Home Internet Discussion Thread
 

As I meet more Villagers, I'm hearing more and more questions about home internet problems and concerns and many have no where to find the correct answers. If you have questions on anything to do with your home internet such as which router or wifi device should I buy, my TV buffers in the Lanai so what can I do, I don't get strong internet signal in the garage for my computerized irrigation controller, should I put RJ45 connectors on all my ethernet cables, what's the difference betwee an ethernet switch and a hub, do I need Wifi7, should I hardwire or use wireless for my devices, should I cancel my Internet and try another company because I'm not happy with my service or is my installation not correct, why is my cable so slow after 8pm every night or when it's cold or rainy out, or any kind of technical question or problem you may be having, please post here and we can discuss the answers.

This thread is NOT to talk about which Internet service is the cheapeast. I believe that discussion has been heavily discussed.

I have Xfinity, 1.2 gbps service and I rent my modem/router from Xfinity. No problems whatsoever. Is it expensive? Yes.

As of yesterday, Xfinity offered 1 gig of Internet for $75 a month includes your wireless router. My plan went from $152 a month to 75..

Advice for anyone, regardless of who you get your internet from:

Walk from room to room and run a speed test *before* installing any pods. You may not need any additional hardware, additional points of failure, potential sources of interference, or additional costs.

Different providers, different modem/router, different homes, and different furniture makes everyone's situation different. Running a speed test on your phone is very simple and will let you know if you truly need more than the single modem/router.

I love when my internet blows out because then it forces me to get outside and enjoy The Villages. Usually by the time I get back from a town square or a long walk or just sitting in my driveway with my kindle it’s fixed.

That's the fastest speed offered by Xfinity. It's supposed to have more upload speed. What upload speed are you getting and did they give you their new Router and wifi device? Also, when I called them about this service, it was $75 for the for one or two years, I forget but after that is was $110/month.

My download/upload speeds recently measured at 937mbps/24mbps. I am pretty sure I have the latest modem. It is white and square and only has one light. My monthly fee is probably less than $110 per month because the internet is bundled with other Xfinity services, which gives me a contract and multi-service discounts.

Thank you for this comment. With the new Wifi7 equipment that Quantum fiber and other's are now offering with their internet service, in most homes you do not need the extender pods in order to get adequate coverage. If you install an extender and they are too close then they will do more harm than good.

The only installations that I've seen where an extender pod was necessary is in a very large Premier home where the main pod was installed in an office on one side of the home and the extender was installed on the other side of the home. Also, if you have a home where a front bedroom/office is the only place to install the main pod, in some homes due to the layout and the number of walls the wifi signal has to pass through, an extender may be needed to get adequate coverage but it must be placed as far away as possible from the main pod.

Upon the completion of activating the main wifi pod the technician is supposed to use a special app to check the wifi coverage throughout your home and if there is any room where the wifi signal is too low, they will install an extender pod to improve the coverage.

The same applies if you go and get your own equipment such as a Netgear Orbi or Amazon Eero. You may be able to get away with only the main wifi7 router and if not, one satellite should be more than adequate to saturate most sized homes here in the Villages.

The only exception to this rule is if you want a wired equivalent connection to a home theather where there is no ethernet connection for example, you can use some of the more specialized Wifi7 devices which have their own wireless backhaul system. This is a whole other discussion. If anyone is interested, let me know and I'll add to this thread.

Remember, the higher you can place the main pod such as on a shelf over a desk or furniture, the greater the wifi coverage you will get because there will be less obstructions for the signal to pass through to get to the rest of your home. So, wifi device placement is the most important task in order to get the best wifi coverage throughout your home.

What I suggest is to go onto YouTube and enter your question in the search bar, you will be buried in solutions. As far as companies, equipment needed, price you will find it all depends on what your needs are. I cut the cable a few years ago and found there was a huge savings on rental equipment alone.

