With all the boons that WiFi brings you, it might cause minor inconveniences because of the WiFi signal strength. How often do you hear yourself complaining, ‘the WiFi signal strength is weak’? Or ‘my WiFi isn’t working well enough.’ Let me ask you, how well is well enough? What, according to you, is the excellent WiFi signal strength? Or do you wish for a smooth tethering experience?
I know, I know. We usually and naturally measure the WiFi signal strength depending on how fast the services on our devices work. However, there is a way to find out the ideal signal strength. Surprised? Don’t be.
If you have one of the best WiFi routers at home, it doesn’t mean you will always have a good WiFi signal.
Well, you nowadays have WiFi analyzer apps that do the bidding for you. These apps look for any troubles regarding your WiFi signal strength. They even tend to go to the length of telling the techniques for banishing these issues.
The app is available on the Play Store for devices supporting Android. One of the more popular ones goes by the name NetSpot. Among all its functionalities, what stands out is the gauging of signal strength. Also, it tells you where the problem lies and what you can do about it.
Coming back to the agenda, evaluation of your WiFi signal strength. Yes, you can estimate the power of your wireless connection. And that too in the form of numbers. Let’s continue the discussion about that in the next section.
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Table of Contents
It’s All About Units | Getting the Hang of Way To Evaluate The WiFi Signal Strength
There are many techniques experts talk about when it comes to these analyses. Most of these are pretty confusing if you ask me. The one everyone uses the most, and the simplest, is using its unit. The unit is dBm. It is a short form for decibel milliwatts.
But wait, it is not as simple as reading milk quantity from its package. Instead, it is an unusual and unconventional unit. What makes me say it is the fact that it works with negatives. It can be unclear, but it eventually becomes more manageable.
Its range is a guideline to evaluate your WiFi signal’s good or bad.
The range measuring the signal strength of your WiFi has -30dbm as the upper limit. While the lowest it can stoop is -90dbm. It would be best to forget that -30 is the higher value here, as negatives work oppositely.
If the strength is anywhere from -30dbm to -60, then you’re lucky enough to possess an excellent WiFi signal.
Then comes the range from -60 to -70. You cannot say, at that level, that it is excellent. But still enough to run some essential services like urgent video calls. Or even sending a few urgent emails. That is just the extent of it.
The signal strength worsens if you go down to -80 dBm or 90. It is barely enough to be able to connect to the network.
You will want a good internet speed for your work because you don’t want any holdups. You might want to get a satellite internet connection to work hassle-free without any distractions.
A Step Further – Evaluation Of Different Platforms
Most platforms need third-party apps to measure WiFi signal strength a possibility. Let us now look at what we need to do concerning different platforms.
For Devices that Support Android OS
Android users have loads of apps at their disposal. If they are interested in measuring the stability of their signal, one app we have already discussed above. Many other WiFi monitoring apps or analyzers can work perfectly well for you.
Just open the application after you install it. There, select your WiFi, and you shall be able to spot the dBm. With what I told you earlier, you should be able to analyze the signal strength. It doesn’t get simpler than that.
Devices That Use Mac or Windows Systems
There are a couple of ways of analyzing the WiFi signal strength with the Underlying OS. Let us take a look at what they are.
Using NetSpot App
Let us start with the comparatively easy one, shall we?
So, the Netspot app works like a charm here, too. You have two options. Either you want to measure the WiFi signal strength of your device. In that case, you can spot a small slider-ish thing. Just toggle it to be able to use the mode ‘Discover.’
Or, the other way, you want a full-fledged analysis of the whole network. That procedure is slightly longer. Slide the slider tool so that it shows the Survey option. Note that You’ll need to slide it to the top left. After that, take the new survey; once you’ve done that, the app requires a map. You can either load one on the site if you have one. Or, the app has built-in tools to draw one to measure your WiFi signal strength.
Are both of these done? The last step to measure the WiFi signal strength is to tread through the whole map while scanning it. Do it until you cover the entire area.
You can cease scanning after that.
Using in-Built WiFi Signal Strength Utility
The other way to get an idea about your WiFi signal strength works differently for both operating systems. We’ll be trying to use the in-built WiFi signal strength utility. As you can deduce, operating systems already possess these extra utilities or features. We’ll be using what is already in them.
But they’re make-do options. I’m not sure about the accuracy. So I won’t suggest these to anyone. If you prefer device speed over all else, you must learn how they work.
For Windows
Like all other settings, we must also get to the control panel. For convenience, start typing the control panel on the search bar at the bottom left of your screen.
- You’ll see the options appearing; click it to open the panel.
- From thereon, you’ll have to get to the section related to networks, so select network and internet. It might vary according to your Windows version.
- Next, to use an in-built utility to measure WiFi signal strength, you’ll see several wireless networks there. From the list, you’ll see the one relevant to you.
- Please select it and click the mouse’s right button.
- Then select the option that says to disconnect or connect. That enables you to check out your WiFi’s strength.
And if you have a Windows 10 OS and are connected to a WiFi network but don’t remember the password.
For Apple Devices
The same way out is available for Apple owners. Let us see how you see the WiFi signal strength utility if you are the proud possessor of MAC.
- Open the ‘go-to’ folder. You can do that by pressing three keys: command, shift, and alphabet ‘g.’
- A small pane or dialogue box opens. Type the path /System/Library/CoreServices/Applications in that pane as it is. You can copy it and paste it there if you wish it.
- If the next step prompts you to enter the passkey, do it.
- You’ll see some options like RAID utility, directory utility, etc. From all these, choose the one last, ‘ Wireless Diagnostics.’
- Click twice on it. Affirm the window which asks you to run the diagnostics.
- Then, in the next option, select the first option. You want to monitor the connection of your WiFi.
FAQs
How do I check Wi-Fi signal strength?
As you access the Settings and actively tap on Network and Internet, proceed to the Internet section, and tap the name of your Wi-Fi network, a signal strength reading will promptly come into view as the first option. Furthermore, this signal strength reading plays a crucial role in providing valuable insights into the quality of your network connection.
What is the range of Wi-Fi?
The normal range of a basic access point is about 20 meters (66 feet), providing effective connectivity in small areas. On the other hand, specific access point types have an amazing outdoor range of up to 150 meters (490 feet).
Is 5GHz and 5G the same?
Despite enabling wireless data transmission, it's crucial to note that 5 GHz primarily functions as a designated frequency band tailored to Wi-Fi access points. In contrast, 5G constitutes an integrated network infrastructure comparable to established frameworks like cable or fibre-optic networks.
Why is my Wi-Fi so slow?
The possibility of encountering slow Internet speeds might be due to your Wi-Fi being presently used. Just as radio frequencies vary, diverse Wi-Fi signals connect through specific media. You can use dedicated tools like Network Analyzer Lite or Wi-Fi Analyzer for a more insightful approach. These tools grant visibility into potential channel congestion and opt for an alternate channel.
Conclusion
That was something about your WiFi—no need to make bizarre estimates now. You can correctly analyze the signal strength by following the lines of the article. Knowing it can make it easy to fix when and if it takes a dip.
So, go on and try it with your own devices.
That is it for today, folks. Do visit us for more such articles.
