Three tips to improve your internet connection
Internet providers love to over-egg their top speeds when advertising. In the real world, once ethernet wired connections are removed and other factors considered, the achievable speed is nothing like that promised and can leave us a little underwhelmed. The good news is that most variations of fibre broadband are more than adequate for the tasks we need to complete in a residential property, so these easy tips will focus on getting the best out of what we have, specifically around WiFi coverage:
1) Position your router correctly
Although this may be dictated by the position of the wall point try to get your router high from the floor and all sides free from obstruction. Aim for as near to the centre of the room as possible, cables permitting. Log in to your router on your computer or tablet and fix a channel for the router to ensure limited interference from neighbours. Type the IP address (192.168.x.x) into your search bar, enter the user name and password (usually written on the router) and I recommend trying channel ‘1’ as a place to start your tests.
If you can’t find your IP address just google ‘log into (provider) router’ and you’ll find it there.
2) Upgrade firmware
While you are logged in it’s worth checking if there are any updates available for the firmware of your router. This will install additional features and hopefully performance enhancements. Believe it or not manufacturers want you to have the best experience too!
3) Buy more equipment!
Big houses with specific challenges such as layout and thick walls can make WiFi difficult to receive in certain places. There are products that can help such as range extenders or power line networking that use different methods to achieve better coverage. These can be adequate if it’s a small problem, however I strongly recommend the new dawn of ‘Mesh’ networks (Netgear, Linksys and Google have some excellent products) that could transform lacklustre WiFi coverage in your home.
Every house has the capability for excellent WiFi coverage if you are prepared to test and analyse performance and understand the factors that will make the necessary improvements.
Here at Gadget Club these tests and improvements are all part of the service if you are considering switching internet provider or looking for new solutions for your home.
You can learn more by sending me a message and booking your appointment!