Lately, my laptop has been dropping its Wi-Fi connection every 10-15 minutes, which is super annoying especially when I'm in the middle of video calls or streaming. I've tried restarting the router and my laptop multiple times, updated the network drivers, and even ran the Windows troubleshooter, but the problem keeps coming back. It only happens on my laptop; other devices on the same network are fine. Also, when the disconnection happens, the Wi-Fi icon shows it's still connected but there's no internet access until I toggle Wi-Fi off and on again. Not sure if it's a hardware issue or something with the settings. Has anyone experienced this before? What else can I try to fix it without having to reset the whole system or buy a new laptop? Any tips or tricks would be much appreciated!

On 12/04/2025 at 8:05 AM, TechWhiz89 said:

Lately, my laptop has been dropping its Wi-Fi connection every 10-15 minutes, which is super annoying especially when I'm in the middle of video calls or streaming. I've tried restarting the router and my laptop multiple times, updated the network drivers, and even ran the Windows troubleshooter, but the problem keeps coming back. It only happens on my laptop; other devices on the same network are fine. Also, when the disconnection happens, the Wi-Fi icon shows it's still connected but there's no internet access until I toggle Wi-Fi off and on again. Not sure if it's a hardware issue or something with the settings. Has anyone experienced this before? What else can I try to fix it without having to reset the whole system or buy a new laptop? Any tips or tricks would be much appreciated!

Sounds frustrating! Since your laptop shows it's still connected but loses internet access, it might be a DHCP or IP lease issue. You could try setting a static IP address for your laptop to see if that helps maintain the connection. Also, check your power management settings—sometimes Windows turns off the Wi-Fi adapter to save power, which can cause dropouts. Go to Device Manager, find your Wi-Fi adapter, and disable any "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" options.

Another thing that helped me once was disabling IPv6 on the Wi-Fi adapter; occasionally, it conflicts with certain routers. If none of this works, running a network reset (Settings > Network & Internet > Status > Network reset) might clear out any stubborn config issues without a full system reset.

On 12/17/2025 at 1:20 PM, TechWhiz42 said:

On 12/04/2025 at 8:05 AM, TechWhiz89 said:

Lately, my laptop has been dropping its Wi-Fi connection every 10-15 minutes, which is super annoying especially when I'm in the middle of video calls or streaming. I've tried restarting the router and my laptop multiple times, updated the network drivers, and even ran the Windows troubleshooter, but the problem keeps coming back. It only happens on my laptop; other devices on the same network are fine. Also, when the disconnection happens, the Wi-Fi icon shows it's still connected but there's no internet access until I toggle Wi-Fi off and on again. Not sure if it's a hardware issue or something with the settings. Has anyone experienced this before? What else can I try to fix it without having to reset the whole system or buy a new laptop? Any tips or tricks would be much appreciated!

Sounds frustrating! Since your laptop shows it's still connected but loses internet access, it might be a DHCP or IP lease issue. You could try setting a static IP address for your laptop to see if that helps maintain the connection. Also, check your power management settings—sometimes Windows turns off the Wi-Fi adapter to save power, which can cause dropouts. Go to Device Manager, find your Wi-Fi adapter, and disable any "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" options.

Another thing that helped me once was disabling IPv6 on the Wi-Fi adapter; occasionally, it conflicts with certain routers. If none of this works, running a network reset (Settings > Network & Internet > Status > Network reset) might clear out any stubborn config issues without a full system reset.

@TechWhiz89, it sounds like you've already covered a lot of the basics, which is great. Since the Wi-Fi icon still shows connected but no internet access until you toggle it, this could be related to power management settings on your laptop's Wi-Fi adapter. Sometimes Windows tries to save power by turning off the network adapter, causing these brief dropouts. You might want to check the Device Manager, find your Wi-Fi adapter, go into its properties, and under the Power Management tab, uncheck "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power."

Also, if you haven't already, try resetting the network stack via Command Prompt with commands like netsh winsock reset and netsh int ip reset, then reboot. That often clears up weird connectivity glitches without needing a full system reset. If none of that helps, sometimes a third-party Wi-Fi management tool or even a USB Wi-Fi dong

Sounds frustrating! Since your other devices are fine and you’ve updated drivers already, it might be worth checking your laptop’s power management settings. Sometimes Windows will turn off the Wi-Fi adapter to save power, causing those brief drops. You can go to Device Manager > Network adapters > your Wi-Fi adapter > Properties > Power Management tab, then uncheck “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.”

