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2 Posts
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3657160
Inspirion 15 5000, Wireless AC-3160, Fluctuating signal and extremely slow
I very recently purchased the Dell Inspirion 15 5000 series laptop with the Intel (R) Dual Band Wireless AC-3160 however i have noticed that the connection to the Wi-Fi in my home when using wireless is extremely slow and the signal bar fluctuates from 1 bar to 5 and often just disconnects. The wireless adapter works fine when i am right next to the router however in my bedroom it is extremely slow even when there are a few bars of connection and so i am forced to use an Ethernet cable to connect. I feel that this is not a problem with the router or my Wi-Fi in my home because the laptop i used prior to buying this one worked perfectly and other laptops in the house also get full bars of connection and high speeds in my room however my laptop does not. I have tried updating drivers which say they are already up to date, i have run the dell troubleshoot which has made no difference, and i have tried other troubleshoots in the control panel which said it found a problem and said it was fixed however there has been absolutely no change so i am beginning to think that the wireless card may be faulty. Any help would be immensely appreciated so thank you in advance.
P.Fields
19 Posts
0
September 17th, 2014 10:00
Good luck getting Bestbuy to take anything back. You better get the return policy in writing and you better take it back one day before the deadline or forget it.
TanteMin
2 Posts
0
September 17th, 2014 15:00
Thanks for posting your info and for saving me alot of time & aggravation. Back to Dell it goes!
KevinLaptop
7 Posts
0
September 17th, 2014 17:00
What is this for? Will this make my Dell go faster than dial up?
P.Fields
19 Posts
0
September 18th, 2014 11:00
When I set HT mode to Disabled, the laptop worked at any distance I tried, including on my porch. It seemed fast to me even when I only had 2 bars.
But then I had the other problem with the windows message Code 43 after I left the laptop and it went to sleep. I have run out of time trying things. Sorry.
krazwell
7 Posts
0
September 18th, 2014 13:00
the latest driver from intel site worked for me. the driver that was shipped didnt work, and the latest driver on dell didnt work. Go straight to intel if you are still having problems and want the latest.
mattpsu79
10 Posts
0
September 18th, 2014 16:00
I had issues trying to go through Intel. Tried to upgrade using their automated applet and got a message saying something about not being able to find the driver and to go through the manufacturer since the driver I needed was likely created/licensed specifically for Dell (or something to that effect). Of course when I went through Dell, it installed the same drivers that came on the laptop.
naties51
12 Posts
0
September 18th, 2014 20:00
Hate to be the barrier of bad news, my wifes Inspiron 14 5447 has the problem everyone is complaining about. We formatted the entire laptop and did a fresh install of Windows 7. Problem is still there, only solution she has is to be unnecessarily close to the router or to use her TP link USB adapter.
naties51
12 Posts
0
September 18th, 2014 20:00
The speed you see in the configuration utility is actually the speed your wireless card/adapter is connecting to your router. But the higher that number is the faster your speed is even if your ISP is only giving lets say 40Mbps. Think of it like a straw and a thick milkshake.
SagarSutaria
1 Message
0
October 29th, 2014 16:00
Hello Holdenr
Does it make any difference?
Yogish Chandra
1 Message
1
October 30th, 2014 11:00
Hi,
The same with me. I am using a Dell Inspiron 5447 14 inch. The WLAN chip is not establishing a good connection. Therefore sometimes I am using an external USB wifi adapter.
The signal strength is only 60% good.
- Yogish
Thhem
1 Message
2
November 7th, 2014 14:00
Hi,
I have been living with the same problem for a few months, finally I updated the drivers directly through the intel driver update utility ( on the intel site) to version 17.1... and it works like a charm.
GoTWhisKeY
3 Posts
0
November 10th, 2014 12:00
I have the same laptop (Inspiron 14 5000 series) and it worked great for the first month, but now when I turn it on after a shutdown, 50% of the time it can't connect to my WiFi unless I disable the WiFi adaptor and re-enable.
I'm an IT Tech so I've tried just about everything. I'll be calling warranty to send me a replacement wifi card.
eb1991
3 Posts
1
November 14th, 2014 19:00
I am having the same problems.
I am running W7, x64 with the AC-3160 adapter, Intel driver 17.1.0.19 on a inspirion 5547.
I get a really bad connection, but truth be told, some routers seem to get a fine connection.
First, I blamed my router for being ***, then all the wireless networks floating around. All other devices in this household do not have this problem, so I blame the AC-3160.
The "unable to connect" feature when coming out of sleep mode also is too familiar.
Is it possible to replace the on-board wireless adapter with one that is working? If so, any suggestions?
Best regards,
Edwin
gongon
1 Message
1
December 4th, 2014 22:00
Hey, may I ask have your problem solved?? I am having the same problem too
Thank you.
GoTWhisKeY
3 Posts
0
December 4th, 2014 23:00
Dell sent me a new wireless card. I replaced it, but still had the same problems.
Dell then sent a technician who replaced my motherboard and antenna, and it fixed the problem!