‘Home is where WiFi connects automatically’ Relatable?
Hell yeah. In a world where everything is turning digital, the presence of superboost WiFi in every household is completely justified. While providing a good speed and an internet connection to all your wireless devices, WiFi comes with its own set of drawbacks. One of the major being its short signal ranges. For people living in multi storey houses or houses with larger area, they face this issue on an everyday basis. Even though you may have a lot of options where you can sit and work or play online, you get restricted to the area near your WiFi. For people who turn a particular area or floor into a home office, this is a major challenge which comes in their way of developing a productive environment where one can work without any hussle. Coming to your rescue, WiFi extenders are a great measure to help you out. These devices are the best Wifi range boosters ( wifi signal booster ) to provide consistent and reliable high speed internet to every floor and corner of your house. Wifi Network Extenders work by communicating directly with your Wifi router using a wire, acting like cellular towers for the devices around your house.
Wifi routers are not enough to create a strong network if you have large house or offices. Hence Wifi range extenders help extend the connection to the areas of your house where a Wifi router cannot reach. While selecting a range extender (long range wifi extender), we need to keep some important points in mind. One of the main characteristics a range extender should include is it must be a dual band router, that means, it should be able to meet two bandwidths which allow it to connect on one band and broadcast into other. This way it develops a single strong network which allows all the bandwidth intensive tasks to happen seamlessly in the range. Whereas a single band extender connects to the router and broadcasts their signal on the same band which compromises performance. The presence of Ethernet connection gives the range extenders an edge as it doubles as another access point and also provides strong connection for all the wired devices too. At last, the speed and the range are the two primary ways to compare various range extenders performance. You can choose what you want, according to your needs, you do not need to buy an expensive device if you do not need all the features.
To help you choose the best, here are our top 6 picks for WiFi network extenders with all the needed information.
#1 – NETGEAR Nighthawk X4 AC2200 WiFi Range Extender (EX7300)
NETGEAR is a multinational computer networking company based out of California with offices all over the world. Netgear’s devices cover a variety of widely used technologies like wireless (WiFi and LTE), ethernet and powerline with the focus on ease of use and trustworthy products.
NETGEAR Nighthawk X4 AC2200 WiFi Range Extender (EX7300) is the latest in the Nighthawk’s line. This allows you to create your own mesh network with your existing WiFi router/gateway for complete home coverage. This WiFi extender works with any brand router and helps in creating a powerful Wifi system at your home. This extender creates a single network and extends your Wifi’s coverage with only one Wifi name and security password eliminating all the confusion with multiple Wifi names which traditional Wifi extenders offer. This extender simply combines all the visible Wifi networks into one which means you just have to add more devices to this network and the extender will intelligently find the optimal network to maximise Wifi performance.
NETGEAR Nighthawk EX7300 is installed with a unique Smart Roaming Technology which connects your device to the strongest Wifi connection point without any delay, giving you the freedom to roam around the house without the fear of disconnecting. This gives the device an edge over all other traditional Wifi extenders which interrupt streaming and downloading if you are moving around the house as you might get disconnected with your router and will be forced to manually join to the separate extender network. For an uninterrupted streaming and downloading experience while freely roaming around the house, this mesh extender is designed for you.
Nighthawk EX7300, instead of external antennas, has a pre installed internal antenna array in a diminished framework along with high power amplifiers to provide maximum coverage for your home. It is a dual band Wifi extender which can extend 3.4 and 5 GHz Wifi signals from existing Wifi routers upto 2.2 Gbps for a better range. It also supports beamforming, technology which helps improve wireless range as it sends data directly to the client rather than over a broad spectrum. This technology makes EX7300 more reliable when it comes to connectivity.
The access point mode has the ability to create a Wifi hotspot using a wired Ethernet connection further enhancing the connectivity without any compromise on speed.
This device supports streaming in multiple devices at a time with the support of MU-MIMO (Multi user Multiple input-Multiple output). MU MIMO technology transmits data to compatible clients simultaneously instead of sequentially.
FastLane 3 technology allows the router to establish strong, independent connection point to the primary router giving you the lightning fast speed for every device connected.
This mesh extender also comes with a gigabit port to connect to wired devices like a smart TV and gaming consoles to the Wifi serving you the best possible whether it is for tonight’s game plan with friends or netflix with your loved ones.
The nighthawk EX7300 is the best when it comes to mobile surfing as it makes it to 100% faster. The custom low noise amplifier improves incoming transmission quality from mobile devices. And all this mesh network connectivity can be managed with the Wifi analytics app available on android.
