wifi connectivity issues with Realtek RTL8188EE Adapter

[TinyRose]

Bravo!  I'm right there with you!  I will never, and I mean NEVER, buy a HP product again! This issue has cost me many hours of frustration and annoyance for a product that is only 2+ years old. 

My Gateway desktop lasted 12 years... yep, 12 YEARS!! 

Good luck with your new purchase! 

[Tokyogreen]

I have recently been experiencing the same problems (after about 2 trouble-free years), and decided that, rather than continue the struggle, I would invest US$5 (including next day delivery) via Amazon Japan to purchase a USB Wifi Adapter, which just plugs into a USB slot. It's very small (almost exactly the same size as the wireless mouse USB thing). There were several options, but I went with a TP-Link 150Mbps Wireless N Nano USB Adapter Model No. TL-WN725N. This cost me a shade over US$5 (Yen 695 at the current exchange rate, including free delivery), and there was an even cheaper one available. Also comes with a 3 year guarantee.

Plugged it in and I was online immediately after entering the password for my wifi network. It came with a disc but I didn't even need to use it to download a driver.

I will continue trying to rectify the problem but at least I can do it online (and without using a landline).

[Tokyogreen]

Sorry, not US$5, but US$6! In the US, I can see them for less than US$8 (also with free shipping). Not a lot to pay to get rid of a headache . . . .

[CockatooLuvr]

PragmaticS (POST #13!)  held THE solution to all my problems.  VIOLA! POOF! Simply solved.....I, Sir have been through HEL* trying to get this Realtek RTL8188EE 802.11 bgn Wi-Fi Adapter connection "thing" fixed.  i hope people with this irritating horrible problem (including support techs!)  find and heed your elegent and simple solution.  You're a genius! Consider yourself patted on the back and taken for a friendly beer.

All my thanks.

[TinyRose]

Hi everyone.  I also  unchecked the default box that "allows the computer to turn off this device (wi fi adapter) to save power".  It worked for a couple of weeks and now I'm back to where I started,... Not connected and no connections available although my Kindle (which I'm on now) and my cellphone can connect to my Wi-Fi without any problems.

I called HP Corporate office and asked to speak to a case manager in light of the fact that many others are having this issue and HP refuses to acknowledge or correct the problem. The case manager was a very nice woman however the best she could do for me is send out a 'recovery media' for about $60.  I told her that if I was going to spend any money, it would be for a differnt laptop - different brand altogether  Apparently they don't care.

Sorry folks, wish I had better news to share.

[TinyRose]

I noticed that the HP Corporate phone number was removed from my previous post.  I guess the moderators don't want HP consumers calling and getting answers.  Isn't that called censorship? Another reason to purchase a different brand.  Lovely HP, just lovely!

[judibug13]

I am having the same trouble ..losing my internet access all the time lately ..twice today ..other person next to me having no trouble ..They do NOT have an HP 😞 

[TinyRose]

Sorry judibug13 but I doubt you'll get any help from HP.  I took the suggestion from a previous post and bought the TP-Link 150Mbps Wireless N Nano USB Adapter Model No. TL-WN725N from Amazon.  I believe it was around $10 but ever since I plugged it in, I'm on Wi-Fi all the time; no dropped connections. 

When I finally get around to buying another laptop, you can be sure it won't be another HP.

Good luck with your Realtek Adapter... it's a REAL pain!

[SplendidOne]

   Realtek RTL8188EE - Problems from new.

I bought an HP Pavilion 14-n055sa fitted with the same WFi module, and it never semed to connect to any WiFi for long, even one a couple of feet away.  When I travelled away, I always had to take a USB WiFi adaptor and 5M of CAT5 to do anything at all.  I use Windows (preinstalled) and Ubuntu in a HDD-DVD caddy .  Ubuntu WiFi reception was the same, and the same for any 'Live' OS's I tended to use.

This was really tedious, so that one day I resolved to find the problem with a few pci-e WiFi adaptors I had lying around.  Nothing seemed to improve and this made me extremely sad. 

Recently I found some spare antennas from an old scrap laptop and connected the leads and was amazed when everything poped into life, with good signal from neighbours around.  So it seemed the antenna was broken, which meant a full disassembly ..

The antennas are small etched pcb's stuck behind the LCD either side of the camera.  When I pulled the antennas off the back of the lid I noticed somthing shining on the adhesive of one pcb.  Attached to the black antenna was a piece of wire approx 4mm, which I don't recognise from anywhere.  This was obviously shorting out the RF signals of the WiFi.

Seemed like sabotage to me ...  But now working just fine, although not as good a signal as the antenna from the old laptop tests.  Ho hum .. I'll just have to live with it ...!

A job done well ...!!  But I'm still not happy that I had to go to this length to fix it.

PS.  Why doesn't Windows work as well or fast as Ubuntu .... ?  I even donate it's so good.

[mhornNJ]

I had same problems described here about 1.5yrs ago when my Hp Pavilion 17 was still under warranty.  Through the Best Buy where it was purchased, I had it sent to the Hp service center in KY.  It came back with a note on the service request that "no issue could be found"  .....YET....... the problem was FIXED!!!!    Hmmm, interesting, no?   I have no idea what the Hp service center did to fix it as they didn't acknowledge the problem, but they did something since we know that simply a ride in a truck from NJ to KY does not solve an issue with a laptop!

The problem had remained 100% fixed for 1.5yrs. Absolutely no internet disconnects for all that time. Then Viola! started happening again at the same rate as before.  Snooping around in device manager, under the Realtek adapter's "EVENTS" tab.  I found that on June 3, 2017 (exactly when the connection problems started again) events listed are:  

Device install requested. 
Device migrated.
Device configured (netrtwlane.inf).
Device started (NTWlanE). 
Device installed (netrtwlane.inf).

Then on June 22, 2017 listed is:
Device service added (RTWlanE). 
Device service added (vwifibus).

Given the fact that this is when my issues started again, I can't help but think that somehow, whatever Hp did to fix the problem was "undone" by these events listed above.

I am thinking if I rollback the adapter, potentially undo the events in June,  it will take me to the configuration where Hp had fixed it (even though they don't admit they did) ???

I looked into System Restore and found that no restore points go back far enough to undo the June changes.