[avoges]

Greetings,


I'm experiencing low airport signal with my ibook G4 1ghz 12". _On an
ibook g3 900 mhz and a ibook se 466 both units get full signal when
sitting in the same room as my airport express base station, however
this ibook g4 only gets 2 or 3 out of 4 bars. _Also, using macstumbler
the other ibooks consistently get readings topping 100 and i'm lucky to
get 60 to 70. _The problem becomes more apparent when I go to the
living room (room next door.) _Bear in mind, I live in a 1bd apartment
so it's not a size issue, lol. _I've tried other channels and using
macstumbler on other ibooks I can see which ones are free, however no
matter which channel I use this ibook g4 gets poor reception. _Has
anyone else experienced this issue? _I sent the ibook to apple for
repair twice and on the second attempt they replaced the airport
antenna but the issue persists. _I've tried another airport extreme
card and experienced the same issue. _Can someone else with an ibook g4
download macstumbler (www.macstumbler.com) and see if they ever get
high signal even when right beside the airport express basestation? _I
don't know what else could be the culprit, but maybe it's just the
crappy airport express card transmitting lower power, etc. _I'm out of
ideas - Please help!!

[ghporter]

You probably have an issue with the antenna cable not being fully inserted in your AirPort card. It happens sometimes. Get the knowledgebase article on installing an AirPort card in your computer for instructions on how to get at it. When you can see it, push the antenna cable in firmly-some people put a piece of tape across the junction to keep it from backing out again.

[avoges]

naah, it's in all the way. I pushed it quite hard and heard it click twice.

[Mojo]

After reading your post I downloaded MacStumbler and did my own tests with an iBook G4 and an iBook G3.

My readings were essentially the same as what you experienced. With the G3 next to the Base Station MacStumbler read 109; the G4 was in the 80s. However, when in the same room as the Base Station I get four bars on the G4.

In my dining room where the G3 normally resides MacStumbler read around 68 whereas the G4 tended to be half that number or less.

I also walked around outside and the numbers improved depending on where I went and how far I was from the room where the Base Station is located. I actually got better reception outside, probably due to the signal going through my office window. The interior of my house is plaster over metal lathing, so it is a formidable environment for achieving a strong radio signal.

I fiddled with various Base Station settings and nothing I did improved the G4 reception.

I also have an Airport Express in my living room but I don't have time today to try extending the network range using the Airport Express. I have to figure out the sequence necessary to change things because I am using WPA Personal encryption on my network and extending the range only works with WEP or without encryption enabled.

(Update: I just discovered the Base Station/Airport Express firmware updates that allow WPA on extended networks. I'll update the firmware when I get a chance...)

My initial reaction is that neither of us have a defective iBook and that it is more likely that this iBook model just doesn't have the range of the earlier regular Airport card/iBook combination. It seems to me that the easiest fix would be using an Airport Express to extend the network or adding an antenna to the Base Station in order to extend its range.

It will be interesting to see if anyone else confirms the reception numbers when using MacStumbler and a 1GHZ G4 iBook.

[avoges]

i'm happy to hear that it's not just my ibook, but sad to see the range has decreased in the newer ibooks. Thanks for confirming my suspicion

[Mojo]

It would be interesting to see if the 1.2GHZ iBooks have the same range as ours. One would think that they are the same design except for the slightly faster processor.

[broxy5]

mine's great. got a 1.2 ghz 12", and i've got a d-link router upstairs and on the opposite end of the house, and i rarely get below full reception. i love this thing!

...just installed sidetrack 30 min ago, and it's fab

[amazing]

Originally posted by avoges:
i'm happy to hear that it's not just my ibook, but sad to see the range has decreased in the newer ibooks. Thanks for confirming my suspicion

I very much doubt that range has gone down in the new iBooks. I think you've got a defective wireless card or something else. I'd send it in to Apple again. They don't always get it right, you know. The very fact that they repaired it twice means they know something's wrong, they just haven't figured out what it is, yet.

If you're near an Apple Store, take it in and set it next to the corresponding iBook so that you can compare the wireless signal. Do something like going to an online bandwidth speedtest site, and compare the throughput on both the display model and yours. Then, go talk to people at the genius bar. Frankly, if you're patient and polite and willing to keep working to get it right, they'll either fix it right or give you a new one.

http://reviews.cnet.com/Bandwidth_me...-7254_7-0.html