Long Range wifi

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Oriphix

523 posts

Ultimate Geek

#206102 9-Dec-2016 14:47

Hi All,

So I am looking at getting a wifi AP at home (a proper one currently just using a old modem as a AP which isn't working very well).

I need something long range with decent coverage. Some people told me that Unifi is good and has a easy portal to setup the AP etc so I have been looking at that.

I looked at:
https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NETUBI1226/Ubiquiti-UniFi-UAP-AC-LR-Dual-band-AC1350-450867Mb

But then I saw this one:
https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NETUBI1229/Ubiquiti-UniFi-UAP-AC-PRO-Dual-band-AC1750-4501300

I am not sure if the Pro has the LR coverage. The comparison chart at doesn't mention coverage
https://www.ubnt.com/unifi/unifi-ap-ac-lr/

Does anyone here know?

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Biddle Corp

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#1685347 9-Dec-2016 14:58

Unless you need 3x3 MIMO or 802.3af support there isn't really a good reason to buy the Pro.

"Long range" and WiFi should also not be used in the same sentence as they're really mutually exclusive. 2.4GHz is beyond usable in some dense urban areas and 5GHz doesn't propagate as far. The solution isn't "long range" solutions, it's multiple AP's.

I'm a great fan of Xclaim by Ruckus. Ruckus quality but pricing is a lot cheaper.

LookingUp

411 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1685354 9-Dec-2016 15:16

Think you need to define "long range". I've done 2~3km urban and over 5km rural using EnGenius and Ubiquiti kit from GoWiFi. Those are point to point, but if you're talking AP to (say) a laptop you'll get nowhere near this.

Things are LookingUp.... A photo from my back yard :-)

Oriphix

523 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1685357 9-Dec-2016 15:20

Ahh i see okay.
Well its just my house which I want to be able to use wifi, size about 200sq
Yeah maybe getting 2 x AP will be better
I will check out Ruckus as well.

davidcole

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#1685387 9-Dec-2016 15:57

I'm using 2 unifis. on a 260sq m 2 story house. A UAP-AC-Lite downstairs in the middle, and a UAP upstairs (downstairs has all the living rooms).

Easily covers my house and a fair chunk of my section.

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xpd

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#1685399 9-Dec-2016 16:15

Yeah Ive got a standard Unifi ($70 2nd hand), covers whole house (up and down) and down to the pool (just). Range on it is great :)

Looking to get a newer model next year and move the current one closer to the pool area.

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

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noroad

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#1685410 9-Dec-2016 16:31

I've got one of these - https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/NETDLKAP2695/D-Link-DAP-2695-Concurrent-Dual-Band-Wireless-AC17 and I can still get a stable connection (a couple of meg anyway) 500M away at the local school.

raytaylor

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#1686300 12-Dec-2016 07:43

Just remember that unifi is not designed for the general residential consumer - there are aspects about it which make it annoying to use in that environment. Its more for commercial applications like hotels - but many technically inclined people do use them in houses and they can work great when you combine multiple ones.

Multiple APs is the best option - see my guide below in my signature

Ray Taylor

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Paul1977

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#1686588 12-Dec-2016 16:38

I have a small house with a single UAP-AC-LITE, covers everything but the signal drops off a little bit in the front and back yards - still more than usable though.

I'd consider multiple LITEs over the LR as they are physically a smaller device than the LR or PRO so look less intrusive on the ceiling.

Paul1977

5052 posts

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#1686591 12-Dec-2016 16:45

raytaylor:

Just remember that unifi is not designed for the general residential consumer - there are aspects about it which make it annoying to use in that environment. Its more for commercial applications like hotels - but many technically inclined people do use them in houses and they can work great when you combine multiple ones.

Multiple APs is the best option - see my guide below in my signature

What aspects make UniFi annoying to use in a residential environment? Do you just mean that you need to be more technically inclined to set it up?

I have been more than happy with my UAP-AC-LITE.

sbiddle

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#1686592 12-Dec-2016 16:54

Paul1977:

raytaylor:

Just remember that unifi is not designed for the general residential consumer - there are aspects about it which make it annoying to use in that environment. Its more for commercial applications like hotels - but many technically inclined people do use them in houses and they can work great when you combine multiple ones.

Multiple APs is the best option - see my guide below in my signature

What aspects make UniFi annoying to use in a residential environment? Do you just mean that you need to be more technically inclined to set it up?

I have been more than happy with my UAP-AC-LITE.

You need to have a physical PC or stick as a controller rather than being able to configure things in the cloud or via web interface.

The stability of the UniFi product over the past year due to buggy firmware has been truly horrible and is still ongoing. It's why I recommend Xclaim as it beats UniFi hands down, is made by Rucckus (who make the best WiFi kit on the market. Period), and it uses a cloud based controller so it's super easy to configure.

davidcole

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#1686627 12-Dec-2016 18:27

Paul1977:
I have a small house with a single UAP-AC-LITE, covers everything but the signal drops off a little bit in the front and back yards - still more than usable though.

I'd consider multiple LITEs over the LR as they are physically a smaller device than the LR or PRO so look less intrusive on the ceiling.

I mounted one in a cupboard and the other in the attic on a piece of wood between the joists. Can't see them at all

hio77

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Lizard Networks

#1686649 12-Dec-2016 19:08

Thing to remember is, simply because the router can shout further, Doesn't mean your mobile device can respond back with an equally strong signal.

Personally i prefer to position AP's with 5Ghz in mind, tone down the power level on 2.4ghz since realistically, it is simply not required to be so high.

At max power, my E400s reach a good 150M or so, almost to the end of my driveway through a ton of trees and up a hill. While my laptop with my AC stick is totally fine with it, Phone strugles to pull more than a few mbit.

drop the power a few dB and its confined to realistically where i would want to provide wireless access to on the property, Further out will be on their own Dedicated APs.

@noroad that's literally almost clear line of sight! totally cheating!

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rhy7s

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#1686706 12-Dec-2016 20:48

Just an anecdote in support of Ubiquiti, I'm lucky enough to be rural and have the 2.4GHz bands to myself. I have a few Nanostation M2's around and they have been the great survivors for me. Physically durable and still supported, haven't had any issues, only reboot in power outages or for firmware updates (all opposite of a fair few Engenius units over the years which have all fallen by the wayside) - punch through masses of dense foliage in both send and receive and way off axis despite almost nowhere on the property being unobstructed. I also have a Picostation M2 which I can browse the web on an old Moto G from 2km away in our local town across the harbour (with a fair few competing APs over there). Use UniFis at other places, have been fine, you don't need to run the controller all the time to just use them as APs.

raytaylor

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#1686767 12-Dec-2016 23:20

Paul1977:

What aspects make UniFi annoying to use in a residential environment? Do you just mean that you need to be more technically inclined to set it up?

I have been more than happy with my UAP-AC-LITE.

Yup you either need a dedicated computer or controller for them. A typical residential installation has their laptops or devices replaced every 2-3 years so the computer that runs the controller software installed by tech1 is long gone when tech2 comes to visit and get something changed. Tech2 has to reset the unifi and reinstall the controller software on a new machine to do something he should be able to do with a web interface.

Ray Taylor

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richms

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#1686776 13-Dec-2016 00:23

The new AC ones support configuration from a phone with an app, so are much better than the old series for home users.

Richard rich.ms

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