NETGEAR is aware of a growing number of phone and online scams. To learn how to stay safe click here.
Forum Discussion
Understanding FastLane on EX3700
I just bought a EX3700 extender, and when I set it up with WPS to our xFinity dual band gateway (Cisco DPC3941T), it created 2 SSIDs, xxx-2GEXT and xxx-5.4GEXT, in one step. The gateway is set up for "band steering," which I understand has the effect of 1 SSID, and it sorts out which one provides a better connection at any given time. So, does it matter then whether I connect my wifi devices xxx-2GEXT or xxx-5.4GEXT, since the gateway connection to the EX3700 is already determined by "band steering"? Or does the xxx-2GEXT or xxx-5.4GEXT selections apply just to the connections from the EX3700 to my Wifi devices?
1 Reply
It does matter, but it probably matters a lot more if your internet and the device you're using have max speeds of over 600 Mbps... this is just my (informed) opinion. Here's why:
The key difference will be in the maximum throughput you could get on each specific band. 5GHz supports up to 1300 Mbps, whereas 2GHz supports up to 600 Mbps (or 450 Mbps on older routers). So, if you are using a device that can support speeds over 600 Mbps you would want the 5GHz connection from the extender. Otherwise you would be creating somewhat of a bottleneck in your connection. The speed of any network connection is going to be determined by the maximum throughput of it's slowest hop.
For example, consider the following scenario:
- I have fiber internet with 1000 Mbps up/down.
- The NIC in my laptop has a documented max speed of 867 Mbps.
- Primary router is dual-band and Band-Steering is enabled.
- WiFi extender is connected to the primary router over the 5GHz network (as a result of band-steering)
In the above scenario, if I connect to the 2.4Ghz wireless exteneder network then the max throughput I can get is 600 Mbps. Since 5GHz supports up to 1300 Mbps, that band can support the full 1GB internet speed from my ISP. However, the 2.4GHz connection between the extender and my device would create a bottleneck. Regardless of how fast the connection is anywhere else in the path, the maximum throughput of data to your device will be 600 Mbps. The path with the speeds supported by each device and result would look like this:
ISP (1000 Mbps) Router <- 5GHz (1300 Mbps)-> Extender <-2GHz (600 Mbps)-> Device (867 Mbps) = 600 Mbps max
If I connect to the 5GHz network then my max speed would be 867 Mbps. The slowest hop here is my device (which is always the most ideal), looking like this:
ISP (1000 Mbps) Router <- 5GHz (1300 Mbps)-> Extender <-5GHz (1300 Mbps)-> Device (867 Mbps) = 867 Mbps max
Realistically, there's very few situations where 600 Mbps would create any tangible issue. However, the best practice for any connectivity scenario is to have the throughput stay the same or increase at each hop out from the device :)
