and can go about it with some "intelligence", balancing more important tasks against things that can go hang.
A classy router will also let you fill the whole place with decent wifi. Some cheap junk from your ISP may be fine if you sit next to it, but the signal will vanish when you visit the smallest room in the house.
The R7000 you own is a middle of the range, "workhorse" router with several bells and whistles that can also protect you from wicked people trying to break into your network. It will not suddenly put the connection that comes out of your modem on steroids.
We still don't know what speed you pay your ISP to provide. Without knowing that, it is impossible to say what speed your modem should feed into your router and if you can tweak your R7000 to perform better.
I found out we pay for 3mbps broadband for 45 dollars a month for our zyxel.
Brant_miller24 wrote:
I found out we pay for 3mbps broadband for 45 dollars a month for our zyxel.3 Mbps is dreadful, especially at that price. But you should be able to get more than the 1.2 Mbps you said earlier on. At least, with a wired connection. WiFi will always be lower. What you get with that is down to several unknown factors.
Your new router will never provide a decent service. For that you probably need a better ISP.
- Do you recommend going with another service?
I’m very opened to do that because my family has been wanting to change to xfinity for awhile.
Do you recommend I should go with xfinity for my wifi provider, or should I stay with centurylink and figure something else out?
Do you recommend any new routers or modems I can purchase to replace the zyxel?
Brant_miller24 wrote:
Do you recommend going with another service?
I’m very opened to do that because my family has been wanting to change to xfinity for awhile.
Do you recommend I should go with xfinity for my wifi provider, or should I stay with centurylink and figure something else out?
Do you recommend any new routers or modems I can purchase to replace the zyxel?Choosing an ISP is very much down to local circumstances. I am in the UK. In theory I have plenty of different choices, but mostly they use the same old telephone lines.
I have no idea what the situation is like where you are. My first move would be to ask the neighbours what they use.
I couldn't comment on xfinity versus centurylink. I know nothing about them. But most ISPs have a web page where you can plug in your location and get an instant read out of the speeds you could get and how much it would cost.
When it comes to equipment, that depends on the sport of service you get. Cable, DSL and "full fiber" will be the most popular. Each needs its own hardware.
If you already own a modem, rather than rent one, it might work on whatever you sign up for. The ISP should be able to tell you that, although most do like to rent equipment so that they can keep charging you. Experienced users like to choose their own hardware.
As much as I despise xfinity, their cable services base levels are going to be much faster than the centurylink dsl that you're currently getting.
- What is wrong with xfinity, I’ve heard great things about there internet speeds.
Their speeds are great. Their customer service and monopoly on services, not so much.
