Lag Internet? Try These Hacks to Improve Home Internet Connectivity

Internet connectivity has always been a challenge in the Philippines. A recent study conducted by SurfShark (VPN provider) Digital Quality of Life Index 2020, affirms that the Philippines, which is highlighted twice in the 32-page report, ranks 66 out of 85 countries in terms of digital well-being — which means the Philippines still falls behind much of the world.

No wonder why so many people say our internet is, “So slow, yet so expensive.” 

Although it’s something beyond our control, there are actually hacks you can do to improve WiFi signal strength and speed up connectivity at home. We’ve gathered several recommendations from different sources online that might help boost your internet speed at home. Read on!

Adjust the location of your router 

This is the simplest and least costly way to improve weak WiFi signals in your home or apartment. Keep in mind that a WiFi signal travels in all directions so placing it at a location that is central or almost equi-distant to all corners of your house will lead to much far better signal strength.

Since a WiFi router produces radio waves that travel in the space for Internet connection, the best location to position your router is in a high place of your house. Why? Simply because radio waves travel downwards in a lateral position. It would be best to adjust the location of your home WiFi router to a high place where it can maximize its effectiveness.

Update your security settings

Too many users slow down your internet connection because it takes up internet bandwidth. If you’re experiencing a severe lagging, it is advisable to update your security settings. The safest way to go is to use WPA/WPA2 (passwords) in the security settings of your router, so hackers cannot break into your network. 

Good thing is, you can always set your wireless network to be undiscoverable when a device is looking for an available Wi-Fi network. Setting this up makes your network secure to prevent unauthorized access. 

Remove Interference (i.e home appliances)

One of the reasons why internet connection weakens is because some appliances or physical obstacles like walls in the house interfere with the signal of your WiFi router. This happens since WiFi transmits over a 2.4 GHz radio frequency which is the same with our common household appliances. Examples are power calves, microwave ovens, wireless video cameras, cordless landline phones and CCTV. Placing them away from your router might minimize the interference of your home WiFi.

Read: [Kitchen Organization] 5 Ways to Create Open Pantry Space in your Home

Use WiFi Extender

If you live in a huge house or mansion, and a dedicated router doesn’t do the trick, you might want to invest in WiFi extenders/repeaters that can boost your router’s signal to reach farther areas of your home. This is one of the most efficient ways especially if you have a really large area to cover or have dead zones in the house. 

Yugatech.Com explains, WiFi extenders essentially create an extension network that allows you to login and get you a better signal quality while farther away from the router. So by using additional WiFi routers as repeaters, you can extend the coverage of your WiFi signal even if you’re away from the main router. Since physical blockade like walls degrade the strength of your WiFi, it’s highly recommended to put the repeater closed to the router to get good signal. 

Invest in a good router

Maybe the problem lies within your router. How old is your router? If you’ve used the same router for years, this might be the time to ditch that out and invest in new ones. This is because internet providers make improvements every year and that old router of yours might not cope with the more modern WiFi standard.  On average, combo modems issued by internet providers can only accommodate up to 10 devices at a time and you may experience signal drops here and there if you go beyond that. 

So that’s it! How about you? Do you know other hacks that help improve home WiFi signals? Let us know in the comment section. 

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