Are the antennas of the router useful?

The router is made up of different components that allow you to surf the Internet. Each device may have different peculiarities, but in general it will allow users to connect by cable or Wi-Fi. In the latter case, when connecting wirelessly, many routers have antennas , either external or internal. Now, are they really good for anything? Can we do something to improve the quality? We are going to talk about this in this article.

Wireless networks, something essential today

First of all, we must remember that wireless networks are essential today. There are many users who already only connect through Wi-Fi. If we look back, a few years ago it was normal to connect to the Internet through a computer connected by cable to the router. However, today there are many devices that we have at our disposal and that work without cables.

This means that our wireless connections must have the highest possible quality. We need them to work well, have good speed and stability. For this the router is essential. Inside the router, we can also have antennas that help improve stability.

Therefore we can say that wireless networks play a fundamental role today. It is necessary that we take care of this technology and avoid problems that may affect our navigation.

Router antennas influence

And yes, we can say that the antennas of the routers influence. They can especially help us improve Internet speed if we know how to optimize them correctly. They are not there for decoration and it is not enough to have them in any position if we want to optimize the speed and quality of the connections to the maximum.

Basically we can say that a router antenna is a passive element that by itself does not offer more power to the device, but it can guide the signal. What it does is redirect that energy it receives. It can therefore send more energy to a specific location.

We can therefore orient these antennas so that the propagation of wireless waves is better. Routers usually have one or more antennas. It is common for them to have two external antennas. These antennas propagate the waves as if they were a donut.

If we have a single antenna, the ideal is for it to be placed vertically. In this way the waves will propagate horizontally, something that is more positive for the devices that we use as receivers. If we have two antennas, the ideal is that we place one horizontally and the other vertically. This way we will make more use of the available resources.

Keep in mind that not all receivers use the same polarization. That is, some can receive the waves horizontally while others receive it vertically (depending on how their internal antenna is). It will depend on whether we are using a computer or a mobile device and also on what position they are in. Therefore, whenever we have two antennas, the interesting thing is that one is vertical and the other horizontal. This way we will win in terms of improvements when propagating the wireless signal.

Placing the antenna vertically does not mean that the propagation waves go towards the ceiling, quite the opposite: they are emitted in the form of donuts horizontally. That is why it is interesting that if we have a router with a single antenna, it is vertical. The normal thing is that we do not have a device on the ceiling or on the floor.

In short, we can say that the antennas that are in some routers can greatly benefit Internet speed, as well as stability and quality. Many modern routers can have one external antenna or even several (usually two). It is convenient that if we have two we have them oriented one vertically and the other horizontally to obtain better results.

As we have mentioned, more and more devices are connected wirelessly in our home and this means that we must take care of the quality of Wi-Fi . We need to have our device ready to avoid problems that may affect speed.

Beyond the antennas of the router, it is also very important where we place it. As general advice, we can say that the ideal is for the device to be located in a central location in the home. It is also important that it is away from other appliances and in an elevated position. We must avoid load-bearing walls and other elements that may affect them. We leave you an article where we give more extensive advice on where to place a router .