Poor Airport Reception - Antenna Problems

I get very sporadic airport reception with my PBTi connected to an Airport base station (clear/ice). It seems to be related to the internal antenna wire. In fact, I have found that if I take out my battery, the reception becomes tolerable, but is still ridiculously weak. I am about 20' from the base station and the only way to get good reception is to be a couple feet away.
Has anyone found a way to truly improve the antenna function? It does improve for a short while if a press the sides of the battery cavitity, but this is not workable if I am unplugged.

Being line of sight does not necessarily mean good comms. If you're in the wrong spot with the wrong conditions you can get 'destructive interference' - the same signal traveling over multiple paths can be added together and cancel out the signal - That's how noise reducing headphones work!However if you can move the Powerbook around and still get the issue then the problem lies elsewhere....
mrtotes

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Poor Airport Reception in MBP

I just bought the 15" 2.16 GHZ MacBook Pro 2 days ago and have notcied the airport reception is flaky. When I am 2 rooms away from my router, I get 4/5 bars and then when I go downstairs, it fluctualtes from 1 bar to 4 bars - very inconsistent.
This never used to happen with my titanium nor does this happen with my Dad's iBook or Sony Vaio.
Is anyone else experiencing this issue? Should I take it back to the store?
Thanks.
Macbook Pro 15" 2.16 Mac OS X (10.4.6)

I have genuine Airport Signal issues with my MacBook Pro, when sitting with the laptop IN CONTACT WITH the airport base station I can't get more than 75% signal, with it 2 feet away I'm at 50%, much more than 5 feet and I'm down to 20% and dropping signal regularly. Through walls? Not a chance.
Obviously, this is not normal behavior for a MacBook Pro, so I will be taking it in to the apple store - I just know that they are gonna ship it back to apple, and I don't want to be without my machine for a week, so I haven't quite got around to it yet.
I have tried multiple apple-branded airports, including the extreme and express I both own and severals others, as well as multiple 3rd party base stations. Signals and connection stability have been unusably poor in all cases.
I have ran all the latest software updates and firmware patches, and have wiped the hard drive and re-installed the entire system from scratch. No change.
I haven't found many other people complaining of similar problems, so I suspect I'm just unlucky. On the other hand, perhaps my antenna isn't plugged in or something simple. Even if that was the case, I doubt that the apple store itself would fix it so I gear up for shipment back to apple.
Sigh.
MacBook Pro 2.0ghz Mac OS X (10.4.6) 2GB RAM, 100GB HD

Poor airport reception

I'm getting terrible airport reception. Yesterday I was in a room with two other powerbooks and they both got great reception and I couldn't stay connected for more than ten seconds. This is not the first time. Here in my office I can't use my powerbook wireless but other people can. Anyone have any suggestions? Thanks in advance. Oh, I have a powerbook 15 inch, 1.25 Ghz.
Rick Bursky
PowerBook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.3)

I haven't any suggestions, but I seem to have exactly the same problem with my new powerbook. I can't achieve anything like the reception quality that I am getting from my 12 inch Powerbook. I virtually have to be in the same room as the base station to get decent reception, whereas I can use my 12 in ch powerbook anywhere in the house or garden.
I'm getting terrible airport reception. Yesterday I
was in a room with two other powerbooks and they both
got great reception and I couldn't stay connected for
more than ten seconds. This is not the first time.
Here in my office I can't use my powerbook wireless
but other people can. Anyone have any suggestions?
Thanks in advance. Oh, I have a powerbook 15 inch,
1.25 Ghz.
Rick Bursky
PowerBook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.3)
1.67GHz Powerbook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.3)

Very poor Airport reception on mac mini

I've got a 1.4Ghz Mac Mini, and it's been running very well, except for the wireless networking.
next to my 1Ghz Powerbook, it's pathetic. The Powerbook has full reception, but the Mac Mini is stuttering around 1 to 2 bars even dropping to none.
I've even tried setting up my Airport Express within 2 feet of the Mac mini and I don't get full reception. I'm using a Belkin wireless router, but I know it's fine due to the Powerbook being just fine, oh, and I have a dual 533 G4 with a wireless card in which is getting a solid 4 bars despite being stuffed under the stairs and amongst lots of boxes etc!
I'm thinking I need to take the mini back to get it checked. The reception is awful and it's driving me nuts!

