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Absurdly slow WiFi on iPhone 5

R

Retired Cat

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Jun 12, 2013
1,210
380
For some reason, the WiFi on my iPhone 5 on iOS 6 gets only 20-25% the bandwidth that my notebook computer gets when connected to my home network. I ran multiple speed tests and the result is always the same.

I reset network settings on my iPhone, but that didn't help at all.

Running off HSPA+ or LTE I can load stuff very quickly, but WiFi is just unacceptably slow for anything that is a video stream or App Store purchase. Any idea what could be wrong?
 
Had similar problem. This should help.

1. Settings
2. Safari
3. Clear history
4. Clear cookies
5. Reset iphone.

Enjoy.
 
blueroom said:
Make & model of your home WiFi router?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure who made the router. It's from my ISP and there's no indication of which company actually built it.

I searched on the web and curiously, the problem seems to go away when multiple downloads are going.

I went to the App Store and started a re-download of a big app that I had previously uninstalled. While the app was downloading, I ran the speed test again… and sure enough the iPhone WiFi speed matched what I was seeing on my laptop. Based on this, my guess is that something is majorly messed up in the iOS 6 WiFi driver.
 
With few exceptions most ISP bundled WiFi routers are terrible. If the previous advice doesn't solve anything it might be worth investigating a router upgrade.

example: set your ISP router in Gateway mode and connect an Apple AirPort Express or Extreme up as the WiFi router.
 
Retired Cat said:
I'm not sure who made the router. It's from my ISP and there's no indication of which company actually built it.

I searched on the web and curiously, the problem seems to go away when multiple downloads are going.

I went to the App Store and started a re-download of a big app that I had previously uninstalled. While the app was downloading, I ran the speed test again… and sure enough the iPhone WiFi speed matched what I was seeing on my laptop. Based on this, my guess is that something is majorly messed up in the iOS 6 WiFi driver.
Click to expand...

If the problem goes away on a different network then the problem is probably your network (router). I assume the speed test at Apple was fast whether or not you had a download in progress and I apologize if I misunderstood.

There are a zillion things that affect bandwidth on your home network. Too many to make guesses here but the more technical information you can post about your router's configuration the better.
 
Gutwrench said:
I'll probably rcv (and deserve) a warning from a moderator, but I'll risk it.

Nice blog!
Click to expand...

I ask only because so many folks use ancient routers and or ISP WiFi routers, they're often 802.11G, old unsupported firmware, hacked firmware or just generally rubbish.

A good / modern router will generally have simultaneous dual band at least 102.11n (really modern will also offer 802.11ac), channel bonding, signal adjusting antennas, Gigabit GigE ports, and if your cable modem WAN is very fast a GigE WAN port plus fast WAN to LAN would be worth considering.
 
It's an 802.11n router.

Encryption seems to make a difference. I changed from AES+TKIP to AES only. No change. But when I go to TKIP only, the bandwidth on my iPhone jumps by multiples.
 
I read in one of the threads that iOS 7 solves the WiFi speed issue. Can anyone confirm this?
 
My year long erratic and slow wifi issues were solved by switching my encryption from WPA2 personal with AES, to WPA personal with TKIP/AES.

Also, I get noticeably quicker speeds if I connect to my 5 ghz signal only, leaving it combined, seems to have my phone choosing the slower 2.4 signal too often.
 
I felt I was out of options… so I reluctantly installed iOS 7 last night.

Now my iPhone WiFi speeds match my notebook computer. Looks like iOS 7 had a driver fix, but time will tell if this was a permanent remedy.
 
To OP... How are you testing the bandwidth? Or are you talking about wifi link strength?
 
not here

not here, my iphone 5s on the 5ghz network gets better signal than anything else I have on the network, even a 2012 rmbp..
 
opinio said:
To OP... How are you testing the bandwidth? Or are you talking about wifi link strength?
Click to expand...

I use the Speedtest.net app. The link strength was always ok.

I got home and ran the test again, and I'm still getting excellent results, so I think iOS 7 must have gotten a repaired driver.
 
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