How-To Geek

Your Wireless Internet Signal Strength Based on Location [Humorous Diagram]

Why does it always turn out to be like this?!

Your wireless internet signal strength [via Graph Jam]


  • Published 05/3/12

Comments (21)

  1. Ray

    Seems to be so true.

  2. Paul

    …no, it has to do with the wireless chip in the devices, not it’s location…

  3. Robert

    This is not far from the truth, seams this is an actual diagram of my house. :)

  4. thegeekkid


    While the wireless chip in devices does affect your signal quality, it is affected more by interference, obstructions, transmit power, antenna gain, etc. Because of the interference and obstructions, your location has quite a bit to do with it.

  5. Mason

    Your takin all the fun out of this humorous diagram….

  6. Robert

    Agree with Mason… To me, the diagram is basically saying that the INTERNET is coming from the neighbor :) … maybe that’s just my interpretation tho ;o)

  7. natas333x2

    I really wish I didn’t read the comments.

  8. SweetSassyMolassy

    These comments are gay.

  9. Paul

    Agree with Robert.
    When I first looked I thought the meaning was that you were grabbing your signal from your neighbor — kinda cute.
    Then I saw the router on the diagram and the humor went flat.
    Oh well… that’s what we get for over-thinking these things.

  10. Paul

    I’m glad that you find the comments to be happy.

  11. thegeekkid

    @everyone… I think it’s a funny picture… in fact, I had a wireless administration class last night and showed it to everyone, and we all had a great laugh. That being said, obviously it doesn’t work the way it depicts it in the picture, however; you will get dead spots depending on the placement of the router, the types of walls (walls cause reflection… especially depending on the surface), the number of human bodies in the room (bodies cause absorption), and even the micro-particles (which cause scattering). I am sorry if I take the fun out of it for anyone, but who knows, someone might find it useful. (You don’t actually have to scroll down and read the comments!)

  12. Anonymous

    I don’t know why anyone chooses to rely on 802.11b/g WiFi. But if you do then getting your WiFi access point within line of sight of your device should work. And for simple Internet access even 802.11b may be overkill. Otherwise you may want to go with 802.11n since the 5GHz band that part of it operates over may be more easily able to penetrate walls, floors, people, etc.

    I don’t know about you, but I would rather not have so much radiation passing around/through my body. It’s a bit like living inside a microwave oven.

    FYI: Most conventional microwave ovens radiate food at 2.45GHz which is a wavelength of 122mm or 4.8-inches and which seems to be near the ideal wavelength for boiling water. And considering that the human body is over 90-percent water, if you ask me, that’s a little too close to the 2.6GHz bandwidth that most WiFi signals are set to. …Just sayin’.

  13. aflimmer

    Simple solution; put the router in your neighbor’s house.

  14. thegeekkid

    I don’t know of any WiFi that uses 2.6GHz… every WiFi protocol that I know of uses 2.4GHz or 5GHz. (Maybe you are outside of the US and it’s different standards there???) So that’s actually even closer to 2.45GHz if that is in fact what microwave ovens use… I don’t know anything about those. :)
    One thing to consider when switching to N is that some wireless NICs do not support 5GHz, so make sure you have an N NIC first!

    I like that solution! You don’t even have to pay for the electricity to run it then! ;)

  15. DeadMeatPT

    So true…

  16. Kevalin

    God, this SO true! I actually once had an app (Tank Recon Lite) that wouldn’t update on my phone via wifi while I was in the house, but updated fine at my neighbors’ house… across the STREET.

  17. Ton

    I bet your neighbour has the same complaints, so:
    Why don’t you donate your wireless router to your neighbour?
    Or switch devices?
    Might work!

  18. the flap

    When a person does not find a “joke” funny, it is bad manners to berate the person. If one needs more reference to get the joke, you told it bad. This is just a testament to the cheap (read profitable) crap available. In this case I would get out my antenna charts some copper bar my welder and solder iron.

    I get the premise and I don’t find the “joke” funny.

  19. anonymous2

    Why don’t you put some tinfoll over your head and crawl in a hole. Don’t want all those rays going through your air head.

  20. anonymous

    2> Kevalin
    What were you doin over at the neighbors house?
    Was her husband at home?
    You’re so caught.

  21. Asian Angel

    Ok, enough is enough on this particular comment thread. Comments on it are now closed.

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