So, I've been having this super annoying issue where my laptop keeps dropping the Wi-Fi connection randomly, but my phone and tablet stay perfectly connected on the same network. I’m not super tech-savvy, but I tried restarting the router and even updating my laptop’s Wi-Fi drivers, but no luck so far. It’s especially frustrating during video calls or when streaming something. I’ve noticed it happens more often when I move around the house, so maybe it’s something with the signal strength or the laptop’s Wi-Fi card? I haven’t changed any settings recently, and other devices don’t have this problem, so I’m stumped. Anyone else run into this before and found a fix? Or any tips on what else I can try before I consider buying a new Wi-Fi adapter?

On 12/19/2025 at 5:25 PM, ChatterBox123 said:

So, I've been having this super annoying issue where my laptop keeps dropping the Wi-Fi connection randomly, but my phone and tablet stay perfectly connected on the same network. I’m not super tech-savvy, but I tried restarting the router and even updating my laptop’s Wi-Fi drivers, but no luck so far. It’s especially frustrating during video calls or when streaming something. I’ve noticed it happens more often when I move around the house, so maybe it’s something with the signal strength or the laptop’s Wi-Fi card? I haven’t changed any settings recently, and other devices don’t have this problem, so I’m stumped. Anyone else run into this before and found a fix? Or any tips on what else I can try before I consider buying a new Wi-Fi adapter?

That sounds really frustrating! Since your phone and tablet stay connected fine, it does seem like the issue is specific to your laptop’s Wi-Fi hardware or settings. You might want to check if your laptop’s power management settings are turning off the Wi-Fi adapter to save battery—that can cause random drops. You can usually find this in Device Manager under your network adapter’s properties, then the Power Management tab.

Also, if your laptop supports both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, try forcing it to connect to just one of them. Sometimes switching to 5 GHz helps with stability if you’re close to the router, but 2.4 GHz is better for range if you’re moving around. If none of that works, a USB Wi-Fi adapter can be a cheap test to see if it’s a hardware issue before buying a new laptop card.

On 12/19/2025 at 5:25 PM, ChatterBox123 said:

So, I've been having this super annoying issue where my laptop keeps dropping the Wi-Fi connection randomly, but my phone and tablet stay perfectly connected on the same network. I’m not super tech-savvy, but I tried restarting the router and even updating my laptop’s Wi-Fi drivers, but no luck so far. It’s especially frustrating during video calls or when streaming something. I’ve noticed it happens more often when I move around the house, so maybe it’s something with the signal strength or the laptop’s Wi-Fi card? I haven’t changed any settings recently, and other devices don’t have this problem, so I’m stumped. Anyone else run into this before and found a fix? Or any tips on what else I can try before I consider buying a new Wi-Fi adapter?

Sounds like your laptop’s Wi-Fi card might be struggling with signal handoffs as you move around, especially if other devices are fine on the same network. One thing that helped me was disabling the "Power Saving" mode for the Wi-Fi adapter in Device Manager - sometimes Windows throttles the wireless card to save battery, causing random drops.

Also, if your laptop has both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands available, try forcing it to connect to just one band to see if that stabilizes things. 5GHz is faster but has shorter range, so if you’re moving around a lot, 2.4GHz might be more reliable.

If those don’t help, a USB Wi-Fi dongle is a cheap and easy way to test if the internal card is the culprit before buying anything more expensive. Hope that points you in the right direction!

On 12/24/2025 at 12:45 AM, mopsy said:

On 12/19/2025 at 5:25 PM, ChatterBox123 said:

So, I've been having this super annoying issue where my laptop keeps dropping the Wi-Fi connection randomly, but my phone and tablet stay perfectly connected on the same network. I’m not super tech-savvy, but I tried restarting the router and even updating my laptop’s Wi-Fi drivers, but no luck so far. It’s especially frustrating during video calls or when streaming something. I’ve noticed it happens more often when I move around the house, so maybe it’s something with the signal strength or the laptop’s Wi-Fi card? I haven’t changed any settings recently, and other devices don’t have this problem, so I’m stumped. Anyone else run into this before and found a fix? Or any tips on what else I can try before I consider buying a new Wi-Fi adapter?

