What Are "High Gain" Router Antennas? Can They Increase WiFi Range?

High Gain router antennas are able to improve your WiFi, but only under certain conditions.
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High gain antennas for you router are designed to increase your WiFi range depending on your home layout. If you live on a one-level home or apartment, these may give you better WiFi signal strength, because high gain antennas direct more of the signal horizontally than vertically. This also means that if you live in a multi-story home, using high gain antennas will actually decrease your signal on other floors. I explain how these work, and how well they actually work.
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[@TheBlooRayChannel]

High gain antennas aren't purchased for speed though. Purely for extended range. Weird analysis.

[@brendan1516]

This video makes no sense. You compared two antennas from one location where both had excellent signal. Of course you won't see any difference. You need to do a range comparison where you do speed tests from each antenna configuration further and further from the source. This video tested absolutely nothing. Also, range extenders are a terrible idea. Only use if you have absolutely no other choice.

[@qleszwawa]

Brendan i was gonna say exacly the same. High gain antenna is not to speed up your internet but to resolve connection issues so testing it on maximum signal strenght without changing distance have absolutelly no point. If you have good signal in every point of your house then high gain antenna won't make any difference but if at any point you keep loosing signal then it will make huge difference in signal strenght and stability.

[@KarlssonF]

i agree... my mother tells me not to lay a 40m lan cable, so i have to use 2 wifi connections to game... RIP packet loss

[@jethrohaha]

exactly!!!

[@scriewy]

tell your mom 2.4 ghz wifi which is also most of the mobile phones frequency, is cancerous !! i never switched to wifi, sticked with cable, wifi is useless cancerous gadgetry spin garbage to make more money on unhealthy product no 1 needs.

[@semitope]

@@KarlssonF can't use the powerline networking stuff?

[@goatslayerwp]

It made a huge difference for me. Been using the 3200 with these big antennas for almost 3 years. My main problem was getting penetration through walls to security cameras.

[@dominus6695]

Interesting.

[@QuantumBraced]

Directional antennas do work if used correctly. In this case, you measured pretty close to the router, so the shape of the signal didn't make a difference. But if you're farther away, it does make a big difference, especially with those rectangular antennas that concentrate the entire signal in a 60 by 20 degree cone. Wi-Fi range extenders (and even mesh networks) are bad because they cut whatever bandwidth they get in half. If you can hardwire an additional AP, of course that's the best solution, but it's often not feasible. Short of that, directional antennas are probably the most often overlooked solution. If you have a 3x3 or 4x4 router and you install 3 or 4 of those square-shaped directional antennas and point them each where you need Wi-Fi, you can extend your range dramatically.

[@eliasjoserodriguez5160]

I was gonna to say this in comments until I see your comment lol

[@francescomorabito4903]

hey, thanks for the video, was really helpful! I have a double-antenna router, can I change just on of them with a 8 dbi one? Is it dangerous for the router to work with two different antennas ?

[@chaputj24]

So if i slap 2 of these on a usb antenna as a replacement for the small original ones would i receive better signal?

[@PorkInjection]

I've watched several of your boost wifi videos, and I was really interested in the one with the batteries and antenna, how would you go about boosting if there is no antenna

[@davidhazen2394]

Hi thanks for all your help.. Do you know How I can extend the range the AT&T TL7912 DECT 6.0 It a wireless headset that works from the At&t base phone in my office. I get about 80 feet range but I need another 20 feet. Thanks

[@plasma8321]

Thio is there a way to increase a routers dBm? my router gets a low signal because at&t antennas are far away where i live

[@Jarchersa7]

you can consider more antennas? Like archer c60 router has 4 to 2.4 ghz and two antennas for 5 Ghz. Is there number make it better?

