It is very rare to find people that are satisfied with the speed of their home or office Wi-Fi. It is not surprising to find out that high ranked internet providers like Optimum, CenturyLink, AT&T T, and Verizon Fios VZ all have consumer ratings of below one star. Even with the technological advancement, internet speed is still something that they haven’t effectively managed.
It is unacceptable that consumers are expected to pay for services that are rendered poorly. Internet experts claim that there are several reasons that can lead to Wi-Fi being slow. Most apartments are crowded, this coupled with other problems interfere with internet signal strength, there is little that ISPs can do to improve the situation.
As an internet consumer though, you can take the following 6 steps to speed up the speed of your internet, thus having good value for your money.
1. Know your internet signal and its strength
The first step is to call your ISP and let them check and analyze your Wi-Fi signal strength. Your home signal level is not only your bandwidth but also the transmission level ofdecibel to your home. It is expected that ISPs repair signal faults in consumers home or office for free. They will therefore find cables that are poorly connected or construction that might disrupt your connection.
Ensure that your bandwidth internet subscription can accommodate the amount of devices using it. You can check your bandwidth level from sites such asSpeedTest. This will allow you to know your bandwidth strength in comparison to how much it costs you. Knowing this will let you know what needs to be done in order to get the internet running at its full capacity.
There are free analytical tools that give you more information about your Wi-Fi signal strength and its interference. EnGenius Technologies, popular Wi-Fi device manufacturers recommend that a household of 5 should have a speed of 50 Mbps for downloads and 5 Mbps for the upload.
2. Securing your connection
This is a move that most internet consumers don’t take note of. Leaving your Wi-Fi unsecured will allow neighbors to stealthily tap into your service. This ultimately leads to your network being The wireless networks come with factory passwords. Do not stick with the preset password. Ensure that you change your network password to something that people cannot guess easily (birthday, phone number, address).
3. Upgrade your router
Your internet bills usually includes theamount spent on theequipment being rented out by the ISPs each month. Purchasing an equipment for personal use can save you lots of money. To deliver the fast speed that you require, go for the 802.11AC wireless router as it delivers a very fast speed.
Experts also believe that routers that have an external antenna are able totransmit powerful signals than those without it.Most consumers though view that antennas a sight to avoid. If you don’t mind the antenna being there, then you can opt in for one. A new and a better hardware will ensure that you get a better speed, however, implementing the entire package is very important for that to happen.
4. Choose the right frequency
two main types of Wi-Fi are available for commercial use, the former and less impressive one with a 2.4 GHz frequency and the latest one with a 5 GHz frequency. To get a more speed, experts advise that you move most of your devices to your5 GHz network. This can be attributed to the fact that there are more channels available on the5 GHz than the 2.4 GHz. The more the channels, the less the crowding and the faster the connections.
This trick is very usefulin towns and cities where networks overlap each other in apartments and compete for connections. There are free tools that can scan your area networks and suggest the least crowded frequency channel. This is sometimes not necessary if you are using modern routers as they automatically pick up the networks with fewer connections.
5. Relocate your router
If you cannot go through the stress of pinpointing an open wireless channel, then getting a better location for your router is a better alternative for you.The best position to place it ahigh altitude. Even though a Wi-Fi with a2.4 GHz is able to penetrate the wall, 5 GHz doesn’t. If the connection being transmitted from your router is to have a high speed, then you have to create a path for it to have access to all of your living spaces.
Note that the lesser the distance between your device and the wireless source, the faster the speed of your internet connection.
6. Adapters and Extenders
There are some people that cannot move their routers for one reason or the other. Purchasing an adapter or extenders for your routers will be a better alternative for you. Both of them however have negative effects as they can divide your internet connection and reduces its bandwidth by up to 60%. The best solution for this is using an access point. This will boost the connection without having any negative effective on the internet.
The access point is used by devices and act as a centre for the network by creating another entry point to the connection. The access point can be connected to your modem using an Ethernet or a wireless router. This reduces dead spot and increases your Wi-Fi speed by 2-5x.
Conclusion
This 6 tips will go a long way in boosting the speed of your Wi-Fi.
