If you’re hitting your internet providers top speeds, but things still aren’t fast enough for you, upgrading your internet service might be your best bet. However, if you test your connection and see you’re nowhere near the speeds of which your broadband should be capable, you don’t always need to pay to improve your performance. There are ways to boost your wifi performance absolutely free. Are there paid solutions to your wifi problems? Absolutely. You can throw more money at your ISP, or you can buy a new and improved router. Of course, those methods will cost you, so first you should see if you can speed up your digital life without spending a fortune.
Move your router into an open space
One of the best things you can do for your wifi performance is to move your router out in the open. It’s tempting to hide the router away somewhere no one will see, since who wants to stare at a boring, blinking box? But, the truth is, your devices want to be free. Your router is responsible for sending out your wifi signal, and that signal is only as good as its environment; if it runs to any interference, the signal isn’t as effective. Interference can come from physical elements in your home like walls and doors, or other electronic signals coming from devices like microwaves and wireless phones. Keeping that in mind, try to move your router somewhere free from those types of interferences. If you can elevate the router, such as putting it on an open shelf, all the better. As a result, your connected devices will receive a stronger signal than they would if your router was hidden behind walls, doors, and microwaves.
Stay close to the router
In a similar vein, try to use your devices as close to your router as possible. There’s no need to sit directly next to your router on your laptop or force your PlayStation and router to be attached at the hip, but if you’re looking for your wifi signal to be the best it can be, you’ll want to stay within sight
Too many devices on the network?
You might be used to doing a lot on the internet at once, like streaming a 4K show on Netflix while playing games online with your friends, all the while downloading a series to your iPad. All this multitasking is wonderful, but it puts a strain on your overall internet speeds. If you’re looking to boost wifi speeds and performance for something in particular, say to download a file as fast as possible, you don’t want other internet-intensive tasks running in tandem. For these times, make every effort to pause those other tasks. If you live with other people, that might involve politely asking friends and family to pause their favourite TV shows for a while.
How fast can I expect my WiFi to be?
Firstly, your WiFi speed cannot exceed the speed of your internet connection. Secondly, the speed you get depends on several factors. One of these is the WiFi technology your router and connected devices employ. The WiFi standard is known as 802.11 with various versions (a, b, g, n, ac, etc). Examine your router to see what standard it supports. WiFi also uses 2.4GHz and/or 5 GHz radio frequency bands.
2.4 GHz
Theoretical Speed
Real-World Speed
802.11b
11 Mbps
2-3 Mbps
802.11g
54 Mbps
10-29 Mbps
802.11n
300 Mpbs
150 Mbps
5 GHz
Theoretical Speed
Real-World Speed
802.11a
6-54 Mbps
3-32 Mbps
802.11ac
433 Mbps – 1.7 Gbps
210 Mbps – 1 Gbps
802.11n
900 Mbps
450 Mbps
The old classic, turn-the-router-off-and-on-again
Routers follow the same rules that all electronics do: If something’s wrong, turn it off and on again. If your internet is acting up and you’re not sure why, toggling the power on your router is one way to get things back to where they should be. However, if you find yourself doing this too often, you might want to find the underlying cause of the problem.
Is there a better DNS?
DNS, or Domain Name System, is commonly referred to as the internet’s phone book. When you visit a website, your device goes through a DNS lookup to confirm the site it’s trying to reach. After all, your computer needs to know the website’s IP address, not the name itself. This lookup communicates with a database to see if your entry’s IP address is listed. If not, the search goes out to a larger pool of databases and the end result is sent back, allowing you to connect to the site. If you’ve never tinkered with your internet setup before, you’re likely using your ISP’s DNS, which is usually slower than it needs to be. Luckily, it’s not terribly difficult to switch to a better DNS. There are lots of good DNS – most are better than your ISP’s DNS. Search on Google for ‘free public DNS’. Some of these prevent access to malicious, phishing and adult sites and some provide ad-blocking.
