Ways to Bring Dead Zones Back to Life

Have you ever suffered from weak or even no Wi-Fi signal in specific spots in your apartment? Or have you ever experienced that the wireless signal somehow disappears in certain corners in your house? Be careful, you may find a Wi-Fi dead zone.

Wi-Fi dead zone is the area where you are supposed to have wireless signals, but your devices fail to connect to the internet. It is common to have dead zones. Potential causes include:

Signal Interference

Wi-Fi signals broadcasts through radio waves, and many elements can interfere with or even block them.

Areas Uncovered by Signals

A router can hardly blanket every corner, so the uncovered areas become dead zones.

Clients with Low Sensitivity

Clients may not be sensitive enough to receive wireless signals.

For the first two causes, you can try solving the problem with your router following the tips below. If the problem still exists, you can introduce new devices to expand signal coverage.

4 Tips to Eliminate Dead Zones with Your Router

Upgrade the Firmware

Let’s begin with a basic but useful way. Check if there is any upgrade of firmware version for your router. If yes, then download the latest one from Download Center, and upgrade it referring to User Guide. The latest firmware will help improve the stability, functionality, and performance of your router.

Adjust the Antennae of the Router

When your router is already in the latest firmware version, adjust the direction of its antennae, and make sure they are pointing vertically upwards. The wireless coverage can reach the maximum when the antennae are in the vertical direction.

Identify Obstructions and Replace the Router

Obstructions may get in the way of radio waves broadcast. To avoid interference and eliminate dead zones, rearrange the obstructions or the router itself. Normally, obstructions include big metal objects, large furniture, and the devices that also use radio waves to work.

Use a Wired Connection

If dead zones still exist, you can always use a wired Ethernet cable. Notice that this is only applicable for devices with Ethernet ports.

Showtime for Devices that Expand Wi-Fi Coverage

If using the available router cannot solve the problem, the dead zones in your house are likely caused by limited coverage of one single router. Under this situation, consider introducing new devices to expand the Wi-Fi coverage. Access points, range extenders, and powerline adapters are reliable and effective options.

What is an Access Point?

An access point is designed to establish or expand the wireless network or to connect multiple Ethernet enabled devices to a wireless network. AP products give you flexible wireless networking experience with various operation modes.

What is a Range Extender?

A range extender, also known as a repeater, is a small hub that expands the Wi-Fi coverage by receiving signals from the main router and then extending them out to cover more areas. By placing it in the right place, an extender will send signals to even the hard-to-wire spots to get rid of dead zones.

What is a Powerline Adapter?

Powerline adapters can transform the electrical circuit into a Wi-Fi network with electrical wires already in your walls. As a frequently-used device to eliminate dead zones, they provide stable transfer rates on a line up to 300 meters long in theory. The powerline adapters are deployed in sets of at least two. You can also add more devices into the powerline networking when needed.

Which is Right for Me?

The AP, range extender, and powerline adapters all can expand Wi-Fi coverage and help remove dead zones. There is not an absolute best choice, as it depends on particular circumstances. Their strengths and limitation are as follows.

	AP (Default Mode)	Range Extender	Powerline Adapters
Strengths	Stable data transfer Ability to send signals through walls with built-in cables Signals not influenced by the quality of electrical wiring	Flexible placement No need for Ethernet ports and cables Signals not influenced by the quality of electrical wiring	Plug, pair and play Ability to send signals stably through electrical circuit No need for Ethernet ports and cables
Limitation	Needs to be connected to the router (you can choose other modes)	Signals influenced by thick walls and large obstructions	Signals influenced by quality and distance of electrical wiring

To sum up, when you find dead zones at home, first consider dealing with the problem with the router in hand. If you still have dead zones at home, choose products that expand Wi-Fi coverage based on your actual situation. An AP, a range extender, and powerline adapters are trust-worthy devices to “revive” the dead zones.