Internet congestion is a term that gets thrown around a lot, but what does it mean? Did you know that high bandwidth issues can slow down your WiFi and wired internet connections? Follow some of our tips to get your home WiFi connection running flawlessly. In order to fix the problem, you must identify what is causing the trouble in the first place. Bandwidth lag can happen for a few different reasons.
One of the biggest drains of bandwidth comes from content streaming. Streaming can affect your WiFi’s performance in a big way. Streaming YouTube videos and video applications like Netflix and Hulu can really eat up your bandwidth. When you are running different programs and also downloading or streaming material, a bottleneck effect can occur, and your connection will slow or become “clogged.” This means that you do not have enough bandwidth to carry the load that you are trying to stream. This will typically result in a weak signal, which in turn causes buffering. Once the bandwidth gets clogged, you must increase the amount of bandwidth in order to transmit additional data.
Streaming Internet radio sites like Pandora and Spotify can also take up a lot of bandwidth. This can especially become an issue if more than one site is open at once. The same goes for downloading videos or movies. High bandwidth may also arise when you ignore your wireless router’s firmware update. In order to keep your router running seamlessly, keep up with its firmware updates. You can check for updates by checking the router’s part number on the manufacturer’s website.
Push notifications from your cell phone can take up some bandwidth, but unless you are in a room with multiple other people and you all receive a push notification at once, it shouldn’t be an issue. If you are looking to conserve all of your bandwidth, simply turn your push notifications off.
If after all this you still have an unsteady connection, don’t despair. There are a few ways to strengthen a weak WiFi signal. Upgrading your router’s antenna is one way to boost your WiFi signal. A weak antenna signal will definitely interrupt your WiFi. Also, make sure your WiFi is secured with a password. When your WiFi is not password-protected others may access your router and that can definitely put a drag on your bandwidth. If you have concealed your wireless router out of sight, try moving it to a more central location and see if that helps to strengthen the signal. If this doesn’t fix the issue, try buying a wireless extender. This type of fix can be pricey, so we recommend this as a last ditch effort.