There is so much bad info on home networks on these types of posts. Most of the time when somebody has slow WiFi, they blame xfinity/spectrum, which is a fallacy. Xfinity. Spectrum, or any other isp, has nothing to do with your WiFi, that’s totally on you, they have nothing to do with your internal network. Most of the isp providers give you 1 modem/router and that’s it, which is insufficient for total coverage. For example, I have a 4 mesh router network in my house so I can totally automate every area in and around my house. If I go into a bedroom, I still get up to 800Mb speeds, I can go out in the garage and get the same speed, or on my lanai. This is due to using the backhaul of the newer 6e and above mesh networks and in some cases, hardwired connections to each router. In most rooms I have a switch connected to the router so all my devices in these rooms think they are hardwired which is much faster than when the device would use the 2.4ghz WiFi. I just designed a whole house network for a friend of mine and he is using more routers to get the coverage he needs.
$75 for 1Gb internet is expensive, I’ve been paying $39 for 1.2Gb.
1 other question that comes up regularly, fiber isp or xfinity/spectrum? Always go with fiber, it will always be a cleaner sounding connection, faster speeds especially upload speed, and much more reliable. When you pay for 1Gb speed, you will get 1Gb download speed as well as 1Gb upload speed, compared to any copper network like xfinity/spectrum where for 1Gb download speed, you’ll get 20-40Mb upload,iAd speeds, which is a joke.

A $20 tp link extender solved my lanai signal issue. Also change the router dns to cloud flare. My speeds improved dramatically.

I have Xfinity and they provided the router on install. I purchased a 2 point WAP (Wireless Access Point) network that is plugged in at my guest room (at the router) and primary bedroom to "extend" the service. All of my TVs, computers, printer and audio system run wirelessly through this system. I have fine signal on my lanai (which is close to the WAP) and in my yard for iPad, phones, etc.

Thanks for this reply. I've been trying to say the same for a long time now but not many understand that the wifi setup if not done right will cause slow and inconsistent speeds and the homeowner then blames the Internet provider.

I know I talk a lot about Quantum Fiber but although all installations may not be perfect, their service and equipment provided for the average homeowner is their way to address much of what you said and in my opinion, it works. Wifi7 equipment is very expensive right now and we are just starting to see Wifi7 devices. One of my interests is to help Villagers get Quantum Fiber installed optimally and I can say when their main Wifi pod is installed in the best location, generally you get full coverage throughout your home, even to the outside cameras. Granted you might not get full speed everywhere but for most as long as you are getting a good signal, that's all that matters to them. The cable companies are now just starting to offer Wifi7 equipment as well but they are charging extra for it or only including it in their top packages.

To my point, I often run into a neighbor or friend who has "x" company cable internet and are payin $40/month for some slow speed for example. They are generally happy but admit one of their TVs buffer from time to time and when I investigate I find it's the Wifi device causing the problem. Although the internet speed is super slow, it's fast enough for them. When I propose switching to Quantum fiber, I explain the benefit is not only the faster internet but they would get the latest Wifi equipment solving their problem. Some switch and some don't because they want to say they got the cheapest internet possible no matter that it doesn't work well. The people who switch are very happy because they don't have to concern themselves with the internet anymore because it just works.

For those reporting what internet speeds they have and how much they are paying, please mention who the provider is and if it's a one or two or "x" year promotion and or if it's part of a bundle. The reason is because somone reading these responses may want to follow-up with that company to get better service than what they currently have and need to understand the "deal" you are talking about.

You should have stopped there, but you didn't

Please provide a link to the 1.2Gbps plan I can get for $39.

"cleaner sounding connection??" I don't even hear my internet connection, how could it sound cleaner? Or are you trying to say that a digital signal over fiber is different than a digital signal over other media?

"faster speeds" Okay, with fiber I can have 1Gbps capacity that I don't use rather than having 100Mbps capacity that I don't use but in both cases, this is capacity that I don't use. Kind of like arguing whether a Ferrari or a Corvette is faster for driving around the Villages.

