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Forum Discussion
Brittrg
Mar 25, 2020Follower
Slow wifi speed NC300
I have a router/modem in one. The wifi speeds have been very slow, the fastest was around maybe 15 do2n and 12 up. Spectrum said they are giving me the up to 100 I pay for. I tried plugging in the et...
plemans
Mar 25, 2020Guru - Experienced User
My bet? A combination of things.
Starting off, its a N300 wireless device. That means its a 2.4ghz device and is pretty basic at that. Reason why that is an issue is because you stated you live in an apartment and can see a bunch of other networks. The 2.4ghz band isn't high bandwidth in the first place and in the 2nd gets slowed down by interference due to its restricted channels. 2.4ghz can't recieve/transmit while other devices (on that same band) are using it. So in congested environments, the already slow 2.4ghz devices, become even slower.
That's why 5ghz routers were created.
2.4ghz is fine in rural areas or areas without many wireless but in congested areas, a 5ghz router (and device) is key to bandwidth.
You've shown that your device gets full speed over the hardwired connection. That's good in that your isp has done their job.
A couple things you could potentially try.
1. download a channel scanner app/program. There's free ones. you can try to optimize what 2.4ghz channel your router is broadcasting on. That might help a bit.
2. invest in a wireless extender that functions in AP mode and has 5ghz. You can hardwire it into the C3000 and use it as an access point so you can use the 5ghz.
3. invest in a decent dual band router. the c3000 can be put in modem only mode and you can connect a decent router to it.
4. invest in a different combo device that's dual band.
you're going to struggle with the 2.4ghz band because you live in an apartment. 2.4ghz is lower speed but broadcasts through more and further than 5ghz. So its going to be more congested and slower. In my area, its pretty much unusable for anything other than IoT devices or ereaders.