TALE OF A HYBRID !

Hybrid Hybrid Hybrid !

a new term for a new gen like car's running on cng and petrol will come under hybrid . However technically for laptop we would define hybrid as :-

" A combination tablet and laptop computer. Also called a "detachable" or "2-in-1," the hybrid has a removable screen that turns into a tablet when separated. For example, when the screen is removed from a Windows hybrid (starting with Windows 8), it becomes a tablet."

I would prefer to use them as they are easy to carry , light weight, fanless, come with ssd drive and not bulky hdd, can be detached (as and when required).

since the time I have been seeing hybrids I have fallen in love with them as they boot fast and are convenient to use and don't occupy much space in ones bag. I have been in love with the term hybrid since Microsoft surface pro 1st edition which was followed by Lenovo Idea tab lynx (win 8.1) and then dell jumped in and changes kept on happening . Till acer rocked the earth with there aspire one 10 series which set a trend in it world as it was backed by 500gb hdd in keyboard dock . However when people moved to ssd drives Lenovo hit the market with Lenovo miix 3 which was a great hit amongst young and bold.  But soon faded as you had to keep it on the dock and use it buy cant be used as laptop as it just sat on the dock and looked flimsy when moving it across in the room. 

Lenovo changed there design and the was born miix 310 which was very soon succeeded by Miix 320.   And today I am going to share my review of miix 320.

What A Miix !

Lenovo miix 320 is a true hybrid that runs on latest windows 10 home edition. According to Lenovo " With the Miix 320, you get the best of both worlds. A fully functional laptop and a tablet—in one streamlined, portable device. Boasting a detachable keyboard, 10-hour battery life, smooth processing, and productivity-enhancing tools, it enables you to get things done on the go, pronto. When you need to kick back, the 10.1” FHD display and stereo speakers bring everything to life. And with super-fast WiFi, the Miix 320 is ideal for both work and play.".

I liked the fact that on one hand it is tab and other hand it is a 10" laptop which is ready to zip through out your busy day.  It  comes with 10.1" FHD (1920 x 800) IPS LED Multitouch display. And in thickness it is 17.5 mm / 0.7" = Tablet: 9 mm / 0.3" (tablet) + Dock: 8.5 mm / 0.3" along with weight of With keyboard: 1020 g / 2.2 lbs and Without keyboard: 550 g / 1.2 lbs. On connectivity it has 802.11AC (1x1) WiFi + Bluetooth^® 4.1, USB Type-C 3.0 , Micro HDMI, 2 x USB 2.0 and an Audio combo jack. with storage of 32 gb ssd and an sd slot with expansion of 256 gb. Processer vise it runs on Intel^® Atom™ x5-Z8350 Processor (1.44GHz 2MB) with ram 2 GB DDR3 1600 MHz. It also houses Intel^® HD Graphics 400.Cameras are standerd for Front: 2 MP Webcam with mic and Rear: 5 MP Auto-focus. Speaking of audio  it houses Stereo Speakers with Dolby Advanced Audio. But battery clamed by them is Up to 10 hours' local video payback.

Day 1 11:30 a

Unboxed the laptop from brown box and activated it. It took 2 min to  setup itself and and login to windows 10 home . Setup was Cortana voice guided. 

All setup and ready to use

Usb 2.0 and power jack on left side.

 

Usb 2.0 with mini Usb 3.0 type C along with Mini HDMI and Headphone n Mike Jack  on right side . Mike hole is also present on right side  of tab.

In tab mode with power button , volume rocker and charging port.

When I detached it this is how it looked :-

12:30p Time to leave home  as have to go for urgent work  and will come home late. But on my way talked to Microsoft for office 365 which they said is active till 2019 December. Will set it up too as too tired now hitting bed.

Day 2 9:00am coffee in hand and hybrid in front

Connected it with my tp link Archer c20i ac 750 router as this laptop has 802.11AC (1x1) WiFi  built in which can take speed of upto 400 Mbps on 5 Ghz channel.  Speeds are good as I got a transfer rate of 7 Mbps as my tv takes 3 Mbps. I setup office 365 and in 1/2 min it is done and ready to use. Then setup my Lenovo id and software's provided.

again out for work time is 2:00pm . 

Day 3 9:00am mission hybrid

received a critical update by Lenovo for bios . Updated bios and got stuck as it asked for bitlocker key which I never setup and would not budge. Contacted Lenovo teach support and issue is resolved .

Back to windows finally , By the way what is bitlocker ?

BitLocker (codenamed Cornerstone and formerly known as Secure Startup) is a full disk encryption feature included with select editions of Windows Vista and later. Activated by default  for getting the key login with Microsoft account id and you will need to click devices and then  on Get BitLocker recovery keys to see the keys . by the way took 2 hrs to find out about it on call with Lenovo.

