Tag: Wi-Fi

What’s connected to your Wi-Fi network?

Posted on by Marceline

When you switch to the new ATT fiber service, ATT technicians will install a new router for you. This is the piece of equipment that connects all of the equipment in your house — smart TVs, laptops, smart home devices, etc. — to the internet. To be sure that everything is re-connected to the internet after the changeover to the new fiber service, it would be a good idea to take an inventory of everything that you currently have connected to the internet.

How do you do that?

It’s actually very easy. Using a computer that’s connected to your home network open this web page: http://192.168.1.254/

The page will look something like this:

It would probably be a good idea to print out a copy of this page for future reference.

(If you’re one of my clients with a Netgear router behind the ATT router, log in here to see a list of connected devices: http://routerlogin.com/)

The Network ID (SSID) is the name of your own home network. If you never changed this, it might say something like 2WIRE123. The Network Key is your Wi-Fi password. This is the information that you need to log in to your home Wi-Fi network.

Below that, you’ll see Home Network Devices. This is a list of everything that’s connected to your home network. Some devices have a wired (ethernet) connection. Some have a wireless connection. All of these devices will have to be re-connected to the new router in order for them to keep working after the transition.

There are basically two ways to get all your wireless devices reconnected after you get the new equipment:

  1. Write down the SSID and Network Key for the new router and log in to the new Wi-Fi network on every device using that information. This is the easiest route if you only have a few devices connected to your Wi-Fi network.
  2. If you have many devices connected to your wireless network, it might be easier to change the SSID and Network Key on the new router to exactly match the SSID and Network Key from the old router. This should allow all of your devices to login to the new router as if nothing changed. The new router should come with the access information needed to change these settings. This information is often printed on a sticker attached to the device. 

Need help? Contact me at HELP@TeineiTech.com

Why is my internet at Opera Plaza so slow?

Posted on by Marceline

First of all, it’s important to understand that the speed of the internet coming into your unit at Opera Plaza isn’t necessarily the same as the speed of the Wi-Fi inside your unit. So let’s learn how to test your internet speed and your Wi-Fi speed. 

To test your internet speed check the speed by physically connecting a laptop or desktop computer to your Uverse gateway using an ethernet cable. Once your computer is connected, go to Speedtest and select “Go” to test your internet speed. After a minute or two, the website will generate a report that looks like this:

What does this download speed number 23.47Mbps (megabytes per second) mean? It’s not blazing fast, but it’s enough to stream video content, including Zoom meetings. As far as I know, the fastest service that ATT promises is 18Mbps (“Internet 18”). The fastest I’ve seen in the complex is about 26Mbps. If you run this test and your speed is lower than 15Mbps, check your ATT bill to see if you are signed up for “Internet 18” service. If not, contact ATT and request an upgrade. If you are already on the “Internet 18” plan and your internet service is slow, reboot your router by unplugging it for a few minutes and then plugging it back in. If this doesn’t improve your internet speed you may need to contact ATT.

Next, test your Wi-Fi speed. Unplug your laptop from the ethernet cable or use an iPad or some other device with an internet browser to once again connect to Speedtest. If you’re using the Uverse gateway for Wi-Fi, there’s a good chance that the Wi-Fi speed will be a LOT slower than the speed of the wired connection. You may see speeds of 6-8Mbps. Why is this?

The 2Wire HomePortal 3801HGV gateway supplied to most Opera Plaza residents by ATT uses the “antique” 802.11 b/g standard to broadcast Wi-Fi. This standard was created in 2003 and as you can imagine there have been a lot of advances in Wi-Fi technology since then. The solution is to contact ATT and see if they have a more advanced gateway  (I have not had any luck with this) or to install a separate Wi-Fi router that uses newer technology in your unit. This is what I’ve done for many Opera Plaza residents.

This is the router that I’ve been installing (I receive a small commission from Amazon links, but feel free to shop anywhere).
NETGEAR Smart WiFi Router  – AC1750 (R6400-100NAS)

If you live in a townhouse, you may want to consider installing a mesh Wi-Fi router system instead for better Wi-Fi across two floors.