You already know how important the internet is when it comes to modern life, especially in current times. And yet far too many of us simply don’t have the optimal setup available. And given the benefits and time savings that a great home network can provide, that should change and change as soon as possible. And while some methods of improvement and cost you time and money, they are worth the trouble. Additionally, there are other things you can do today that could vastly improve your situation.
Here are some main points and key takeaways for you when it comes to maintaining the best home internet for you and your family:
Finding the Best Provider
You simply aren’t going to have the best internet at home if you aren’t working with a good provider to start with. In fact, if you have a slower download speed, no other tools, best practices, or equipment is going to help you. Perhaps your household is lucky and knows you’re getting the best in your area, but it can’t hurt to check available options again. Even if you can’t get a better plan, you might be able to save money for your current services (or the equivalent). Naturally, there are multiple factors to consider and you should consult a guide to everything, but the key factors to consider are:
- The price you’ll be paying each month or each year. While we want to focus more on performance rather than the price here, we know many households can’t ignore this factor. Also, take into account oft-seen fees in bills and equipment rental charges.
- Both download speeds and upload speeds. For the average family, we recommend a download speed of at least 100 Mbps (although gigabit internet is worth the cost for many if it is available). Upload speeds are less important unless you have a specific need, but we still recommend at least 10 Mbps.
- Customer service is also key, and we recommend looking at reviews and testimonials to that effect. If you can’t get the best out of your service because of poor customer experience, that’s no different than not getting what you paid for.
Remember Consistency Is Often Most Important
However, when maintaining excellent home internet, consistency is key. Higher speeds provide diminishing returns after a while, but random cutoffs and hiccups in your connection can be devastating. While you should absolutely look for an ISP that will provide quality service and support in this regard, realistically this is a two-sided equation.
We recommend the following tips to help maintain consistency:
- When looking over internet providers and service plans in your area, try to find additional information regarding the stability of connections. If you’re starting to see problems, be proactive in calling your ISP.
- If you want to most stable connection for your computer, there are few options better than a modern and stable ethernet cable. Most models will do, and the connection will be as fast as it ever could be.
- Make sure that you aren’t overusing the connection you have. While we aren’t suggesting you cut family members off the internet when you need a more stable connection, we do suggest that you occasionally check-in as to what apps and programs you might have in the background running that use bandwidth and close the ones, not in use.
- While this isn’t as common as it used to be and is more easily fixed today, if your computer is infected with malware, it could make it seem like your connection is spotty. Practice best security practices whenever possible.
Check Your Equipment, Wires, and Receivers
Aside from the provider, there are other things you can do on your end to help maintain an excellent home internet experience. Most of these revolve around your equipment and consist of:
- Depending on the size of your home or if there might be walls or furniture heavily blocking the way, a WiFi range extender can be a good investment. They generally cost less than $100 and can make it so that you have fast internet throughout the house, making working in your home office or streaming in bed a breeze.
- If your router and related equipment are more than a few years old, it might be time for an upgrade. This may come in the form of calling your ISP to check if a new modem would be an improvement, or it might be worth it to invest in a new one would and stop renting your current modem.
- Additionally, it can be a good idea to check your wires, as while they aren’t likely to be the source of merely slowed internet, sometimes pets, movement, and other things happen, and replacements are incredibly cheap.
- If it is a specific device that isn’t getting a good signal or fast connection, then the problem might be with your receiver. Consider buying a more modern USB WiFi receiver to keep up with faster internet speeds.
Conclusion
What the best home internet means to you might vary a little bit from other people, but ultimately its about speed, consistency, and reliability. You can make improvements to both your home and your service, and we hope you take advantage of any opportunities that come along or that you can make for yourself. Once again, we promise that a better connection is worth it.