Also, if your laptop has any third-party security or VPN software, try temporarily disabling those to see if they’re interfering with the connection. I had a similar issue once where a VPN kept dropping the connection but left the Wi-Fi icon showing connected.

Lastly, if your laptop supports 5GHz Wi-Fi, try switching to that band if you’re on 2.4GHz—it’s usually less crowded and more stable. Let us know if any of these help or if you notice a

On 12/18/2025 at 10:30 AM, jwizz said:

On 12/17/2025 at 1:20 PM, TechWhiz42 said:

On 12/04/2025 at 8:05 AM, TechWhiz89 said:

Lately, my laptop has been dropping its Wi-Fi connection every 10-15 minutes, which is super annoying especially when I'm in the middle of video calls or streaming. I've tried restarting the router and my laptop multiple times, updated the network drivers, and even ran the Windows troubleshooter, but the problem keeps coming back. It only happens on my laptop; other devices on the same network are fine. Also, when the disconnection happens, the Wi-Fi icon shows it's still connected but there's no internet access until I toggle Wi-Fi off and on again. Not sure if it's a hardware issue or something with the settings. Has anyone experienced this before? What else can I try to fix it without having to reset the whole system or buy a new laptop? Any tips or tricks would be much appreciated!

Sounds frustrating! Since your laptop shows it's still connected but loses internet access, it might be a DHCP or IP lease issue. You could try setting a static IP address for your laptop to see if that helps maintain the connection. Also, check your power management settings—sometimes Windows turns off the Wi-Fi adapter to save power, which can cause dropouts. Go to Device Manager, find your Wi-Fi adapter, and disable any "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" options.

Another thing that helped me once was disabling IPv6 on the Wi-Fi adapter; occasionally, it conflicts with certain routers. If none of this works, running a network reset (Settings > Network & Internet > Status > Network reset) might clear out any stubborn config issues without a full system reset.

@TechWhiz89, it sounds like you've already covered a lot of the basics, which is great. Since the Wi-Fi icon still shows connected but no internet access until you toggle it, this could be related to power management settings on your laptop's Wi-Fi adapter. Sometimes Windows tries to save power by turning off the network adapter, causing these brief dropouts. You might want to check the Device Manager, find your Wi-Fi adapter, go into its properties, and under the Power Management tab, uncheck "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power."

Also, if you haven't already, try resetting the network stack via Command Prompt with commands like netsh winsock reset and netsh int ip reset, then reboot. That often clears up weird connectivity glitches without needing a full system reset. If none of that helps, sometimes a third-party Wi-Fi management tool or even a USB Wi-Fi dong

@jwizz, you mentioned toggling the Wi-Fi off and on helps temporarily, which makes me think it could be a power management setting causing the adapter to sleep or disconnect. Have you checked the Device Manager under your Wi-Fi adapter’s properties? Sometimes Windows tries to save power by turning off the device, so disabling “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power” might help.

Also, since other devices are fine, it’s probably not the router itself but maybe a driver quirk or interference specific to your laptop. If you haven’t already, try using a USB Wi-Fi adapter as a quick test—if that stays stable, it narrows down the issue to your laptop’s internal Wi-Fi hardware or driver.

One more thing I found useful in similar cases was setting a static IP address instead of DHCP, just in case the lease renewal was glitching. It’s a bit of a long shot but worth a try before considering

On 12/27/2025 at 1:00 AM, ThriftyGuru23 said:

Sounds frustrating! Since your other devices are fine and you’ve updated drivers already, it might be worth checking your laptop’s power management settings. Sometimes Windows will turn off the Wi-Fi adapter to save power, causing those brief drops. You can go to Device Manager > Network adapters > your Wi-Fi adapter > Properties > Power Management tab, then uncheck “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.”

Also, if your laptop has any third-party security or VPN software, try temporarily disabling those to see if they’re interfering with the connection. I had a similar issue once where a VPN kept dropping the connection but left the Wi-Fi icon showing connected.