I have a Smarty SIM in a router which I use in the caravan and when I go away from home. I have had it for some time and it has always worked well. I chose Smarty as it uses the Three network and offered lots of data for a small cost.
All was working well on December 8 and 25 (2021) – according to my Ookla logs, I was getting download 48Mbps and upload 18Mbps.
In the first couple of weeks of January 2022, I have no cause to use this router. Then on January 12, my son wanted to borrow it for a sports event that he was organising and he wanted a backup internet access method for logging scores. I got the router out to show him how it worked and found it didn’t work! No problem, or so I thought; I popped the SIM into another router but that didn’t work either. The sports event went well and he didn’t need to use a spare router/SIM.
I reported the issue to Smarty (Jan 16) and I explained the problems I was having: — Windows, Android and iPad devices on the router wifi get ‘no internet’ errors — Windows device gives a wifi connection error, iPad reports “no internet connection” — was working OK before January 2022 — didn’t work in either router I advised Smarty that my nearest cell site was eNB ID 1657 Smarty offered to send me a new SIM – fair enough.
The new SIM arrived (Jan 19) and I went away for a few days to the north of England; I took the router as I expected poor internet service where I was staying. When I arrived, I powered up the router and it worked; it worked very well – download 13Mbps and upload of 3Mbps. Strange, I thought. Not working at home but working well away from home.
When I returned home (Jan 25) I tried the router/SIM again – no internet. Voice was OK but there was no internet connectivity with Smarty/Three. So I swapped out the Smarty SIM and put in a Plusnet SIM – changed the APN and the router worked fine with Plusnet. Back to Smarty and changed the APN back – no internet.
I took my router/SIM to a friend’s house a few kilometres away and tried it there – it worked fine. The problem seems to involve my local cell site. Back on the phone to Smarty — was working in December — didn’t work in either router — SIM has been changed — does work well on other cell-sites — does not work on my local cell-site Smarty put it down to poor signal coverage; but I saw 4 or 5 bars on the router. Smarty said there were no network issues reported in my area. A load of rubbish – just try to keep the customer happy.
I looked at the user interface of the Huawei B535-232 router in some detail. I noticed I could change the router to 3G – I did this and it worked at 3G. Yes, I had an internet connection, but slowly – <10Mbps.
The UI showed some useful info including the cell-id:- CELL_ID 12841728 — RSRQ -5.0dB RSRP -96dBm — RSSI -77dBm — SINR 17dB No poor signal here
Location of the serving mast Looking at cellmapper.net, it became obvious that I was not connected to my nearby cell-site eNB-id 1657 as first thought; but to eNB-id 50163 which, according to cellmapper.net had first appeared at the end of December 2021. The blue spot is eNB-id 50163 or at least where its signals are strongest. My home location is several hundred metres SW of eNB-id 50163 off the yellow road.
I put the Smarty SIM into an old phone and ran the Cell Info Lite app to collect information. Note the 4G indication always shows upload data but no download. The screen capture below was taken near the blue spot on the cellmapper.net map below. Judging by the signal strength the mast 50163 is a few hundred metres away
Open image in a new tab to see the other nodeseNB 50163Open image in a new tab to see the other nodes
I thought I would try to report it to Three directly, but I had no Three SIM and no Three account. After trying several times, I spoke to Three customer services who offered to report the issue to the customer services manager. Oh yes… voice was working as I was using the SIM in the phone with which I called Three.
Feb 5 – I am now fairly sure the site in question (eNB 50163) is located on the Fire Station tower on the A30 (GU15 3UH). I got much stronger signals in the vicinity of the fire station. Cellmapper reports the location of eNB 50163 rather more accurately after I took a walk to the Old Dean shops. I believe the site is shared with EE and is in direct line of sight (through some trees) with my house.
