THE best spot to put your Wi-Fi router to offer the highest internet connectivity speeds has been revealed, according to tech experts.
If slow buffering times are ruining your movie nights, or just one band of Wi-Fi connection is reaching your bedroom upstairs – these tips are for you.
GettyDon’t leave your Wi-Fi router in a corner, in a cupboard under the stairs or behind furniture[/caption]
Experts at broadband provider, Zen Internet, have revealed some top tips for boosting Wi-Fi signal – here’s how to get three bars in every room of the house.
OBJECTS TO AVOID
Firstly, it is best to move your router away from an electronic devices, including those that connect via Bluetooth such as speakers.
If your Wi-Fi router sits in the kitchen, make sure it is away from your microwave or kettle for example.
“Let’s be clear about this; you’re not going to be able to put your router wherever you want”, explained Zen Internet experts.
“It still needs a direct connection to your master socket (or ONT in the case of full fibre), so you might struggle to find its absolute ideal location.
“But there are some things you can do to help the WiFi signal from your router more easily do its thing.”
Nearby objects to avoid can include baby monitors, cordless phones and cameras.
Zen Internet experts continued: “Dealing with this interference can be as simple as – where possible – keeping your router out of the way of these other types of device.”
OPEN SPACE
The Zen tech gurus also suggested placing your router in an open area within the house.
Despite many people wanting to keep theirs hidden away due to messy wires and unaesthetic accessories – a clear space will help the signal travel better.
This means don’t leave your Wi-Fi router in a corner, in a cupboard under the stairs or behind furniture.
BOOSTER DEVICES
While the point of Wi-Fi is a wireless connection, you can actually give your router a helping hand by connecting it to another device.
A computer, PC, TV or gaming console that is wired up can help boost signal if you plug your router into it.
You can do this with an Ethernet cable.
“You’ll be guaranteed the best connection on your network and, crucially, you’ll be freeing up the wireless airwaves so there’s less competition for your wirelessly-connecting devices”, the broadband provider continued.
ADAPTERS
To improve internet connectivity and signal speeds, powerline adaptors can be a solution.
They optimise performance through using the electric wiring in a home to carry broadband signal to each room of the house.
Experts highlighted adaptors are great for boosting Wi-Fi connections in spaces furthest away from the router.
Zen Internet said: “If you set up one of these devices sufficiently far from your router (but still within good signal range), it’ll repeat the signal enabling you to get good connectivity further away.
“But there is a downside to WiFi extenders in that they’ll set up a new wireless network rather than just extending the range of your existing one.”
The experts recommended their own device, EveryRoom, which helps signal travel freely in each room.
BAND STEERING
Different routers run on a range of frequencies – they can connect using a 2.4GHz or a 5GHz frequency.
The devices are able to figure out which of these frequencies is better to use – this is called ‘band steering’.
Your router should have a manual switch on it that will allow you to enable this feature.
“In rare circumstances, you might decide that you’d prefer to control the process manually, and it’s possible to set up two separate networks (one at 2.4GHz, the other at 5GHz),” explained the broadband provider.
“Remember that if you do decide to do this you’ll then need to manually control which network your devices automatically connect to”, they added.
“That means no automatic switching to the ‘best’ frequency for a given location in the home or office.”
AVAILABLE BANDWIDTH
Each router has a certain amount of bandwidth – this is the amount of devices it can support at one time.
If you are downloading movies and TV shows, this will take up a lot of connection and make it harder to run another programme that requires Wi-Fi.
Check what type of connection you have, a 100Mbps will run a lot slower than one of 900Mbps.
UNUSED DEVICES
To improve connection make sure you stop running devices you aren’t using.
Zen Internet added: “And while we’re on the subject of unwanted WiFi use, if you really want to stay in control, you might consider disabling automatic updates on your devices.
“From your phone to your PC, those automatic update downloads might be using a big chunk of your WiFi, often without you even knowing.
“So why not take control of the process and manually download updates when it’s convenient for you?”
For five of the weirdest places to put your Wi-Fi router that will make your internet speed worse, click here.
And, three objects you should never leave near your router have also been revealed.
To find out the best positions to leave a router if it is on the floor, click here – and there are two exceptions that you can’t ignore.
This comes as people are just realising which rooms a Wi-Fi router should never be placed in.