Is ATT Fiber 1 GB plan worth it if using only for WiFi (no hard wires)

[maverick22]

We are moving into a rental home next week, and the owner of the home has stated he doesn’t want ATT to do any drilling, so I’ll have to be satisfied with the ATT gateway in the garage (or at best, he did drop Ethernet into the kitchen). Either way, my PC and all other devices will have to be connected using WiFi.

Is the ATT 1 gb plan worth it over the 500 mbps plan in this case? I have a Dell PC I bought a year ago, my wife’s MB Pro that is a few months old, LG tv that is from 2017 - OLED, Apple TV 4K from about 3 years ago, Roku and fire sticks from about 3 years ago. Oh, and my daughter’s iPad is about years old. If the max these devices can handle is say, 500 mbps, I guess there’s no need to pay ATT an extra $20 a month for the 1gb.

Any tips as far as equipment, placement of the ATT gateway for the technician, or other suggestions?

Thanks

 

[CoMoMacUser]

No. I have a 100 Mbps plan with a cable provider, and it's plenty fast even when, for example, I'm doing a Zoom or Teams call while my wife is streaming Netflix on an Apple TV box. All of these devices are connected over a mesh Wi-Fi network.

Another provider just extended fiber to my neighborhood and is offering Gig service. The only reason why I would consider it is for the unlimited bucket rather than the extra speed.

Hope that helps.

 

[maverick22]

No. I have a 100 Mbps plan with a cable provider, and it's plenty fast even when, for example, I'm doing a Zoom or Teams call while my wife is streaming Netflix on an Apple TV box. All of these devices are connected over a mesh Wi-Fi network.

Another provider just extended fiber to my neighborhood and is offering Gig service. The only reason why I would consider it is for the unlimited bucket rather than the extra speed.

Hope that helps.

I don’t know anything about mesh networks. I’ll have to look into that. If it involves wiring that will be probably ruled out since it’s a rental home.

 

[CoMoMacUser]

I don’t know anything about mesh networks. I’ll have to look into that. If it involves wiring that will be probably ruled out since it’s a rental home.

My mesh network is just three Google Wi-Fi routers: https://store.google.com/us/product/nest_wifi?hl=en-US No wiring required. Just plug one into your cable/fiber modem and then place the other(s) around your home. They talk to one another to form a mesh that blankets your home with more signals.

Depending on the size of your home, number of stories and building materials, you might need only two of these routers. There are lots of brands out there, but the concept is the same. Costco and other retailers often sell them in three packs.

 

[justashooter]

You actually don't need a high mbps download for 1080P video (High definition). Most of the streaming services state 5mbps is enough, 15-20mbps for 4K. My Roku generally connects at around 25-30mbps (that's the connection speed to my wireless router, not what it is actually using, which is much less). All those devices you list may get used but I highly doubt all will be used at the same time anyhow. A 500mbps service is plenty for your needs. I have a 100mbps service from Comcast, run 2 computers and stream high def to my tv without a problem.

I would get set up and use your devices for a while, check to see how they are running and if you have any connection problems before installing any mesh or network extending devices. You may not need them.

This describes a mesh network, there are many makers:

Linksys | Networking & WiFi Technology

Experience fast, reliable, secure and easy to use WiFi when you level up with connectivity solutions made for home, business, and enterprise from Linksys.

www.linksys.com

 

[Silencio]

Your wife's MacBook Pro should support WiFi 6. Does your Dell? The iPad might (if it's an Air or a Pro). I assume none of your other devices do, and it's a question of whether AT&T's gateway will support WiFi 6 or not, or if you want to invest in a WiFi 6 mesh system instead.

The more devices you have that support WiFi 6, the more justifiable a 1Gb internet connection is.

 

[maverick22]

Thanks for the replies so far! We do 4k streaming daily (Netflix, HBO max, Disney Plus), and at our current place, 50 mbps doesn’t cut it. We often get pixelation and downgrading to HD and sometimes looks like SD. That bothers me!

My Dell is about a year old. I’m not sure if it has WiFi 6 or not.

It will be a 1900 Sq ft, 1 story home.

Glad to know about the mesh stuff.

I did get confirmation that the owner of the home is okay with the gateway being installed in one of the bedrooms (as opposed to having to stay in the garage or on the refrigerator). Now that raises another question, would it be better for the gateway to be in the center of the home (kitchen) and everything be connected wirelessly OR have my main PC plugged in in one of the rooms which is on one side of the house (would devices on opposite side of house struggle with signal)?

Thanks

 

[justashooter]

Closest to the center of the house is best. Although personally I would prefer it not sit on top of a metal box (refrigerator). Maybe a bedroom that is close to the center of the house. But I would put it on the refrigerator before putting it at one end of the home.

 

[maverick22]

Thanks.

However, all of the bedrooms are on the sides (master on one side, 2 smaller rooms on the other side of the house, kitchen in the middle). Maybe the living room would be okay. It’s somewhat in the middle.

