5GHz AX200 horribly slow in Thinkpad T14

[Menumorut]

The wireless connection to my ISP's modem/router (it's PlusNet in the UK if it matters and the router is called PlusNet Hub One) is really really slow when connecting my Thinkpad to the 5GHz network. Last speedtest was 2Mbps DL and 0.7Mbps UL. My other devices are much faster - both my phone and the laptop the T14 is replacing (an XPS 13) are getting 20-70Mbps DL and 15-20Mbps UL on my slow-ish broadband connection. I've tried setting different channels (36, 40 and 106 in addition to Auto), but the problem persists. The 2.4GHz bands seem to be alright though.

This happens both in Linux and in Windows, so my guess is that it unfortunately sounds like a hardware issue.

I see a lot of similar issues with AX200 cards, is this a known issue?

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello @Menumorut

Thank you for posting on the Intel® communities.

In order to check this further, could you please provide the following information?

1- Is the Intel® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 the original wireless adapter that came pre-installed in your system or did you integrate/install it on the laptop? Is this a new laptop?

2- How are you monitoring/measuring the download and upload speed? Please provide details and some speed test screenshots.

3- For reference purposes, what are the wireless card model, driver version, and operating system version on the other laptop (XPS 13*) that you mentioned gets higher download/upload speeds?

4- When did it start to happen? Did it work fine before? Were you able to have your wireless connection in a normal/expected performance before? Please provide details.

5- Do you remember if this issue happened after a new Windows update or Wireless/Bluetooth driver update?

6- Have you checked if this issue happens testing only the laptop and the router? (no other wireless devices connected to the wireless network during this test).

Since you mentioned the issue only seems to happen with the 5GHz band (which has the disadvantage of shorter range), how far are you from the Router? Are there objects or walls that may be blocking the signal?

7- Is your Router compatible with the AX WiFi Standard? Have you tried a different router or Access point for testing purposes? Maybe one that is AX compatible? Have you rebooted your access-point, router, modem? Please provide details.

8- We were unable to find the technical information about your router? Do you have a reference link or may a more "specific model"?

Also, please run the Intel® System Support Utility (Intel® SSU) and attach the report to this thread to gather more details about your system.

• Download the Intel® SSU and save the application on your computer: https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25293/Intel-System-Support-Utility-for-Windows-
• Open the application, check the "Everything" checkbox, and click "Scan" to see the system and device information. The Intel® SSU defaults to the "Summary View" on the output screen following the scan. Click the menu where it says "Summary" to change to "Detailed View".
• To save your scan, click Next and click Save.

Note: To upload and attach a file, use the "Drag and drop here or browse files to attach" option below the response textbox.

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Menumorut]

Hi Andrew,

1. It's a new laptop (~1 and a half  months) with the built-in wifi card
2. Speedtest (attached speed.png), but everything is incredibly slow
3. Attached driver.png - Windows 10
4. I remember getting good speed occasionally, but that may have been due to the laptop connecting to the 2.4Ghz access point back when they had the same SSID. Since I've changed one of the SSIDs, it's been consistently very very slow
5. I highly doubt that's the case - I get the same behaviour in Windows and Manjaro
6. I haven't tried testing the laptop in isolation, however I get the same performance even when I'm 1 meter away from the router
7. It's not AX compatible. Since this post, I've actually setup a Linksys WRT-1900ACS router as an AP plugged into the ISP modem/router and the performance is great
8. It's this one here: https://www.broadbandchoices.co.uk/guides/hardware/plusnet-hub-one I haven't been able to find much about the actual model, but it seems to be a Sagemcom CS50001?

It seems to be some strange incompatibility between the router and the network card, any idea what it could be?

Thanks!

[Menumorut]

Hi Andrew, can you see my previous reply by any chance? I definitely replied a couple of days ago, I even got a reply badge or something like that, but it seems that my post has disappeared. If it's somehow gone for good, I'll need to answer to those questions again.

Thanks!

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello @Menumorut

Thank you for your response.

You are correct. It seems that your answers to our previous questions are not available in the thread. We do apologize for the inconvenience.

Could you please double-check and kindly provide us with the information?

Sincerely,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Menumorut]

1. It's the original adapter
2. Speedtest.net (screenshot attached)
3. Driver info attached (windows 10)
4. I'm not sure it's ever worked properly - I remember the speed being fine occasionally, but that was before splitting the 2.4 and 5 GHz SSIDs. So I may have been connected to the 2.4GHz network without realizing.
5. It hasn't - the exact same issue happens with my Linux Manjaro installation on the same laptop
6. I haven't tested the laptop in isolation, but the same thing happens with the router right next to the laptop
7. The router is not AX compatible as far as I know
8. The ISP don't really advertise the type of router, but from what I've read online, it seems to be this one: Sagemcom Cs50001. I'm not going to link to it again, because maybe that's how the last post got deleted.