Day 4 9:00am mission hybrid

Plugged my wd 1tb cloud harddisk  and cloud up and ready to use. even my foxit pdf is also setup to read, create and edit pdf. Time to pair my dell bt headset to tab and it is ready as music stream's in 15 seconds flat with Bluetooth^® 4.1. also connected 32 gb pendrive and it works like a breez.  

held my tab and out to get carry case for it . managed to get neopack sling for 10 inch from crossroads @ inorbit for 515 Inr. it is soft with 2 pockets 1 for tab and other for accessory.

Also managed to get a stylus with silicon tip for 95 Inr which works great.

Day 5 9:00am mission hybrid

Charged and ready with stylus tucked in and tab up and ready at 100% battery and brightness of 25% . 9:30am at station with my cousin going to vt for a gst confrence and am typing my document in word and then I hit on 20 min of ppt slides and then 5 min of excel. Reached vt 10:45am take a cab to churchgate  am still typing  15 min and lo and behold churchgate station came and next was our venue. Tablet is put back  in the  bag and after checking pull it out again for taking notes. 1&1/2 hrs  of taking notes from ppt on there screen stylus made it easy to annote and highlight in word. Finally time for tea and to meet others . Saved my document and ready for tea and meeting people.

Then back to fort and time to meet my cousins lawyer as he was looking to resolve some official legal matters of his. took notes for him on OneNote . Meeting lasted 2 hrs . finally out of lawyers office and now need some grub . We head to McDonald's nearby for some grub. Got wifi for 40 min. Checked live news feed on youtube and sent my cousin his lawyers notes in email. coming back home  with a flat tab. as it has a battery life of  max 6 hrs. home sweet home at last. took 2 hrs to charge. shut down and packed back in bag.

Day 6 9:00am mission hybrid

Setup my outlook and am good to go also imported my mails from my Gmail account. played some candy crush for 20 min. had my breakfast and at sharp 11:45 in my church ready to record the sermon in word which lasts for 45 min with explanation.  @1:30 take a selfi  with 5 mpx on back with church group as it is birthday of 1 member. also made a 5min video of cake cutting.

Finally home and time for review of images and video and post them online. pictures are average and vodeo is 1080 p resolution with fair clerity. 

Day 6 9:00am mission hybrid

Final  review of todo for the day and still have 75% battery left.

Got to go for another pc review before that need to get the device.

Ps: did turn windows update off as only 11gb is free and set locations for all saves to my sd card.

Ups

1) good viewing angles  for video and image.

2) even on 0% no flickering on screen seen as opposed to surface pro 4 where screen shows flickering on 0%,

3) good performance for its price (18,000 Inr) @Lenovo store wit 11% Cash back.

4) crisp clear and sweet audio with Dolby Advanced Audio.

5) HD IPS display with resolution of 1920 x 800.

6) 2 Usb 2.0 ports in dock.

7) ergonomically placed keys on  keyboard makes typing a breez.

8) Microsoft precession touch pad at this price is a welcome.

Downs

1) Average battery life of 6 hrs as opposed to mentioned 10 hrs.

2) Ssd sould have been atleast 64 gb.

3)  prying pin (not supplied) for sd card tray removal as opposed to yoga book.

4) cant be used as table or tent mode as opposed to Lenovo yoga book .

5) no stylus included. 

6) cameras are mediocre as images are at times not properly focused.

7) only wifi with no LTE is a downer as wifi is not available in local trains and cabs as of now.

any Queries do get back . 

To download manual click Here.

How To Stream To WP 8.1 and 10.

STREAM STREAM STREAM !

Today we will learn how to stream to your Windows Phone 8.1 or 10. And to do this we require following things :

1) A SMB and UPnP enabled router like TP-LINK Archer C20 .

2) Sandisk Cruser Blade32 GB PenDrive (https://www.sandisk.in/home/usb-flash/cruzer-blade).

3) Some free software's :

   a) mFTP2 (free ftp client)

   b) Smart Player (video streamer).

   c) OneVideo (video streamer).

4) Nokia Lumia 1320.

Why ? Archer C20 !

Founded in 1996, TP-Link is a global provider of reliable networking devices and accessories, involved in all aspects of everyday life. The company is consistently ranked by analyst firm IDC as the No. 1 provider of WLAN and broadband CPE devices*, supplying distribution to more than 120 countries and serving hundreds of millions of people worldwide.

As a known friend of mine got 1 from his uncle in pune, as they got an TP-LINK P5 In 12K as they needed 2 USB ports 1 for NAS drive and other for wireless printing  along with GigaByte Ethernet Ports. To know more about C20 and specs visit : http://www.tp-link.com/lb/products/details/cat-9_Archer-C20.html .

