I’m the sort of person who cannot live without the internet. I work from home, have intense gaming sessions with my buddies, and frequently watch movies with my girlfriend on weekends.
Simply put, a reliable internet connection keeps me sane, and I cannot compromise on it.
Having said that, I had to deal with some severe internet problems some time ago. I used a mobile hotspot to work, but missed out on playing Call of Duty with my friends. Anyway, it took some time for me to learn about what makes an internet connection spotty, and more importantly, how to fix it.
Here, I will share the four most common reasons for a slow connection and how you can fix them.
Low-Speed Internet Plan
A basic, low-speed internet plan should be enough for browsing social media platforms or communicating with loved ones.
However, it wasn’t suitable in my case because I required a high-speed connection for crystal-clear video conferences and to handle bandwidth-heavy work tools. And, not to mention that online gaming and HD streaming also require a top connection.
So, once I realized that my current internet plan wasn’t meant to support my online activities, I started exploring other options. Even though I found several ISPs (Internet Service Providers) in my zip code, I opted for one of the high-speed Spectrum Internet Plans.
I read some really good reviews about it on the internet, plus my gaming buddies also suggested I go for it as it was reliable, affordable, and most importantly, blazing-fast, just as I wanted. And honestly speaking, I haven’t faced any speed-related issues ever since I subscribed to Spectrum.
So, I would also suggest you analyze your online needs and determine if your internet plan is capable of handling them. And in most cases, subscribing to a high-speed internet plan will resolve most of your connectivity issues.
Router Placement
I’m not a very tech-savvy person but knew that a router was an important piece of equipment to deliver the internet. I understood that a router was responsible for transmitting internet signals to the connected devices.
But, finding out how router placement affected the internet speeds was something totally new to me.
Routers should be placed in ideal locations because the internet signals are affected by several factors. Thick walls, heavy furniture, or radio waves from nearby electronic devices such as microwave ovens or baby monitors can affect internet signals.
Internet signals can collide with these objects, causing them to deviate from their path or lose strength and, as a result, affect the Internet speed. So, it’s best to place your router away from these objects to ensure the internet signals have a clear path to your devices.
Router Updates
Your internet connection might start acting up even if you’ve placed your router in an ideal location but haven’t updated it in a while. Like our smartphones or other electronic devices, routers also receive frequent software or firmware updates.
These updates can include security patches, bug fixes, new software, etc., which are essential for its working. And, not installing these updates on your router can make it inefficient, which ultimately affects your internet speeds.
Having said that, updates are automatically installed on some modern routers. However, you can manually check for updates on your router’s app, or by contacting your router’s company. But in any case, always make sure that your router is updated.
Connection Overload
Does your smartphone or other devices always stay connected to the internet? If you’re nodding your head right now, then it can be the primary reason for slow internet speeds. Let me tell you why.
Every internet connection has limited bandwidth, irrespective of how fast it is. The available bandwidth is divided among the connected devices, and as they increase, the bandwidth gets thinner and thinner.
At one stage, there’s no bandwidth left to distribute among new devices, and it only becomes available once you disconnect other devices.
Now, you might wonder if idle devices consume bandwidth, right? Well, they do, because even when your smartphone is idle, you may still be notified about social media activities, like when your friend tags you in a meme or sends a message.
In short, disconnect your idle devices and clear up the clogged bandwidth to other devices or for more important activities.
Here’s one more tip before I wind up.
Sometimes, our internet connectivity is affected because our devices are infected with malware or viruses. Viruses or malware can consume internet bandwidth when they steal and send our data out of the device.
I would suggest you install an anti-virus software as it can protect your device against malware/viruses and keep your data safe.