"much more reliable" Not even close. A fiber break looks a lot like a cable break except a fiber break takes longer to repair. Once the signal is no longer on fiber, whether it is in your home or in the data center, the same equipment is used for all media types.

Ughh, yet another non-advertisement for Quantum.

From what you wrote, it seems Quantum installations are pretty similar to installations from other companies. Your *stated* interest is "to help Villagers get Quantum Fiber installed optimally" because "all installations may not be perfect" and therefore "you might not get full speed everywhere." Sounds no different than any other install from any other company.

"for most as long as you are getting a good signal, that's all that matters to them" That's the way I felt about Xfinity and that's the way I feel about T-Mobile today. Speeds fast enough to simultaneously stream to two televisions while also using multiple devices, prices comparable to other providers (Quantum included), and full wifi speed throughout my house and garage.

Hey, if you can afford to buy and maintain a Ferrari for your trips to Winn-Dixie that's great, you'll look really cool driving it! But if there are no Ferrari dealers in the area then it's great to have choices and that Toyota in the garage can carry grocery bags just as well.

Xfinity is offering $30 for first 12 months 400 speed. No bundle. Run 20+ devices no issues

I use Quantum Fiber as a comparison example all the time because in my opinion, they have a well thought-out system that gives the best and most consistent results for the home user based on my couple of years experience looking at installations here in the Villages. I worked at Verizon for 30 years and focused later on in my career on FiOS (their fiber optic service) and wifi device solutions in the home so I have a lot of experience in this specific area. As I mentioned, the cable companies are making changes to their equipment and installations but they are not there yet because they are still relying on a single router/wifi device solution.

My comments were to reinforce getting good wifi service is not only about what's being provided to your home but the wired and or wifi distribution of that service throughout your home. As you mentioned, all the companies can provide the different services to satisify everyones individual needs but what can differentiate them, regardless of speed and cost, is the equipment provided to get good coverage throughout your home.

The reason I started this thread was to discuss the different issues Villagers are experiencing, what works and doesn't work for them and some possible solutions.

I also wanted to mention, no matter which provider and package you choose that best meets your needs, once installed, don't rely on wifi to test your speeds. I see a lot of Villagers purchasing the 1GBs speed and then complaining they don't get that speed on their phone or computer. This can be for many reasons such as you computer and or phone being unable to run that fast and depending on your wifi device, it may not got that fast either no matter how close you are to it when testing. Best to verify internet speeds when plugged into the router no matter which speed you purchased. If you have older devices, always have the installer show you the speeds you are getting as a verification of what you purchased before they leave the job.

Absolutely not. If you want to know what speed YOU are getting, you need to test the speed with whatever device you plan on using, in the manner you plan on using it most often.

You don't use your telephone with wifi and a cable connected directly to the router. So don't test it that way. You don't connect your tablet or laptop computer directly to the modem when you use these things, so don't test them that way.

My Xfinity supposedly gives me 400mb. I don't doubt it sends that speed to me. I never see that speed, because I have half a dozen devices using the same old modem and router I bought 6 years ago when I moved in. I'm okay with that.

According to speedtest.net I'm getting 355.97mbps download to Bonita Springs, and 24.02mbps upload - on my desktop computer which is connected directly to my modem by a cable.

On my cell phone, which was just in my hand while I sat in front of my desktop computer, I was able to get 214.81 download speed. That's more than sufficient.

I don't disagree. What I was trying to point out is some people complain they are not getting the purchased speed from their provider and something is wrong when in fact they are either not measuring correctly or don't have devices that will go as fast as the purchased speed. When I was talking to a tech a while back, he mentioned one of the most complaints they get are reports of "slow speeds" and almost all the time its because of the things we are talking about and there is nothing wrong with the service.

Yes, and this is important. Testing with the devices you will use every day will show you what speeds those devices support, not what speeds the modem/router is providing.