How ?

1) Plug in the pen drive with media (photos , music and videos) in it.

2) Login to your router's web base interface by going to 192.168.0.1.

3) Go to USB Settings.

4) And  user accounts.

5) create user and grant it access.

7) Then in storage sharing enable it.

8)  Go to  FTP server and add folder's to it, Then enable it.

9) In Media Server give your server a name and enable it.

10) save all your settings.

You are done just software part remaining.

Why? mFTP2 !

mFTP2 is the completely new developed successor of mFTP. We learned from the mistakes we did in the earlier version and started from the scratch to create a new, unique way to interact with your FTP server. mFTP2 offers you a full FTP client, with all the familiar features and allows the exchange of data from your desktop and Tablet PC with your FTP server. Therefore the download and upload of files is as well possible as creating, renaming, and moving folders. You can also modify their access permissions. Because of the modern design and intuitive operation, the use of mFTP2 is easy and pleasant.

( It is available for both pc and mobile devices ).

How ?

1)  Go to mFTP2 and click on + symbol.

2) Fill in the NAME, ADDRESS, USERNAME & PASSWORD fields and leave the POER AND ENCRYPTION MODE field as default.

3) In address field fill in ip address available n FTP Server section of your router.

4) Save the settings and you are done.

Why? Smart Player !

Smart Player is a Windows mobile UPnP (DLNA) Control Point. It browses and plays easily your music, images and videos on your phone or your DLNA devices on your network from all your UPnP/DLNA enabled media servers (XBMC, Windows Media Player, Sonos, XBox360, DLNA TVs, ...) or from your preferred online storage solution. (Dropbox, Youtube, SkyDrive, Google Drive or SoundCloud)

How ?

1) open Smart Player and go to sources.

2) Click on your media server.

Now you are ready to play your video's , audios and view your pics from your dlna server.

Ps: streaming of videos takes anywhere between 15 to 30 seconds as it uses system decoder and there is no way to change it to custom decoder.

Why? One Video !

OneVideo is unified media player for Windows Phone. It's perfect solution for playing all media files from various source types.

How ?

1) Open the app.
2) Go to Connect To Servers and select your media server.
3) in settings select custom decoder. (and videos stream without delay).

and enjoy streaming of  your music and video's on your phone. As it dose not stream images, so we have to use Smart Player for images.

Nokia 1320 was the phone he had with him for use so we were able to doe the above steps at his home as he is a novice with streaming.

Hope you liked it .. follow these and your good to go..

I Dream Of DLNA

Today we are not reviewing any phone or device or any software But we will speak about something of your interest. You got it right it is STREAMING  and I chetan Saxena  welcome you to be a part of my this journey and how I achieved it

what is DLNA ?

Digital home entertainment has come a long way in a fairly short time, and it's now easy to stream music, video and other media around the house without any hassle.

Technologies such as DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) are a big part of that'

The Digital Living Network Alliance is a non-profit trade organisation, and it was started by Sony way back in 2003. The DLNA defines standards that enable devices to share stuff - photos, video, music - with each other, and it has more than 200 members responsible for more than 9,000 different DLNA devices.

DLNA is designed to act as a bridge between your various bits of kit, so you can watch a film from your PC on your big-screen TV, play an MP3 from your smartphone on your stereo, or send shots from the family photo album to your wireless printer via your tablet. Think of it as a kind of home cloud: it shouldn't matter where your media is or what device you're currently holding; with DLNA, whatever you want should come to wherever you are and whatever you're using.

As you might expect, DLNA hardware is designed to work on a home network. It doesn't matter whether that network is wired or wireless, although with Wi-Fi you'll need to ensure that your network has sufficient bandwidth for what you want to do. We'd recommend 802.11n Wi-Fi for serious home sharing.

DLNA-compatible devices use UPnP to communicate, and there are three classes of DLNA devices: Home Network Devices, Mobile Handheld Devices and Home Infrastructure Devices. The first category encompasses media servers, AV receivers, TVs, consoles and tablets; the second category includes smartphones and media tablets; and the third category covers routers and hubs.

Is your device DLNA certified?

DLNA Certified devices have been tested to ensure that they'll play nicely with other DLNA devices. Non-certified devices can be made DLNA compatible with software, so for example PCs can be DLNA servers if they're running version 11 or later of Windows Media Player.

To know more visit : https://www.dlna.org/

Or to check if your device is DLNA certified visit : https://spirespark.com/dlna/products/

To see DLNA guidelines and download the visit : https://spirespark.com/dlna/guidelines/

As they tell you a lot about DLNA architecture in detail. 