Old Dean Residents Some residents on the Old Dean estate are also experiencing the same issue. See this Facebook post on Feb 4, 2022 and this Facebook post on Feb 14. Residents are pretty hacked off with the situation. They confirm the problem started early in January 2022. I have asked them to report to their network provider (Three, Smarty and IdMobile). Some users who reported the problem say that Three acknowledges the problem, while others say they are fobbed off with the ‘poor signal’ or ‘use 3G’ excuse. Below are some of the stories from Facebook
I’ve just reported it. They have said that yes there is an ongoing issue in the area and it is taking longer than expected to fix. That’s the first time in 3 weeks of dialogue with them that I have been given that information.it will be repaired soon!
I am with IDmobile and found out they use Three masts. I’ve had no internet data/access for almost 3 weeks. I had only been able to message them re the issue to be told, yes there was planned work in the area and on 3 separate occasions told it will be resolved in 2 to 3 days and still nothing. I was offered £20 compensation and told it would be completed by the end of today.. and it has not been!! Once I’m in Bagshot it works, so it’s got to be a local mast. I eventually spoke to a real person who told me they had planned work in this area….a heads up would have been helpful…
My daughter can’t get her data to work on the Old Dean and some surrounding areas. After many phone calls and live chats they said that they can’t see anything wrong. They advised that she just use 3G, which isn’t that good!!
Thanks, so not just me then, the issue for me is the standard “1 to 2 days to rectify” lie. Probably what they are told to say but just be honest and if they don’t know, then say that! I’d respect them more if they didn’t just read from a script
I’m with 3 and have been told by them 3 signal ok. I had to change settings to 3g to get a signal as 4g was not working
I know the issue was raised but my provider ID mobile (seems no one has even heard of them) are claiming Three mobile are saying there is no issue. I can’t complain or communicate with Three directly as I don’t have an account with them
I’ve been in store and got an exact same answer, the only thing I can advise is to go into your network settings and set it to 3G only as anything 4G or higher doesn’t work
Haven’t had a signal for nearly a month, messages come through when I get to Pennyhill or the bottom of the hill towards Camberley
I’m now looking to go to another provider as I’ve had enough
Internet may not be availableeNB 50163eNB 50163
Customer services? It’s now Feb 9 and the problem still exists – I have been in touch with Smarty customer services, almost on a daily basis, but they seem to have lost interest. It seems to me that they cannot escalate a technical problem. I suspect the customer service scripts are designed to deal with problems in the customer realm, but cannot deal with a problem in the network realm. I have tried communicating with Three via Twitter and Facebook but always get fobbed off to the Smarty helpdesk team. Neither the Three nor Smarty helpdesk seems to be able to report a network issue to the Three network team. Not a really helpful helpdesk.
Feb 15 – Almost as a last resort, I searched for and found the email address of the CEO of Three and wrote to him. I got a reply the next day and the issue will be passed to the relevant team; hopefully, we’ll get a resolution.
Is the problem solved? Feb 17 07:30 – Overnight, the faulty eNB 50163 mast looks to have been shut down. I am now connected (slowly – due to poorer signal) to other masts; the water tower on Black Hill, and the Maultway/Red Road junction.
as at 07:43indoorseNB 12977
Feb 17 10:30 – It appears that the eNB 50163 is operational again and 4G data is working – (perhaps for the first time on this mast) !!
as at 09:35indoors
I wonder if it’s a case of “turn it off at the wall, wait 30 seconds and turn it on again”
Something is going on? Feb 17 16:15 – I noticed erratic performance from time to time. Speedtests would either run well, not start or not complete.
problems ?problems ?sometimes looks good
I noticed that my connection was flipping between bands (1, 3 and 20). Signal strength measurements are up and down. I wonder if the work has been completed yet. I’ll keep monitoring for the next few days.
Feedback from Facebook Here are some comments and feedback for Three from the Facebook posts on Feb 17
UPDATE 07:30 – overnight the faulty Three mast at the fire station has been shut down. Hopefully, it’ll be fixed and brought back into service soon to restore normal Three UK service to OD residents. By 10:00 it was back online and working normally.
