AV16-51PT laptop has weak WiFi signal away from router but other devices work fine

I live in a household with two other people, meaning that we have three laptops total. My new AV16-51PT laptop struggles to connect to our house WiFi and can only get a stable connection in one room (the room with the router). Meanwhile, my housemates' laptops (and my previous laptop, which I replaced only recently) can connect easily in any room of the house.

Is there something wrong with my new laptop? Are Aspires known to struggle with stable Internet connections? What can I do to fix this? I have already contacted my Internet provider and ensured that the problem is not on my WiFi's end. I also learned that my house's walls are too thick and therefore not conducive to pods and other WiFi extenders. My goal is to get Internet access at my bedroom desk again (without using portable hot spots, which I have also found unreliable).

[Edited the thread to add model name to the title]

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Sharanji

@crmpizza73

Since your old laptop and your housemates' devices work fine throughout the house, the issue is likely specific to your new laptop. Here are some troubleshooting steps to try:

Check WiFi Adapter & Drivers
Open Device Manager press Win + X and select it.
Expand Network adapters, find your WiFi adapter (e.g., Intel, Realtek, MediaTek, or Qualcomm).
Right-click → Update driver → Search automatically.
If no update is found, visit the laptop manufacturer’s website and download the latest WiFi driver manually.
If the issue persists, try uninstalling the driver (right-click → Uninstall) and restarting your laptop to reinstall it.

Change WiFi Band (2.4GHz vs. 5GHz)
If your router broadcasts both 2.4GHz and 5GHz, try switching bands:
5GHz is faster but has shorter range.
2.4GHz is slower but has better range and wall penetration.
Go to Settings → Network & Internet → WiFi → Manage known networks, select your network → Properties, and see if you can prefer one band.
Alternatively, temporarily disable 5GHz in your router settings to force 2.4GHz.

Adjust WiFi Power Settings
Windows sometimes limits WiFi power to save battery:
Open Device Manager → Network adapters → Right-click your WiFi adapter → Properties → Power Management.
Uncheck "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power".
Press Win + R, type powercfg.cpl, and set to High Performance mode.

Reset Network Settings
Go to Settings → Network & Internet → Status → Network reset.
This will reinstall network adapters and reset settings you’ll need to reconnect to WiFi afterward.

Test with a USB WiFi Adapter Last Resort
If the internal WiFi card is faulty, a USB WiFi adapter like TP-Link or Netgear models can bypass the issue.

crmpizza73

Thank you so much for the fast and thorough response! I checked the WiFi Adapters and Drivers when I was on the phone with an Acer representative last week, and it doesn't seem to have fixed anything.

The WiFi band idea seems more promising, as I haven't heard of it before. Yet I don't see any way to change my home WiFi's band, and the number listed as "Network band (channel)" is 6 GHz. Is that something that I should look into further? But if there's no way to toggle it to a different number, won't all the laptops in my house be using 6 GHz without issue?

I adjusted the WiFi settings and unchecked "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power," so we will see if that makes a difference. In certain rooms of the house, I can connect to the WiFi, but it won't stay reliably connected. In other rooms of the house, I cannot connect at all. Maybe this will help the former but not the latter?

I'm not sure I understand how to set my computer to High Performance mode. The only power plans I see available are Balanced and Acer. My laptop is currently set to Acer.

I just performed a Network Reset, reconnected to my house WiFi, and moved to my bedroom desk. The WiFi connection dropped from four bars to one as I did so, but I was able to pull up this page, albeit slowly. Before I could post this comment, however, the connection dropped altogether, and my laptop was unable to reconnect. I am now back in the same room as the router, so I have to conclude that the reset didn't solve the problem. This is strange, because I recently moved my Internet router much closer to my bedroom, so it really isn't that far away. I guess the walls are the main problem?

Lastly, I've never heard of USB WiFi Adapters before, but they sound promising! You plug it into your computer and it keeps you linked more directly ad stably to the house WiFi? Is there any sort of range issue? I'm not planning on taking the WiFi Adapters out of the house or anything so dramatic, but I'm worried that it will run into the same issue as the WiFi pods/extenders that I've tried already which, for some reason, couldn't connect to my router, even though they were well within the 25 foot range.

Again, thank you so much for the help! I still have no clue what's causing this issue. Is it possible that the laptop itself is faulty? Maybe it has something to do with this model or its software.

