Very slow download/upload speed in AC7260 Wireless with Bluetooth

[JChen213]

I just purchased the HP Envy 15t x360 laptop from BestBuy for college and have been having issues with the wifi speed. I tried to download a pdf file from my school's website and it took an hour. Another file that I tried could not even be downloaded because it would suddenly stop and halt on its own. I tried to go on youtube and could not watch a video smoothly. I have seen on online forums where some users reported that the AC7260 wifi card is faulty. I was concerned about this and reached out to HP customer service, who was completely helpless and a waste of my Saturday. They updated the BIOS system, rebooted my computer, checked and tested everything with no success.

I am so frustrated with this situation, and I have seen similar comments online before. I have updated everything from both HP and Intel, but it still doens't work. From the speedtest website, my download speed is about 1.18 mbps, and my upload speed is about 5.70 mbps. However, the wifi connection on the laptop shows that the speed is 144.0 mbps, though both my download and upload speeds are far from this.

Any solution on this issue? Please respond and it will be greatly appreciated! I am moving into college in a few days, and I don't have much time left. I am thinking about returning this laptop for something less advanced so that I can actually get some work done.

Thanks so much!

[RA6]

The problem may be with the Router, Setting in the router or if you have a dual band network connecting at the 2.4Ghz band.. The AC7260 seems to works best in the 5Ghz band. Depending on your College will depend on if they have a Dual band network. The college I go to does. but they have the 2.4Ghz band down graded to where you only connect at 802.11g Speed which is 54Mbps. To get the best performance out of your network card it is best if your router is AC router also.

[JChen213]

Thanks for your response! So to get the best performance out of my wifi card, I will have to have an AC router as well or otherwise it will just be so, so slow to an extent that is unfunctional? I sure hope Rutgers does.. but that doesn't seem likely! How do I know if a network is on the 2.4 Ghz or 5 Ghz band? And I thought it would be at least compatible with 802.11n network?

[RA6]

well if you have an 802.11n router make sure it is a dual band one. and make sure you log in to the 5Ghz band. It is compatible but they it really does not seem to work very well in the 2.4Ghz range. and the best way to ask is if the college has an IT help desk calling and asking them if they have dual band or not.

[RA6]

It is also good to make sure that the Firmware of the Router is up to date.

[Jose_H_Intel1]

I suggest trying with the least expensive options first, such as the last recommendation by Rob.

Windows* does not show directly if you are connected to 2.4 or 5 GHz. However, you can use inSSIDer* 3 still available out there.

Another option is to determine it by identifying your current transfer rate compared to the channel width used for each band. In this case your transfer rate is 144 Mbps which matches the default channel width (20MHz) for 2.4 GHz, unless you have the both bands configured at 20 MHz but by default 5 GHz uses Auto (40 MHz) if supported by the router as well, and a 40 MHz channel width should give you 300 Mbps. It is a bit technical but you can use the software mentioned above if you prefer.

We also need to consider the following steps so we can make sure the connection is optimized:

• http://www.intel.com/support/wireless/wlan/4965agn/sb/cs-025643.htm Intel WiFi Products — Data rate will not exceed 54 Mbps when WEP or TKIP encryption is configured
• http://www.intel.com/support/wireless/wlan/sb/CS-031509.htm Intel® Wi-Fi Products — Possible interference by other wireless devices may impact 802.11n performance
• http://www.intel.com/support/wireless/wlan/sb/CS-034875.htm Intel® Wi-Fi Products — TechNote: Access Point interoperability issue with uAPSD
• http://www.intel.com/support/wireless/wlan/sb/CS-006321.htm Intel® Wi-Fi Products — Access Point (AP) firmware updates may resolve wireless network issues
• http://www.intel.com/support/wireless/sb/cs-025343.htm Wireless Networking — How to configure 802.11n channel bonding on Intel Wireless adapters
• http://www.intel.com/support/wireless/wlan/sb/CS-030282.htm Intel® Wi-Fi Products — Why am I not able to connect at 300 Mbps with my 802.11n device?