MY NAS Drive DLNA certification

What is NAS?

Network-attached storage (NAS) is a file-level computer data storage server connected to a computer network providing data access to a heterogeneous group of clients. NAS is specialized for serving files either by its hardware, software, or configuration. It is often manufactured as a computer appliance – a purpose-built specialized computer.

You all know about Ethernet and lan wan man and routers and gateways. So we will not speak about it.

Home network (HAN)

A home network or home area network (HAN) is a type of local area network with the purpose to facilitate communication among digital devices present inside or within the close vicinity of a home.

Or

A home network or home area network is a type of computer network that facilitates communication among devices within the close vicinity of a home. Devices capable of participating in this network, for example, smart devices such as network printers and handheld mobile computers, often gain enhanced emergent capabilities through their ability to interact. These additional capabilities can be used to increase the quality of life inside the home in a variety of ways, such as automation of repetitious tasks, increased personal productivity, enhanced home security, and easier access to entertainment.

An example of a simple home network (c) wikipedia.org

What do we require to set them up !

1) NAS drive  any TB and any manufacture .

I Choose WD 1 TB

I choose WD for price factor and considering there popularity in the market . I got mine from  a local Reliance Digital Store  shelf @ Vashi for 4K with 3 yrs warranty.

Only drawback unlike new WD disks has no  USB Expansion port at back. see the pic below :

2) Router  (N or AC ) Series pictured below (DGN2200v4  N300) & (Archer C20i AC 750)

I chose Archer C20i again as it has 3 internal antennae of  2 Db X 2 and 5 Db X 1 and is an AC architecture and my laptop and phone and tabs are AC compliant and I got it for 1950 IN only again from tanish WiFi Technologies at Dream Mall @ Bhandup.

 

3) Smart TV Box : I use the one from iREVO as it is more stable and gives me live broadcast an streams my fav shows over the cloud via neat TV interface and is DLNA compliant  and runs on android 4.4.2 (in.irevomm.com). See the pics below of two models  with and without antenna choose what fits your budget.

They feature media streaming options with media servers built in to them like xbmc , kodi & Ehome media centre.

4) Software's 
    a) WD MY Cloud software for windows 10 downlodable from :-
         http://setup.wd2go.com/?mod=download&device=mc.
    b) Mediahouse UPnP/DLNA  (android) from play store.
    c) ESexplorer (android) from play store.

I used  WD MY Cloud software for windows 10 for uploading contents from my pc like audio , video and images to my NAS drive.  Mediahouse UPnP/DLNA  as it can scan most of NAS drive on my home network  and stream from them seamlessly and comes in free and paid versions. ESexplorer for FTP purposes and copying contents for offline viewing or for installing .APK files on the box.

How do we connect to them?

1) Connect your NAS drive to your modem with lan cable as shone below :

And now power up modem .  And you will see a lan (a monitor symbol) light glow on your modem. and then run setup from the WD cd to setup your NAS Drive and configure it.  On Web control panel  enable Media Streaming server which could be  DLNA or Twonky media. In my case it was Twonky media. How to enable? see the pic below :

Once you are done then use WD MY Cloud software to upload your fav media in HD format like Videos or Movies, Music or Images, and .APK file for installation.

On your smart TV box install  Mediahouse UPnP/DLNA  for streaming from DLNA NAS (if your box candetect your NAS drive on your network) and ESexplorer  to add FTP Capabilities to your box and to copy contents to box for offline viewing and to use it as an file explorer it your box does not have one.

Configure Mediahouse UPnP/DLNA  as shone in below pics and you are done :

Or

And then wait for your media to appear and then select browse as in pic below :

And you can see your contents ready to be played on your TV.

                         Playing one of my favourite song  on my Videocon TV With the app.

For EsExplorer go to lan tab and select scan and select your NAS drive and you are Good To Go.

EsExplorer running  on my Videocon full HD TV.

A very useful tool which I always use on my tablets phones and now on my media box has emerged as a lifesaver for my home network. KUDOS ES.

And We are done but if you have Ehome Media Centre built in like in my case then: 

1)  Make Shure your router supports UPnP and SMB and are enabled on your router or streaming wont work as drive wont visible at all.

2) Run ehome app and as shone in above image select media player.

3) Then wait for it show your drive as it takes 15 to 20 seconds and then click on your drive and happily browse our contents and play them on your TV.

 How to use DLNA via windows PC?

1.       Connect both your iRevo device and your Windows PC to the same wi-fi network.

2.       Go to My Computer ? CLICK ON homegroup ? Create a homegroup ? Click on Ok.

3.       Go to Control panel ? Network and Internet ? Homegroup ? Advanced sharing settings ?        All Networks ? Turn off password protected sharing.