Sharanji

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1337269#Comment_1337269

The 6 GHz band in WiFi 6E is faster but not all devices support it. Your housemates' laptops may switch bands (2.4/5/6 GHz). If yours only supports 6 GHz, it might face connectivity limits. Check if your router supports multiple bands (e.g., 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz alongside 6 GHz). If it does, you can log into your router’s admin panel (via its IP address—typically something like 192.168.0.1) and enable additional bands. This might improve compatibility across devices. Confirm if your new laptop supports other bands (e.g., 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz) or is locked to 6 GHz. You can find this information in your WiFi adapter specifications. Some laptops allow you to manually select a preferred band. Go to Device Manager > Network Adapters > WiFi Properties > Advanced Settings and look for a band-selection option.

Power plan : It seems your Acer system uses a custom power plan. To enable High Performance mode or create one: Access Power Options via Win + R, type "control panel. "Check "Show additional plans" for High Performance. If absent, "Create a power plan," select High Performance, name it, and save. Activate the plan and restart your laptop! This should optimize performance and potentially improve your laptop's connectivity. Let me know if you need help with any of the steps!

If your laptop is limited to 6 GHz and this can’t be adjusted, a USB WiFi adapter like TP-Link or Netgear models compatible might be a cost-effective solution. They are mini device and portable, easy to install, and can improve connectivity, especially if your laptop's built-in adapter is limited or faulty. Many adapters support multiple bands like 2.4 GHz and 5 or 6 GHz, ensuring better compatibility with your router. It's a simple yet effective solution for network issues.

Happy to help!

Axxo

A weak Wi-Fi signal on your AV16-51PT laptop, while other devices are fine, might be due to a few factors. It could be the laptop's Wi-Fi card having issues, interference, or simply the distance from the router.
Here's a breakdown of potential causes and solutions:

Laptop-Specific Issues:
Wi-Fi Card/Antenna:
Your laptop's Wi-Fi card or antenna might have a problem, causing weaker signal reception, especially when further away from the router.
Driver Problems:
Outdated or corrupted Wi-Fi drivers can affect signal strength. Updating or reinstalling the drivers might help, according to Microsoft Support.
Network Interference:
Interference:
Wireless interference from other devices (e.g., microwaves, Bluetooth devices) can weaken the Wi-Fi signal, notes Microsoft Support.
Router Placement:
The router's location can also influence the signal strength. Moving the router to a central location or away from walls and other interference sources might help, according to Microsoft Support.
Distance and Obstacles:
Distance:
The further you are from the router, the weaker the signal will be, says Asurion.
Obstacles:
Walls and other objects can block or weaken the Wi-Fi signal, explains Microsoft Support.
Troubleshooting Steps:
Restart Devices:
Restart both your laptop and your router. This can often resolve temporary glitches.
Run Network Troubleshooter:
Use the built-in Windows network troubleshooter to diagnose and fix potential issues, as suggested by Dell.
Update/Reinstall Drivers:
Update or reinstall your Wi-Fi adapter drivers, as explained by Microsoft Support.
Check Router Settings:
Ensure your router is broadcasting on the correct frequency band and that you're using the correct Wi-Fi password, according to Microsoft Support.
Move Router or Laptop:
Experiment with router placement or laptop positioning to see if signal strength improves.

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crmpizza73

I tried toggling the band settings, but there were so many options, and the moment I made a couple of changes (adjusting my preference from No Preference to 2.4 GHz and switching from Dual Band to 2.4 GHz) my laptop lost its Internet connection, even though I am currently sitting right next to the router.

I don't understand your instructions about creating a custom power plan. When I go to my Control Panel, I don't see any "Show additional plans" tab.

You say that the USB WiFi adapter might help if my laptop's built-in adapted is limited or faulty. Is this a feature of the Aspire laptops in general or a flaw in my laptop specifically that might necessitate a refund?

crmpizza73

How do I check for the existence laptop-specific issues, like if my computer's WiFi card is inherently flawed?

I don't think the problem is network interference, since no other laptop in my household has this issue. Similarly, I don't think that distance or obstacles are to blame. I have already restarted both my laptop and the router several times and run the network troubleshooter, to no avail. I have also updated and reinstalled the relevant drivers; this is something that an Acer representative walked me through last week. It did not help.

The only thing on this list that seems a likely candidate, after everything I've already tried, is a laptop-specific issue. What can I do to fix that?

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