Does anyone know what the maximum distance is for picking up signal from a wireless router? How many feet/metres etc?

 

Depends on the type of antenna, obstructions and interference, and the type of router (802.11b/802.11g etc) - e.g. 100 (indoors) to 400m (open area). You can get extender devices if you need extra range, have thick walls etc.

 

802.11b has done 12 miles or so with some home made kit. I've seen just over a mile with one of these on my laptop, standard router at the other end inside a house.

cantenna

 

How long's a piece of string?

The parents' house is a nightmare; either Biggin Hill airport has installed some bastard-strong radar on the 2.5Ghz band, or one of the neighbours has some shite non-DECT approved cordless handsets which are interfering with the signal; you simply can't run encryption (very bad), and range is less than 8 metres with the best kit.

Down here in Pompey, most folks don't know what cordless phones and wireless are, and I can get up to 40m range on similar kit.

So the short answer is "no-one knows" - experiment with placing the wireless access point in different locations. Stairwells are a good starting point, and make sure it's at least 3 feet off the floor if possible, and away from metal and other electronic doohdads, e.g. cordless phones, microwaves, etc.

/al