Which Router Should I Purchase

Flip

Our ISP can deliver only 15Mbps to us. That was okay until we got a smart TV. And then another. Now, our bandwidth is insufficient to service two smart TVs, 2 iPhones, 2 iPads, etc. Coincidentally (or perhaps because of overloading) our Netgear R6400 (ac and 5G),  router no longer is outputting 5G, either on the main network or the Guest.) and the TVs lock up occasionally. We think we have to to replace the router. We'd like to keep the cost below $250, if possible. Is there any such thing as a router that would be better with such low bandwidth? If possible, we'd like to stick with Netgear.

PowerSpec_MikeW

The R6400 is a pretty good router.  Does the 5Ghz light on the front light up at all? I would check the settings in the router, possibly factory reset it and even upgrade the firmware. That router will handle 450Mbps on the 2.4Ghz band and 1350Mbps on the 5Ghz band. That's not a ton of devices for the router, and it's far, far in excess of what your ISP is providing at 15Mbps.

Flip

Thank you so very much for sharing your expertise with me and for your patience! I will do everything you say! Thanks again!

Flip

Of course, you're correct -- my DSL modem is plugged into the WAN port. I've got a PC plugged into port #1, a DirecTV box in #2, another PC in #3, and a switch in #4. The switch has a Canon Laser printer in it and a Canon Ink Jet printer in it.

The PC that is plugged into #1 is 10 years old and gets used perhaps once every 6 months. I don't pay attention to it like I should and the power button was flashing at me saying something like "reboot me." It had been like that for a month or so. When I rebooted it, the red light on the router turned flashing white like all the others. But that PC (plugged into #1) now cannot see the internet at all. I unplugged the CAT-6 cable at each end re-inserted it, all to no avail. Even though it's so old and my husband never uses it, I think I'll replace it simply because it sits right next to the router and I want (and need) a large screen when I'm working on the router.

Is the Nighthawk software ONLY for IOS (or Android), or can it also be PC-based?

PowerSpec_MikeW

Both, in a way. I would check the with your Cellphones and with the PC. Preferably via WIFI and ethernet. You want to see if there's a serious discrepancy. The other portion here is seeing if the router is unresponsive when this happens. When the TV's do disconnect, do you just wait and reconnect with one, or do you have to power cycle the router?

Flip

When the TVs disconnect, we have to power cycle the router.

Flip

All of the lights across the front are white and flashing EXCEPT the one labeled "1" which is solid red, and the one labeled "2" which is not lit at all.

PowerSpec_MikeW

Those are your LAN ports. If nothing is plugged into them they won't light up. If 5Ghz is lit, the router thinks it's still broadcasting. I'd verify the SSID is set to broadcast in the routers UI, make sure you're looking from a device with a dual band wireless adapter.

Flip

I see the firmware version (v1.0.4.84_10.0.58) on my computer, but no pushbutton to push to update it.

I'm sorry I'm so knowledgeable and such a pest. But isn't a red light (on "1") a sign of trouble?

Yes, the SSID is set to broadcast on all four (NAME, NAME-5G, NAME-GUEST, AND NAME-5G-GUEST).

I'm not sure I understand what you mean when you say, "make sure you're looking from a device with a dual band wireless adapter." I'm looking from a Dell laptop that's less than one year old. How can I check if this computer has that?

Thanks again for putting up with my novice questions!

PowerSpec_MikeW

If you right click on "Start" and go to "Device Manager" then expand "Network Adapters". It'll show you the model of your wireless card. It generally will say "Dual Band" in the name, and we can look it up to verify if it doesn't. It may say Intel 3168 802.11AC Wireless Adapter. As an example.

Red is generally an error, but is it red or an amber/orange? That just means is a fast ethernet connection, as opposed to a gigabit connection.

Flip

It says "Intel Wireless-AC 9560"

Flip

The light above the "1" is solid red.

PowerSpec_MikeW

Specs say it's a 2x2 dual band wireless adapter. You should be able to see it. It's giving you an error on LAN port 1 then. What's connected to LAN 1?

As for troubleshooting steps beyond this. The first thing I would do is factory reset the router and set it up again. You can download the manual here: https://www.netgear.com/support/product/R6400.aspx#docs

Flip

I'm in my kitchen, the router in downstairs, and I'm handicapped. Without making the trip downstairs, I'm guessing that it's got to be the cable coming for the DSL Modem (provided by Horizon here in Chillicothe). That modem that replaced last week. Is that a good guess?

PowerSpec_MikeW

No, the modem should be in the WAN port, no the LAN 1 port. However an error on a LAN port should only effect the device in that LAN port, it shouldn't impact the router overall.

Flip

I'll have to go downstairs to check.

PowerSpec_MikeW

Let us know what you find out. Could be something that you're not even using anymore. Really shouldn't be relevant to the issue of the 5Ghz network not showing up on any of your devices.

Flip

I have done everything you suggested except the factory reset. A 10-year old computer was connected into #1 on the router. That was the one that would light up solid red. Since the computer was so old, I've ordered a replacement for it. And, in case it was the cable, it'll have a new CAT-6 ethernet cable too.

But our problems with the smart TVs locking up when both of them are in use continue. When we use the Horizon (our ISP) app to check the download speed, are we checking the speed at the output of the DSL modem, or are we checking the output of our router?

Flip

I am on my laptop (connected wirelessly) running Speedtest. My husband is on his iPhone running the app to test speed provided by our ISP (Horizon). No TVs are playing. When we test the speed individually, we each get in the neighborhood of 12 - 14 Mbps. But if one of us starts to test the speed and then the other one starts, the second person to start gets a speed of from 1 - 3 Mbps. When neither speed test is running, the speed goes back up to 12 - 14 Mbps. Surely this is not normal, is it? Does this indicate a problem with the our router (R6400v2) or the DSL modem?

PowerSpec_MikeW

That last bit there about having to power cycle is the most telling of whether this is a router problem or not. It sounds like he router stops responding, and in this case it is a router problem. This can happen with a failing piece of hardware. The next time it happens, try to access the router GUI on another device. Open up a browser and go to 192.168.1.1. If it won't load, it's your router and replacing it is a very good idea.

Flip

Here is another clue that might very well point to a router problem.

I am very familiar with the GUI. I use it all the time. (Actually, it's the reason I like Netgear so well!) Before we had smart TVs and before we started having trouble with them, in the GUI Home section, Wireless tile, the continuous scroll always said "SSID" followed immediately by "SSID-5G". (The password for each also scrolled on the next line down.) In the Guest Network tile, it said "SSID-Guest" followed by SSID-5G-Guest. Now, there is no reference at all to 5G in either tile.

To further complicate matters, in the Windows Notification area (on the taskbar just after the time and date) on the "Network" tile, sometimes it lists only SSID and SSID-Guest. Other times, it shows all four (SSID, SSID-5G, SSID-Guest, and SSID-5G-Guest). Sometimes it lists only the main SSID, sometimes the main and the Guest, and other times all four. (We have two Polk Audio sound bars, but only one is ever listed, and it's always listed, no matter what.)

It's only totally locked up once, necessitating a power cycle. If it happens again, before powering the router down, I'll check to see if the 5G light on the router is lit (up until now, it's always been lit the few times we checked.) I'll also check out the GUI as you suggest.

Thank you so very much for your support!!!