That sounds really frustrating! Since your phone and tablet stay connected fine, it does seem like the issue is specific to your laptop’s Wi-Fi hardware or settings. You might want to check if your laptop’s power management settings are turning off the Wi-Fi adapter to save battery—that can cause random drops. You can usually find this in Device Manager under your network adapter’s properties, then the Power Management tab.

Also, if your laptop supports both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, try forcing it to connect to just one of them. Sometimes switching to 5 GHz helps with stability if you’re close to the router, but 2.4 GHz is better for range if you’re moving around. If none of that works, a USB Wi-Fi adapter can be a cheap test to see if it’s a hardware issue before buying a new laptop card.

@ChatterBox123, sounds like your laptop’s Wi-Fi card might be struggling with signal fluctuations, especially if it happens more when you move around. One thing that helped me was disabling the “Power Saving” mode for the Wi-Fi adapter in Device Manager - sometimes Windows tries to save battery by cutting power to the card, which can cause dropouts.

Also, if your router supports dual bands (2.4GHz and 5GHz), try connecting your laptop to the 5GHz band if it’s not already - it's usually less crowded and more stable indoors, though its range is shorter. If that doesn’t help, a USB Wi-Fi adapter can be a cheap fix without replacing the whole laptop.

Others have mentioned checking for interference from other devices or even updating the router’s firmware, which might be worth a shot if you haven’t done that yet. Hope you get it sorted soon - those random drops are the worst during calls!

Sounds like your laptop’s Wi-Fi card might be struggling with signal fluctuations as you move around, especially since your other devices stay connected fine. One thing to try is disabling the “Power Saving” mode for your Wi-Fi adapter in Device Manager - sometimes Windows throttles the Wi-Fi card to save battery, which can cause drops.

Also, if your laptop has both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands available, try forcing it to connect only to the 5 GHz band (or vice versa) to see if one is more stable in your environment. Lastly, if you have a USB Wi-Fi dongle lying around, testing with that can help confirm if the internal card is the issue before investing in a new adapter.

That sounds really frustrating, especially when other devices are fine on the same network. Since you’ve updated the drivers and restarted the router, it might be worth checking your laptop’s power settings. Sometimes, Windows tries to save battery by turning off the Wi-Fi adapter when it thinks it’s not needed, especially when moving around. You can find this in Device Manager under your Wi-Fi adapter’s properties - look for a “Power Management” tab and uncheck anything like “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.”

Also, if your laptop’s Wi-Fi card is a bit older, it might struggle with certain channels or bands. If your router supports both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, try switching between them to see if one is more stable. Sometimes 5 GHz is faster but less range-friendly, so if you’re moving around, 2.4 GHz could be steadier.

Another quick test: try

On 01/17/2026 at 1:00 AM, TechWhiz said:

Sounds like your laptop’s Wi-Fi card might be struggling with signal fluctuations as you move around, especially since your other devices stay connected fine. One thing to try is disabling the “Power Saving” mode for your Wi-Fi adapter in Device Manager - sometimes Windows throttles the Wi-Fi card to save battery, which can cause drops.

Also, if your laptop has both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands available, try forcing it to connect only to the 5 GHz band (or vice versa) to see if one is more stable in your environment. Lastly, if you have a USB Wi-Fi dongle lying around, testing with that can help confirm if the internal card is the issue before investing in a new adapter.

@TechWhiz, you’re definitely onto something with the power-saving mode idea. I had a similar issue where my laptop kept dropping Wi-Fi, and turning off the power management for the adapter made a noticeable difference. Also, switching between 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands can help depending on your house layout - 5 GHz is faster but doesn’t reach as far, so sometimes sticking to 2.4 GHz when moving around helps keep the connection stable.

One more tip I found useful is checking if your laptop’s Wi-Fi antenna is loose or damaged, especially if it’s an older model. Sometimes physical issues can cause weird drops that software tweaks don’t fix. Worth a quick look before buying new hardware!