4.       ADD files to your homegroup folders (namely images , pictures ,videos etc)

5.       On your iREVO smart pc go to ? Local media (bottom bar ) ? Click on DLNA ?                  Coose your homegroup server ? you can now view the files.

To create a streaming server via your router :

visit :

1)  http://www.tp-link.com/us/faq-340.html

2)  http://www.tp-link.com/us/faq-682.html

or your router manufacturers page but see to it that your at least  have  a USB 2.0 or 3.0 or both like in high end routers from tp-link or Dlink Etc...

I used a 16Gb Sandisk connected to my modem and using the links below to configure my router was able to stream but guess what Ehome media centre showed my shares and was able to stream them without any error or buffering.

Will be back again with some other topic or reviews of some new device or software. Till that time

            H  A  P  P  Y    S  T  R  E  A  M  I  N  G .

TP-LINK wireless router setup tips

System Requirements

• Broadband Internet Access Service (DSL/Cable/Ethernet)
• One DSL/Cable modem that has an RJ45 connector
• Each PC in the LAN needs a working Ethernet Adapter and an Ethernet cable
• TCP/IP protocol must be installed on each PC
• Web browser, such as Internet Explorer, Chrome or Firefox

Installation Environment Requirements

• Do not place in direct sunlight or near a heater or heating vent
• Do not cluttered or crowded. There should be at least 2 inches (5 cm) of clear space on all sides of the router
• Well ventilated (especially if it is in a closet)
• Operating temperature: 0C~40C (32F~104F)
• Operating Humidity: 10%~90%RH, Non-condensing

Wireless Installation Considerations

1. Position your wireless devices and avoid any barrier such as wall and ceiling to keep the number of barriers between the TP-LINK router and other wireless devices to a minimum, because each wall or ceiling can reduce your wireless adapter's range from 3-90 feet (1-30 meters).
2. Position wireless devices so that the signal will travel straight through a wall or ceiling along the horizontal line instead of at an angle for reducing signal attenuation.
3. Materials and objects such as glass, steel, metal, walls with insulation, water (fish tanks), mirrors, file cabinets, brick and concrete will degrade your wireless signal. But materials and objects have the different effect for wireless signal. For example a solid metal door or aluminium studs may have a negative effect on signal range, so please position wireless device to make the signal passes through dry wall or open doorway.
4. Keep your product away (at least 1-2 meters) from electrical devices or appliances that generate RF noise. And if you are using 2.4GHz cordless phone or other wireless devices such as ceiling fans, lights, video and home security systems, your wireless connection may drop completely. Make sure your 2.4GHz phone base is as far away from your wireless devices as possible. The base transmits a signal even if the phone is not in use.

Before you begin to install

• Make sure your computer can connect to the Internet through your broadband service successfully. If there is any problem, please contact your ISP.
• Please configure the router with the computer that was last connected directly to your modem.
• You can only use the Ethernet port on your modem. If you were using the USB connection before using the router, then you must turn off your modem, disconnect the USB cable and connect an Ethernet cable to the Internet port on the router, and then turn the modem back on. In some cases, you may need to call your ISP to change connection types (USB to Ethernet).
• If you have DSL broadband service and are connecting via PPPoE, make sure you disable or uninstall any PPPoE software such as WinPoet, Broadjump, or Enternet 300 from your computer, or else you will not be able to connect to the Internet. Some ISPs also provide similar PPPoE software.
• Please follow the Quick Installation Guide and User Guide to install and configure your TP-LINK Router.

REVIEW

TP-LINK today announced the TP-LINK Archer C20i - AC750 Simultaneous Dual-Band Broadband Wireless AC Router - geared for budget-minded students and consumers, seeking an attractively priced router, without sacrificing performance. At a suggested list price of $59.99 (CAD), the Archer C20i is the category leader for price-performance in the entry-level AC wireless category, and comes with a long two-year warranty.

The Archer C20i supports the 802.11ac standard, offering higher throughput and longer range than previous generation routers, and is backward compatible with 802.11n devices, including laptops, smartphones and tablets.

Premium Features, Including USB Port

The Archer C20i boasts a new contemporary design that nicely blends in with other consumer electronic devices in a room; advanced encryption (WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK) against security threats; and includes a highly coveted USB port, a rarity in the entry-level AC wireless category, for sharing printers, files, and media with different devices on a local home network, or remotely via a FTP server.

With 433Mbps wireless speeds over the crystal clear 5GHz band and 300Mbps over the 2.4GHz band, the Archer C20i offers the flexibility of two dedicated networks and ensures the highest levels of wireless performance. Additionally, high-quality connections can be maintained even when multiple devices are in use.