The speed you purchase is the speed that comes through the wall and to the modem/router in your house. If you test at that point with the proper equipment then you should see the speed advertised by the provider. Of course, if the provider advertised "up to" a certain speed then all bets are off - you might *expect* to get that speed but that wasn't what was advertised.

The best thing about Quantum is the excellent state-of-the-art WiFi 7 equipment they provide...Excellent coverage.
The Quantum app has a speedtest function that test from the WiFi system to an internet speedtest system...That test initiates from the Quantum WiFi device.

Our router is in a closet along with other media for TV, etc. Never have had a problem with exception of maybe an our outage once around a Hurricaine, X-finity, where pricey, has never let us down.... even with the winds.... Our bill (with TV) is ridiculous but never an outage on either....

We have had quantum fiber 1gb service for 6 or so years, $65/mo tax included, price for life. I use a Google 3 node mesh router i bought. It works great all over the house and garage. No price haggle or changes like xfinity or service interruptions.

They're measuring correctly. They're just not understanding the science. The science is - these speeds are SENT TO the end user's devices. Their devices determine how efficiently they pick up that speed. They're getting 400mbps (in my case). But they're using a modem that only has a 350mbps capacity. Or their device isn't connected directly to the modem by a cable. Or their router isn't in the same room as the device. Or they have a half dozen OTHER devices all sharing the same connection, and latency happens when you're sharing connections.

In other words, everything is working as intended. They just don't understand how it's supposed to work.

Everything is working as designed, the user just doesn't understand the design.

Your device is NOT sent 400mbps if all it can support is 200mbps. The device negotiates with the router for a compatible speed. Ideally, the device can support the maximum speed of the router's wifi or hardwire connection but particularly with wifi, that usually is not the case. If you use older devices with newer wifi equipment then it is very likely that the devices will negotiate a speed less than the wifi equipment can support.

If you have multiple devices sending/receiving large streams of data then the amount of data to each device will be limited by the overall capacity of the modem/router and provider network. The connection speed between each device and the router remains the same at the highest negotiated rate but the amount of data flowing is limited. The rate returned by a speed test run while simultaneously streaming a 4K show will be less than your maximum rate.

I put RG45s on all my wires and added an ethernet switch in the low volt box. Word of caution though more than half of the wall connectors wired by the builder's contractor were wired wrong or not punched down at all. Make sure you have an end-to-end tester. We use DirecTV boxes all hard wired even to the Lanai.

XFinity / Spectrum
 

We've been with XFinity in multiple states over the past 10-years, and while the service is pretty good, they are notorious for price increases (sometimes twice a year). Upon purchasing our second home in The Villages, we've converted all our Internet service to Spectrum. Over the past year, we've only had Spectrum drop service once or twice. Along with that, we've also converted our cell phone service to Spectrum after being loyal to Verizon for almost 30-years. Unfortunately Verizon doesn't appreciate care how long you've been with them

I'm not sure which village you live in but those RJ45 jacks were installed as phone jacks which is why the blue and orange wires are the only ones punched down. Also, in the bedrooms the wall plate is a telephone jack wall plate not an RJ45 ethernet jack so with those you need to replace the whole plate to convert it the an ethernet jack. Only in the new areas down South are RJ45 ethernet jacks installed and I understand that to cut costs, they don't install these jacks in every room unless you specify them.

Which Village do you live in?

Someone reached out to me yesterday knowing I've been helping my friends and neighbors and others here in the Villages wire RJ45 Jacks and put connectors on unterminated ethernet cables, etc.., asking if I could run New ethernet wiring to rooms that don't have existing wiring.

As I mentioned, speaking to several new homeowners in the newer areas in the South, the Villages is Not installing ethernet connections in all the rooms unless you request it or pay for their "Smart Home" package like they used to. I'm not sure if this is a cost cutting measure or that most people feel they don't need the jacks given all these new homes have Wifi from Centric Fiber installed at build time.