Verdict
Nighthawk EX7300 with its ease of use, a connection extremely strong & reliable and connectivity for each and every corner of your house is one of the best you can find in the market right now. With this, you do not need to worry about losing connection while roaming around in your own home. This compact device offers you all the ease and strong Wifi network you have dreamt of for your home. With the strong connection and blazing fast speed, it makes all the video streaming, gaming and binge watching uninterrupted and breeze ease for you. This device is worth the price it is taking from you. This has to be the best pick if you want a range extender which is both versatile and exceptionally good in its function.
| PROS | CONS |
| Allows to create your own strong mesh network | Expensive |
| Smart roaming technology ensures connection even when you move around the house | |
| MU MIMO – allows streaming in multiple devices simultaneously | |
| Fast Lane technology allows lightning fast speed in all the connected devices |
#2 – NETGEAR EX6200 Wi-Fi Range Extender (AC1200)
NETGEAR EX6200 is a powerful dual band extender which offers versatility and is a great option for most of the situations. This device is a comparatively cheaper version from NETGEAR which offers majority of the features with a stunning performance. It can extend dual band Wifi (2.4 and 5 GHz) upto 1200 Mbps.
NETGEAR EX6200 provides you with the perfect range and performance needed for devices like iPhone 6, Samsung Galaxy S6, iPad Air 2, and Amazon Fire TV.
This device is installed with 700 mW high power amplifiers and high gain 5dBi antennas for ultimate Wifi range which makes it ideal for large homes. It also supports quad core processor for maximum Wifi performance and MU MIMO for hassle free streaming in multiple devices simultaneously. It all comes in a relatively large size which is not wall mountable like other modern Wifi extenders. But with all these features embedded it is one of the most powerful Wifi Extenders in its price.
Aa an addition, NETGEAR EX6200 comes with 5 gigabit Ethernet ports to connect all the wired devices like gaming consoles, smart TV or Blu – ray players for uninterrupted gaming and Netflix. A Readyshare USB 3.0 port allows you to wirelessly access and share USB storage with the connected device.
Being a NETGEAR it comes with the FastLAne technology which uses both Wifi bands to create one high speed connection and Beamforming focuses signals directly to wireless devices for a reliable wireless connection.
All of these installed features make it ideal for large homes with corners or areas where the Wifi is not able to provide a great connection. This will allow you to use multiple devices for multiple purposes at the same time giving all of the members of the family comfort of using the connection wherever they are. From streaming to gaming to binge watching, this one device will make sure to make all of this possible at each and every nook and corner of your house.
NETGEAR EX6200 can extend your Wifi network coverage by several hundred square feet. Also the Ethernet ports allow the device to act as a speedy wired access point, adding up to its versatility. All of its features make up for the fact that it is rather a heavier piece of hardware as a Wifi extender. Though its black and red design makes it look stunning.
This works with any standard Wifi router and has an excellent performance scale. With its mind blowing speed and strong connectivity, it is ideal for HD video streaming and gaming. Everybody after their hectic schedules in their offices likes to unwind or take a break from everything going on in their lives and a lot of us likes to watch shows or play games with friends or family. To make all of these leisure moments worthy and frustration free, a Wifi extender like NETGEAR EX6200 is one of the best choices at a good price.
Verdict
NETGEAR EX6200 is a comparatively cheaper Netgear which literally gives you almost everything which you can expect from a range extender. A strong and reliable connection with amazing speed, a range which will remove practically all the dead zones of your house and all the features which makes it possible to perform intensive tasks on multiple devices without compromising on speed, one of the best choice for you at a reasonable price.
| PROS | CONS |
| Excellent coverage. | Not wall mountable. |
| Five Gigabit Ethernet port for all wired devices. | |
| A 3.0 USB port for external devices and printers. | |
| Can double as a Wifi access point. |
#3 – TP-Link RE580D
TP Link is a chinese manufacturer of computer networking products. TP Link is WORLD’S NO. 1 for provider of WLAN products from consecutive 7 years because of its amazing products and innovations.
TP-Link RE580D is pretty awesome choice for your house as it can expand the Wifi Network by up to 10000 square feet. RE580D achieves this kind of coverage with the help of three external dual band antennas and 700mW high powered antennas. This extender can work with any Wifi router to give you excellent coverage. This comes with the dual core processor (1GHz) that provides maximum Wifi performance, keeping all your devices connected while you roam around the house.
With beamforming technology, it focuses the Wi-Fi transmission in the direction of all the connected devices, concentrating the signal where we need it the most. The RE580 uses the 802.11ac Wi-Fi standard to distribute dual band Wifi connections with combined speeds upto 1.9 Gbps (1.3Gbps on the 5GHz band and 600Mbps on the 2.4GHz band). This means you can rely on this device to perform bandwidth intensive tasks like downloading huge file, HD video streaming or lag free gaming.
RE580D comes with 5 built in gigabit Ethernet ports to provide fast, stable connection to all your wired devices including smart TV, game consoles and players. This way it provides an amazing internet connection not to just wireless but also to all your wired devices.