I just wish that the network will admit and communicate that they must have multiple reports of issues and that it will be addressed, ,that’s all I want. I dislike being told that there has been no other indication from other users that there has been an issue. I accept and am undertanding that services, especially technology connection is subject to weather, new buildings and updates can effect connectivity, I just disdain ignorance, lack of communication between departsments/partners and being treated like I’m an isolated complaint. Communication is key and realistic time scales are all I require actually
I did speak to someone and they credited me £20. But asked when it was going to get sorted and couldn’t say!
Same, I was refunded my monthly paymemt and for me it’s not really the point. I just want to know if and when it will be fixed!?!? I’m with IDmobile who obvs use other providers masts and in the 4 years I’ve been with them, I’ve never had an issue but I just want acknowledgement and confidence that they know there’s an issue. Everytime I speak to anyone they just tell me 3 mobile claim the connection is good and it obvs isn’t. Come on!!
Still waiting for an update from my provider who assure me that Three mobile connection is showing as “strong” in this area although we all know that’s not the case
It’s worth noting here that some users of Three, Smarty and IdMobile SIMs are (anecdotally) reporting other intermittent issues – poor signal, no data, unable to make or take calls – during January and February this year. They also report poor response from the helpdesks and from the retail outlets and they are not at all happy with their providers.
Some issues remain It would appear that the technical issue has now been addressed and resolved. I hope so. However, in my opinion, that leaves Three with its real problem as yet unresolved. This technical issue was reported by me to Smarty customer services a month ago and almost every other day since. Anecdotally, this was reported to the local Three shop and to Three customer services. The Smarty and Three customer services teams, as well as the Three retail outlets, do not seem to be able to escalate technical issues to the appropriate teams within Three. I hope Three are able to address this issue with a view to improving users’ customer service experience and restoring the reputation of Three with its customers and ex-customers.
Oh Well – It’s not fixed Feb 18 23:45 I noticed there was no 4G data flowing again. The same problem is back! The node came up at about 10:30 yesterday but was faulty again after about 36 hours. I’ll report it to Smarty tomorrow. When I reported it I was advised that Smarty ‘can see some planned maintenance work is scheduled, which is due to complete on 20/02/2022 – Sunday’. I guess this is the tail-end of the work done Feb 16/17. Well, we are in the middle of the weekend and there’s not much more that can be done until Monday. Feb 21 – 07:30 – Monday morning – still no 4G data on eNB 50163 4G Feb 21 – 11:45 – Node eNB 50163 is down again – off the air – I am connected to eNB 1657 Feb 21 – 15:30 – I also notice the EE co-located node eNB 29082 seems to be down Feb 22 – 09:30 – Same same – both down still Feb 22 – 14:00 – Both nodes are UP again – 4G is not working on Three eNB 50163
It’s working again Feb 24 – 15:20 – 4G is working again with a good B20 signal
50Mbps download30Mbps downloadgoog signal on B20
Local users report they are able to get 4G data for the first time in weeks. Feb 27 – 18:00 – It’s still working – it’s been working for three days…
eNB 50163 – 4G Not Working Again
Feb 27 – 23:15 – 4G is not working Feb 28 – 09:00 – 4G is not working – 3G and voice OK Feb 28 – 14:35 – 4G working again Mar 1 – 10:50 – 4G is not working – 3G and voice OK Mar 2 – 16:25 – 4G remains down Mar 5 – 18:00 – 4G remains down Mar 7 – 09:30 – 4G remains down Mar 9 – 11:30 – 4G remains down Mar 11 – 19:30 – 4G remains down Mar 13 – 14:30 – 4G remains down
Mar 18 – 07:00 – 4G remains down Mar 18 – 14:00 – eNB 50163 – down – work being carried out Mar 18 – 20:00 – eNB 50163 – UP and working again – 4G OK
Mar 19 – 18:00 – It’s continuing to work well Mar 20 – 09:00 – It’s continuing to work well Mar 21 – 11:00 – It’s continuing to work well
BT/Openreach is forging ahead with plans to shut its traditional telephone network in Britain, with the intention of moving all customers over to IP telephony services by 2025. The closure of the public switched telephone network (PSTN) is part of the plans by BT to move to all internet-based Voice Over IP (VOIP) calls. The same changes are being introduced elsewhere in Europe and in some places, these changes are already complete.
