Worse signal because my computer thinks it's in Australia?

Forums › LAN (ethernet/Wifi/routers/Bluetooth) › Worse signal because my computer thinks it's in Australia?

robertosc

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#290804 6-Dec-2021 12:16

Hello.

I actually have 3 questions, all related to each other.

The first is about conflicting country codes for wifi when using Mac/iPhones. Something discussed here in more detail, but basically macOS/iOS wouldn't use channels if it thinks it's in a different country where these channels are forbidden by local regulations. And to find out what country it is it uses all wifi signals around.

I ran Wireless Diagnostics and saw that all my neighbours have their devices set to Australia.

Question 1: should I try to set my router to Australia. Are there any differences between NZ and Australia?

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I'm thinking about getting a new router, maybe an Amplifi Alien from Dick Smith.I don't know how DS works, but it seems that a lot of stuff from them come from Australia. Or maybe a Netgear Orbi RBK852.

Question 2: Do you know if these routers allow changing their country code? I have an Apple Airport that doesn't allow me to change the country from Japan to any other.

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In accordance with this link, the maximum permitted signal strength for channels 52 to 161 are much higher in NZ than Australia.

Question 3: Will I get a better signal by setting the router to NZ? Supposing I'm setting to NZ while my neighbours are to Australia, would I be able to use a better signal because both countries allow the same channels to be used, despite of having different output power rates?

Thank you!

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#2825064 6-Dec-2021 14:22

Best of all, you get a legal signal by setting your AP to NZ. Setting to another locale risks using frequencies and/or power levels that are illegal in NZ. If you have an Airport that will only accept Japan, it should not be used in NZ, unless you check the frequency and power output of the specific channel you have set it to.

Additionally, I'm fairly sure Apple have moved away from setting locale based on nearby AP broadcasts - there's far more effective ways of geolocating now, as well as that method being very problematic as your network was unduly influenced by APs beyond your control.

1101

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#2825104 6-Dec-2021 15:37

"maybe an Amplifi Alien from Dick Smith.I don't know how DS works, but it seems that a lot of stuff from them come from Australia"

DS is Kogan. Kogan bought the brand name
I wouldnt , unless you had a very good reason too, better to buy from a real NZ shop .

robertosc

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#2825146 6-Dec-2021 17:38

It only sells at PBTech and Dick Smith :)

sbiddle

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#2825177 6-Dec-2021 19:27

You very rarely ever get better WiFi performance by "turning the power up". In todays world you should be setting power levels as low as possible.

It doesn't matter if you have an AP that would output 100mW or 50W - your device connecting to it is going to have a much lower power output and smaller antenna. If that can't talk back you're not going to have a reliable connection.

robertosc

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#2825257 6-Dec-2021 19:56

Are you saying that a router that was designed to work at 100mW would perform the same way in a country where regulations limit it to work at 50mW?

If it was designed to work at 100mW then it will hear the device talking with it because it has a bigger antenna for that, won’t it?

RunningMan

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#2825276 6-Dec-2021 20:29

robertosc: Are you saying that a router that was designed to work at 100mW would perform the same way in a country where regulations limit it to work at 50mW?

No.

robertosc: If it was designed to work at 100mW then it will hear the device talking with it because it has a bigger antenna for that, won’t it?

Depends on antenna design, not transmit power.

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RunningMan

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#2825278 6-Dec-2021 20:35

Perhaps rather than asking a bunch of technical questions, it may be better to describe your current setup including APs, clients and topography and let people know what the issues are that you're having. Would then be in a much better position to recommend or rule out a particular solution, which may or may not actually need new hardware.

robertosc

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#2825294 6-Dec-2021 21:13

Sorry, I should have mentioned before: I'm upgrading my system anyway because I got an internet bump from 100Mbps to 300Mbps and my current setup can only go to 100Mbps.

My 2-floor wooden house is small but the wifi signal sucks for some reason. Router is in the corridor and I'm in a bedroom 5 meters away from it with a -70dBm signal. Speedtest gives me 65Mbps and 2% loss here and 93Mbps wired.

I thought this was worse than it should be and that it could be due the fact that the 2012 router is from Japan and they are pretty strict on wifi output there. My reasoning was that the router was maybe designed to work at a higher output but it's capped at a lower output because of regulations. So if I'm getting something new, should I be worried that it can come from Australia.

They are all assumptions, based on the fact that my wifi sucks, so I'm just trying to check if they can be right.

RunningMan

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#2825297 6-Dec-2021 21:18

What router? What AP? What client(s)? How are they connected together? Presumably UFB given the speed bump?

robertosc

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#2825357 6-Dec-2021 21:34

Apple Airport Express 2nd gen, connected directly to the Chorus modem, NowNZ Fibre 300/100.

I have 6 clients connected to it right now, some to the 2.4 channel, some to the 5, I don't know which one is in which, except for my 2019 MacBook Pro which is in the 5GHz channel using 802.11n.

RunningMan

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#2825388 6-Dec-2021 22:05

Channels 1-13, 36-64, and 100-140 approved for use in Europe and Japan
Channels 1-13, 36-64, and 149-165 approved for use in Australia, Hong Kong, and New Zealand

Don't use this on 5GHz in NZ, all the channels differ from those approved from the Japanese version.

Those only have 100Mb ethernet ports, and will also struggle a little with a PPPoE connection. Did Now give you a router to use?

How much are you wanting to spend? With 6 clients, a used HG659b from Trademe for a few $ would probably be a significant improvement.

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robertosc

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#2825413 6-Dec-2021 23:02

I don't mind spending a lot to be more "future proof" as I may get 1Gbps one day and to be headache-free. I was thinking of getting a wifi 6 mesh system - Amplifi, Netgear Orbi or even a tp-link that someone recommended me on another thread (although I don't like tp-link).

I have around 15 devices, 6 were connected when I was writing that post testing my speed.