The COVID-19 pandemic has brought every single aspect of our life into our homes. From work, education, socializing, house chores, to pretty much everything else, we have to do everything from the confinements of our home walls. Even though we have got used to the pandemic to a certain extent and the lockdowns have been lifted, many people are still compelled to conduct their everyday routines from within their homes.
In such a situation, our entire lives depend upon a high-speed internet connection. Meetings are being conducted on platforms like Zoom, college classes are being held on the likes of Google Meet and your personal life depends upon platforms like Netflix, Amazon, Facebook, Instagram, and many others.
In such demanding times with respect to connectivity, it is more important than ever to subscribe to the right internet service provider for your homes. Thus, make sure to hop on to BuyTVInternetPhone for the best high-speed internet service providers. The platform offers rural internet options, bundling possibilities, fiber optic connections, and much more in its library. Now, let’s see what else you can do to achieve a faster home network.
Router Placement is Key
For any internet connection to be effective, the first thing you need to do is place the router at an optimum location. Even though a router allows you to connect to the internet wirelessly, the physical location of the router still makes a big difference.
The optimum location varies according to different homes, but the best spot for any router in any home is the center, where all devices can easily connect to it. You may have to manage a way to hide all those cables from sight but the best place for router placement is still the center of your home.
Switch to a Different Band
Your router comes with several different channels or bands for you to connect to. This is because if a different router is using the same channel or band, then the signal on both the routers may get sloppy. So, to prevent your neighbors from slowing down your Wi-Fi, switch to a different channel or band.
You May Be In Need of a Hardware Upgrade
Sometimes, the only remaining solution for improving your Wi-Fi performance is moving on to a new and improved model. Different routers offer different features, making them the right choice depending upon the scenario. The size of the home plays a significant role in choosing the best router for you.
Include a Wi-Fi Extender in the Network
If you have a large house, then your router alone may not be able to cover the entire area. If you have dead zones in certain areas of your home, and you can a few extra bucks, then a Wi-Fi extender is the right option for you.
A Wi-Fi extender is an easy-to-use device that you can plug into any wall socket in your home, from where it carries the original Wi-Fi signal even further. However, the signal carried further from the Wi-Fi extender will not be that strong as the original but it is better than having no signal at all.
The Power of Your Wi-Fi Password
All routers come with a default password and not everyone deems it necessary to change it after installation. But the fact is, changing the default password after installation not only keeps your network secure but also has the potential to boost your Wi-Fi speed.
Just look at it this way, if you keep your default password intact or even worse, keep an open network, people around you may be able to connect to your Wi-Fi and occupy the bandwidth of your network with their streaming and downloading, leaving little or no bandwidth for your own consumption.
Kick the Unnecessary Devices Out
Another factor that contributes to slow speed of your Wi-Fi network is too many connected devices to it at the same time. For this, you need to check all devices that are draining your Wi-Fi and disconnect all others that are not necessary. Another way of going at it would be is connecting some of the devices to the router using an Ethernet cable.
Go Through Your PC
At times, all the devices in your home may be working smoothly but the internet speed may be poor on your PC. For this, you need to dig deeper into your PC and see if any programs in the background are eating up on your Wi-Fi bandwidth. Chances are there may be some auto-updates running in the background without you even knowing. For this certain task, fire up the Task Manager on your PC and check the programs running secretly in the background.
Have You Tried Restarting It?
To quote Roy from The IT Crowd, “Have you tried turning it on and off again?” Sometimes, the simplest option is the solution you need. Simply restarting your router after a 10-second pause can revive your otherwise dead connection.
By doing so, your router is likely to connect to a different channel or band that may be performing better at that time. Still, doing this on a frequent basis is not a permanent solution – if the problem continues after a few attempts, maybe it is time to switch to a better internet service provider.
In a Nutshell
There you have it! These are a few of the most effective ways you can improve the overall performance of your Wi-Fi at home and spend your time browsing, downloading, uploading, streaming, gaming, and pretty much anything you might want to on the internet, without worrying about poor internet speed all the time.