Well, I've fixed it.
I took my mini apart and found much to my dismay two things at fault.
Firstly, the antenna located at the rear of the Mini wasn't seated on it's plastic posts properly. That'll explain why the top of the mini was never flush, it had a bump and was raised up about 3mm. It also meant there was a black plastic tab that should have sat upright that was bent over, pushing the antenna upwards into the underneath of the plastic lid.
Secondly, the airport antenna wasn't connected properly, was only about half way in. Disconnected it and reconnected with a satisfying CLICK.
I put the little Mac back together and all is well, I've got a nice solid 4 bars reception. This is my first experience of a poorly constructed Apple computer.
Hope this might help someone else.
cheers
jake

2011 macbook pro 17 poor airport reception

Howdy.
I have a fairly new MB Pro 17" built in early 2011, details below:
Model Name:          MacBook Pro
Model Identifier:          MacBookPro8,3
Processor Name:          Intel Core i7
Processor Speed:          2.3 GHz
Number of Processors:          1
Total Number of Cores:          4
L2 Cache (per Core):          256 KB
L3 Cache:          8 MB
Memory:          8 GB
Boot ROM Version:          MBP81.0047.B1E
SMC Version (system):          1.70f3
Hardware UUID:          3F7D3A04-A3CE-524C-BD05-9C5E5776BB82
It's a great computer and is my 3rd unibody MacBook Pro - I update every year because of a salary sacrifice system at work!
I've never had a problem with airport on an MBP before, but the reception on this one is appalling in some situations - at home I have an Airport Extreme and the MBP works well with that. However, when I'm at our Cabaret Club using an other wireless connection, my MBP is constantly losing signal. In our venue I have a Mac Mini which connects to the wireless modem without a problem and, my colleagues MacBook's all seem to connect and mantain their connection without issue - it's just my MBP that has a majro problem.
Any ideas what I can do to try to rectify this - it's driving me nuts.
Cheers.
Phil.

Hallo Uppe,
the Macbook Pro 17" (8,3) has a normal gamut display that in fact covers 98% of the sRGB and 75% of the AdobeRGB colorspace.
Here the sRGB colorspace (green) and the LCD colorspace (in red) compared:
...and there the AdobeRGB colorspace (in purple) and the LCD colorspace (in red) compared:
...hope this helps!
damon

MacBookPro has poor airport reception

My MBP only has a fraction of the reception of our MacBook. It seems to be getting worse with each OS upgrade. Each time the computer starts it takes a long time to scan and find any wireless network. We are not using Real Player 11.

if reseating the card and making sure the connection is okay doesn't do anything, you should try pulling the /library/preferences/systemconfiguration folder to the desktop and restarting the computer. make sure you are familiar with your network settings, as this will wipe them out and you will have to reconfigure them. so if you are unsure about anything, then write them down. if that doesn't work, the next thing i would do is a hard reset of the airport extreme base station and create a new wireless network. http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107451 i know this sounds absurd, because the other computers are working fine, but i have seen it work many times so it is worth trying!! good luck. Sherry

Airport Reception Questions

I have read many complaints about poor Airport reception with TiBooks. But most of the complaints seem to come from owners of 500MHz TiBooks. Did Apple improve the reception in the 1GHz model? I ask because I have not experienced a problem, but then again, I typically sit on my couch about 8 feet from my Airport Express Base Station. But I am curious is that was one issue with earlier TiBooks that Apple dealt with at some point. I know they dropped the ball on TiBook hinge design and case sturdiness. But did they rectify the Airport "problem"?
Also, if I use one PB with Airport Extreme, and one with just Airport, will the computer with the slower card perform much slower than the one with Extreme, or will it slow down my broadband collection much?

Chris, as you know Apple is always making efforts to enhance and improve on there products.
That being said the older Airport technology running 802.11b is slower than the newer Airport Extreme 802.11g.
The nice part about this is the reverse compatability of the Extreme recognizing and operating at the b technology speeds.
As for your other question about slowing down your broadband connection much. Generally as a rule it won't be as noticable as you might think. Remember that b and g technology operate at 2 distinct different speeds, and you will notice the difference there.
Depending on your Broadband.(Internet Service Providers Speed). There could be a drain on bandwidth if let's say downloading large files and or music, or video.
Most folks don't notice if they aren't using several applications and have them all open and running which tends to slow things down... Hope this helps...Don

TS1398 My new IPad mini has poor wifi reception. Goes in and out. My IPod, IPhone, Ipad1 and Ipad2 work finer. I think it has wifi antenna issues. Does anyone else have this problem?

