I have a "Linksys AC1200" router which supports 802.11ac and I have a Dell Latitude (with Win7) with a "Dell Wireless 1504 802.11b/g/n (2.4GHz)" network adapter. Since 802.11ac is backwards compatible with 802.11n, as I understand it, it seems like I should be getting wireless-n speeds. But I'm not.
When I right click on the network connection and select Properties I see that my speed is 11.0 Mbps. It seems to me that my network speed should be a lot faster. Any idea as to why it isn't?
02 Answers
Your AP may be set to 'b' mode, limiting it to 11mbps. A mixed b/g can get you up to 54mpbs, but if you attach a 'b' device, it may drop down to 11mbps. Make sure that you have the router set to 'n' mode. Some AP's may even be configurable to not connect to 'b' devices.
The speed reflected in Task Manager only shows the negotiated speed of the connection (the speed at which the AP and your computer agreed to transmit/receive at). There may be too much interference or not enough signal to communicate at higher speeds. This can happen if there are a lot of wireless APs in your area, or if you are too far away from the base station.
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