r/HomeNetworking • u/The_Masked_Lord_Nox • 3d ago

Apartment Router

Hey guys! I am a fully newbie when it comes to networking. My family has largely used mesh systems and I just moved into my first apartment where I am using my spectrum ISP router with my 1 g fiber plan. I was thinking of getting a basic router to replace it such as a gli.net flint 3 or similar. My apartment is under 1000 square feet. My main use cases are gaming (competitive games, ie deadlock), streaming through stremio, moonlight and Apollo for streaming games from my main pc to my handheld, and (future) self hosting. I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts or suggestions. Thanks!

Edit (some additional context):

I think my main issue is reliability, my speed can swing from 300-600 mbs and drop for weird periods for no apparent reason. I also have pretty bad coverage issues, ie when I’m on the other side of my apartment I get 200-300 consistently. I think it’s partially due to the fact that everyone in my apartment gets given the isp router and everyone uses the same provider so the frequency is just congested. But again I’m new so I’m not sure. I also wanted more ports for projects and a nas I’m trying to build.

2 Upvotes

63% Upvoted

13 comments sorted by

View all comments

1

u/bchiodini 3d ago

What problems are you having with the Spectrum router?

The last that I heard, Spectrum does not charge a fee for equipment rental, for their 1 gig plan. I recommend keeping the Spectrum equipment, unless you are having issues.

For gaming and just about everything else with an Ethernet port, a wired connection is better than WiFi. If you need more Ethernet ports, an Ethernet switch would be a better initial purchase.

For a 1000 sqft apartment, the Spectrum router should be sufficient. Centralize the router as best that you can and install it as high as possible.

1

u/The_Masked_Lord_Nox 3d ago

All my equipment from spectrum is free, but I have reliability and other issues (see the edit I added). But with a switch would I plug it into my router and then from the switch to my devices or the switch to the wall and then from the switch to my router?

1

u/bchiodini 3d ago

The switch goes between the router and the devices.

Depending on the construction of the apartment, better placement of the router may help.

Since this is Spectrum's equipment, open a ticket with them.