So recently my laptop started randomly dropping Wi-Fi connections every 10-15 minutes. The weird part is my phone and other devices stay connected just fine on the same network. I've tried updating the network drivers, rebooting the router, and even resetting the laptop's network settings, but no luck.

It’s super frustrating because streaming or video calls just cut out mid-way. I’m running Windows 11 on a Dell XPS if it matters. Also noticed the drops happen more often when the laptop is on battery rather than plugged in.

Has anyone run into this before? Any tweaks or fixes that worked for you? Or maybe a setting I should be looking for? Would love to hear your experiences!

On 01/17/2026 at 9:25 PM, TechieTim said:

So recently my laptop started randomly dropping Wi-Fi connections every 10-15 minutes. The weird part is my phone and other devices stay connected just fine on the same network. I've tried updating the network drivers, rebooting the router, and even resetting the laptop's network settings, but no luck.

It’s super frustrating because streaming or video calls just cut out mid-way. I’m running Windows 11 on a Dell XPS if it matters. Also noticed the drops happen more often when the laptop is on battery rather than plugged in.

Has anyone run into this before? Any tweaks or fixes that worked for you? Or maybe a setting I should be looking for? Would love to hear your experiences!

Sounds like your laptop might be throttling the Wi-Fi adapter to save battery when unplugged. On my Dell XPS with Windows 11, I found that in the Device Manager under the Wi-Fi adapter’s Power Management tab, there’s an option like “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.” Unchecking that helped stop random disconnects for me.

Also, check the advanced power settings in Windows (Control Panel > Power Options > Change plan settings > Change advanced power settings). Under Wireless Adapter Settings, set the power saving mode to “Maximum Performance” for both battery and plugged in. That made a noticeable difference in stability during video calls.

If you haven’t tried that yet, it’s worth a shot before diving into more complex fixes. Sometimes these power-saving features can be a bit overzealous on laptops.

On 01/24/2026 at 12:00 PM, FrugalFinGuru said:

On 01/17/2026 at 9:25 PM, TechieTim said:

So recently my laptop started randomly dropping Wi-Fi connections every 10-15 minutes. The weird part is my phone and other devices stay connected just fine on the same network. I've tried updating the network drivers, rebooting the router, and even resetting the laptop's network settings, but no luck.

It’s super frustrating because streaming or video calls just cut out mid-way. I’m running Windows 11 on a Dell XPS if it matters. Also noticed the drops happen more often when the laptop is on battery rather than plugged in.

Has anyone run into this before? Any tweaks or fixes that worked for you? Or maybe a setting I should be looking for? Would love to hear your experiences!

Sounds like your laptop might be throttling the Wi-Fi adapter to save battery when unplugged. On my Dell XPS with Windows 11, I found that in the Device Manager under the Wi-Fi adapter’s Power Management tab, there’s an option like “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.” Unchecking that helped stop random disconnects for me.

Also, check the advanced power settings in Windows (Control Panel > Power Options > Change plan settings > Change advanced power settings). Under Wireless Adapter Settings, set the power saving mode to “Maximum Performance” for both battery and plugged in. That made a noticeable difference in stability during video calls.

If you haven’t tried that yet, it’s worth a shot before diving into more complex fixes. Sometimes these power-saving features can be a bit overzealous on laptops.

@TechieTim, since you mentioned the drops happen more on battery, it might be worth checking your power management settings for the Wi-Fi adapter. Sometimes Windows will put the network card into a low-power state to save battery, causing those disconnects. You can try disabling any "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" option in Device Manager under your Wi-Fi adapter's properties.

Also, some Dell XPS models have specific power profiles or BIOS updates that address wireless stability issues, so double-check if your BIOS and firmware are fully up to date. If you haven’t already, running the Dell SupportAssist tool might catch something missed.

Others here suggested router channel interference, but since your other devices are fine, it’s probably more local to the laptop. Let us know if tweaking power settings helps or if you spot any patterns with apps running when it disconnects!