Simple tasks such as sending e-mails or web browsing can be handled by the 2.4GHz band while bandwidth intensive tasks such as online gaming, HD video streaming, and video chatting can be handled by the 5GHz band - all at the same time.

Set up of the Archer C20i is easy with the included resource CD: a configuration utility can help users complete the entire software installation, including wireless network settings in just a few minutes.

Stable Omnidirectional Signal and Superior Coverage
The Archer C20i features premium antenna technology: 3 internal high-quality antennas deliver not only stable signals in every direction, but also higher speeds across greater distances. This provides users with superior omnidirectional wireless range and reliability.

Highlights

·    Supports 802.11ac standard: the next generation of Wi-Fi

·    Simultaneous 2.4GHz 300Mbps and 5GHz 433Mbps connections for 733Mbps of total available bandwidth

·    Stable omnidirectional signal and superior wireless coverage

·    USB port: share a printer locally and files & media with networked devices or remotely via FTP server

·    Guest Network Access provides secure Wi-Fi access for guests sharing a network

·    Parental Controls allow parents to establish restricted access policies for children

·    IP-based Bandwidth Control makes it easier to manage the bandwidth of devices connected to the router

·    SPI and NAT firewall protects end-user devices from potential Internet attacks

·    WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK encryption provides user networks with active defense against security threats

·    IPv6 supported, meeting the demands for the next generation of the Internet

"Students and consumers will appreciate the great value and performance of the new Archer C20i,'' says Mark Macaulay, director of sales for TP-LINK Canada. "The new contemporary look of the Archer C20i is exciting and reflects the added emphasis in design that TP-LINK is now taking."

Macaulay adds, "The Archer C20i supports the 802.11ac standard for better wireless coverage and reliability than previous generation routers. Backward compatibility ensures all older 802.11n devices are fully supported."

How to improve my wireless speed or range?

Overview

To improve the wireless speed or range, it is highly recommend to work on the following common solutions:

• Choosing the best locations
• Optimising configuration of the device
• Upgrade the equipment

Symptom

Weak wireless signal showed, low wireless speed or range.

Cause

The factors most frequently affecting the wireless signal:

1. Intrinsic factors

Transmission Distance: Regarding on the wireless device particularly working on 5GHz band, it will be more sensitive to the obstacle. Though there will be more clear channels than those of 2.4GHz bands, the wireless signal will be reduced significantly and transmit in shorter range due to higher frequency.
Antenna: Omni-directional antennas and directional antennas. Omni-directional antennas are resembled in our home products like wireless router or wireless ADSL2+ Modem Routers, they radiate horizontally all around, but are weaker upward or downward as the picture shows.

While a directional antennas radiate strongly in a particular direction which are usually used for high power outdoor products. The gain of a directional antenna increases, also with the coverage distance, but the effective coverage angle decreases. Generally, the higher gain value of an antenna, the better directional ability will be.

For directional antennas, the lobes are pushed in a certain direction and little energy is there on the back side of the antenna. Please refer the picture below.

This phenomenon will be more significant once you deploy the High-Gain antenna, so we recommend that to confirm precise on horizon direction otherwise there be unexpected dramatic signal loss.

Wireless Communication Performance: The higher performance transmission rates, the better ability.

2. Extrinsic factors

• Physical Barriers, such as wall or clapboard and so on;
• Other similar devices and other sources such as microwave ovens, cordless phones or other technologies that use the same band as Bluetooth or security devices.
• There are more than one AP or wireless routers working in the same Channel.
• The location where an AP or wireless router is placed. Do your better to place the device at a higher location to reduce the barrier's countercheck.

Solution

Here are some solutions to improve the weak wireless signal as the reference, some problems caused by the inherent property of wireless connection.

Choosing the best locations

1. Antennas should be positioned for best location and direction

• Deploy the antenna in good location and correct angle, and also make sure your wireless client devices are in the coverage;
• For multi-story buildings wireless coverage, we recommend to placing antennas at 45 degrees (diagonally) or 0 degrees (straight out parallel to the floor) which will be more effective. Since antennas always transmit weakly at the base, do not place your wireless client device at the bottom of TP-LINK wireless router or access point.

Please check the following picture as reference and you can find easily that A point is recommend while B or C is in not good location.

2. Try best to avoid the extrinsic interference

• >Avoiding the physical interference in the wireless coverage, each wall or ceiling will have a negative effect on wireless radio particularly the ones built by solid metal material;
• Keep your device away from various electromagnetic noise sources that generate RF noise, like microwaves, Monitors, electric motors, copying and fax machines, etc.

