These days, people use the Internet not only when they are at work, but when they are at home, too. And while most companies do their best to keep the Wi-Fi signal strong within their premises, most home owners simply buy a router – often times, a cheap one! – place it in their living rooms, and then think that they’ve solved the problem for good.
The problem may be partially solved, but the reality is that most home owners lose a lot of their Internet connection speed in comparison with the one that would be available through a wired connection.
The Wi-Fi technology uses radio waves, which spread through the house, going through walls and different materials, objects etc. If the signal is strong enough, it will penetrate the walls; otherwise, your Internet connection speed (and sometimes even access!) will suffer.
Almost any obstacle will interfere with the quality of the Wi-Fi signal, but there are some materials that can literally block it: concrete, metal and stone.
So how do you boost the strength of the Wi-Fi signal in your home? Begin with the element that has caused problems in the first place – the router. Move it as close as possible to the devices that need a strong Internet connection, be them computers, laptops, smartphones, etc.
Ideally, the routers should be placed at a higher level – on a shelf, for example. Try to keep your router away from the floor and move it closer to the ceiling if it is possible.
What other devices can interfere with the Wi-Fi signal? The router should never be placed close to microwave ovens, cordless phones or baby monitors. These devices use a similar frequency with your router’s 2.4 GHz, so they can cause trouble.
One more thing: don’t place the router close to metallic objects, because the Wi-Fi signal is surely going to suffer. The good news is that there are even apps that you can install on your smartphone, and then easily find out which wireless channel works best for your home, having the least amount of interference in the house.
Don’t allow your router to run using old firmware, especially if there have been years since you’ve updated it. Often times, router firmware updates can bring in significant wireless speed improvements.
Any standard router has antennas; if yours doesn’t have one, it’s because it has been incorporated into its case. Actually, most good routers have two or three antennas. Some of them will even incorporate a D suffix in their names; often times, this means that the existing antennas are detachable, so you can replace them with other high gain antennas.
Most routers are shipped with 5dB antennas, but you can buy 9dB antennas, for example, gaining an extra +4dB, which is a hefty +50%! Of course, you can boost the speed of your Wi-Fi connection by moving the existing antennas around. You would need a RP-SMA to U.FL cable to do the job, though.
It may not be that obvious, but most routers need to be reset from time to time. Practical experience shows that in some cases the Wi-Fi signal regains its strength by simply resetting the device. It is a simple tweak, but it’s one that may work wonders, so give it a try when you feel that the Internet connection has slowed down to a crawl.
Finally, your Wi-Fi connection speed may be influenced by the number of connected devices. Maybe your Internet connection is also being used by some of your neighbors, or by other people who have gotten your password. Make sure to know who is using your network. There are several apps like Fing, which can show all the connected devices.
Armed with this information, you should be able to boost the strength of the Wi-Fi signal in your home without spending a lot of money. Good luck!
Once you have decided to launch a new website, the issue of hosting it on a proper server becomes very important. The reason for this is simple: the website is the very first contact that your potential clients make with your business. It is the place where they are able to see exactly what you are selling, and for this reason it needs to run fast and be accessible all the times.
One of the biggest mistakes would be to choose a less reliable or less efficient web hosting company. When this happens, your entire online business will be negatively impacted, the search engine rankings of your site will not improve and you will have maintenance related problems as well.
Most hosting companies make wonderful promises to their potential clients, and it is crucial for them to make these promises feel real. Sometimes these promises are too good to be true, isn’t it?
And while it is true that some of the hosting companies keep most of their promises, you need to be able to verify if their claims are true before starting to invest into a website hosting package.
If you are interested in saving a lot of time (that’s why you are probably reading this article, after all) you only have to look at an indicator: the reputation of the web hosting company. If the company’s reputation is bad and people complain about the quality of service they have received, it is clear that you need to stay away from that particular hosting provider.
Another very important aspect is the quality of the customer support services that other people have gotten. When these services are qualified and the problems are solved without delay, the clients are all very satisfied. Many specialists agree that the tech support offered by the hosting company is the most important aspect that should be taken into account.
So how do you quickly check a web hosting company’s reputation? Type in website hosting forum into Google’s search box and you will discover lots of forums that discuss hosting services in general and grade the best website hosting companies. Unlike other sites that might be controlled by the hosting companies, the forums offer information provided by real people who have tried to use various hosting packages indeed.
What about tech support? A quick, easy way of solving this problem is to try to figure out if there is a live person answering the phone calls or not. If nobody answers the call or if you are put in a long queue, you should move on to another company. Many hosting providers offer chat-based support; you should test that as well.
But let us assume that you have discovered the best website hosting company out there. Prior to signing the deal with the hosting company, it is important to contact one of its representatives and make sure that they understand your needs and can meet them. Also, make sure to get all the needed info concerning the available storage space, bandwidth, email services, and any other important features that you may need.
Life teaches us that the cheapest website hosting company is quite seldom a very good one, so by finding a provider that offers a good price you might have gotten services that have a lower quality in comparison with what you were expecting. This is another reason why you need to do your research, so that the decision to work with a particular hosting company is not made based on only one criterion (price).
Specialists advise that if you plan to build an online business, picking a cheap hosting account should be out of question. Cheap services will usually mean having your site run on a server, be it virtual or physical, that doesn’t have enough RAM, has a poor processing power and/or limited disk space. In the end, all these factors may lead to a lot of trouble and stress for you.
Many hosting companies are able to offer specialized services for a particular sector. As an example, most companies offer shared plans, but if you run a huge ecommerce business, you will surely need to have your own dedicated server – some of the smaller hosting companies are simply unable to offer that. The conclusion is simple: sometimes, going with a bigger company may mean paying a bit more for the services, but the quality of the services that you are going to receive in exchange for your money will be much better.
