Wireless loses connection when charger is unplugged

This article applies to Windows Vista, 7 and above.

Problem

When your laptop is not connected to a power source, you experience problems connecting to the internet using your wireless connection. The internet may be slow or keep dropping out. You may also see a message stating “Limited connectivity”.

Cause

This can be caused by connecting to a router or hotspot which does not support the 802.11 power save protocol. Also, if you have a Toshiba laptop that was original purchased around 2009 and with a Realtek wireless card, there may be a bug in the currently installed driver.

Solution

Solution 1

  1. Click the Start button.
  2. Type Power Options and press Enter.
  3. Click Continue if prompted.
  4. Click “Change plan settings” under the power plan that is currently selected.
  5. Click “Change advanced power settings”.
  6. In the Power Options box, click the + next to “Wireless Adapter Settings” to expand it.
  7. Then click the + next to “Power Saving Mode”.
  8. In the list that appears next to On battery, select “Maximum Performance”.
  9. Click OK.

Solution 2 (for Toshiba Laptops)

Find the latest wireless card drivers for your laptop using this link:
http://uk.computers.toshiba-europe.com/innovation/download_drivers_bios.jsp

Solution 3

  1. Click the Start Button.
  2. Type “Device Manager” and press Enter.
  3. Click Continue if prompted.
  4. Click the [+] next to Network adapters.
  5. Right Click on “Realtek RTL8191SE Wireless LAN 802.11n PCI-E NIC” or similar Wireless card.
  6. Click Properties.
  7. Click on the Advanced Tab.
  8. Click on 802.11d.
  9. On the right hand side change the drop down to Enabled.
  10. The  following steps are optional but may help:
    1. Select TX power level.
    2. On the right hand side change the drop down to 100%.
    3. Select Wireless mode.
    4. On the right hand side change the drop down menu to “IEEE 802.11b/g”.
      If you regularly stream music to other computer in your house do not change these options. Although 802.11b/g are more stable protocols, the maximum speed is 54Mbps.
  11. Click OK.

Your network will disconnect momentarily, then reconnect.

36 comments

  9. Thank you! I’ve been struggling with limited WiFi for a while now, and I had no idea there was a low-power adapter mode. Fix works like a charm!

    Reply

  11. Finally someone knows what they are talking about. I have surfed this problem for a month and this is the only fix that really worked – AND IT IS SO EASY! Thank you so much.

    Reply

  13. Solution 1 worked for me.

    Damn…!!! if power saving option turns off the WiFi, they shouldn’t turn it off to save power, or at least give users some indication that the wireless has been switched off to save power, instead of giving a cryptic “Limited Connectivity” message.

    Very poor form on Microsoft…!!!

    Cheers,
    C

    Reply

  27. Thank you! my wireless was fixed with Sol1 but LAN Ethernet still behaves same network reconnects while power plugin/unplugging.
    Any suggestion would be appreciated.

    Reply

    1. disable ‘allow the computer to turn off this device to save power’

      network adapters > right click properties > configure > power management > uncheck the box

      Reply

  29. Great! I have Lenovo and this issue was real pain. I was about to buy a new laptop. Option 1 worked. Thanks a lot.

    Reply

  31. It solved the problem of my Sony laptop which couldn’t use it for a long time because of this issue. Many thanks.

    Reply

  33. Finally after 2 years of hunting and trying a 100 “solutions”.. this one actually worked!! Thanks so much!!

    Reply

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