How To Get A Stronger Wi-Fi Signal Even In Your Backyard

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The internet rules much of our lives nowadays, and while getting away from notifications by reading an old, faithful paperback book by your pool is nice, sometimes you'd rather be streaming a show. The price for spending time outside usually means limited access to Wi-Fi, but you don't have to say goodbye to your tech simply because you want to sit in your backyard. When you venture outside your four walls for a little fun in the sun, if you check your phone, you'll notice that pages load slowly or not at all, as it still struggles to establish a connection with your router rather than your cellular provider. 

There are a few ways you can extend the range of your router, including optimizing your Wi-Fi by purchasing a Wi-Fi extender, updating the router's firmware, or switching to the 2.4GHz channel. You can even make use of an old Wi-Fi router you might have lying around, turning it into a wireless repeater. Similarly, devices like wireless speakers fail to connect, and your Wi-Fi signal might be undetectable when you look for it in your device's connection settings. This is due to the signal range of your Wi-Fi router. The distance from your back door to your favorite outdoor lounging spot might not seem like a lot to you, but it's a massive expanse to your router. 

Though it can be tempting to disguise your modem on a bookshelf with a clever DIY, covering your modem or router is not the best idea for those in need of more range. Your backyard dead-spot problem might be caused by your router's location, especially if it's hidden away behind or inside furniture. When Wi-Fi passes through an obstacle, the signal weakens. The more obstacles, the weaker the signal, so moving your router up high and away from physical obstructions can help increase its signal strength.

If the signal is still not reaching your backyard after placing the router in the best spot you can find, you should check the router's firmware. It might not have been updated in a while, especially if it is set to manually update. While you're on the router's website or app, see if you have two networks. You may see a 5GHz and a 2.4GHz channel, and while 5GHz sounds better in theory, it's not always the right choice, even though it's faster. The 5GHz channel is meant for indoors, providing fast speeds for gaming, file downloads on your computer, and streaming, but the 2.4GHz channel covers a broader area of your home at the cost of speed. When you notice slowdowns outside, try switching to the 2.4GHz channel.

There's only so much you can do to increase your router signal's range, and if you've tried everything and still can't get YouTube to load on your phone when you're by the pool, you should consider purchasing a Wi-Fi extender. When looking for a Wi-Fi extender, you'll first come across ones marketed for indoor use. While these are cheaper, you would be better off with an outdoor extender, similar to the TP-Link Deco BE25-Outdoor BE5000 Dual-Band Wi-Fi 7 Mesh WiFi Extender. Indoor extenders will not typically provide the same level of outdoor coverage as mesh outdoor extenders.

An outdoor-rated Wi-Fi extender is a quick and easy way to bring the internet from your home to your backyard, no matter how large that yard is. Since an outdoor extender can withstand outdoor conditions, you can place it farther from your house than an indoor extender, which cannot handle moisture or operate above or below certain temperatures. If you like modernizing your home with smart technology integrations, and you spend a significant amount of time in your backyard, an outdoor Wi-Fi extender with dual-band functionality will enable you to connect multiple devices at farther distances, though you might see a negligible drop in speed.