For an average household, a wireless router is usually more than enough to satisfy the needs of most people, however, people with large households or small businesses have difficulties with their routers where their wireless routers don’t perform up to the par and they need to double their router’s power.
The power of most routers can be unlocked and doubled by performing some simple modifications. These are low-cost tweaks and upgrades that can increase and almost double the strength of your router. Let’s have a look at some ways how you can double your router’s power:
1. Optimize The Position Of The Router
If you want to double the power of your wireless router then the first trick up your sleeve should be the optimization of the position of the router. The simplest way to improve the signal of your WiFi router is to make sure that the position that you have chosen for your router is optimal i.e from where the signals can be transmitted everywhere.
Wireless signals are sensitive to obstructions of dense materials such as metal and if your router is in such a place where it is surrounded by cabinets or metal objects then the wireless signals are going to suffer from it. You can fix this by placing your router in a central location of your home or office and removing dense objects nearby to make sure that the signals are transmitted maximally. Just by doing this simple thing, the strength of your router will increase immediately.
2. Replace The Antennas Of The Router
Another thing that you can do to improve the strength of your router is by replacing the antennas of your router. The signal strength and ultimately the speed of the internet is determined to a great extent by the antenna of the router and by replacing the antennas, you can improve both the router’s range and performance.
By default, most of the router comes with an omnidirectional antenna that can broadcast signals in all directions and while these antennas are great, if you want to get great coverage and performance out of your router then you should go for a unidirectional antenna that can focus the wireless signal in a single direction and maximizing the strength of the router. You can also buy a stronger and longer omnidirectional antenna to boost the overall performance and signal.
3. Replace/Upgrade Firmware
Replacing the firmware or upgrading it is another simple yet effective way to increase the power of your router. There are various free third-party options available that you can install and if you are not ready for that then you can upgrade the firmware of your router by looking for an update on your router’s manufacturer’s website or by visiting 192.168.10.1 and updating it directly from there.
The advantages of having third-party firmware are many because these often include features that are typically not available in consumer-level routers and these can substantially improve the power of your router. The most common and well-known third-party firmware is DD-WRT which can be used with the router of many manufacturers including TP-Link, D-Link, NETGEAR, etc.
4. Install A Wireless Range Extender
Installing a wireless repeater or range extender may also be a useful tip to improve the strength of your wireless router. A wireless repeater or extender is a device that can take signals from your existing network and then re-transmit those signals and amplify the strength and performance of your internet connection. If you are having severe problems with your internet connections and wireless signals then a repeater can definitely double the power of your wireless router.
5. Change Transmission Channels
Another way by which you can increase the power of your wireless router is by changing the channels that your router uses to transmit signals. The wavelength that the WiFi routers use is not exclusive to them only, rather it is used by many other electronic devices.
You can change the channel of your router by selecting a channel that is less crowded and no other nearby device is using that channel. This can be done by logging into the web interface of your router and then making changes in the wireless settings of the router.