Speed Up Your Connectivity With These 11 Wi-Fi Upgrading Tips

The global Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in millions of workers substituting their regular office for a makeshift room at home. Working from home practices can be efficient and cost-effective. However, what happens when working or studying from home, and your Wi-Fi suddenly drops to a snail’s pace? It could result in a missed deadline, botched interview, or failed sales pitch! Therefore, you must have as fast an internet speed as possible, which means having a good connection. So, here are eleven of the best ways to upgrade your Wi-Fi. You’ll be amazed at the ease of number 10. Wi-Fi Upgrading Tips There is some good news on this front, and that is that many internet service providers (ISP) have already increased their internet speeds for lower-income customers, while others have put a suspension on data rates. These measures have reduced the number of bottlenecks in the network as far as your front door. However, everything within your home is your responsibility, and that includes your Wi-Fi connection. So, adopt these eleven methods to upgrade your Wi-Fi speed. Relocate Your Router Placing your router in the closet, out of the way, might be a good idea in terms of keeping things neat and tidy. However, a router located behind a wall or otherwise obstructed can disrupt its signal and reduce coverage around your home. Physically relocating your router can improve your Wi-Fi signal, making a significant difference to the coverage around your home. Try placing your router in a central location or near the spot where you most depend upon good coverage. Remove Unused Devices Reducing the number of devices you have connected to your Wi-Fi will also help its speed. Your Wi-Fi has a limited bandwidth, and every connected device will take up a proportion of that. Disconnect or remove any unused devices, and that will release bandwidth for those devices that need it. A good rule of thumb is to prioritize devices that need the Internet and remove seldom-used smart devices. Create a Password for Your Wi-Fi It might seem like we’re stating the obvious with this tip. However, many people still don’t use a password for their Wi-Fi network. If you fail to secure your network, other people can hop onto your network to stream videos, significantly slowing your Wi-Fi speed. Moreover, you will give potential scammers an increased opportunity to do no good. Ensure you use secure encryption, such as AES, and s strong password. Reboot Your Router As we mentioned in the introduction, you might be surprised at the ease of this tip, but you should give it a go. Regularly rebooting or restarting your router is something that generally works. However, this tip is probably only good for clearing an issue with your router, such as a blocked internet connection. It is unlikely to improve the overall speed of your connection. Although, anything is better than a ‘dead’ internet connection! Get a Wi-Fi Repeater/Extender If adjusting your router settings seems too complicated, or if you live in a larger home, getting a Wi-Fi repeater could be a good solution. These devices are also referred to as extenders, so don’t think you have to buy one of each! Wi-Fi repeaters/extenders are simple to install. Simply plug them into a spare electrical socket, and it will pick up your Wi-Fi signal and retransmit it to extend overall coverage. Utilise Electrical Wiring For Your Wi-Fi You are not restricted to using a standard Wi-Fi router extender. One alternative is to utilize the electrical wiring in your home with a powerline kit. Powerline kits enable digital signals to be transmitted via electrical wiring. These kits are becoming more popular, now being offered by major network infrastructure providers, including TP-Link and Netgear. Try Different Channels or Bands You may not realize it, but your Wi-Fi signal is transmitted over different channels. Although all the devices connected to your router may have been working fine, you might suddenly find that you encounter signal issues. If you have another Wi-Fi network nearby, such as a neighbor’s property, it could interfere with your Wi-Fi signal. That’s because their router may be using the same Wi-Fi channels as yours, causing everything to become congested. If you suspect this to be the case, try switching your router to a different channel. Use the Ethernet Cable Connection We are often so obsessed with Wi-Fi speed that we forget the wired connections are still available. Moreover, connecting to your router via wire is typically preferable to a wireless connection. A significant benefit of a wired connection over wireless is that it is faster. Also, you will remove any signal disruption caused by walls, furniture, or other obstructions. Of course, the downside is you will be limited in the number of devices you can connect to the network. Check Your PC Activity This tip refers explicitly to PCs and not any other devices around your home connected to your Wi-Fi network. If your PC seems sluggish but other networked devices are performing fine, it may be that there are too many programs open and running in the background. These programs will compete for access to your computer’s RAM and processing power. The result is that your PC’s overall performance will slow. To rectify these issues, go into the Task Manager, and check which programs are running. If you notice anything you are not using, close it down to free up resources and speed up your PC’s performance. Upgrade Your Router The price you pay for your router can vary quite considerably, depending on the functionality you want. For instance, if your home is quite large, having a router that you can pair with repeaters might be crucial. However, in a smaller home, you might well need only a standard router. In this case, you’ll benefit from being able to make do with a less expensive purchase. Contact Your ISP If all else fails, and you have tried all the other tips in this guide without success, you should contact your ISP. They may be able to sort out your problem remotely, or they may have to arrange a visit from their technical team. If it is the latter, you may have to wait around your premises to give them access, and you might have an extensive ‘window’ for a visit. Also, during these times, be aware of the threat from Covid-19, and take all necessary steps to stay safe. Conclusion Over the past year or so, many of us have gotten used to working and studying from home. These practices have made us more reliant on a reliable and speedy Wi-Fi connection. If you have a good connection, then that is great. However, hopefully, if you struggle with speed issues now and again, this will improve your situation by following these eleven Wi-Fi upgrading tips.