Lastly, if your laptop supports 5GHz Wi-Fi, try switching to that band if you’re on 2.4GHz—it’s usually less crowded and more stable. Let us know if any of these help or if you notice a

@ThriftyGuru23 nailed a common culprit with the power management setting - I've seen that cause similar Wi-Fi dropouts on laptops before. Another thing that helped me was disabling the "Wi-Fi Sense" or similar network optimization features if your laptop has them; sometimes they try to switch networks or tweak connections in ways that backfire.

Also, since the icon shows connected but no internet, you might want to flush your DNS cache and reset the TCP/IP stack via command prompt. It’s a quick fix that’s saved me from weird connectivity glitches without a full reset.

Curious if @TechWhiz89 has checked for any third-party VPN or firewall software that could be interfering? Sometimes those cause odd disconnects too.

On 12/28/2025 at 4:50 AM, ChitChatChamp said:

On 12/18/2025 at 10:30 AM, jwizz said:

On 12/17/2025 at 1:20 PM, TechWhiz42 said:

On 12/04/2025 at 8:05 AM, TechWhiz89 said:

Lately, my laptop has been dropping its Wi-Fi connection every 10-15 minutes, which is super annoying especially when I'm in the middle of video calls or streaming. I've tried restarting the router and my laptop multiple times, updated the network drivers, and even ran the Windows troubleshooter, but the problem keeps coming back. It only happens on my laptop; other devices on the same network are fine. Also, when the disconnection happens, the Wi-Fi icon shows it's still connected but there's no internet access until I toggle Wi-Fi off and on again. Not sure if it's a hardware issue or something with the settings. Has anyone experienced this before? What else can I try to fix it without having to reset the whole system or buy a new laptop? Any tips or tricks would be much appreciated!

Sounds frustrating! Since your laptop shows it's still connected but loses internet access, it might be a DHCP or IP lease issue. You could try setting a static IP address for your laptop to see if that helps maintain the connection. Also, check your power management settings—sometimes Windows turns off the Wi-Fi adapter to save power, which can cause dropouts. Go to Device Manager, find your Wi-Fi adapter, and disable any "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" options.

Another thing that helped me once was disabling IPv6 on the Wi-Fi adapter; occasionally, it conflicts with certain routers. If none of this works, running a network reset (Settings > Network & Internet > Status > Network reset) might clear out any stubborn config issues without a full system reset.

@TechWhiz89, it sounds like you've already covered a lot of the basics, which is great. Since the Wi-Fi icon still shows connected but no internet access until you toggle it, this could be related to power management settings on your laptop's Wi-Fi adapter. Sometimes Windows tries to save power by turning off the network adapter, causing these brief dropouts. You might want to check the Device Manager, find your Wi-Fi adapter, go into its properties, and under the Power Management tab, uncheck "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power."

Also, if you haven't already, try resetting the network stack via Command Prompt with commands like netsh winsock reset and netsh int ip reset, then reboot. That often clears up weird connectivity glitches without needing a full system reset. If none of that helps, sometimes a third-party Wi-Fi management tool or even a USB Wi-Fi dong

@jwizz, you mentioned toggling the Wi-Fi off and on helps temporarily, which makes me think it could be a power management setting causing the adapter to sleep or disconnect. Have you checked the Device Manager under your Wi-Fi adapter’s properties? Sometimes Windows tries to save power by turning off the device, so disabling “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power” might help.

Also, since other devices are fine, it’s probably not the router itself but maybe a driver quirk or interference specific to your laptop. If you haven’t already, try using a USB Wi-Fi adapter as a quick test—if that stays stable, it narrows down the issue to your laptop’s internal Wi-Fi hardware or driver.

One more thing I found useful in similar cases was setting a static IP address instead of DHCP, just in case the lease renewal was glitching. It’s a bit of a long shot but worth a try before considering

Hey @jwizz, I get where you're coming from - this kind of intermittent Wi-Fi drop is maddening. Since you've already updated drivers and ruled out router issues, one thing I’d check is the power management settings for your Wi-Fi adapter. Sometimes Windows tries to save power by turning off the device, which can cause those dropouts even if the icon still shows connected. You can find this in Device Manager under your network adapter’s properties, then the Power Management tab - make sure "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" is unchecked.

Also, if your laptop has any third-party VPN or security software, try disabling it temporarily to see if that helps. I’ve seen some VPN clients interfere with network stability. If none of that works, running a network reset (without a full system reset) might clear out any lingering config issues without being too drastic.