This Wifi extender 5GHz and 2.4GHz bands to create a single, lightning fast connection by transmitting data on one channel and receiving data on the other. This is extremely beneficial for all your intensive gaming and live streaming sessions.
RE580D has an automatic, user friendly design that makes its installation, configuration and operation as easy as you can imagine. The device can be switched to vertical orientation giving it a completely different aesthetic. The product comes with all the needed guidelines to make its installation easy and doable. With all its range, speed, strength and coverage, it is great choice for large homes.
This whole extended network can be operated and managed through TP-Link’s handy tether app which puts advanced setup and security rules directly on your phone.
| PROS | CONS |
| Good performance | Lacks USB connectivity |
| Multiple wired ports | Comparatively Expensive. |
| Easy to install and configure | |
| Phone/Tablet app for operation |
Verdict
The RE580D with all its installed features gives you an excellent coverage with amazing speed to each corner of your house. Its ability to work in all the dead zones of your house forms one of its traits. Its strong and reliable connection and speed allows you to perform all the internet intensive tasks like downloading movies, streaming and gaming. This device also comes with Industry leading warranty of 2 years.This model will serve the purpose of range extension for your house or office giving you a good performance at pretty amazing speed.
#4 – TP-Link AC750
TP-Link AC750 is a Best Wifi extender which will eliminate Wifi dead zones of your house by extending your network’s Wifi for a well grounded coverage throughout your house. The two high performance external antennas help increase the WiFi range. Archer C20 comes with WiFi standard 802.11ac which is backward compatible with 802.11n and offers a much faster speed than the wireless N speeds.
With a high power efficiency and vigorous security, 802.11ac is the ultimate way to solve the congestion caused by multiple devices and speed up a home multimedia network. This device also helps in reducing signal interference ensure a strong WiFi coverage throughout your home or office.
Archer C20 ensures great wireless performance as it supports dual band connections upto 750 Mbps of speed where it shows 433 Mbps of speed at 5 GHz and about 300 Mbps of speed over 2.4 GHz. Where all the simple tasks such as sending e-mails and web browsing as managed at 2.4 GHz, all the bandwidth intensive tasks like video streaming and gaming are managed at 5 GHz, all at the same time.
This extender can work with any standard Wifi router or access point.
With two external antennas to improve coverage and reliability so your devices stay connected wherever your network reaches. The high speed mode of the device maximises performance by combining the dual channels to create one blistering fast network to help you do all the intensive tasks.
The whole device is designed to make it easy to use. A wall mounted design for versatile placement and an LED on/off button to turn off the lights at night. The device is installed with a RE button to make its installation easier. Once the extender is plugged in, press its RE button and the WPS button on your router and the two will pair with each other within two minutes.The intelligent signal indicator helps you know the strength of the signal received from your router to help you place the extender at the most convenient spot.
The device also support a gigabit Ethernet port to help you connect all your wired devices like smart TV to your Wifi acting like a wireless bridge between your router and TV.
The RE210 can be operated through a web based management console which offers plenty of router like settings and help you manage the network of around your house. The RE210 allows you to create a network throughout your house so that you can perform all the online work from your favourite spot of the house without the worry of less speed or weak connections.
VERDICT
A simple Wifi extender to cover all the dead zones of your house and office , and allows you to perform bandwidth intensive task from wherever you want, this will curb your primary Wifi needs without much hassle. For a person looking for an extender for regular use, this can be your pick and will help you perform your tasks better.
| PROS | CONS |
| Good connectivity without compromise on speed | No USB support |
| Comes with a intelligent signal indicator for easy use | Comparatively lesser speed |
| One gigabit port to connect wired devices | |
| Supports 802.11ac tech |
#5 – Linksys RE6500 Wi-Fi Range Extender (AC1200)
Linksys is also one of the companies producing data networking hardware for offices and home users. It offers one of the most promising Wifi extenders and hence has a huge fan base in the market.
Linksys RE6500 Wi-Fi Range Extender (AC1200) helps you to extend your wireless AC signal throughout all the hard to reach corners of your house by simply positioning the device where you need connectivity. The RE6500 repeats the signal from the router and redistributes it to reduce wireless dead spots. Be it the room upstairs or a remote area like the deck of your house, this router will help you to convert that remote area to close network area.
With the dual band Wifi support and the Crossband technology, the RE6500 can receive information on one band and transmit on the other to reduce drop data packets and create a stronger and consistent network throughout your home or office.
The high speed AC technology of the extender permits the performance of all the intensive gaming or HD video streaming from any corner of your house.
The range extender features simultaneous dual bands extending 2.4 and 5 GHz Wifi upto N300 Mbps + AC867 Mbps, reducing all the signal interference too. This allows your devices to automatically connect to the best available ban for maximum performance. The RE6500 comes with a pair of long, high gain antennas which amplify the signal strength of your Wifi throughout your home. With the help of these specialised antennas, this device can counter the dead zones which occur due to presence of walls or construction material obstructing the signal of your Wifi. These flexible antennas allows you to position them to optimize the performance of your wireless network.
