How Can I Improve My Wireless Connection?

There are a lot of factors that can affect your wireless connection.

1. Location. It is important to have the router in a centralized space so the majority of connecting devices are covered by its reach.

2. Interference. Here are some examples of sources of interference for Wi-Fi signals:

• Microwaves

• Neighbor's or other Access Points within range

• Wireless Speakers

• Fans

• Static electricity

• Fluorescent lights

• Windows

• Walls (type and thickness)

• Multiple devices on the same channel

• Bluetooth devices

• Baby monitors

1. Type of wireless technology. There are many different wireless standards in use today. Below is a breakdown of the various 802.11 WiFi standards and their corresponding maximum speeds:

• 802.11b - 11Mbps (2.4GHz)

• 802.11a - 54Mbps (5 GHz)

• 802.11g - 54Mbps (2.4GHz)

• 802.11n - 600Mbps (2.4GHz and 5 GHz) - 150Mbps typical for network adapters,

• 300Mbps, 450Mbps, and 600Mbps speeds when bonding channels with some routers.

• 802.11ac - 1200+Mbps (5 GHz) - newer standard that uses wider channels, QAM and spatial streams for higher throughput.

• 802.11ax – newer standard that increases throughput in high density environments.

Note: The wireless device and the access point you are connecting to will both have to support the same wireless standard for it to work. For example, an older computer with 802.11b won’t ever have speeds faster than 11Mbps regardless of what it connects to.

1. Shared bandwidth – Other devices connected have the potential to use or share bandwidth. The speed Windstream provides is shared among every device in the house and there is no guarantee that every device will be able to pull full speeds at the same time. You may see a reduction in speed in the event there is any streaming video / music, uploading / downloading files, or gaming, as these activities can require a significant amount of data.