[JChen213]

Thank you for both of you guys' responses! I emailed the help desk, and haven't heard back yet. I think I am going to call them in a second. I just found a new driver on Intel's website, 17.0.05?(not sure about this, just from what I could remember). The older version, which is what I currently have on the laptop, is 17.0.03. Yet when I clicked the "check updates" option after I clicked "configure" on the wifi window, it showed that it was already the newest version. But I still downloaded the new driver from Intel's website. However, when I tried to launch the new driver, it kept saying that there is a pending reboot, and I would have to solve that first before I can update it. I don't understand? I feel like that the HP customer service guy might have done something but I am not sure. Does it mean I have to reboot the Intel drivers? How can I do that?

I am also thinking of replacing the wifi card in this laptop with something that is most compatible with 802.11n network? I am going to ask if Best Buy does that. Any suggestions on which one would work the best with 802.11n network?

Thanks so much again!

[JChen213]

Nevermind, I just received an email from my school! It said that they do have "channels available for both 2.4Ghz networks as well as 5 Ghz networks." Does that mean my wifi speed should be much faster than what it is currently? And that they do have dual band routers? Will my laptop connect with the 5 Ghz band automatically?

[RA6]

At my school I can connect to the 5Ghz range at 300Mbps. so you should see a lot better improvement. Since they both have 2.4 and 5Ghz Range that does me they have Dual band Routers. Most of the time my Network card will automatically connect to 5Ghz range. But there is a setting you can change in your network card that it will try to connect to a 5Ghz range. The way you do this is you go in to Device Manager. Then click on your network card and then Right Click and go down to properties. Click on the Advanced tab and in the Box below the word Property look for Preferred Band and click on it. In the Value Dropdown box Change it to 3. Prefer 5.2Ghz Band. Then click Ok. Do not worry about changing this setting for when you go home or only around a 2.4Ghz band. If your Network card can not connect to at 5Ghz it will automatically try the 2.4Ghz.

[RA6]

Also just to let you know Intel has just released a new Driver Version 17.1.0.19 so you might want to go to the intel website and download and install that.

[JChen213]

Thanks so much! That was really helpful! I willl download the new driver and hopefully it works this time!

[JChen213]

I just successfully downloaded the new driver and also the InSSIder software. I didn't see a 5Ghz option on that software so I am pretty sure my router is not dual band, just 802.11n at 2.4 Ghz? And then I tried to go on Youtube to see if there is an improvement... Nope.. Stilll couldn't play a video smoothly... I think I can feel the tears in my eyes now..lol

Is there anything else that I can do to make this work?

[RA6]

Honestly the only you can do is upgrade your router to either a Dual Band 802.11N router or upgrade it to 802.11AC router. If you have cable internet then I would suggest making sure you get newer one also. The newer Modems have a 1000Mbps Ethernet port on them. The Dual bands and AC routers have Ethernet ports also. This will make sure everything runs the smoothest it can.

[JChen213]

I just moved in today and everything works fine!!! I am so excited! lol The speed is finally back to normal and I think it was because my router wasn't dual band that caused the slow data transfer rate. Thanks so much for all your help!!!

[RA6]

I am glad you are enjoying the speed. Home networks are just like any other computer and should be upgraded about every 3 to 5 years. Honestly when I was helping you with this issues I was helping another person on this form with the same problem and when I suggested that he upgrade his network he got all mad about it. saying that Intel needs to fix this ongoing issue and that he should not have to be forced to upgrade. I was just only giving him the only answer that I know of to fix his issue. Like I said before If you have cable internet I would suggest getting a new modem also. I would make sure it is a DOCSIS 3.0 modem. If you rent from Time Warner. I would suggest just buying it. With Time Warner if you do not have their upper level internet they will give you a cheap modem and you will not get the best performance with it. DOCSIS 3.0 modems have a 1000Mbps (AKA Gigabit) port out and then Dual Band routers or 802.11AC routers have the same speed port coming in. This set up is best if you are an online gamer, have more then just like 3 devices connecting to the internet or Streaming Videos like Netflix. If you need any other help I would be glad to help. Also make sure you check back with Intel about updated drivers. They have been releasing updates for the drivers about once a month.