The RE6500 also offers four Gigabit ethernet ports which are ten times faster than traditional ethernet ports giving you the freedom to establish fast connections with all your wired devices from your desktop to smart TV to game consoles. To make these connections easier placing the range extender on a table near the device would help.
This RE6500 is universally compatible that means it can be connected to any Wifi router or gateway and will give you the optimal connection all around your house. By simply connecting the range extender to your current router will lead to creating the internet accessibility you were hoping for.in your office or house.
The RE6500 comes with a unique feature which is an audio jack present on the back which enable you to connect a stereo or a speaker to your range extender and allows digital music streaming from your smartphone or laptop. This range extender also supports Linksys Spot Finder Technology providing you an absolute setup process and helps you find the perfect spot to place RE6500 in order to enjoy Wifi at all the hard to reach places of your home. This involves the operation of a smartphone or tablet and the spot finder will tell you where to place the range extender with respect to the position of your Wifi router for maximum coverage.
The RE6500 comes with a 128-bit encryption and a WPS (Wifi Protected Setup) which makes it suitable choice for offices and small businesses.
VERDICT
Giving a throughput of 1200 Mbps, the Linksys RE6500 is one of the best competitor in this range but with a comparatively higher price. Though it does provide you a better coverage , and extra security features with an audio jack for online music streaming in exchange of the higher price. This device can do it all – HD video streaming to online gaming to binge watching shows and even online music streaming. This is a perfect solution for the network problem you and your family have been facing in your house. With its 128 bit encryption and WPS technology, it gives you the required security to set it up in your office for a faster task completion and improved efficiency.
| PROS | CONS |
| Four gigabit ethernet ports with 10 times faster connectivity | Comparatively expensive |
| Good coverage with speed upto 1200 Mbps | Complicated setup process. |
| An additional audio jack | |
| Comes with 128-bit encryption and a WPS (Wifi protected setup) | |
| Linksys spot finder technology helps optimum utilisation of the device |
#6 – D-Link DAP-1520 Wi-Fi Range Extender (AC750)
D-Link DAP-1520 Wi-Fi Range Extender (AC750) is one of the most simple Wifi extenders available in the market. It is a portable plug in repeater which allows you to extend your existing Wifi network. This is a compact device which can fit in your palm yet hold the power to support wireless AC speeds upto 750 Mbps (300 Mbps on 2.4GHz and 433 Mbps on 5GHz). This also supports Dual band technology which reduces the interference from nearby wireless devices in the network. This also permits backward compatibility (because of presence of 802.11 n/g/b/a) with older wireless devices in your network which makes it possible for you to enjoy the amazing speed and reliable connection in all of your devices.
This power and connectivity comprises in a compact design which makes it an absolutely great choice to use at home or small offices. This device doesn’t take much space and is ready to use once plugged in. Its miniature wall plug design allows you to plug it into a power socket and saves you from the hassle of a cord. Its compact and sleek design blends into the rooms decor effortlessly.
Setting up the AC750 Dual Band range extender is extremely simple. This device comes with the one touch configuration which allows you to set up the device by pushing the WPS push button on DAP – 1520 and on the router or Ap you want to extend and the device will automatically configure itself for you.
The DAP 1520 can also be operated by using the QRS app on your iOS or Android mobile device to set up the DAP 1520 easily without the need of the computer.
This device also includes a built in wizard which lets you configure it wirelessly with your PC or mobile.
This compact device also features WPA wireless encryption and WPS (WiFi Protected Setup) to keep your wireless connection secure.
The presence of AC 750 technology which supports this range extender ensures increased speed, range and reliability to guarantee coverage throughout your home or office.
The DAP 1520 allows you to perform all the live streaming and gaming all around your house without the fear of disconnecting from the WiFi. From all the small tasks to the heavy tasks you can perform it all with this one small device. It offers an impressively strong wireless signal for its package.
But this small and inexpensive device does not gives us all. It lacks Ethernet, USB support and has no network bridging functionality. This device simply gives you string range extension which will work if you are content with its limited features. Though if you want something which can cure all your needs, this might not be the best choice for you.
VERDICT
For whatever limited functions it performs, it is designed to excel at them. It is establishes strong connections with good speed and allow you to perform all the bandwidth intensive task without the need to wait. Its ease of use, compact design and powerful function makes it an ideal choice as your first range extender. With the security functions this can be a good choice as a range extender in your small office.
| PROS | CONS |
| Powerful range extender | No USB support |
| Supports Dual band technology with speed upto 750 Mbps. | No Ethernet |
| Compact design | |
| Easy to set up |
