There is almost nothing more frustrating than waiting forever for the website to load or buffering audio and videos. It can drive you sometimes to find yourself screaming at the computer screen.
Also, considering how much businesses rely on the internet to manage customer service, send and respond to sensitive emails, and confirm payments, slow internet can bring your business down quickly.
Fast connectivity remains an advantage in every sector, but you cannot solve your internet issues without first identifying the problems. We’ve compiled a list of seven reasons your internet may be slow.
Faulty electrical connection near the router
Loose contacts, bad cabling, and physical wear and tears can result in faulty connections and, in turn, affect your router’s performance. Especially for cable modems, check the connection and ensure it’s on the first cable split with the bond is using the best signal level.
Also, for DSL Circuits, make sure the cable between your telephone company box and DL splitter is not bent or having contacts with external circuits.
Too many connected devices
WiFi and sound wave acts almost the same way. If your router is connected to several devices, signals can get lost in the crowd and weigh on internet speed.
Large households may have more people using WiFi devices like smartphones, laptops, tablets, video game systems, and others. All these, coupled with smart home products like smart doorbells, security cameras, led lights, and smart thermostats that keep uploading and downloading in the background, can cause your internet to be slow.
As the router broadcasts the signal on its channel, if there is congestion happening, the performance is degraded.
Viruses and Worms
Viruses and malware have a way of living in your device and not only slow down your computer, but it also reduces the internet speed by eating up a large quantity of bandwidth. Installing an antivirus program can help you stay clear of this trouble.
However, a bit of hint to reduce this malware is to avoid internet pop-ups, spam emails, unknown links, questionable apps or unsafe files from gaining access to your device, instead of relying on antivirus software. These software may even be the reason why your computer is slow.
Also, when unnecessary software runs in your device’s background, the amount of processing speed and power of available data from the internet is reduced.
Your Internet Provider could be the problem
The internet service provider has direct effects on the internet speed, and in most cases, the problem lies at the source. You may be using a slow network. If you have purchased your internet provider years ago and haven’t made any changes to the service, perhaps it’s time for a switch or an upgrade.
You may be using a low-capacity plan, and as time changes, web platforms tend to have higher demands. An excellent way to try and work around this is to visit the internet advisor to know how much internet speed you need and how to find the best service to suit your needs.
Distance from the router
Since WiFi originates from the router, the internet speed you experience is affected by the distance, path, speed, and capacity of connection to your network. The farther you are from the router, the more the possibility of a weaker signal and speed.
Most routers have a number in the user’s manual or on the box that states how far our WiFi signal can travel from your devices.
Obstacles can also be a factor. Knowing all these helps you make decisions while positioning your router. However, your best choice is to install the router in the center of the home or office where the demand of the internet is more and can also serve the living room and bedrooms.
For bigger homes, you may need a WiFi extender to signals to other floors or fringe areas that require coverage.
Someone may be stealing your internet
Just the way too may connected devices can affect your internet speed, when people on the outside tap into your network, it’s going to get slower.
Your network carries a distance where some people can connect to WiFi without your consent, and steal your bandwidth. The way to avoid this is by being password-protected. Use a combination of numbers, letters, and special characters to keep intruders from guessing right.
Old computer, Phone, or Tablet
There are times the problem may have nothing to do with your router. Smart devices always have their speed capabilities. Regardless of how fast your router is, the internet speed will not go faster than the device’s speed.
Especially if your device is older than 4 to 6 years, you may need to update your devices and stick with the times to get additional memory for proper access to evolved platforms.
Photo by Thomas Jensen on Unsplash