[@ArmageddonAfterparty]

Does a SMA Plug connector fit on a TP-Link TL-MR6400 4-port Wireless Cable Router ? / Are the antennae usually sda? I am buying a directional antenna to boost the wifisignal from the mast of the town nearby. With it comes a cable and sda connector. This I want to connect to the router to finally get some decent internet. Could someone help me out and say if that is the way to go or do I need some adapter to connect the sda cable end to the router?

[@K-Kil]

I would be interested in seeing the internals of both antennas. Some of my wifi antennas are are nearly identical on the inside even though the casing for one is longer than the other.

[@DagerlayGalahad]

yeah I never understood the High gan under omnidirectional antennas however when it comes to directional antennas I have been able to push signal for up to 5 miles directional antennas come in handy on big pieces of land

[@munkyskratch2805]

I have 2 HG antennas on my Netgear router because I live in an apartment. The range is broader so I now get the same signal strength in my bedroom as I do in the living room.

[@DiegoZamberlan]

Well explainede - "manipulates the signal so it goes further in one direction, and less in another direction"

[@TravirusTheKing]

is there a way to make a stronger signal through a "powered antenna" not sure if that would be the term to be used or even a if you can get a better cell signal to the hub through the antenna ports?

[@awhiles2011]

very informative! Keep it up Theo!

[@guyfroml]

Thio, I'd like to receive my wifi signal in a worship I have about 90 feet from my home. The wifi signal is strong just outside of the workshop building, but due to the type of construction of the building, the signal cannot penetrate through the walls sufficiently for my wifi-ready TV to receive a strong enough signal. What do I need to acquire (some sort of wifi antenna receiver?) that I can affix to the exterior wall of the building and pass a connecting cable through the wall to the inside running to my device/TV? As you can see, I'm not very savvy to the tech stuff, so I'm looking for direction here. Thanks!

[@jhonatansilfa1518]

Hey I just moved upstairs from my sister apartment building and I am looking to get a strong WiFi signal without cable, what do I need?

[@lonnieke]

What about the antenna that I hook up to my computer for receiving? what should I use?

[@jacksparks7322]

your videos are always helpful thanks for taking the time to help with them

[@repeatrepeatrepeat]

Joe, does beam forming work? also, does it need a compatible phone or any AC WiFi chip works?

[@johnk1566]

@thioJoe can you comment or provide a comparison data (actual data in ft?) but on any range increases with upgrading to higher range antennas?

[@danschkeeper4076]

As much as I enjoyed the trolling videos from a while ago, it's good to see you sharing helpful information.

[@rstlaur43]

Could your phone be the cause of the small difference you noticed. I would compare wifi signal reception on two device just to see...

[@wilcohalo]

hey thiojoe were did you get your light standard for your philips bolbs

[@JR-ji5ly]

Thanks for the video. I've been debating those for a while. Nice to know my extender was the better choice. I like the randomness of the subjects, thanks

[@TheRunefox]

Similar in theory to directional antennas. I think a good companion piece to this would be access points in general (and wiring them up for ethernet rather than repeating), although PoE would be neat to look at if not particularly useful in your apartment. TP-Link has a number of fairly inexpensive 802.11n ones, though ac seems expensive still for PoE.

[@weelgunny]

I'm looking for one for the PCI adapter on the computer with a cable to mount up higher where it's not obstucted.

[@mikefrawley6635]

If I'm out camping in the back country can I put a router on a drone and turn it into a wifi hotspot?

[@mohdyahya1]

damn!!!! your camera quality is just beyond crystal clear, what camera do you use for making video?? I loved the quality i see in my monitor>> Thanks

[@JoTheVeteran]

What if you wanted more power so it reaches farther omnidirectionally? Is that possible?

[@Jones12ax7]

There's another effect that the video didn't talk about. When you get a better gain antenna, you also increase your reception sensitivity. In some cases, if your device has a poor transmission power, it can be a good idea to have a better antenna. This is true in many other scenarios, like HAM radios. But I share the same idea that a extender is a simpler and more effective way to improve wireless coverage.

