Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

iPad Better wifi on iPad air? Not really

Grolubao

Grolubao

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Dec 23, 2008
1,579
583
London, UK
My new iPad Air keeps dropping the wifi and I need to manually reconnect it. Also the signal strength seems to be the same as my iPad 2

Wasn't the wifi reception supposed to be better?
 
Grolubao said:
My new iPad Air keeps dropping the wifi and I need to manually reconnect it. Also the signal strength seems to be the same as my iPad 2

Wasn't the wifi reception supposed to be better?
Click to expand...
Not sure they said anything about reception being better. It would have better throughput due to MIMO, however.

I'd say it's your router more than anything.
 
KylePowers said:
Not sure they said anything about reception being better. It would have better throughput due to MIMO, however.

I'd say it's your router more than anything.
Click to expand...

Well they say it has 2 antennas I would reckon would be better reception. My iPad 2 on ios 6 has 3 wifi bars while my air has only 2 wifi bars.

Speed is the same apparently in speedtest

----------
ZBoater said:
What router are you connecting to?
Click to expand...

http://www.dlink.com/uk/en/home-solutions/connect/routers/dir-615-wireless-n-300-router
 
I hate to say it but I did not have much luck with my cheap Dlink router. It was an older version, but I had all sorts of problem until I upgraded to --- you guessed it -- an Apple AirPort Express.

Whether it was by design or coincidence, my experience with iOS devices and AirPort Express (and a Time Capsule after that) have been a lot more reliable and positive.

An the new MIMO basically sends and transmits at the same time, so download speed will remain unchanged. It means you can upload while you are downloading, making it more efficient.

I have several iOS and Mac devices at home (iPhones, iPods, Apple TV, MBAs, etc.). Ever since I ditched m Dlink and got an Apple router, they have all been happier. YMMV.
 
Grolubao said:
Well they say it has 2 antennas I would reckon would be better reception. My iPad 2 on ios 6 has 3 wifi bars while my air has only 2 wifi bars.

Speed is the same apparently in speedtest
Click to expand...

As ZBoater mentions, the second antenna is really for simultaneous uploading, i.e. multiple-in, multiple-out

Wi-Fi bars aren't particularly good judgement of signal. To be honest, they're probably just a few decibels in difference, except the iPad's 2 signal converts to three bars, where as the Air's converts to two bars (maybe the Air's is more accurate?)

Additionally, a speedtest is just testing your ISP. Imaginably, your internet speed is slower than what your network can transmit, so both iPad's should read the same speed.

Anywho, again as ZBoater states, I too have had horrid luck with cheap DLink routers (and expensive DLink routers). All my issues, as with ZBoater, were mitigated when I upgraded to an AirPort Express. Go figure!
 
iapplelove said:
My air is by far my fastest idevice in the house. It's almost Mac speeds while web browsing .
Click to expand...

Agreed. Massively faster than any iPad I've used before it, especially when connected to the 5Ghz network in my house. Didn't even bother before the Air, since the connection was weak and the speed slow..
 
KylePowers said:
...I too have had horrid luck with cheap DLink routers (and expensive DLink routers). All my issues, as with ZBoater, were mitigated when I upgraded to an AirPort Express. Go figure!
Click to expand...

And I am willing to give Apple the benefit of the doubt and say I dont think they did it on purpose. :p But obviously their stuff works best with... their stuff. Whatever wifi implementation they made, which should be standard and fully compatible with any other brand following standards, just doesnt work as well in my experience with Dlink. And I've read all sorts of horror stories. So I bit the bullet and got the Time Capsule. Flawless. Conspiracy? Maybe. But I don't care. As long as it works reliably and well I am willing to fork over the cash to Apple... ;)
 
On my Airport network, my iPad Air outperforms every device in the house.... I would think about taking it to a friends house to test it, or look into an exchange. It should be a ton faster than the iPad 2, I had one and my Air is.
 
...

I had to return mine yesterday, it would not connect to my home or work WiFi (previous iPads were fine on both networks, as is my iPhone 5.)

I did all the network resets, etc. in both places and rebooted my Airport Extreme at home.

I'll eventually try again when my bank account is fatter.
 
Significantly better reach & speeds with a DIR-615, but I have had iPad compatibility issues in general with my DLink.

Been thinking about trying an Apple router.
 
MacintoshDan said:
On my Airport network, my iPad Air outperforms every device in the house.... I would think about taking it to a friends house to test it, or look into an exchange. It should be a ton faster than the iPad 2, I had one and my Air is.
Click to expand...

My ipad 2 is faster when the iPad air is not connecting to the internet. When I walk all around the house and backyard iPad 2 always has more bars. Yes I've done all the usual resetting, airplane mode with the air. I like the color tone better on the iPad 2. I'm in no rush iPad 2 16gb AT&T is fine for now. Speed is not that big of a deal. I'm only on the standard TWC internet so 16 download speed on wifi anyway. Plus my iPad is jailbroken and can do so much more. I will wait till this one stops working. Netflix works fine on the 2.
 
asleep said:
Significantly better reach & speeds with a DIR-615, but I have had iPad compatibility issues in general with my DLink.

Been thinking about trying an Apple router.
Click to expand...
I would defiantly give the Apple router a try, I upgraded this past weekend from a Western Digital router. I bought the new Airport Extreme and an Express to use as an extender. I am so far very impressed with the performance and range in my home. I wish I had skipped the Western Digital and just bought and Apple one to begin with, because a year later, I ended up $150 in the hole for the WD and a WD extender that refused to work.

----------
doxielover said:
My ipad 2 is faster when the iPad air is not connecting to the internet. When I walk all around the house and backyard iPad 2 always has more bars. Yes I've done all the usual resetting, airplane mode with the air. I like the color tone better on the iPad 2. I'm in no rush iPad 2 16gb AT&T is fine for now. Speed is not that big of a deal. I'm only on the standard TWC internet so 16 download speed on wifi anyway. Plus my iPad is jailbroken and can do so much more. I will wait till this one stops working. Netflix works fine on the 2.
Click to expand...
That is strange, because as I said my Air was leaps and bounds better than my iPad 2, maybe yours was defective, but if your happy with your 2, more power to you, the 2 is still great, and I agree on the comments about the screen for sure.
 
Using same wifi within 3 foot of each other. No other internet running.

Ipad Air,
test 1 28 down, 5.45 up
test 2 28.1 down, 5.55 up
test 3 27.8 down, 5.5 up

Ipad Original
test 1 14 down, 4.6 up
test 2 20.2 down, 4.7 up
test 3 12.4 down, 47 up

MacPro - few years old
Test 1 : 29.8 down, 5.4 up
Test 2 : 30.2 down, 5.2 up
Test 3 : 29.4 down, 5.9 up
 
Grolubao said:
My new iPad Air keeps dropping the wifi and I need to manually reconnect it. Also the signal strength seems to be the same as my iPad 2

Wasn't the wifi reception supposed to be better?
Click to expand...

SO there are 2 answers:

1. If you previously owned an ipad and it connected to your present router without dropping then your ipad air may be faulty.

2. If you have never connected an ipad to your router, then your router sucks.

99.999% of all ipad owners NEVER complain about slow or inconsistent WIFI.
 
My wireless router is a Netgear WNDR3700v3 (N600) router. My iPad Air works great with this router--in fact, YouTube videos in the YouTube app now load really fast with the iPad Air. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back