14 things you can do to fix your slow Wi-Fi

Never underestimate the importance of correctly positioning your Wi-Fi. And the height at which your Wi-Fi router is kept makes a lot of difference. If you have placed your Wi-Fi router on the floor or behind other objects, in all probability, it is the reason behind its bad performance.

Solution: You need to place your router as high as you can in order to extend the broadcasting range of its radio waves. By doing this, you will also make sure that there no other objects placed around it.

There are certain materials that block Wi-Fi signals. And concrete and metals are among the biggest blockers. In fact, they are so effective that they can even protect you from RFID hacks. But obviously, you don’t want them anywhere near your Wi-Fi router. So if your router is placed in an area that is enclosed with concrete, or if there are some metallic objects between your device and Wi-Fi router, you should not be surprised by its slow speed.

Solution: Change the position of your Wi-Fi router and avoid keeping it in an area that is too closed. Make sure there is no concrete around it remove all metallic and other big objects to enhance its performance.

This can particularly happen if you live in a very big house. One thumbs rule you should always remember is that the further you go away from the router, the weaker will be the signals. So, if you have a designated area where you mostly use your devices, it’s better to place the router close to it. However, if that is not the case, place it at the centre of your home, as Wi-Fi broadcasts in all directions. However, if your router’s broadcast is particularly weak, you can also enhance it by changing the range of Wi-Fi waves.

Solution: You can use Wi-Fi extenders or repeaters that can be connected to the main router. These extenders basically repeat the signal of the router to cover a greater area.

Microwaves and ovens can interfere a lot with your Wi-Fi network. And this particularly happens if your router is an old one. The reason the microwaves affecting the Wi-Fi network is the fact that they have a frequency of 2.45GHz. And this frequency is extremely close to the 2.4GHz Wi-Fi band, which broadcasts between 2.412GHz and 2.472GHz. So the frequency from microwaves can overlap with the frequency of Wi-Fi, leading to disruption of the data that is transferred.

Solution: just make sure your microwave has proper shielding.

Bluetooth devices are just as commonly used as Wi-Fi routers. And they also have a frequency of 2.4GHz. A Bluetooth device that has been made properly must have shielding to make sure that interference does not occur in any way. ‘Frequency hopping’ is often used by Bluetooth manufacturers to avoid the situation of a frequency clash. And Bluetooth devices that are newly made can also identify networks that are being used currently to avoid those.

Solution: If you suspect that your Bluetooth device is interfering with your Wi-Fi router’s network, just make sure you keep them away. If you have any Bluetooth devices that are old, then you must close them down when you switch on your Wi-Fi.

Yes, you read that right. While most of us use fairy lights to decorate our houses on Diwali and Christmas, only very few know that they can slow down your Wi-Fi. These lights emit an electromagnetic field that interacts with your Wi-Fi band, which slows it down. And unfortunately, LED lights are no better.

Solution: If the effect is just negligible, you can live with it for a day or two till the time decorations are up. If it’s too bad, don’t put LED or fairy light in the area where your router is placed.

Today, almost every house has a Wi-Fi network, because it has become just so indispensable. However, there are times when this can create a channel overlap, particularly if you live in a housing complex or an apartment. Channel overlap mostly happens when the router can only broadcast at 2.4GHz or if you the devices around it can only receive a wireless signal of 2.4GHz. It is worth noticing that there are only 14 channels to transmit on, so if two routers are on the same channel and broadcast at the same frequency, there is a very high possibility of them interfering with each other.

Solution: While most modern routers can automatically choose a channel for you, it is also important to investigate yourself to find a good channel.

Is your neighbour using your Wi-Fi network, without keeping you informed? This is far more common than we think. There may be other people, mostly the ones who live very close to you, who may be using your Wi-Fi network without your knowledge. It not only slows down your Wi-Fi but can also lead to various security issues, so it must be stopped immediately.

Solution: The first and foremost solution for this is to have a very strong password. Avoid using your name, or other obvious information as your password, as those, can be cracked easily. Also, regularly check for any suspicious or unknown devices on your network.

If you or anyone else in your house has left a large download running on a device, it is very likely that it is contributing to the slow speed of the Wi-Fi. One just cannot underestimate how much downloading heavy files can degrade their Wi-Fi’s performance. While we really can’t do without updating our devices, we should pause the ones that are not too important.

Solution: Firstly, just make sure that none of the people who use your Wi-Fi is downloading heavy files, or binge-watching a series of Netflix. What you can also do is prioritize your network traffic. This can be done by going to your router’s settings to enable Quality of Service.

If you have been browsing the internet anonymously by using a VPN, then we are sure that this is the reason behind your slow internet speed. All VPNs, regardless of what they promise, slow down internet speed at least to an extent. VPNs encrypt and decrypt data in real-time, which slowed down processing as your internet requires more data.

Solution: either stop using the VPN or upgrade your internet package.

The problem is not always with the router. Your device may be responsible for slow internet speed too. If all your other devices are working fine apart from your laptop or PC, then you should check the Network Drivers. If the network drivers of your device are corrupt, then they are the reason why you are getting slow internet speed in spite of being connected to a Wi-Fi router that may have no problems.

Solution: Press Windows+R and enter ‘devmgmt.msc’ on the dialogue box that opens on the bottom left of your PC or laptop’s screen to open the device manager. Click on Network Adapters in the list. If it appears with a yellow triangle along with an exclamation mark, it means that there is a problem with it. Right-click on Network Adapters and select ‘Update driver software. Post that, just follow the steps that are given to you to fix the issue. Once the issue is fixed, internet speed should be fine too.

Sometimes, background programs that are running on our device quietly use up the bandwidth, and you wouldn’t even get to know. Or you may have malware on your device which is slowing down the speed of the internet. And if you have recently installed a Windows update, then it is possible that some other updates got downloaded in the background, which may be taking up the bandwidth.

Solution: Go to Windows Task Manager and check for all active background programs. If there are which have not been downloaded by you, search for them online once, and if you think they are unnecessary, delete them. Also, get an antivirus program to make sure no that no malware in your device slows down the internet speed. Plus, it never hurts to have more security.

Often when our devices are on Power Saver mode, they slow down internet speeds to enhance the battery time. If you put your device on the mode at a time when you had less battery and then forgot to go and undo it, this may be the problem.

Solution: Head to the Control Panel, and select ‘System and Security’. Then, go to ‘Power Options’, and select ‘change plan settings’. When you are taken to the next screen, click on ‘Change advanced power settings’ to open up Power Options. Click on ‘Wireless Adaptor Settings’ and adjust it to ‘Maximum Performance’.

Can you download files from other websites with ease and it’s only one particular page or website that is causing a problem? If the answer is yes, then it’s not your internet’s fault. The problem is at the source website because download speeds don’t only depend on your router, but also on the download server.

Solution: There is nothing you can do apart from downloading files from some other website.

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