Wireless G, interference or other cause?

I've been using a Trendnet Wireless G router for 5 years and my laptop is 2 floors above the router and everything worked fine with no drop connections. Today, I received my brand new DLink DIR-655 and the wireless G on it seems to always drop out. However, when I use wireless N, everything is fine. It just doesn't make sense because this new router I bought is newer so obviously it has better components built into it. Not to mention, it has three antennas on the DIR655 compared to the Trendnet (TEW-431BRP) which has only one.
Does anyone know what the problem is???

Also, does wireless N eat more battery life. And can the wifi board (Intel 5100 Wifi AGN) wear out if I use it too much? Should I worry about it?

 

Don't assume better componants....it is probably a chipset compatibility issue, rather than quality though. And the three antennas doesn't mean anything for the wireless G--wireless G uses a single antenna no matter what--the additional antennas are for wireless N which uses multiple-input and multiple-output.

Wireless N does consume more power than wireless g, but I wouldn't worry about wearing it out unless your laptop gets unusually hot.

As for disconnects, make sure the router is using the latest firmware, and that the wireless adapter has the latest drivers

 

Whenever you change any network device, you need to set both it and the device it's connecting to with matching settings for optimum performance. Of course some Routers aren't as advertised (like Belkin's "N", which isn't), but your adapter needs to be set to match your Router's wireless mode and channel settings.

The Intel 4965 AGN is a pretty good adapter - though it's not as fast as my external USB Dual-Band Linksys. Typically I'll average around 160mbps with the Intel, and 260mbps with my USB adapter. It has nothing to do with brands or wireless standards - it's just the my USB will access the dual-band features of my Router where my AGN will not.

The Intel AGN adapter's power consumption rate is determined by its settings in the Power Plan you're using. To view or change it:

1. Control Panel, Power
2. Click on Change Plan Settings, then on Change Advanced Power Settings.
3. On the Advanced Settings window, navigate to Wireless Adapter Settings, then view the current settings for Battery and AC under Power Saving Mode. Generally you want it to remain at highest level for AC, but battery is subjective. I leave mine at the same as the AC since it doesn't use that much juice. Anytime you give your system the ability to shut off your adapter at will to conserve power it will always be when you most need to be connected to the 'net, like looking up an emergency number because you're being abducted by aliens, attacked by a swarm of bees, got hooked up on a blind date with someone that quite "doesn't match" their online picture and profile, etc.

Access your Router's Admin Panel and note the Wireless Mode, Band, Standard and Wide Channel settings. I always recommend setting the Standard Channel to an offset frequency (11- 2.462ghz) from the base 2.4ghz so that it minimizes any interference from competing devices like cordless phones.

On your Adapter, go to your Device Manager, find the adapter (under Network Adapters, go figure), right click on the adapter, then click on Properties. If you're using it, you can also access the Properties window of your adapter by going to Control Panel, Network and Sharing, Manage Wireless Networks.

In the Adapter Properties window, click on the Advanced tab. Your 802.11N settings (when the mode is enabled) sets the adapter for wireless N. If it's not enabled, then it runs in Mixed mode depending on the particular Wireless Mode setting - A, B, G, AG,ABG, BG. If you have other devices on your network that aren't N devices, set your Router mode to Mixed, and your AGN set to N. Only use N only for the mode setting if all of your network devices are wireless N.

INTEL AGN SETTINGS FOR A WIRELESS N ROUTER WITH WIRELESS MODE SET TO N

802.11N Channel - match your Router's
802.11N Mode - Enabled for Router Wireless Mode set to N or Mixed, Disabled if Router set to G
Ad Hoc 802.11b/g - 11
Ad Hoc Power Management - Disabled (if Enabled the system can shut down your adapter)
Ad Hoc QoS - WMM Enabled if QoS (Quality of Service) is setup on your Router for your adapter to have Priority Access to the Router. If not, then Disabled. You should use QoS - it does impact speed.
Fat Channel Intolerant - Disabled
Mixed Mode - CTS to Self
Transmit Power - Highest
Roaming Aggressiveness - Highest
Throughput Enhancement - Enabled
Mixed Mode - Determined by your Router's Wireless Mode if set to Mixed or G Only

 

True, but the Trendnet I bought was cheap only $30. The DIR 655 is a pretty high end router and I didn't expect my connections to drop out like this. Both routers are 2.4 GHz but I don't understand why the DIR-655 gets interfered. I tested it today and my download immediately drops when I use my cordless phone and it is 5.8 GHz. I don't really want to use N right now because my internet isn't even fast enough to take advantage of it and I also want to consume less power from my laptop.

Thanks for the info CyberVisions, I'm trying to stick to only g but I will try those settings you've posted and see how it goes later.

 

Okay, I kinda fixed it but I don't know why this problem exists. In my router settings, instead of "mixed n, g, b. I set it only to "mixed g and b." Now it works really good.

 

did you change the channel that the D-Link is on for wireless G? I usually do a scan with netstumbler to see what is in the same channel, and then move to a channel that isn't being used by anyone else.
At my parents house, I got massive drops, turns out it was the cordless phone in the house. Moved to another channel, and no problems. Also didn't have problems with drops using the USR 8054 but recently moved to the Asus 520 and it dropped when the cordless phone was used.

 

Our cordless phone was causing trouble with my laptop wireless connection, try changing the channel in your routers config page.