My new IPad mini has poor wifi reception. It goes in and out. My IPod, Iphone4, Ipad1 and Ipad2 work fine. What can I do? Does anyone else have this problem?

The quickest way (and really the only way) to charge your iPad is with the included 10W USB Power Adapter. iPad will also charge, although more slowly, when attached to a computer with a high-power USB port (many recent Mac computers) or with an iPhone Power Adapter (5W). When attached to a computer via a standard USB port (most PCs or older Mac computers) iPad will charge very slowly (but iPad indicates not charging). Make sure your computer is on while charging iPad via USB. If iPad is connected to a computer that’s turned off or is in sleep or standby mode, the iPad battery will continue to drain.
Apple recommends that once a month you let the iPad fully discharge & then recharge to 100%.
How to Calibrate Your Mac, iPhone, or iPad Battery
http://www.macblend.com/how-to-calibrate-your-mac-iphone-or-ipad-battery/
At this link http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/galaxy-tab-android-tablet,3014-11.html , tests show that the iPad 2 battery (25 watt-hours) will charge to 90% in 3 hours 1 minute. It will charge to 100% in 4 hours 2 minutes. The new iPad has a larger capacity battery (42 watt-hours), so using the 10W charger will obviously take longer. If you are using your iPad while charging, it will take even longer. It's best to turn your new iPad OFF and charge over night. Also look at The iPad's charging challenge explained http://www.macworld.com/article/1150356/ipadcharging.html
Also, if you have a 3rd generation iPad, look at
Apple: iPad Battery Nothing to Get Charged Up About
http://allthingsd.com/20120327/apple-ipad-battery-nothing-to-get-charged-up-abou t/
Apple Explains New iPad's Continued Charging Beyond 100% Battery Level
http://www.macrumors.com/2012/03/27/apple-explains-new-ipads-continued-charging- beyond-100-battery-level/
New iPad Takes Much Longer to Charge Than iPad 2
http://www.iphonehacks.com/2012/03/new-ipad-takes-much-longer-to-charge-than-ipa d-2.html
Apple Batteries - iPad http://www.apple.com/batteries/ipad.html
Extend iPad Battery Life (Look at pjl123 comment)
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3921324?tstart=30
New iPad Slow to Recharge, Barely Charges During Use
http://www.pcworld.com/article/252326/new_ipad_slow_to_recharge_barely_charges_d uring_use.html
Tips About Charging for New iPad 3
http://goodscool-electronics.blogspot.com/2012/04/tips-about-charging-for-new-ip ad-3.html
Prolong battery lifespan for iPad / iPad 2 / iPad 3: charging tips
http://thehowto.wikidot.com/prolong-battery-lifespan-for-ipad
iPhone, iPod, Using the iPad Charger
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4327
Install and use Battery Doctor HD
http://itunes.apple.com/tw/app/battery-doctor-hd/id459702901?mt=8
In rare instances when using the Camera Connection Kit, you may notice that iPad does not charge after using the Camera Connection Kit. Disconnecting and reconnecting the iPad from the charger will resolve this issue.
 Cheers, Tom

G4 powerbook Reception really poor, probably due to antenna problem

My G4 is losing wireless signal. I it setting right next to a Dell, which is fine. You pick the G4 up and walk into the room with the wireless router, and whala, your up again.
After some research, I believe that it is an antenna problem on the G4.
Two solutions that I have read:
1) Get an external antenna, ( uses a USB slot )
2) Get an PCMCIA wireless card.
Question is: Does anyone use an external antenna successfully to resolve this problem?
2) Which PCMCIA wireless card to do you use?

This is my solution to the problem.
I wanted a PCMCIA card network adapter. There are a lot of USB network adapters, and USB antenna boosters, but I decided on the PCMCIA solution, a) I am not using that slot at all, b) have way to many USB devices....
The set up that worked for me was getting the D-link AirPremier DWL-AG660 network card, ( looked on google for the best price), and the mac wireless driver available from www.orangeware.com.
After a pretty simple setup using System Preferences, I now have a wireless network again. When the airport is reporting < 10 % signal, the pcmcia is reporting a 99% signal.

Poor MacBook Pro Airport reception?

