FIOS G1100 Router has two WIFI connection choices, why?
RandomThoughts1
Enthusiast - Level 1

Searched for the forums to see if this was already asked but did not find anything.

Just hooked up new FIOS G1100 router.  When connecting from a wireless device (e.g. IPad) I'm seeing two choices.  One with a "-5G" extension, one without.  Whats the difference?  What should I use when?

Note that I took the default configuration out of the box.  No changes.

Thanks

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Re: FIOS G1100 Router has two WIFI connection choices, why?
smith6612
Community Leader
Community Leader

The separation in networks is new as of a recent update. Here's the rule of thumb when selecting which network to use.

The 5Ghz (_5G) network is designed for high wireless density and high wireless speeds. You'll find that the 5Ghz network will often provide very good performance. The drawback to it is the range of the network, which is less than the standard 2.4Ghz (the one without the _5G) network, and it has less compatiibility (many inexpensive Wi-FI radios and devices lack 5Ghz support, for some reason even to today).

The benefits of the 2.4Ghz network are opposite. It provides a ton of range, it provides the best device compatibility, but it will not be as fast as the 5Ghz network in many situations. Additionally, because there is less spectrum/less channels available for 2.4Ghz to use, there is a greater possibility for interference to make your Wi-Fi misbehave.

So case to the point, if you have any device which can see the 5Ghz network, connect up to that network first and see how it works for you. If you find that a particular device drops out too much, switch it to the 2.4Ghz network and that should improve. 

If you'd rather let things try to balance themselves out, you can log into the router and change the network name on the 5Ghz radio to match the 2.4Ghz radio. This might not guarantee performance but it will keep down any micromanagement that could come from having two separate networks.

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Re: FIOS G1100 Router has two WIFI connection choices, why?
smith6612
Community Leader
Community Leader

The separation in networks is new as of a recent update. Here's the rule of thumb when selecting which network to use.

The 5Ghz (_5G) network is designed for high wireless density and high wireless speeds. You'll find that the 5Ghz network will often provide very good performance. The drawback to it is the range of the network, which is less than the standard 2.4Ghz (the one without the _5G) network, and it has less compatiibility (many inexpensive Wi-FI radios and devices lack 5Ghz support, for some reason even to today).

The benefits of the 2.4Ghz network are opposite. It provides a ton of range, it provides the best device compatibility, but it will not be as fast as the 5Ghz network in many situations. Additionally, because there is less spectrum/less channels available for 2.4Ghz to use, there is a greater possibility for interference to make your Wi-Fi misbehave.

So case to the point, if you have any device which can see the 5Ghz network, connect up to that network first and see how it works for you. If you find that a particular device drops out too much, switch it to the 2.4Ghz network and that should improve. 

If you'd rather let things try to balance themselves out, you can log into the router and change the network name on the 5Ghz radio to match the 2.4Ghz radio. This might not guarantee performance but it will keep down any micromanagement that could come from having two separate networks.

Re: FIOS G1100 Router has two WIFI connection choices, why?
_dot
Specialist - Level 1

you might get more responses if you put this in a fios category, but with an answer as good as smith's , i'm guessing you will soon be marking this as solved anyways

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Re: FIOS G1100 Router has two WIFI connection choices, why?
JStorm1
Enthusiast - Level 2
I set up my G1100 to have one SSID and broadcasting both 2.4Ghz & 5 Ghz frequency bands running all compatibly A,B,G,N & AC . The router and your devices will choose the best one pretty much all mine are on 5Ghz band and running N or AC.
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Re: FIOS G1100 Router has two WIFI connection choices, why?
JStorm1
Enthusiast - Level 2
Also you can set up your router to have two SSID's one for 2.4GHz and another one for 5GHz if you wanted too .
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Re: FIOS G1100 Router has two WIFI connection choices, why?
tns2
Community Leader
Community Leader

@JStorm wrote:
Also you can set up your router to have two SSID's one for 2.4GHz and another one for 5GHz if you wanted too .

As the original poster mentioned, a recent update is defaulting to having two SSIDs.  Something I at least prefer.