Those of us who get domestic phone service from Virgin Media (or other providers of high-speed fibre-optic internet services including KC, Hyperoptic, B4RN, Gigaclear, CityFibre, Gigler and scores of other providers of fibre to the premises – FTTP) are already using VOIP services from their ISP.
At present, the bulk of BT’s domestic and small business telephony is delivered to the premises via copper wires. These wires provide the old-fashioned phone service and newer broadband services. The demand for high-speed internet services (100Mbps and faster) is driving the demand for the delivery of these internet services to the premises via fibre optic cables – FTTP. The new fibre-optic cables no longer have copper wires for the old-fashioned phone service.
Politicians have pledged full-fibre broadband coverage by 2025 – meaning availability to access fibre-optic delivered services for every home. Is this a political promise that may not be met within the time scale?
What does this mean for the homeowner and small business? There are some domestic and small business services that use the PSTN phone line that will need to be changed. Your home phone will need to be connected via the internet – VOIP. Some changes will be needed to achieve this. * Burglar alarm systems often connect to the phone line and will need changing. Your alarm provider should provide and fit the new equipment. Cost? * Personal alarm systems (medical alarms) often connect to the phone line and will need changing. Your alarm provider should provide and fit the new equipment. Cost? * Fax machines. Yes, fax machines are still in use – alternatives will need to be found.
Just as changing your telephone service provider today usually involves a change of telephone number, the change of telephone service from PSTN to VOIP may involve a phone number change, however, your provider should ensure you can keep your familiar phone number.
Do we still need a landline phone at home? The popularity of mobile telephones means that very often households (40%) today do not have, or do not use, a landline phone. The landline phone provision in a fibre-optic environment will be an option that may not be taken by many households.
What do you get from your phone company or ISP today? Today BT/Openreach provides PSTN phone services and (optional) internet. We get:- * a port into which we can plug a PSTN phone (on the BT/Openreach NTE socket) * port into which we can plug a router (if we take ADSL/VDSL internet services) * ethernet ports on the router with which we can connect a computer, TV, etc. * wireless delivery of internet services for the home (WiFi)
What will you get from your ISP in an all-fibre internet age with no PSTN? In future, BT/Openreach will provide internet services, ideally on FTTP. We will get:- * ethernet ports on the router with which we can connect VOIP phones * ethernet ports on the router with which we can connect a computer, TV, etc * wireless delivery by the router of internet services for the home (Wi-Fi) In future, we will get the same and even more – more ports, more speed, more Wi-Fi.
Business telephony Business telephony users with multiple lines to their premises are probably already using internet-based telephony services. However many small businesses will be impacted by this change.
Geographic numbers. Historically, call routing was based upon directing the call to the serving exchange and then to the subscriber. The first digit being a 0 indicated a non-local call. The serving exchange was identified by the 2nd to 5th digits. These numbers were used to identify the geography – 01276 Camberley, 01252 Farnborough, etc. There was a need for non-geographic numbers (0800 series) and, of course, the mobile phone had no concept of geography. Numbers that were free to the caller, cheap to the caller etc. proliferated. There are now a lot of non-geographic numbers in the 09xxx (premium), 08xxx (some free to caller), 07xxx (mobile) and 03xxx ranges, as well as the 01xxx and 02xxx geographic numbers.