[@HardAxe]

high gain antenna and high gain crap is a bit different. And for wifi high gain is parabolic, maybe yagi. 3dbi and 4.5dbi ponnytail antennas are kind of the same.

[@robin_birdie_]

wifi extenders totally suck. always get ethernet-AP instead

[@wanderingandroid]

what is consider a high gain antenna? 5dbi? how much?

[@anthonys.3871]

The thumbnail reminded me of the good ol dayssss *sheds a tears*

[@anthonymacleod8829]

thanks for the information, just moved into a new place. I'm glad you did this video saved me some money.

[@rocco_zero]

hey bro... which camera do you use?

[@vma862]

what router do you recommend to speed up wifi? I only have 10mbps and can't really afford to spend too much on a router.

[@darrenwoloshyn]

vma862 get a faster internet plan

[@jakerogers3374]

i put the bigger linksys antennas on my tplink wifi extender , these antennas made my wifi worse after testing my internet speed in the same room close to the extender dont know why it did that

[@travlemon]

I tried a pair of high gain antennas when 54g was popular and they did nothing at all. I ended up getting a signal booster for my desktop PC instead, which plugs into the wall and is basically a wifi antenna on crack. Worked much better! The downside is it doesn't affect the source wifi broadcast. I think a dedicated power source is really needed to properly amplify the signal.

[@user-zu1ix3yq2w]

You didn't mention the dbi of the antennas. You didn't mention the distance from the router you measured the signal from. Can firmware boost power?

[@cringe6074]

good to see you're making real videos now

[@ThioJoe]

dude, I have been for 2 months

[@Texplanations]

:( I recommended the fake ones :'(

[@jakopriit]

Dude, nice troll. He obviously does _NOT_ understand what signal gain means and confuses beamforming into the mix.

[@bitelaserkhalif]

Panda going down for real!!

[@abhijitbera007]

can i place it 2.4 ghz router ? please help me !

[@halo64654]

You are absolutely able to change the power output of the signal on routers. It just depends on the firmware.

[@levileigh3755]

What camcorder are you using?

[@hugoburton5222]

i have a beam forming technology router. Does that count

[@Barbarra63297]

Was wondering if there was a simple way to boost the signal on a router with an internal antenna.

[@randomcatontheinternet2771]

meanwhile, I want to know if the high gain antenna can increase phone Simcard router broadband internet speed

[@greghicks8961]

Fantastic explanation, Thank you!

[@laurapepin]

I thought I was going to be able to double my internet speed for free.

[@SandmannOZ]

They're useful if you have a really on the very edge of a reliable signal and are in a situation where an extender can't be used for some reason, but they're certainly no silver bullet.

[@AScrappinIdeadotcom]

What is the best router to buy? Will I need to get a different antennas? I watch your videos to get faster internet speeds and faster wifi speeds, which I plan doing. Any suggestions for a mac user would be great. Thanks again for your videos. Kris

[@MrMarbles]

when i saw the thumbnail i had hope for 1 second

[@LyeraTech2000]

Hi a guy on tube shows a video for free wifi with magnets copper coil and foil how is he doing it.?

[@steadydoc]

Can you make or create a wifi bridge kit?

[@wazuma]

A gain or loss of 3dB corressponds to an increase of twice, or a decrease to one-half, the power respectively. So -53dB or -52dB is quite a bit. Never the less, good video.

[@WmDuffell]

simple explanation......very helpful. thank you.

[@vladislavkaras491]

Thank you for the video!

[@Unit45464]

I own a high gain WiFi adapter, and noticed a substantial improvement in my 5GHz network, maybe you should do a video on a high gain adapter.

[@Dilhan_]

thx for the information

[@INTRUDERVTWIN]

Awesome. Wifi wired extender is my new choice now!

