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by ar_turnbull 4158 days ago
I switched to 5g last year, but all of my neighbours have caught up. Worse still — we all have legacy networks on the 2.4ghz spectrum so that our older devices can access the Internet. There are probably two dozen networks accessible from my couch. It's crazy in apartment buildings.

I would suggest that it should become part of our condo fees / building management, but I have little confidence in our board.
2 comments
ajhodges 4158 days ago
Not to mention there are many devices that still don't support 5ghz (a notable/annoying example being Chromecasts). Switching to 5ghz is not a solution to the problem outlined in this paper, it's a bandaid.
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breakall 4158 days ago
I have this exact problem: a couple dozen 2.4 Ghz APs are visible to me. Actual throughput at a distance of 6 feet from a 2.4 Ghz router is 1 Mbps (tested with multiple APs). I switched to 5 Ghz and luckily no one else has! Unfortunately, this doesn't solve the problem for all devices -- for example, the Chromecast is 2.4 Ghz only. With the chromecast, I practically can't use the chromecast in a room other than the one that the AP is in. I was thrilled when the Amazon Fire TV Stick came out with 5 Ghz capability. This made it possible for me to stream Netflix, etc. to the tv in the other room.
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