Does AT&T internet come with WiFi?
From DSL to fiber optic connection, AT&T offers many residential internet options; the DSL package is the most reasonably priced. Many also wonder if the internet service provides WiFi or whether you have to pay for the wireless router independently from AT&T. The short response is that you will have to join your wireless network even though AT&T provides internet services; WiFi is not included. To their internet customers, they do, however, provide WiFi gateways alongside modem/router hardware.
What is WiFi?
First of all, knowing precisely what WiFi is can help to clarify the uncertainty of what AT&T offers and does not provide. One way to define WiFi is as wireless networking technology using radio frequencies to allow internet and network connectivity. WiFi is a technology that allows devices to access the internet and exchange data without a physical plug-in necessary.
A majority of today’s devices like laptops, mobiles, tablets, smart TVs, gaming consoles, and many others support WiFi. When you link yourself to a wireless network, you are linking yourself to a WiFi signal. WiFi is a way of accessing internet service in your home through a wireless router or a gateway. Coffee shops, for instance, are common public places where free public WiFi is also available.
Internet Service Providers and WiFi: What is the Difference?
Let us know that Internet service and WiFi are two distinct concepts, and they can sometimes coexist but are not the same thing. Internet service is provided by AT&T and they also supply the wiring to your home. This wired connection extends the Internet to your home as it is done with electricity or water pipes.
WiFi on the other hand is the wireless connectivity to that internet connection. Wireless networks are created by routers that emit a WiFi signal that devices can then pick up and sync to. Thus, although AT&T provides Internet service and equipment, you require a wireless router or gateway to emit a wireless signal for a WiFi connection.
Are the AT&T Internet Plans Pre-Included with WiFi?
What AT&T offers as internet service does not include WiFi. With that said, based on your choice of plan, AT&T may provide a modem and wireless router gateway device that supports WiFi.
As for the entry-level DSL Internet packages, AT&T often offers only a modem without a router and WiFi. AT&T provides consumers with a wireless gateway device for fiber internet plans and higher tiers of DSL service, which acts as both the modem to connect to AT&T’s network and a wireless router.
So in short – the internet service itself does not come with WiFi enabled. However, with the higher speed packages, they offer a gateway where you can have WiFi right out of the box. However, if you prefer, you are free to use your router instead of the provided one.
Using Your Router
Even when AT&T supplies a WiFi gateway, you can opt to use your router. There are a few reasons you may want to do this: There are a few reasons you may want to do this:
- Get some extended management and configuration options regarding home-based networks.
- Purchase a better router for improved internet connectivity
- For the whole home network coverage use a mesh system.
- Support additional features not implemented in standard gateways
If you use your router, the AT&T-provided gateway/modem will need to be placed into IP Passthrough Mode. This makes the AT&T hardware work like a modem, and it provides the public IP address to your router so that you can broadcast your WiFi and regulate your home network.
Therefore, although AT&T Internet service does not offer WiFi, based on your chosen package, it is possible to receive a gateway device that performs the roles of both modem and wireless router to have your home WiFi up and running swiftly. Understanding the relationship between Internet service and home WiFi makes it easier to explain what AT&T does and doesn’t do.
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