Cost of telephony. Historically the costs for telephony reflected the cost of the infrastructure installed. Local calls were charged at a lower cost, national calls (trunk calls) were more expensive and international calls even more costly. With the development of the phone network over the last 50 years and the use of internet technology to transport calls, the historical (distance-based) cost structures no longer apply. The time-of-day was once a big factor in the cost of a telephone call as a means to reduce peak-time usage; time-of-day no longer plays quite such a big part in call costs. Today all calls are cheap and the distance has very little bearing on the cost. Many call packages allow for unlimited calls, anytime, anywhere in the country; although international calls often remain more expensive. Line rental plays a big part in the cost of landline telephony.
Cost of Mobile phone calls There is a common view that mobile telephony is expensive for the caller. While this is true, the cost differentials are small and reducing. Many call packages allow unlimited calls to and from the mobile phone. Monthly costs are well under £10.00 for unlimited calls and texts and some data.
VOIP services I have a VOIP service and can make a VOIP call from my mobile phone (via WiFi or not). I can make a call via mobile telephony as well as via Skype, WhatsApp, etc. I have an older PSTN DECT phone connected to an ATA (analogue telephone adapter) which is connected to an ethernet port on my router – ie: the internet. I can make and receive calls from this phone. It allows call diversion, call-forwarding and has voice-mail services. I could have a VOIP phone (DECT or not) that would connect directly to the ethernet and enable me to make and take calls. Monthly call package costs are typically around £12.00 for unlimited inland calls. The VOIP services market for home phones is changing quickly and new offerings with attractive pricing are appearing every month. DECT VOIP phones
BT’s proposed basic domestic phone service BT is proposing a basic service for VOIP for the 2.3 million phone users who do not have or want internet service. The proposed service will provide 0.5Mbps internet – enough for VOIP calls, but not enough for web browsing. The line termination equipment needs to be powered (by the mains). In the event of a power outage, phone calls will not be able to be made. This may be a significant issue, although it is worth noting that the problem exists today for those who use mains-powered DECT handsets.
Power outage issues with FTTH and VOIP VOIP line termination equipment needs to be powered (by the mains), as does the ONT, the router and DECT base station In the event of a power outage, phone calls will not be able to be made. There are options for providing backup power for use when the mains power goes out – click here.
Surrey Heath – Internet Download Speeds The 2019 survey of internet download speeds shows Surrey Heath is well above the average (80.9 Mbps download speed) and, in fact, is the best-performing borough in Surrey. This is probably due to the fact that both Virgin Media services and BT/Openreach FTTC services are available in many parts of the borough. Internet download performance in Surrey Heath is better (on average) than any London borough
Many Internet Service Providers (ISPs) provide a router that underperforms. There are exceptions, of course, but generally, the router that comes with the broadband service you buy is poor and does not do the job it’s supposed to do.
A ‘router’ has several jobs to do. It’s a modem, router, firewall, ethernet switch and wireless access point (WiFi) and often it does one or more of these tasks quite well but is too often poor at doing them all.
A modem has to MOdulate and DEModulate (mo-dem) the radio-frequency electrical signals on the broadband line or the wireless of a mobile phone signal. The modem converts these to digital signals. There are different types of modems depending on the broadband service you are buying. These include cable, ADSL, VDSL, fibre, 4G-LTE and 5G to name but a few. The modem must match the service provided by your ISP. Most of the functions of a modem are done by specialised computer chips.
A router and firewall does some technical things with IP protocols including sending data between your home network and the internet. It might prioritise different protocols and the firewall function determines whether data should flow between the untrusted (outside) network and the trusted (inside) network, according to some firewall rules. The router and firewall functions are largely performed by software.
An ethernet switch connected different ethernet networks together. If the router provided by your ISP has several ethernet ports then these are probably connected to an ethernet switch within the router. This switch is made using specialised computer hardware.