 

[velocityg4]

What’s your monthly data usage? Last I looked. There’s a data cap for anything under the 1Gb plan. As for speed. You likely won’t notice the difference. Except on very large uploads and downloads. With an exceptionally good WiFi connection.

 

[maverick22]

I’m not sure about my data usage. I don’t want to have to worry about it though.

I saw online that the 1gb was the only plan with free installation, so my thinking was at least go for that at first, then I can always lower it to 500 if I want.

 

[mk313]

Just for reference, we have 200 MB down/ 10 Up at our house. Both my wife & I work remotely, and her sister lives with us & watches streaming TV quite a bit. When the lockdowns came & my work turned remote full time. After about a month, I upgraded our plan to the 400 down/ 20 up plan & could not tell a difference in our day to day usage. I moved back to the 200/10 plan & have been using that for the last 2 years, with no issues. I think you'd be fine with the 500 plan (unless data caps become an issue as mentioned above).

 

[maverick22]

Just for reference, we have 200 MB down/ 10 Up at our house. Both my wife & I work remotely, and her sister lives with us & watches streaming TV quite a bit. When the lockdowns came & my work turned remote full time. After about a month, I upgraded our plan to the 400 down/ 20 up plan & could not tell a difference in our day to day usage. I moved back to the 200/10 plan & have been using that for the last 2 years, with no issues. I think you'd be fine with the 500 plan (unless data caps become an issue as mentioned above).

Good to know! Thank you!

 

[velocityg4]

I think whatever your current ISP is. You can look at your account history to see your data usage. I'd just look through the last year to find your peak data usage. To plan accordingly.

Unless of course you're going to do some radical change in usage. Such as going with live TV streaming instead or getting live TV through a cable/fiber provider.

 

[Geronimo]

We are moving into a rental home next week, and the owner of the home has stated he doesn’t want ATT to do any drilling, so I’ll have to be satisfied with the ATT gateway in the garage (or at best, he did drop Ethernet into the kitchen). Either way, my PC and all other devices will have to be connected using WiFi.

Is the ATT 1 gb plan worth it over the 500 mbps plan in this case? I have a Dell PC I bought a year ago, my wife’s MB Pro that is a few months old, LG tv that is from 2017 - OLED, Apple TV 4K from about 3 years ago, Roku and fire sticks from about 3 years ago. Oh, and my daughter’s iPad is about years old. If the max these devices can handle is say, 500 mbps, I guess there’s no need to pay ATT an extra $20 a month for the 1gb.

Any tips as far as equipment, placement of the ATT gateway for the technician, or other suggestions?

Thanks

I'm on AT&T Fiber and my advice would be to go with their cheapest plan (300/300). It's plenty fast for anything you're going to be doing. Only advantage of even faster speeds would be if you do a lot of downloading or uploading huge files like big video game installation files or if you work from home and often have to upload/download fat graphics or video files to your employer. But if what you mainly do is stream 4K and HD video, stream music, do live video-chatting, plus surf the web and email, 300/300 is even more than you need. Save yourself the money. Their 1 GB plan does include free HBO Max, but you can buy that separately for $10-15/mo if you want it and you'll save way more than that by going with the 300 Mbps plan. Around here, 300 costs $55/mo vs. 1 GB at $80. Those are regular non-promo contract-free prices with gateway included.

Be sure to sign up online and use promo codes FIBERNOW and SPRING50 for extra AT&T reward cash cards totaling up to $300. And if you click through Rakuten before you sign up, they'll give you another $75 cash back.

 

[elvisimprsntr]

@maverick22

You can give the ATT WiFi Gateway a try, but you may find poor coverage and performance if not centrally located in the home. Personally, I put the ATT Gateway in "passthrough" mode and put my own firewall behind the ATT Gateway, but I don't use ATT VoIP or IPTV service.

Stay away from WiFi repeaters. MESH systems are expensive and unless they have a dedicated back channel, will cut the WiFi performance in half. You will get better performance from a wired backhaul, but since the owner doesn't want any new holes, you might try a pair of Ethernet over Power adapters between the ATT Gateway and a central location, if the home was built post 80's

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www.amazon.com

Then you can add an Ethernet switch to hardwire some of your devices and/or add an access point to provide better WiFi coverage.

EnGenius EWS357AP WiFi 6 AX1800 2x2 Managed Indoor Wireless Access Point 12V/2A Power adapter (EWS357AP-PA-KIT)

EnGenius EWS357AP Wi-Fi 6 (802. 11ax) 2x2 managed indoor wireless access point Features 802.11ax technology, such as OFDMA, MU-MIMO, and spatial reuse, to expand the capabilities of Wi-Fi and also utilizes EnGenius enterprise-level management and AP features

www.amazon.com

 

[maverick22]

Thank you for the above replies!

Apparently I was set up for the old 210 gateway, which I know first hand sucks.

