Wi-Fi & connectivity

[Stephen625]

What are the differences between the 3930 and the 3960? I have not been able to find out much from an internet search but I think the newer model (3960) does 5GHz wifi, whereas the older model (3930) does not; is this right?

Has the bug with wifi extenders been fixed in the new model? There are lots of posts here about how the 3930 does not "see" wifi extenders.

Is the 3930 not suitable for ethernet connection? It is not mentioned in the table on the roku web site but I wasn't sure if that's because it lacks the functionality or whether it is because they were only listing current models.

Why do roku not offer support for these models? 

I have the 3930 but cannot connect to my wifi extender and it looks like I need to buy a new model to connect via ethernet, I'm thinking of buying "the other make" instead!

[AvsGunnar · Accepted solution]

@Stephen625 

You pretty much got it.

The 3960 is the newest Express HD model.  It is dual band (2.4ghz and 5ghz) and has the ability to connect to the ethernet through a compatible USB-ethernet adapter.  It also received a bump up in storage from 256mb to 512mb and should be faster than its predecessor the 3930.

You cam get an idea of their hardware and specs from this wikipedia entry. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roku

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Since the Roku devices are currently on sale, you may want to consider the Roku Express 4k+ (3941) for $25 over the Roku Express HD (3960) on sale for $18.  The 3941 will come with better hardware and memory specs and also includes a Voice Remote with TV controls.

https://www.roku.com/products/players/compare

https://www.roku.com/products/players

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As for the extender part of your question, it is likely the newer devices will connect easier with the addition of the 5ghz band.  With extenders, there are a few things you have to configure and take into account like dead zones, overlapping zones, etc.  The 3930 should be able to connect to an extender, but may need to setup extender to recognize the 2.4ghz band and use a different SSID name to force connection. (or at least know when it is connected to extender).

Just because an extender is closest to the device doesn't mean it will connect to that access point without a bit of configuration.  Much easier to configure a network with seperated bands (seperate 2,4ghz and 5ghz bands) and extenders than when using a mesh system with pods/extenders.

It can be a hit/miss situation with devices and extenders and may also necessitate moving some equipment around to achieve the desired result.