[@faizkarimullahbag]

thank you for great expliantion

[@LilRedDog]

That explains a lot. I am a OTR truck driver and I use a Alfa AWUS036NH to pick up free wifi around from a nearby restaurant or hotel that offers it. The flat antenna works well, but I know exactly where to point it and can dial it in using MediaTek's app. So I figured an Alfa high gain would be even better but, mostly, it is worse. Honestly, until now, I was convinced it was counterfeit because I always tested at home and never considered it was shaped and not more efficient.

[@ThioJoe]

So yea basically just get an extender instead

[@tristanindurjeeth1723]

ThioJoe ya how much was this

[@davidlopez131]

ThioJoe u are da best

[@Coolguyuno1]

ThioJoe Gross, wire another AP up elsewhere. Repeaters are garbage.

[@jackjackcervantes1467]

ThioJoe can you see if you know how to get more free stuff

[@vincentramunno5474]

ThioJoe k

[@mubarakahmad7358]

Nicely explained. Thank You!

[@BabbaYagga]

what about high gain dongle for receiving WiFi? How do they work? Is it the same; just flattening the out going signal? Probably not worth it. In this case thank you for saving me a few bucks.

[@psychologist_soumyadeep]

Superb video! Subbed

[@Chris-tu3xx]

i added an extension cable and a mountable antenna. works much better since i'm saturating a dead zone without needing an extender which is an issue for mobile devices when walking around since they don't automatically switch around to the strongest signal.

[@miksupdate8817]

How to make or made tawar??

[@andythomas7931]

Thank you very much that was very interesting

[@mastax1234]

Joe i have to correct you, you can increase the signal power. you can use third party firmware such as DD-WRT to increase the gain in the settings. its standard with DD-WRT software.

[@Texplanations]

But as far as I've heard.. that's illegal... It's probably why he didn't mention it...

[@mzalshevano6145]

you should do a distance test, compare distances per the regular vs high gain. Because the claim is the work at further ranges horizontally. Also can you then recommend good antennas that do actually work better then standard ones?

[@acche-rc]

I expected you to test the signal strength further away from the router to really test if it makes a difference in range

[@kapilbhardwaj1987]

amazing and thanks for genuine advice

[@theblackshark7]

Ty so much for this explanation

[@MrAetus]

Awesome video. Saved me the trouble!

[@boakedogawa]

The question is do you use high power router to elaborate the high gain antenna? If not then no matther high it is still no changes.

[@Allessio777]

compelling analysis and strangely attractive

[@absolute_ravikiran1727]

How much meter?

[@Badbufon]

i used a High Gain Router Antenna and now i have internet for free, 10/10

[@saadijz4286]

Robed Figure hhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[@asusu5193]

Robed Figure valid in India??

[@yuh6094]

Robed Figure thiojoe liked your comment omal

[@geraldhenrickson7472]

Stop...just stop. Its so last month...

[@21sungalute.42]

As Adm Rickover said "I am stupid".....tell me more?

[@philiptolibas7120]

very valuable thanks

[@jeanlukvolker6647]

it can make a difference depending on the total gain and how direct you are at the antenna direction, and how close you are as well. and also, yes how powerful the router is, its settings, the frequency, the provider, how good your phone or computer is, the data plan and even the dins server speed. using a 15 db gain antenna, 3 inches from the router and modem, high end hardware, high end settings, high end everything and double it, i would say it would be much faster, is it a 3 db gain or 6. using anything higher then 9 db gain and you will see a difference like 12 and 15 db gain

[@sysghost]

I replaced my antennas not for the bandwidth nor signal strength. I did it to get better stability on the same floor, and to drastically decrease the range to the other floors. My problem with the default antennas was that I had a whole lot of "hicups" in the connection, where the connection would stop working for a few seconds every minute or so. I discovered that I had whole lot of hotspots in the nearby area. As I live in an apartment in a multifloor building (flats), each household has their own wifi hotspots that makes it extremely crowded. With the new antennas I reduced the "hicups" drastically, and the overall connection was a whole lot more stable. Same bandwidth. Same speeds as before. And slightly better range around my apartment.