I was talking awhile with customer service, and they said there’s no way to put in the order that I want the 320. After much talking I found out they include the 320 with 2gb plan and up. I went ahead and changed my order to the 2gb plan for now to get the 320 and will lower my plan in a month.

I feel badly doing that, but why not give a new customer newer equipment that is ordering 1gb? My in-laws have had the 210 for a few years, and it sucks. I don’t want to start off with the 210, get poor service, call in, argue about why I’m not happy, and then pay $99 for a tech to come out.

Sorry for the rant. Oh, I can’t remember if I posted it, but the landlord did say I could have a tech install it in a bedroom. Would that be better though, or in a central location like the kitchen or living room? Someone told me the 320 is fine either way (I guess it can send the signal throughout the house just fine). It’s a 1-story, 1900 Sq ft home.

 

[HDFan]

.

Is the ATT 1 gb plan worth it over the 500 mbps plan in this case?

After much talking I found out they include the 320 with 2gb plan and up.

The 2 gb plan is 2 Gbps? If so your limiting factor is going to be your WiFi router. My experience is with Comcast. On a gigabit plan I have seen WiFi speeds ~700 bps right next to the router. Speeds drop fairly quickly the farther you are from the router. My routers are a bit better than the Comcast supplied combo modem/WiFi access point.

You might consider purchasing the modem and then buying your own router. That way you don't have to pay the monthly rental fees and can get the best router for your situation based on maximum distance from router, number of devices supported, number of devices in use, app bandwidth usage, etc.

 

[maverick22]

The 2 gb plan is 2 Gbps? If so your limiting factor is going to be your WiFi router. My experience is with Comcast. On a gigabit plan I have seen WiFi speeds ~700 bps right next to the router. Speeds drop fairly quickly the farther you are from the router. My routers are a bit better than the Comcast supplied combo modem/WiFi access point.

You might consider purchasing the modem and then buying your own router. That way you don't have to pay the monthly rental fees and can get the best router for your situation based on maximum distance from router, number of devices supported, number of devices in use, app bandwidth usage, etc.

Yes, 2gb plan meaning 2 gbps. I “think” with ATT the modem/router are in 1. Someone please correct me if I am wrong. I honestly don’t know enough about networking to configure anything on my own ha.

Thanks for the reply!

 

[BeatCrazy]

Yes, 2gb plan meaning 2 gbps. I “think” with ATT the modem/router are in 1. Someone please correct me if I am wrong. I honestly don’t know enough about networking to configure anything on my own ha.

Thanks for the reply!

The modem/router/ONT converter are all integrated into the BGW-320.

 

[HDFan]

The modem/router/ONT converter are all integrated into the BGW-320.

So you could separate them. Purchase just the modem from an at&t list, then attach your own WiFi router to the modem. Caveat is if you have any issues you have to solve them yourself. With an AT&T product you can just call them.

 

[BeatCrazy]

So you could separate them. Purchase just the modem from an at&t list, then attach your own WiFi router to the modem. Caveat is if you have any issues you have to solve them yourself. With an AT&T product you can just call them.

Correct. Only advisable for tech-savvy folks, with knowledge and patience.

 

[Eso]

Buy CAT cables and run them along the baseboards or ceiling.

 

[Juicy Box]

s the ATT 1 gb plan worth it over the 500 mbps plan in this case?

You didn't talk about usage much, as in what you use your internet for.

Assuming you are talking about 1Gbps, this is overkill for most people, but it is what the ISPs try to upsell to.

They ask questions like, "how many devices do you have that connects to the internet?" or "do you or anyone in your house plays video games?". The questions they ask rarely have anything to do with the bandwidth one needs, but it is usually fits almost anyone to fit into what they say requires 1Gbps+ service.

These type of threads, it is beneficial to list what you and your family does with your internet.

As others have mentioned, a high internet speed alone isn't the factor for what you need, but network equipment is also important. It doesn't necessarily needs to be top of the line, but sometimes ISPs' equipment that they offer is crap.

Based off of your set up, and not being able to do hard wiring, you could probably benefit from looking into a Mesh Wifi system. It is a node system that you can customize to the size and layout of your home. Many of these systems have Ethernet ports built into them allowing you to connect to devices using Ethernet, reducing the Wifi congestion and potentially increasing the speed while reducing latency of your connections.

I have 1Gbps service, and use old 6th Gen AirPort Extreme routers in my home. I have 5 of them, with 4 of them being hard wired. It isn't a mesh system, but kind of a similar set up.

The one that isn't hardwired, I have an iMac connected to it with ethernet, and get over 300Mbps speeds, and in the teens for latency. If you did a similar set up with newer Mesh system, you could probably get as good or better speeds.

 

[patrick0brien]

Hold on a sec, you _might_ make good use of that 1GBps if you have a lot of 500MBps devices all downloading at the same time.

Each takes a slice of the total bandwidth.

If you notice a slowdown when may devices are going, you have an answer.