Child Item

Site Totals

61435 Questions Answered 270 Categories

Need for Speed... Newbie with questions...

Hello...

I have a few questions that hopefully someone can answer... I'm kinda new to all this but do have a general understanding of how things work.

First of all... I have FIOS high speed internet running at 35mbps. Im using a HP laptop (wireless connection). The router is from Verizon made by Motorola...

My question is this... Am I taking full advantage of the speed I am paying for?

What is the difference between DSL and WiFi... Am I using WiFi now? The reason I ask is I noticed on my Verizon page it has a section that says download verizon WiFi...

I did a speed test that gave these results... 26.91 DOWN and 25.86 UP

I'm not even sure what type of router this is... G or N, N+

If indeed it IS a G would purchasing a N+ router give me eben faster speeds?

Am I right in assuming that ALL wireless connections are called WiFI?

Sorry to sound so **bleep**... I just want to take full advantage of the services I am paying for. Does it matter whats installed on my laptop?

This whole issue came up because when watching lets say... YouTube videos, sometimes it has to stop and buffer... The other day we watched a movie streaming from VUDU @ 1080p via our wirelessly connected PS3 and it worked great... Given that, shouldn't I be able to watch a clip on YouTube with no problems?

ANY help and advice would GREATLY be appreciated! Thank you! Phillychad

Comments

jmw1950

Wireless (Wi-Fi) is never the choice for the best speeds. There are too many variables. The band used for Wi-Fi service is in fact unlicensed, and used by a variety of devices including cordless telephones, so it is often subject to interference.

For the highest speeds, and to get the full performance you are paying for, you should be using a wired connection, i.e. Ethernet Cable from the router to your laptop.

In addition for maximum speed on windows version prior to Vista, you probably should run the high speed internet optimizer.

Often wireless, and default buffering on PC's isn't large enough to support the full performance of many FIOS connections.

The standard Verizon Routers with wireless support provide 802.11b and 802.11g wireless (Wi-Fi) service, 802.11b s good to about 11mbps, 802.11g is good to about 54 mbps (in theory), you are unlikely to do that well for a number of reasons.

You could add an 802.11n router for higher speeds, but an Ethernet cable will cost less, and is not subject to any interference. Adding a Wireless access point to your existing Router is not something I would suggest for the casual user.

DSL is an acronym for Digital Subscriber Line. IT uses the copper wiring that is used for regular voice telephone service (Often simply call POTS, Plain Old Telephone Service) for digital data. Depending upon how long the copper pair is, and how good the insulation and home wiring is, in theory you can get to about 15mbps. That requires that you be very close to the central office however. Fios provides the same services (and then some) that DSL provides, but the inherent bandwidth in the Fiber Optic Connection is huge compared to what DSL can provide. In addition FiOS is not sensitive to how far you are from the Central Office, or the weather outside. Very simply your 35mbps FiOS connection is close to 3 times the best possible performance of a DSL circuit. In some markets, if you want it, and are prepared to pay for it, Verizon has available 150mbps service. That is about 10 times the best possible DSL performance, and you don't have to live next door to the Central office to get it.

Wi-Fi is wireless internet, from a wireless access point, that is usually connected to the internet via some other means than wireless (such as DSL, FiOS or Cable).

My last observation is that all Verizon provides is the ON/OFF ramp to the Internet. In other words the quoted speed is essentially only guaranteed between you and the Central Office. After that your performance is determined by what resources are on the other end (server end), and how much network congestion and network capacity is actually available. The faster your connection, the bigger an issue network congestion and network resources become.

Anti-Phish1

The router is from Verizon made by Motorola...
No. Your Set Top Boxes are made by Motorola. Your router is an Actiontec MI424-WR.
Am I taking full advantage of the speed I am paying for?
Not if you're getting 26/25 speeds.
What is the difference between DSL and WiFi...
Matheww gave you a good explanation of the difference.
Am I using WiFi now?
Yes
The reason I ask is I noticed on my Verizon page it has a section that says download verizon WiFi...
That is software that you load on your laptop if you want to connect to Verizon hotspots. The web page should give you a list of the places you can connect. It has nothing to do with the wireless in your home.
I'm not even sure what type of router this is... G or N, N+
That depends on what version of the Actiontec router you have. The rev. F has draft 802.11n and is not compliant with the full 802.11n-2009 spec. Earlier models (A-E) are 802.11g only.
If indeed it IS a G would purchasing a N+ router give me even faster speeds?
Yes.
Am I right in assuming that ALL wireless connections are called WiFI?
Yes.
Does it matter what's installed on my laptop?
No.
This whole issue came up because when watching lets say... YouTube videos, sometimes it has to stop and buffer... The other day we watched a movie streaming from VUDU @ 1080p via our wirelessly connected PS3 and it worked great... Given that, shouldn't I be able to watch a clip on YouTube with no problems?
Not necessarily. If YouTube is having congestion problems, you will experience it stopping to buffer. That is all on the YouTube end and has nothing to do with FIOS.

spacedebris

One additional point about the wireless N.

If you do decide to get your own wireless N access point, one additional thing to look into. You need to find out if your other wireless devices are N compatible or not. For example, you mentioned a PS3. My PS3 is G only, not N. So getting an N router would not do me any good on the PS3. EDIT: I mean a standard N router. I personally would need a Dual Band in this instance

If you do have N capable devices, another thing to consider is...Are ALL the devices N or do you have a combination of both N and G. If you do have both, then you need a DUAL BAND WAP . That way your G devices will not bring down your whole network. With a standard N router, it will only go as fast as the slowest on the network. So if you have a G device, your network will be at G. With a dual band, your G will communicate at G and your N devices will still be able to take advantage of the higher speeds.

But for streaming, like said above, you really want to use Wired if at all possible. Wireless is one of those things that are convenient but really thats about all they have going for them. Wired are more reliable, more secure, and faster. Just less convenient. But if you do have to use wireless, then what has been said here should allow to to get the most out of it. But to be honest, the 26/25 you said your getting is quite good for wireless to begin with.

smokeybandit

Wifi certainly doesn't include all wireless connection types. But that's not important for the purpose of this thread.

And buying an 'N' router wouldn't necessarily equate to faster wifi speeds when your internet connection is only topping out at 26 (or even the provisioned 35)

Child Item