Optimise configuration of the device

For TP-LINK wireless products, we recommend to do corresponding settings to avoid the interference from other networking and radio frequency equipment.
First, please log into the product and you can refer to this link as guidance. Here we take TL-WR1043ND user interface as an example and then please go to Wireless->Wireless settings and change the channel settings, the default value is Auto and here we recommend select 1, 6 or 11 if you suffer high wireless interference.

For 802.11b and g, there are 14 channels designated in the 2.4 GHz range and three non-overlapping channels recommended: 1, 6 and 11 (1, 7 and 13 in part European region, please obey your local regulations or laws).

Sometimes the "well-known" channels will be also crowded and we recommend to select the appropriate one adjusted to your local environment.

Upgrade the equipment

• If you want to have a big improvement immediately and boost the wireless throughput, you can also choose to upgrade a combination of antennas or other wireless equipment to enhance the wireless transmission;
• If you are in a congestion wireless environment, the wired connection can be taken into consideration and the TP-LINK Powerline equipment is a good alternative.

TP-LINK C20i

A warm welcome to all. Today we will review tp-link archer c20i.

Looks Tall Wall design with glossy finish but finger print magnet. Feature wise it is same as its sibling Archer C20 with only 3 difference 1) Design, 2) Tri 5 dB inbuilt antennae, 3) Ethernet ports at back and USB on right with power, wps & Wi-Fi buttons. Design wise it easily blends with your stuff in your room giving giving a first time looker a WoW look. It has 3 5dB antennae for stable omnidirectional signal and super coverage  as in the pic below :-

(c) tp-link.in

With 3 antennas combined with higher quality antenna technology, you can experience excellent wireless performance with stable signal in every direction .

The TP-LINK Archer C20i AC750 Simultaneous Dual-Band Wireless-AC Broadband Router comes with the next generation Wi-Fi standard – 802.11ac, backward compatible with 802.11n and 3 times faster than wireless N speeds. With higher power efficiency and robust security, 802.11ac is the perfect way to accelerate a home multimedia network and solve congestion that multiple devices may cause. The TP-LINK Archer C20i also features a USB port to share a printer locally, files and media with networked devices or remotely via FTP server.

 (c) tp-link.in

733Mbps Dual Band Connections for Lag-Free Work and Entertainment

With 433Mbps wireless speeds over the crystal clear 5GHz band and 300Mbps over the 2.4GHz band, Archer C20i offers you the flexibility of two dedicated networks and ensures amazing wireless performance. Simple tasks such as sending e-mails or web browsing can be handled by the 2.4GHz band while bandwidth intensive tasks like online gaming or HD video streaming can be processed by the 5GHz band – all at the same time.

 (c) tp-link.in

802.11ac - The Next Generation of Wi-Fi

Key Features

• Wireless and Wired Performance
• Supports 802.11ac - the next generation of Wi-Fi, compatible with 802.11n
• Simultaneous 2.4GHz 300Mbps and 5GHz 433Mbps connections for 733Mbps of total available bandwidth
• Stable omnidirectional signal and superior wireless coverage
• USB port - share a printer locally and files & media with networked devices or remotely via FTP server
• Control and Security
• Guest Network Access provides secure Wi-Fi access for guests sharing your home or office network
• Parental Controls allow parents or administrators to establish restricted access policies for children or staff
• IP-based Bandwidth Control makes it easier for you to manage the bandwidth of devices connected to the router
• SPI and NAT firewall protects end-user devices from potential attacks from the Internet
• WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK encryptions provide user networks with active defence against security threats
• Ease of Use
• Easy one-touch WPA wireless security encryption with the WPS button
• Wi-Fi On/Off Button allows users to turn their wireless radio on or off
• Easy Setup Assistant with multi-language support provides a quick & hassle free installation process
• Others
• IPv6 supported, meeting the demands for the next generation of the Internet.

Tech Specs As per tp-link.in and the product box :

HARDWARE FEATURES
Interface	4 10/100 LAN ports 1 10/100 WAN port 1 USB 2.0 port
Button	WPS/Reset Button Wireless On/Off Button Power On/Off Button
Antenna	3 internal antennas
External Power Supply	12VDC /1A
Dimensions ( W x D x H )	4.44 x 2.36 x 6.73 in. (113 x 60 x 171mm)

WIRELESS FEATURES
Wireless Standards	IEEE 802.11ac/n/a 5GHz IEEE 802.11b/g/n 2.4GHz
Frequency	2.4GHz and 5GHz
Signal Rate	5GHz: Up to 433Mbps 2.4GHz: Up to 300Mbps
Reception Sensitivity	5GHz 11a 6Mbps: -91dBm, 11a 54Mbps: -74dBm 11ac HT20: -66dBm, 11ac HT40: -64dBm, 11ac HT80: -61dBm, 11n HT20: -71dBm, 11n HT40: -69dBm 2.4GHz 11g 54M: -74dBm 11n HT20: -72dBm, 11n HT40: -69dBm
Transmit Power	CE: <20dBm(2.4GHz) <23dBm(5GHz) FCC: <30dBm
Wireless Functions	Enable/Disable Wireless Radio, WDS Bridge, WMM, Wireless Statistics
Wireless Security	64/128-bit WEP,WPA / WPA2,WPA-PSK/ WPA2-PSK encryption