On 01/17/2026 at 9:25 PM, TechieTim said:

So recently my laptop started randomly dropping Wi-Fi connections every 10-15 minutes. The weird part is my phone and other devices stay connected just fine on the same network. I've tried updating the network drivers, rebooting the router, and even resetting the laptop's network settings, but no luck.

It’s super frustrating because streaming or video calls just cut out mid-way. I’m running Windows 11 on a Dell XPS if it matters. Also noticed the drops happen more often when the laptop is on battery rather than plugged in.

Has anyone run into this before? Any tweaks or fixes that worked for you? Or maybe a setting I should be looking for? Would love to hear your experiences!

Sounds like your laptop’s power management might be messing with the Wi-Fi when on battery. Windows sometimes throttles the wireless adapter to save juice, which can cause those random drops. Try going into Device Manager, find your Wi-Fi adapter, and under Power Management, uncheck the option that lets the computer turn off the device to save power.

Also, double-check your advanced power plan settings - look for anything related to wireless adapter power saving and set it to maximum performance for both plugged in and battery modes. I had a similar issue on my Dell, and this tweak stopped the drops completely.

On 02/02/2026 at 1:20 AM, GiggleGuru said:

On 01/17/2026 at 9:25 PM, TechieTim said:

So recently my laptop started randomly dropping Wi-Fi connections every 10-15 minutes. The weird part is my phone and other devices stay connected just fine on the same network. I've tried updating the network drivers, rebooting the router, and even resetting the laptop's network settings, but no luck.

It’s super frustrating because streaming or video calls just cut out mid-way. I’m running Windows 11 on a Dell XPS if it matters. Also noticed the drops happen more often when the laptop is on battery rather than plugged in.

Has anyone run into this before? Any tweaks or fixes that worked for you? Or maybe a setting I should be looking for? Would love to hear your experiences!

Sounds like your laptop’s power management might be messing with the Wi-Fi when on battery. Windows sometimes throttles the wireless adapter to save juice, which can cause those random drops. Try going into Device Manager, find your Wi-Fi adapter, and under Power Management, uncheck the option that lets the computer turn off the device to save power.

Also, double-check your advanced power plan settings - look for anything related to wireless adapter power saving and set it to maximum performance for both plugged in and battery modes. I had a similar issue on my Dell, and this tweak stopped the drops completely.

Hey @TechieTim, sounds like a classic power management issue to me, especially since you mentioned the drops happen more when on battery. Windows sometimes throttles the Wi-Fi adapter to save power, which can cause those disconnects. You might want to check your power plan settings and disable any "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" option for your network adapter in Device Manager.

Also, if your Dell XPS has any manufacturer-specific power or network utilities, make sure they’re not overriding Windows settings. I had a similar problem once, and tweaking those power options fixed it for me. Worth a shot before diving into more complex fixes!

On 01/17/2026 at 9:25 PM, TechieTim said:

So recently my laptop started randomly dropping Wi-Fi connections every 10-15 minutes. The weird part is my phone and other devices stay connected just fine on the same network. I've tried updating the network drivers, rebooting the router, and even resetting the laptop's network settings, but no luck.

It’s super frustrating because streaming or video calls just cut out mid-way. I’m running Windows 11 on a Dell XPS if it matters. Also noticed the drops happen more often when the laptop is on battery rather than plugged in.

Has anyone run into this before? Any tweaks or fixes that worked for you? Or maybe a setting I should be looking for? Would love to hear your experiences!

Sounds like a classic case of power management messing with your Wi-Fi adapter. Since you mentioned the drops happen more on battery, check your Device Manager for your network adapter's power settings. Sometimes Windows sets it to "allow the computer to turn off this device to save power," which can cause those exact dropouts. Turning that off has fixed this issue for me on a Dell XPS before.

Also, if your Wi-Fi card has a proprietary utility or Dell-specific software, make sure it’s up to date or try disabling it temporarily to see if it’s interfering. Sometimes those utilities conflict with Windows’ own network management.