Do You Know What Slows Down Your Internet

We often assume our internet is slow because of the provider, but that’s not always the case. In fact, your home setup, device age, and even your microwave could be affecting your connection.

Here’s what could be slowing things down,  and what you can do about it:

1. Thick Walls, Closed Doors, and Metal

Wi-Fi struggles with physical barriers. The more walls and doors between your device and the router, the weaker the signal becomes. Concrete and brick are especially tough on signals. If your router is locked away in a back corner or under a desk, the signal can drop drastically in other rooms.

Metal is a friend and foe for wifi, when used behind an access point it can boost signals as it reflects the signal. But metal roofs, metal over windows, metal devices in homes can reflect the signal in a negative way and cause the deterioration of the signal.

Water also has impacts on wifi signals, pools, lakes, rivers, etc.

2. Old Devices

Using a five-year-old laptop or an outdated router, these older technologies may not be compatible with newer, faster Wi-Fi standards (like Wi-Fi 5, 6 or 7). Even one old device on the network can slow everything down. 

3. Interference from Electronics

Microwaves, cordless phones, Bluetooth devices, baby monitors,  all these can interfere with your Wi-Fi signal, especially if your router is using the 2.4GHz frequency, which they also use. 

4. Router Placement

The router is like a lightbulb, the farther it is or the more obstacles around it, the dimmer the connection. Hiding it in a cabinet or placing it behind the TV might make your living room look tidy, but it limits the signal. 

5. Too Many Devices

Homes today have more connected devices than ever: phones, smart TVs, tablets, gaming consoles, smart fridges, security systems, and they all use Wi-Fi. Even if they’re not in use, some devices continue to pull data in the background.

6. Weak signals from devices

If a device, like a tablet phone or computer has a weak signal to the access point, it will stress the access point to spend more time to keep and make a connection to that one device vs the rest. Moving closer or adjusting the minimum RSSI threshold can fix this issue.