Just upgraded from a 12 inch PowerBook to new 15 inch MacBook Pro - and my Airport signal strength has crashed as a result. Compared to the PowerBook reception is now so poor that I often have trouble connecting to the Internet at all. Signal strength showing on MacStumbler with the PB was generally about 75, it's now (using iStumbler on the MBP, because it's a Universal app) at 50. Is this a known issue with the MacBooks, and is there any solution? Or could it even be a problem with the specific airport card that's installed in the MacBook?
MacBook Pro 2.0 x 2 Mac OS X (10.4.6) 1GB RAM

Hi,
I am having the same issue with my iBook G4, it has terrible airport reception, however I am using an airport extreme card which I installed about 2 years back when I got the iBook.
My boyfriend gets excellent reception on his (PC) laptop but using MacStumbler signal strength is only about 25-35 on my iBook.
Other factors:
The reception is just as bad for me on other networks (for example at my boyfriends house I have to virtually sit on top of the router to get reception and even then its dodgy and drops out all the time.
I have removed the Aiport Extreme card, cleaned it and put it back in and re-connected the ariel cable.
I have downloaded the latest software updates.
I have 2 routers (in a 1 bedroom flat!!!) I thought this might improve things, so I have a Belkin (I think) wireless modem/router in the hall AND an Airport Extreme base station in the living room acting as a bridge. Not a great deal of improvement was seen.
I have an iMac G4 in the living room also and the reception on that is fantastic.
Can anyone help or have any suggestions?

Bad Airport reception and resetting SMC problem

Hi,
I still have the bad Airport reception problem (see http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1088230&tstart=0).
I did a complete new erase and install with the discs I got with the computer (10.4.10). When I arrived in the Finder, Airport was completely gone. Nothing to see in the menu bar, nothing in SysPrefs, nothing in System Profiler.
I reset the SMC (shut down, remove power, remove battery, hold power key for 5 secs, install battery, connect to power, boot without pushing any keys). Now I got Airport back, although with the same bad reception.
As a bonus, I now have 2 extra problems:
- when the computer goes to sleep after some idle time, it wakes up again within the second
- rebooting gives me a black screen, no chime, caps key light doesn't work, sleep light is on but not flashing, hard drive is still spinning. Only option: hold the power key for several seconds until it shut downs and boot it again.
And by the way: all this after the Airport card has been replaced!
Any similar experiences, or even better: solutions?
Thanks,
Jef

Hello,
I just received my MBP and I can't believe apple could keep ignoring this serious problem. I have a Dlink router and it works terrific with an old sony vaio but not with my brand new Mac!!! Actually my Airport detect several of the wireless networks around home including mine, but the signal indicator remains gray and the message:"there was an error joining the AirPort network "XXXXX" " is shown. What the **** are they doing at Apple? I use to be very confident about the quality of Macs but now ... Please Apple, stop being so arrogant and respect your costumers!!!! Provide a solution

Sudden and severe loss in AirPort reception

I use my TiBook at my desk (12 feet from wireless router) and on my couch (9 feet from wireless router). AirPort reception has been very strong (always five bars) for more than two years in these locations. I was even getting good, consistent reception throughout my entire condo. I have moved/added no furniture nor any other possible sources of interference.
Suddenly, reception is severely fluctuating and impacting network communications. I am never getting five bars, now. Reception varies wildly and quickly: 15 seconds of four bars, followed by 10 seconds of no network connection, followed by 20 seconds of two bars, etc. This continues even if nothing changes—for example, if I step away from the TiBook and watch the screen from several feet away.
I have tried the following without results: reseating the AirPort card and confirming the antenna is securely attached, pressing against the inside of the battery compartment to reseat one antenna, rebooting the machine (several times), small adjustments to the router antennae, subtle repositioning of the router, reseting the router, setting wireless communications from G to the supposedly more stable B, trying several channels other than the default channel 10. Nothing helps.
I have been reading about connectivity issues, but nothing suggests I should be having AirPort troubles when only 9 feet away from the router! I have run out of ideas. What am I missing?
J.

And another afterthought: I just picked up on rereading your post that you live in a condo. That suggests the possibility that someone in an adjacent or nearby unit may have installed something new in their unit that has caused increased interference for you. You obviously have no control over that — perhaps not even the ability to discover whether it's true. If you can't find any indication that either your router or your Airport card is malfunctioning, you may need to switch to using a wired connection, inconvenient as it may seem.
In my own home (which is several hundred feet from any external interference source), I was stymied for a long time by limited wireless range to distant parts of the house, porch, deck, etc., and I couldn't face having to run ethernet cables all through my existing walls. I solved the problem with two of these ($48 for the pair, shipping included, on Ebay). They work extremely well in my situation, but they might be vulnerable to power line noise in yours; I don't know for sure. Of course if you only use your Powerbook in the same room with your router, using a simple patch cable to connect them wouldn't be much of an inconvenience compared to having your connection dropped unpredictably.