In homes built circa 2012 and newer north of Rt 44 and in Fenney and DeSoto and other nearby areas, RJ45 jacks using Cat5 wiring were installed in most rooms for telephones. Fortunately, this existing wiring can be used for ethernet wiring when the jacks are re-wired.

So when you need to add new ethernet wiring, you can do it yourself or call an electrician to do the work. If you have a "stick built" home this is probably very easy to do. If you have the new tilt wall construction, I'm not sure how they add this wiring. Either way, you are probably best to forget about the ethernet wiring and focus on good wifi coverage.

For those who are experts and want a hard wired connection to their computor or streamer in their home theather, you can get systems like the Orbi 770 or 970 which have their own wireless backhaul system giving you near wire speed wirelessly at ethernet port switch at the satellite units where you can hardwire your device to it. I have such a system and can get 5Gbs max, which is crazy fast, over this wireless backhaul given the distance between the main and satellite units. You can also approximate this with other less expensive wifi mesh systems.

We talk about "consumer" wifi solutions provided by homeowners or internet providers but has anyone installed a Ubiquiti network solution in your home here in the Villages? And if so, what drove you in this direction vs a less sophisticated network solution?

I know of one such installation at a friends home in Middleton.

Spectrum
 

And right now new Spectrum customers can get 500Mbps for $30 for 2 years. Call their local sales rep, Lysander Jimenez. 352-239-3538. My neighbor here in Bradford just signed up.

It's $30 for 2 years as long as you use your own modem. $40 if they supply it.

Believe it or not, I got a call from Spectrum with the same offer yesterday but the local door-to-door person can provide you an in person experience which may work for you.

These offers are good but they are for 1 or 2 years then it goes up. As an example, my neighbor who only wants very basic internet, the slower and cheaper the better got a deal from Spectrum for $19.99 plus tax for 2 years. Two years later that deal is no $30 before tax and $35 with tax which I believe is the offer right now. The point is, these deals are pretty good but as we can see, even with barganing at the end of the term, the price keeps going up so relatively speaking, the prices from all providers are converging. Meaning, not much difference between them anymore.

But while we are on the topic, whatever deal you go with, always ask about data caps expecially when moving your cell phones. You may not think you use a lot of data but for a few extra dollars/month you can get an unlimited data plan from most discount cell providers.

Has anyone signed-up with StarLink? I met a Villager who went to Best Buy and bought the equipment and service only to find out there is no more capacity in our area. I believe the service is $110/month for unlimited data which is actually pretty good but I read that come April, they will be charging $1/GB of data which I feel is pretty expensive. This Villager then was able to get Quantum Fiber since they are living in Bonita where they recently ran new fiber. The only option used to be Xfinity where they were gouging these people since they had no other choice except dish.

Has anyone got StarLink? If so, can you share your experience. From the YouTube videos, it appears to work really well.

Anyone having coverage issues in their home should just get a Mesh Router and it will solve all your problems. Peak internet usage is in the evening hours so if you are not paying for 400+ mbs you might get buffering. The all in one modem/router’s do not give good coverage.

I read all this and realized I needed to copy/paste it into Google Translate. The translation came back in English and said, "Hire someone competent to do this."

Good advice, think I'll follow it.

Sorry this topic can get technical but is you have any specific questions, please feel free to PM me.

Verizon Home Internet
 

For the past month I have been using Verizon 5G Home Internet .No buffering, no down time , always around 100 mbps and $35 a month for 5 years with equipment. Adding home internet to my Verizon account earned me a $10 a month discount . So net cost is $25 a month . I live in Lynnhaven .

Thanks for that feedback!

If you live close enough to a cell tower with 5G capability, Verizon and T-Mobile have a really good product that works for many people. Especially now where you have people who live in Villages where there is no option except cable and sometimes only one cable company, fixed wireless internet is an option to get you out of paying full price because you have no other providers.