Wireless access point question

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hi all. I have recently purchased one of the small TP Link travel type routers for my workshop - it works fine but the trouble I sometimes find is that when i walk up to the house my mobile stays connected to the workshop AP but with such a low signal strength I can't access anything. I have to manually connect back to the house router. Is there a way around this? I just assumed my phone would connect to the strongest signal, especially as they are on the same network?

Thanks
 
Unfortunately that's what you'd expect to happen with the setup you have. The device will hang onto the signal it has until the bitter end.

Does the router have an option to reduce the signal power? If it does you may be able to get a useable signal in workshop that doesn't overlap into the house.

If you really want seamless roaming then you'd need different access points in both the house and the workshop. The cheapest option I'm aware of is the UniFi kit from Ubiqui which would cost about £120 for a pair of APs.
 
Do you have the same security set up on both?

Is the AP set as an AP, communicating back to the main router with the SSID information?

If it is the TP link travel router I am thinking of its not an actual AP, just a device that can create a wireless access point to the Ethernet cable that is plugged in.

I use a VM Superhub and an ASUS N56U configured as an access point, works perfectly with devices moving between the 2.
 
If it is the TP link travel router I am thinking of its not an actual AP, just a device that can create a wireless access point to the Ethernet cable that is plugged in.

What constitutes 'an actual AP'? A TP-Link travel router in AP mode is no different to a N56U configured as an access point.
 
As I said, if its the one that I have seen then its not, it just creates a new wireless network to get access to the CAT5 cable plugged in to it.

That is not an access point to extend a wireless network and is not the same a a N56U setup as an AP.
 
Are you confusing the functions of an access point and a wireless extender?

Your earlier comment about 'communicating back to the main router with the SSID information' would suggest that you are.

'it just creates a new wireless network to get access to the CAT5 cable plugged in to it' is a pretty good description of what an access point is/does.
 
Thanks for the info guys, its a shame wireless devices are not clever enough to switch to a stronger signal on the same network really lol

I guess it would make no difference if I named them the same? Think the security settings are the same

Don't think I can reduce power but that is a good idea. I don't pick up the house router in the workshop, but certainly get the workshop one in the damn house once I've gone back in lol
 
If you give them the same names, password and encryption type then your devices should connect to the strongest signal automatically. I've got 4 access points round the house like this and as you move round the house you can see the signal dipping as you move away from the currently connected access point and then maxing out again when it connects to the next one.
 
If you give them the same names, password and encryption type then your devices should connect to the strongest signal automatically. I've got 4 access points round the house like this and as you move round the house you can see the signal dipping as you move away from the currently connected access point and then maxing out again when it connects to the next one.

This. Same SSID, same password, same encryption, but use different channels. Works well where I have deployed this.
 
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