A wireless access point provides the link between a wired network (ethernet) and a wireless network or WiFi. WiFi allows portable devices to connect to the router without having to trail ethernet cables all over the house. Again this is a function performed by specialised hardware.
ISPs want to provide consumers with a router that is inexpensive, easy to deliver, configure and simple to use. Keeping the cost of the hardware low has meant the ISP supplied router often performs badly.
There have been some technological changes with which ISPs are trying to keep up. Hence the router being provided to new consumers is often more functional than the router being used by customers who have been using the ISP for years. The BT website lists multiple versions of the BT Smart Hub or Home Hub. ISPs are reluctant to replace older hardware for consumers unless necessary.
The technology changes include:
WiFi – the introduction of newer, faster WiFi standards. The earlier standard WiFi-4 is known as 802.11a/n. A newer standard 802.11ac (known as WiFi-5) was approved in 2013. Since then (in 2019) 802.11ax (known as WiFi-6) has been approved. Each generation offers improvements (faster) for devices that support the newer standards.
Mesh WiFi devices have become available. These offload the WiFi function of the router to several pieces of specialised hardware and interconnects that hardware (in a mesh) so that you might have two, three or even more WiFi access points throughout your home.
Ethernet – older routers support ethernet running at 10/100 Mbits/s. Newer devices support gigabit ethernet.
Broadband and cable speeds increased from ADSL’s 10 Mbps, via superfast VDSL fibre to the cabinet (FTTC at ~50Mbps), to fibre-optic cable to the home (FTTH/FTTP) which bought ultrafast gigabit speeds.
The router and firewall functions needed to grow and get faster as the traffic through them got faster. Gigabit (1000Mbps) is a whole lot faster (100 times) than 10Mbps. The CPU and memory on the router needed to be bigger, faster and better to cope with the demand.
The number of devices attached to the router in the home (via WiFi or ethernet) increased as we began to have more phones, tablets, PCs, printers, TVs and other devices connected.
Working from home (WFH) and home schooling has meant these are actually in regular use for more hours in the day. A few years ago a router might have only a small handful of devices connected. Today this is likely to be 20 or more. This significantly increases the work the router needs to do.
Gaming brings the need for low-latency to reduce the lag-time in the game. Very often gaming is an application that suffers most from underperforming routers.
Video streaming and download applications such as Netflix, Youtube, iPlayer have significantly increased the amount of data passing through the router. The demand for HD or 4K video is increasing.
Newer and faster routers were needed to interface to the faster broadband, cable and fibre services being brought to the home by the ISPs.
What to do if you feel your router is old and not coping?
Try to identify the problem. What are the symptoms and when do they happen?
Do your neighbours with the same ISP have similar issues?
Is the problem due to WiFi in your home? Is your router in the best location in the home? Try working with your PC connected to the router via ethernet – do you still have problems when WiFi is not being used?
Contact your ISP (particularly if the issue seems to be with slow broadband) and report the problems you are having and ask for the latest router to be provided.
Ask an IT professional for advice – he/she should be able to identify the issues and recommend which of the many options available to you to replace or enhance the router your ISP provides. You might consider more than one option to address the issues. For example, to use the ISP’s router in modem-only mode, install a separate router/firewall and a mesh WiFi system.
Buying and installing a new router is a task to be undertaken by someone with a good knowledge of the issues and products on the market.