SOFTWARE FEATURES
Quality of Service	WMM, Bandwidth Control
WAN Type	Dynamic IP/Static IP/PPPoE/ PPTP(Dual Access)/L2TP(Dual Access)/BigPond
Management	Access Control Local Management Remote Management
DHCP	Server, Client, DHCP Client List, Address Reservation
Port Forwarding	Virtual Server, Port Triggering, UPnP, DMZ
Dynamic DNS	DynDns, Comexe, NO-IP
VPN Pass-Through	PPTP, L2TP, IPSec
Access Control	Parental Control, Local Management Control, Host List, Access Schedule, Rule Management
Firewall Security	DoS, SPI Firewall IP Address Filtering/MAC Address Filtering/Domain Filtering IP and MAC Address Binding
Protocols	Supports IPv4 and IPv6
USB Sharing	Support Samba(Storage)/ FTP Server/Media Server/Printer Server
Guest Network	2.4GHz guest network × 1 5GHz guest network × 1

OTHERS
Certification	CE, FCC, RoHS
Package Contents	AC750 Wireless Dual Band Router Archer C20i Power Supply Unit Resource CD Ethernet Cable Quick Installation Guide
System Requirements	Windows 10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP, Mac OS or Linux-based operating system
Environment	Operating Temperature: 0℃~40 ℃ (32 ℉~104℉) Storage Temperature: -40℃~70 ℃ (-40 ℉~158℉) Operating Humidity: 10%~90% non-condensing Storage Humidity: 5%~90% non-condensing

These are my test done by my 2 phones  for both bands in my 2 bhk wit area of 950 sq-feet:

INTEX aqua fish 2.4 Ghz

drawing room -59 dBi

bedroom 1 -55 dBi
bedroom 2 -70 dBi
kitchen -66 dBi
toilet -69 dBi
bathroom -73 dBi using  signal strenth

drawing room -59 dBi
bedroom 1 -65dBi
bedroom 2 -67 dBi
kitchen -68 dBi
toilet -66dBi
bathroom -61 dBi using wifi analyser 

samsung note 4 5Ghz running wifi analytics from netgear

drawing room -47 dBi
bedroom 1 -66 dBi
bedroom 2 -62dBi
kitchen -64 dBi
toilet -80 dBi

bathroom-75 dBi

Speed Test using speedtest.net on my Lenovo g50-80

One could also use html 5  based speed tester like speedof.me for 100% accuracy

My Conclusions :

rugged router as compaired to others in same category in design and companion app with 3 5db antenne. An ideal for a house of 950 sq feet area. A big drawback are its lights in front as they don't blink so difficult to make out connectivity and only 1 lan port light so u cant see what is connected on which port number.

UI :

Good user interface divided in 3 parts with menu on left , functions in middle and help on makes it more intuitive ui  as not seen on some famous brands like Netgear DGN3200V4 used by me previously an N300 router. In my view best ui with help I have ever come across ever. only drawback not having GUI as P5 or ASUSWART interface. But is a great for day to day configs of network and is easy to use even by a newbe. How ever the best part about TP-LINK is router firmware simulation on there tp-link.in website.

PRICE:

Best in the class of budget routers offering usb support for print and media along with DLNA and FTP server. falling between 2150 k to 2500 k in the local market. and ideal replacement for your old routers.

TIPS:

1) check your laptop and mobile adapters before buying your modem.
    eg: Intel dual band wireless-AC3160 : A 1x1 802.11AC Wi-Fi plus Bluetooth adapter that delivers upto 433 Mbps and Intel dual band wireless-AC7620 : A 2x2 802.11AC Wi-Fi plus Bluetooth adapter that delivers upto 867 Mbps.
do check www.intel.com/wireless for more on adapters as buying a P5 for that matter wont make any impact as receving end is a pipe and delivering end is a tunnel like 1300Mbps on Intel dual band wireless-AC3160 where speed is 433 Mbps only .

2) Be budget wise : don't by routers based on its speed as price also increases . like an n300 router will give you max speed of 150 (funda of 10/100 Mbps) so also buying GIGABIT Port router wont help if you have adapters like Intel dual band wireless-AC3160 on your laptop or desktop.

3) Buy only trusted brands don't experiment with new ones.