WAP54G signal strength and speed problem if more than 5 feet away

Two of my Intel Centrino laptops with WinXP on them can't keep a steady connection if AP is more than about 5 feet away. My Intel 3.06Gz hyperthreaded laptop, however, doesn't seem to suffer other than the speed goes from excellent to very good.

Could Centrino chipset have anything to do with weak reception? Or could it be the AP? Are there any rules of thumb for AP placement for best coverage?

The laptops and the AP are pretty much new (I've had the AP for several months now).

I would really appreciate any help with this one.

Thank you.

-SAB

Reply to
sab
Loading thread data ...

That's wrong. Any particular model laptop and wireless card in the laptop? It's kinda difficult to offer suggestions with no clue as to what your tinkering with. All Centrino laptops and wireless cards are not identical.

That would be a fair indication that your WAP54G access point or wireless router is working.

The chips are usually fine. However, the drivers have a big effect on Centrino operation. Dive into the Intel web pile and excavate the latest drivers for your unspecified Centrino laptop wireless card. It is also possible to misconfigure the wireless settings. There were also some nasty compatibility issues between Netgear (and other) access points and Centrino chipsets. There were firmware updates for the access points and wireless routers that fixed this about 2 years ago. I don't think the WAP54G was affected but you might wanna check for the lastest firmware.

I suggest you drag the Centrino laptops to a different access point or wireless hot spot (coffee shop) to verify that they are the problem.

No. If it works with the unspecified model 3GHz Intel laptop, it's probably not your WAP54G.

Yes. Unobstructed line of sight between the access point antenna and your laptop is best. You can usually go through one or two walls without too much difficulty. Three or more walls is a crap shoot. Aluminum foil in the walls won't work at all. Don't bury the antenna and you should get at least 100ft of range to a typical laptop.

Reply to
Jeff Liebermann

Cabling-Design.com Forums website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.