Fluctuating Wi-Fi signals are never fun to deal with and it can be frustrating when your router is unable to provide proper coverage to all parts of your home. In a time when a lot of people are working or studying from home, slow internet isn’t something you cannot afford to experience.
One way to improve the Wi-Fi signal strength in your home is to install either a Wi-Fi range extender or a Wi-Fi mesh system.
What is a Wi-Fi extender or booster?
A Wi-Fi extender is a simple device that boosts your Wi-Fi signal by connecting to your home Wi-Fi network and then rebroadcasting it on another Wi-Fi network. For example, you may have your Wi-Fi router installed downstairs in your house and then use a Wi-Fi extender to improve the Wi-Fi signal in the upstairs area of your house.
One of the disadvantages of a Wi-Fi extender is that it will create a separate Wi-Fi network so in the example above you will have a separate network for downstairs and upstairs which means that you will need to connect to a different network when you move between levels.
What is a Wi-Fi Mesh Network?
Mesh Wi-Fi uses multiple devices or nodes placed around your home to create one large seamless Wi-Fi network. The nodes usually talk to each other and optimise the way they broadcast their signal to give you the highest quality of Wi-Fi in your house.
One Mesh Wi-Fi device usually plugs into the ethernet port of your router and broadcasts the new mesh Wi-Fi to the other nodes. Depending on how large your house is you may need 2 or 3 nodes in total.
Continuing the example I used above, you may place one node downstairs and one upstairs and you will get one continuous Wi-Fi network in your house.
Wi-Fi extender vs Wi-Fi Mesh – Which one should I choose?
The advantages and disadvantages of Wi-Fi extenders and Mesh are summarised below:
Wi-Fi extenders
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
| Affordable | Creates different wifi networks in your house |
| Simple solution | Can be difficult to configure |
| Can’t be extended further |
Wi-Fi Mesh
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
| One large Wifi network for your home | More expensive than extenders |
| Automatically optimises and connects you to the closest node | Adds more devices near your router |
| It still works even if one node fails | |
| Nodes can be moved | |
| More nodes can be added to increase Wi-Fi coverage | |
| Easy to setup | |
| Can add features to your Wi-Fi like child locks etc |
My personal experience
I have used both Wi-Fi extenders and Mesh Wi-Fi in the past and have found that mesh systems are more reliable and provide a more robust wireless connection than extenders do.
At the start of Covid when I was forced to work from home, I had to relocate my computer desk and found that there was Wi-Fi dead spot right where I was trying to work. I quickly became frustrated with dropouts and slow video conferencing and purchased a Mesh Wi-Fi system. I live in a small 2 story townhouse and 2 mesh devices was enough to boost my Wi-Fi signal to all corners of my house. It totally fixed my Wi-Fi issues and turned out to be a great purchase and worth every cent.
Conclusion
Understanding the differences between a Wi-Fi range extender and a mesh system can help you decide on the best system for your house. Both can perform well in certain situations.
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