Wretched airport reception on new Mac Mini

Me and this Mac Mini are not getting on at all.
I've set this machine up right next to my iMac G5. Both are accessing the same Airport Express wireless router that is in the family room down the hall about 15 feet.
The iMac G5 is downloading at 6x the speed of the Mac Mini. To download the same file from the same site the iMac G5 d/led at 125 KB/sec while the Mac Mini then got 24-25 KB/sec. Just to make sure, I then tried out my iBook, and it also d/l'd at 125 KB/sec (the file was cyberduck).
I tried to just transfer files from the iMac G5 to the mac mini using wireless, with similar results.
Have tried moving the machine all around the room, right now it is perched by itself on a dresser with no gain in performance.
I hope I have a bum unit, or one whose antenna has come loose. If not, there's going to be a real problem with the new Mac Mini.
Already I have had to use an ethernet cable to link the mini to the iMacG5 because the Mac Mini's airport reception is so bad that it can't stream music or video from iMac--four feet away.
Ouchy. Really looking for a report from another owner of the new mini so I can tell whether I have bum machine, or if these are the new titanium powerbooks.

Could you guys with the mini problems run the ping test? This will make it clear if you are having the same or a different problem as the iMac crowd. I suspect that the problem is the same.
Open Terminal and type
ping -c 30 <your router IP address>
you will get 30 pings on 1 second intervals something like this
PING 192.168.1.1 (192.168.1.1): 56 data bytes
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=0 ttl=64 time=167.164 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=120.104 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=73.494 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=3 ttl=64 time=26.472 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=4 ttl=64 time=1.452 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=5 ttl=64 time=1.475 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=6 ttl=64 time=4.092 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=7 ttl=64 time=2.442 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=8 ttl=64 time=1.459 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=9 ttl=64 time=1.532 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=10 ttl=64 time=250.869 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=11 ttl=64 time=221.416 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=12 ttl=64 time=175.034 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=13 ttl=64 time=128.510 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=14 ttl=64 time=1.439 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=15 ttl=64 time=1.466 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=16 ttl=64 time=1.472 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=17 ttl=64 time=1.538 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=18 ttl=64 time=1.496 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=19 ttl=64 time=1.502 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=20 ttl=64 time=249.518 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=21 ttl=64 time=202.338 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=22 ttl=64 time=155.823 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.1.1: icmp_seq=23 ttl=64 time=112.687 ms
The typical sequence is 6 pings of about 1 mS followed by 4 pings of about 250, 200, 150 and 100 mS. This 10 ping pattern then repeats.
- gws

Airport reception compared to titanium powerbook

hi
just wondering if the aluminium powerbooks have better airport reception than the titanium model, as i currently have the 500mhz model and the reception is really bad compared to the ibook i used to have.
thanks andy

I never had any issues with my 17" Powerbook. I would say that your chances of having problems with Aluminum or plastic are about even with Titanium. The issue is not so much the material, as the potential for corrupt preferences, and problems of casing blocking some of the signal getting in that an external antenna could fix. Amazingly, you'll find the iMac Intel Core2duo is having airport problems, on this board:
http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=3694890#3694890
But as you see, I have the ability to receive 5 more networks with my iMac Intel Core2duo than I did before with my other Macs. Suffice it to say your mileage may vary by machine, not by model.

Poor Wifi Reception All Of A Sudden

My Samsung Galaxy Nexus has recently started to have very poor wifi reception in places it used to get very good wifi reception. I know for a fact it isn't my modem/router because we have multiple laptops in the house, other phones, and an Xbox connected to the internet and they all receive the same great signal they used to. I have read a lot of other forums about the Jelly Bean update having something to do with it on many other phones. I have had the Jelly Bean update for many months now and this problem has just started occurring, I am fortunate enough to have 4G where i live but i don't like using it all the time. If there is a fix i would like to know it asap! i need wifi on my phone!

took the offending ipad2 to the retail store...they restored to factory and then saw what we did: crummy reception, right inside the Apple store. They then gave us a new one to replace the offending bad unit.
at least they are still a leader in customer support. My suspicion is that an antenna died.

Poor Airport Reception - Antenna Problems

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