I've also connected the laptop directly to a Linksys WRT-1900ACS router and the performance was as expected. So it might me some strange incompatibility between the AX200 card and the router I've mentioned? Every other device-router combination works fine except for this one. And only for 5GHz.

Thanks!

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello Menumorut

Thank you for your response.

Based on the facts that you have shared, this is pointing out to hardware compatibility considering the issue happens in Linux and Windows® only with this modem/router and only on the 5GHz band. Another fact to support this is that the wireless card works fine with other routers.

Unfortunately, we were not able to find much information from official websites about the Sagemcom Cs50001 router. In this case, we would like to provide you with the following recommendations:

1- If you have active Virtual Machines with virtual network adapters, try to disable them and test the behavior.

2- Check with your ISP or with the router manufacturer if there is updated firmware available for your device. They may also assist you to review recommended settings for the router.

3- Based on the report, it seems that you are using the Wi-Fi standard 802.11ac, please check the Recommended Settings for 802.11ac Connectivity >> https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000024678/network-and-i-o/wireless.html

Note: In case you are running on the 802.11n standard (or if you want to try it), please check the Recommended Settings for 802.11n Connectivity >> https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000005544/network-and-i-o/wireless.html

4- Check the Advanced Intel® Wireless Adapter Settings. For instance, set the "Preferred band" to 5 GHz.

Try changing the "802.11n/ac/ax Wireless Mode or HT Mode" based on the standard your router supports.

Also, change the "Channel width or 802.11n channel width(band 2.4/5GHz)" to 20MHz only and test the behavior. Then change it back to Auto and try to set also this on the router to 160MHz (or 80MHz if 160MHz is not supported). 

5- It seems that the customized driver from Lenovo™ is the same version number as the latest generic driver from Intel 22.0.0.6. Just to rule out driver issues, please try a clean install of the Wireless and Bluetooth drivers following these steps:

5.1- Download the customized drivers from Lenovo* website and save them on the computer:

https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/cr/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/thinkpad-t-series-laptops/thinkpad-t14-type-20ud-20ue/20ud/downloads/driver-list/

• Intel Wireless LAN Driver Version 22.0.0.6
• Intel Bluetooth Driver Version 21.110.0.3

5.2- To avoid Windows® update reinstalling a different driver during the process, disconnect your computer from the Internet.

5.3- Uninstall the Intel® Wireless and Bluetooth drivers and restart the system. Then, please install the Bluetooth driver first, and then the Wireless driver. Please refer to the following links where you can find steps as a guide:

• Uninstalling the Wi-Fi/Bluetooth® Driver for Your Intel® Wireless Adapter >> https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000005756/network-and-i-o/wireless.html
• Installation for Intel® Wireless Bluetooth® Software >> https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000006742/network-and-i-o/wireless.html
• Clean Installation of Wireless Drivers >> https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000022173/network-and-i-o/wireless.html

Note:

If the issue persists, you can repeat the process using the latest generic drivers from Intel:

• Intel® Wireless Bluetooth® for Windows® 10 package Version: 22.0.0 >> https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/29919/Intel-Wireless-Bluetooth-for-Windows-10?product=189347
• Windows® 10 Wi-Fi Driver package version Version: 22.0.0 >> https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/29902/Windows-10-Wi-Fi-Drivers-for-Intel-Wireless-Adapters?product=189347

6- A final suggestion: It seems that there are BIOS updates available for your system. We recommend checking with Lenovo™ support if those may have improvement related to wireless functionality and if they recommend updating the BIOS.

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

*Links to third-party sites and references to third-party trademarks are provided for convenience and illustrative purposes only. Unless explicitly stated, Intel® is not responsible for the contents of such links, and no third-party endorsement of Intel® or any of its products is implied.

[Menumorut]

Thank you Andrew for the very thorough answer. I will try some of the points you mentioned and update the post when I do. However, I've been using the Linksys router which has better performance than the ISP-provided one, and I probably won't switch back to the ISP's router anyway even if this issues disappears. I am a curious why this happens though, so I'll try your suggestions.

Thanks again for your help! 

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello Menumorut

Thank you for your response.

We understand your point and we are glad to know that there is better performance with the other router. Feel free to post back in the thread if you have any feedback to share regarding those steps and the outcome.

Sincerely,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello Menumorut

We are checking this thread and we would like to know if you need further assistance. Please do not hesitate to contact us back if you have additional inquiries.

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello Menumorut

If the wireless connection continues working fine with the Linksys* router, but the issue still persists with the original ISP's router, our final recommendation is to check this further with your ISP so they can assist you with further debugging and even review if it is needed to replace the ISP's router.

Also, since we have not heard back from you, we will proceed to close this thread now. If you need any additional information, please submit a new question as this thread will no longer be monitored. It has been a pleasure to assist you.

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician