In the current global climate where much of the world has switched to working remotely from their home offices, internet speed has become an increasingly significant factor. However, most at-home workers cannot afford to install business-tier internet or have limited access to internet solutions and speeds due to their location.
So, as we continue to become an increasingly work-from-home world, let’s explore various ways that you can boost your home internet speeds while working from home. We’ll discuss techniques and solutions that you can easily act on right now.
1. Update to a New Router or Modem
An internet speed solution that’s as easy as heading to your nearest Staples, Target, Wal-Mart, or Best Buy is to update or test out a new internet router or modem. An out-of-date or malfunctioning router is one of the most common causes of internet slow down or sluggishness. So, it may be worth factoring a new up-to-date router or modem into your work-from-home budget.
However, BEFORE you run out to your local Office Depot, you may want to consider just moving your router’s placement, especially if you mostly work off a wireless wifi connection. On the flip side, moving your desk, home office, or computer setup closer to the router can help immensely as well, keeping your speeds boosted and productive.
2. Keep Yourself Wired In
While working from home has allowed us to travel all over the house and even outside on a lovely New England day while ticking off our daily tasks, the further away from your wifi connection, the slower the wifi will be (as we’ve learned). In fact, plugging an affordable ethernet cable into your desktop or laptop is a surefire to boost your internet connection.
While convenient, wifi can be subject to several problems that will reduce internet speeds such as thick walls, interference from other wireless signals, distance, and other electronic devices. However, plugging your computer directly into your modem or router can circumnavigate these problems entirely. Our advice, be sure that you’re “wired in” whenever you’re working on critical tasks or participating in a video conference.
3. Monitor “Sleeping” Smart Devices
If you find that your internet connection has randomly slowed down significantly, there may be a device soaking up internet bandwidth, causing a sluggish connection. Even when in “sleep mode,” many devices such as mobile phones, tablets, other computers, game consoles, and smart devices remain connected to the internet, using bandwidth.
While connected, many of these devices perform updates while in sleep mode so that the device can be ready to use whenever you get back to it. Game consoles such as Playstation, Xbox, and gaming PCs can automatically download extensive 100+gb updates to various games and applications, drastically reducing internet speeds when this happens. To make sure that this does not occur while you’re in the middle of critical work or calls, be sure to shut off any automatic update options on game systems and devices, or unplug entirely.
4. Schedule Internet Time
One of the easiest ways to boost internet speed when you need it the most is open communication with your family, roommates, or other living partners. Letting the people in your home or apartment know that you’ll be using the internet to complete critical tasks, calls, or video conferences at a specific time allows you to use as much internet bandwidth as necessary.
You can also come with internet access schedules so that everyone receives a fair amount of time on the internet to get their daily tasks or leisure activities done. Essentially, the best way to boost internet speeds is through at-home communication and compromise.
Categorised in: Computer Support, internet issues, remote employees, remote work