[@Irlrd]

it's good to be back

[@zotonthegreat]

How the F do you get that upload speed? Most I can squeeze is 15Mbps on a good day

[@draytonpitts9261]

I have CenturyLink and it sucks... I need help

[@ifell3]

They work by extending range, so they wont give you more speed in your connection, but you could walk a block away and get a full connection rather then a some what lowered connection. Think Ham, they don't get a ham user speaking faster but they do get to reach that other ham user miles away, but only in that direction. So i could sit in my car and reach my AP from down the road, in fact quite a bit further away. Also great for detection of directions of AP's!!

[@MrTechcat]

The test show nothing when tested both antennas in max -50db signal location.. High gains are for range.. not sitting next to the router.

[@PhantomDark21]

Bought a Amped Wireless SB1000 1000mw signal booster antenna from micro center and pluged into my router, now I have strong signal and transfer speed to my garage security camera no more random disconnect.

[@justinj3262]

He tried 35 feet away. What about 55 feet? What if it's the same exact speed because they're both in range for that particular signal strength? What's its like from 55 feet away ? Is the $70 one better at maintaining a particular speed at a much greater range?

[@leafy_cynical6732]

If you want fast internet just use a ethernet cable

[@Biaanca5036]

It also helps to not have your home router inbetween your TV(giant metal plane with current running through it) and bookshelf(solid wooden pillar). --Put it somewhere high, out in the open!!!

[@jeremyreis66]

useful review!

[@timothynewman6062]

yo just for the record those aren't decibels - they're dBm: decibel-milliwatts, which are measured relative to 1mW (ie 1mW is 0dBm)

[@ColdPotato]

Old video but relevant. I had a cheap wifi camera with an internal antenna that I put in my garage that could barely get a signal. I then bought a new camera with two external antennas. And it made no difference. In fact the old cheapie actually had slightly better reception.

[@ntag411]

Installed high gain pair of 10dBi TREADALT-TEC, basically a no brand, each over 15" long on my Netgear AC1200 Dual Band WiFi Range Extender, I think 2018 model. Original antennas were Two (2) about 4" 5dBi dual band detachable external antennas. The building is a mixture of new and old, I'm on the first floor in the old section that has mesh wire in the walls rather than the normal/usual drywall. The router signal that is extended is about three rooms away on the second floor, not straight above, in the new section of the building. My Lenovo notebook PC and smartphone will only pick-up a barely usable single most of the time. The extender didn't do much better and I'm in the same small room as the extender. The signal was obviously very strong because of my very close location to the extender but the internet was still lacking. The high gain antennas made a dramatic difference. My guess is these antennas made the extender much more sensitive, better than either the PC or smartphone. Many would complain about the connector breaking on these high gain antennas. The swivel connector is largely plastic and the breakage happens at the connection point between the antenna and device. Mines did not break but I was careful not to over torque. These antennas, IMO, are meant for stationary installations and are not or should not be as durable as for handheld handy talkie (ham radio). The latter is comparatively pricey while these antennas are very inexpensive. Pair is currently $10 on Amazon. I paid much more because bought years ago and they were sold individually with a cable. They appear to be identical to the ones currently being sold for $10 a pair.

[@firefoxgaming8918]

thanks for the help

[@TedDixonChannel]

It would have been a better test if you went out 100 meters (the spec. limit of WiFi) away from the antenna laterally and compared the two signal strengths. The further out laterally you go, probably the more superior the high gain antenna at maintaining a usable signal on the very directional microwave WiFi signal - and that's the use case where that antenna might be worth the money. Repeaters always reduce throughput due to the multiple hops.

[@marcms21]

JUst bought 3 High Gain antennas for my ASUS router and I got the same results. They were bigger but no improvement...