macbook prowifi
I've had a problem with my Wi-Fi connection to a TP-Link router from MacBook Air. It has been solved by manually changing Wi-Fi channel on the router from "Automatic" to an average value.
What channel ranges do MacBook Air's Wi-Fi NICs support? Is there a way to tweak it to a required channel not visible by default?
P.S. My country is Ukraine and my router does have this value set.
This is a topic I have followed online and in "real life" for several months. Anecdotally, Apple seems to have a wifi problem with the 2012 MacBookAir. I have no firm figures concerning how widespread this situation is, but I know of two other MacBook Air laptops that have displayed this issue:
the MBA I purchased in hopes that I could use it attached to a projector as the remote end of a video presentation at a conference I had to miss for health reasons. I returned the computer one week later after investing ten or so hours trying to fix dropping WiFi connections.
my oldest daughter's 2012 12" MBA that she still has and is now connecting more reliably, close to 95%+
The resulting story is long, but reading the full adventure might help to open your eyes to the minutiae that helped me resolve her WiFi nightmare.
Shortly after purchasing the MBA for my daughter, she started complaining of wifi drops, initially at home and then she began experiencing drops everywhere--but not at my office where my AirPort Extreme literally sits on a shelf, three feet above my head. My initial thought focused on signal strength and distance from the router. While attending college she lives at my parents' home. The walls are lathe and plaster and the WiFi access point was at the opposite side of the house. I don't remember the brand, but it could have been a Linksys or DLink, and was only a 2.4GHz wireless-G unit.
While working with my daughter, I started some online research, including Apple Discussion boards. When I saw how many posts and complaints floated around the internet, and how few people had positive response from Genius Bar denizens, I figured that I would need strong documentation if I was going to get anywhere with them.
I worked to document and remedy connection stability on two fronts.
If you'd rather cut to The Chase and skip the steps that expanded my understanding of the issue, scroll down to the end of my post.
Generally, you'll have better connectivity closer to the router. If you have a clear line of sight to the router, you should have a good signal.
I know my daughter got sick and tired of having WiFi drop, rebooting the router and/or her MBA.
I ended up controlling the two variables I could directly manipulate: signal strength and age of WiFi router. In the end, my solution improved internet connectivity throughout my parents' home, benefitting everyone.
I started out replacing the router with another older, non-Apple one I had sitting around my office, possibly an old AirLink. No positive affect. Then I replaced it with a third slightly-newer, non-Apple router. Again, no change. In order to re-connect after a drop, my daughter would walk to the other side of the house and reboot the router every time there was a wireless drop.
I brought a 30' length of CAT-5 from the office so I could position the various router closer to her bedroom. WiFi signal strength and overall quality improved, but she still experienced the drops three or four times a day. I think she would have been happy at this point, but the problem had become personal with me.
As I analyzed everything, I decided to introduce the one element she had not experienced from my office into my daughter's home:
I think the 2012 MacBook Air WiFi issue might be because Apple has integrated Intel's more aggressive power-saving modes into the laptop. In a drive to maximize battery life, these new low-power modes change how (and how often) the laptop communicates with the wireless access point.
Yes, this is a long-winded and overly-detailed story. I spent several hours this afternoon thinking through each element of the plot as I typed the events, and I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit I completely rewrote the ending because of thoughts developed and linked with random memories that I hadn't seen as possibly being interrelated.
There are many times that my quick, three line answer does not allow me the time to "think with my fingers". Instead of resolving an issue I sloppily (and possibly expensively) slapped a band-aid on the owie.
I resolved the dropped network issue by replacing the "antiquated" WiFi router with a "modern" one. I just happened to select one manufactured by Apple. Either
Firstly, do you have problems anywhere else, or just trying to connect to your NAS via your D-Link?
Consistent problems most other places could point to your Mac. Problems only with your equipment, issue is probably closer to home.
I posted an answer to a similar issue on a 2012 MacBook Air. Nutshell version: Apple has implemented Intel's newer power saving techniques which puts various parts of the computer to sleep a lot sooner and more often than older wifi routers will keep alive. I don't have hands-on experience with this issue and the 2011 MacBook Air.
First question I would ask: How old is your D-Link router? More than a year and it's probably my first target. Log into the router and see if you can find a place to increase the amount of time before a "connection timeout" occurs.
If you cannot find a place to extend timeout values, you might be better off looking to replace the router, especially if you have a computer store with liberal return policy. A safe test to see if it is indeed the router or your laptop is to pick up an AirPort Express (about $100, one WAN, one ethernet, one USB printer) or an AirPort Extreme (about $200, one WAN, three ethernet, one USB for printer or TimeMachine hard drive). Configuration with the AirPort Utility is straightforward.
Hook your NAS up to the ethernet port on the AirPort and start transferring files to and from it with your MacBook Air. If the problems disappear, you can either keep the AirPort or return it and purchase a newer wifi router from another company. I'm sure most newer routers support Intel's deep power saving modes, I just haven't used them.
If you still have problems keeping a connection even with an AirPort, then it's probably your Mac.
Good luck!
Best Answer
The manuals for all Air are stored online at http://support.apple.com/manuals/#macbookair and it looks like the latest Air is certified under the EU and Russia - but I don't see a good way to know precisely which channels are supported from a pre-sales or reference.
You can however, open your System Information utility and select Wi-Fi. It should show you the current Locale, Country Code and supported channels for your network adapter.