WiFi Bandwidth comparison – 2.4 GHz vs. 5 GHz signal
Frequency
Theoretical Speed
Real-World Speed
2.4 GHz (802.11b)
11 Mbps
2 – 3 Mbps
2.4 GHz (802.11g)
54 Mbps
10 – 29 Mbps
2.4 GHz (802.11n)
300 Mbps
150 Mbps
5 GHz (802.11a)
6 – 54 Mbps
3 – 32 Mbps
5 GHz (802.11ac)
433 – 1700 Mbps
210 – 1000 Mbps
5 GHz (802.11n)
900 Mbps
450Mbps
WiFi Range comparison – 2.4 GHz vs. 5 GHz signal
Frequency
Theoretical Distance
Real World Distance
2.4 GHz (802.11b)
460 ft
230 ft
2.4 GHz (802.11g)
125 ft
62 ft
2.4 GHz (802.11n)
820 ft
410 ft
5 GHz (802.11a)
390 ft
195 ft
5 GHz (802.11ac)
up to 820 ft (amplified)
up to 410 ft (amplified)
5 GHz (802.11n)
460 ft
230 ft
Broadband Speed Needed for Streaming Services
A good broadband speed for streaming is at least 1.5 megabits per second (Mbps) for TV services such as BBC iPlayer for standard streaming, or 2.8Mbps for HD quality. For Netflix, the minimum speed required is about 3Mbps for standard streaming and 5Mbps for HD. If it’s Ultra HD you’re after, you typically need at least 15Mbps for YouTube, while it’s 25Mbps for Netflix or Amazon Prime Video, if you want to avoid buffering.
Service
Needed for non HD
HD
Full HD/4K
BBC iPlayer, etc
1.5 Mbps
2.8 Mbps
Not available
Netflix
3 Mbps
5 Mbps
25 Mbps
Amazon Prime Video
0.9 Mbps
3.5 Mbps
25 Mbps
YouTube
2.5 Mbps
4 Mbps
15 Mbps
Broadband Speed Needed for Video Calling
Video calling (Zoom, MS-Teams, etc) has doubled during the coronavirus pandemic, with 71% of adult internet users making video calls at least once a week and four in 10 of us making video calls daily. Skype, Zoom and FaceTime are some of the most popular video-calling services. If you use one of these, you need to be aware of both your download and upload speeds. This is because your connection will be receiving and sending data at the same time. Below are the minimum download and upload speeds you’ll need:
Type
Recommended download/upload speed
Skype (HD 1-1 video call)
1.2 Mbps
Zoom HD group video call
Download 2.5 Mbps Upload 3.0 Mbps
Broadband Speed Needed for Gaming
Service
Minimum Download Speed
Recommended Download Speed
Xbox Game Pass Cloud Gaming
10Mbps
N/A
PlayStation Remote Play
15 Mbps
N/A
Google Stadia
10 Mbps
35 Mbps
Shadow
5 Mbps
25 Mbps
Nvidia GeForce NOW
15 Mbps
25 Mbps
Number of subscribers
BT (PlusNet, EE) 9,300,000 Sky Broadband 6,200,000 Virgin Media 5,365,400 TalkTalk(on-net) 4,220,000 Vodafone UK 838,000 Glide 400,000 Post Office 400,000 Zen Internet 150,000 Ask4 130,000 KCOM 126,900
Many ISPs (Sky, BT, EE, PlusNet, TalkTalk, Vodafone and Zen) use the BT/Openreach network to deliver broadband services. You might change providers within this group but you’ll be using the same physical infrastructure. after any change of ISP. Changing ISPs within this group will only change the company to whom you pay the monthly bill and from whom you get customer service and technical support.
If your ISP is an AltNet provider (usually of FTTP services) then you’ll probably need to work with your altnet ISP. AltNets include B4RN, Cityfibre, Gigaclear, Hyperoptic, CommunityFibre, G.Network, toob and many more.
If your ISP is Virgin Media then VM is the only provider of your cable service and you’ll need to rely on VM to resolve any issues.
Many Internet Service Providers (ISPs) provide you with an email address. It’s usually how you log into their website to access your account information, pay bills online, etc, so it makes sense that they do this.
I offer the following advice:
Don’t use your ISP’s email address as your primary email address.
Switching ISPs
I hear you asking “Why not?” There are several reasons:-
You may need to change ISPs at some point in the future. If you switch ISPs, what happens to your old ISP email account when you stop paying the ISP for your internet service? Some ISPs might let you keep it, but it’s not in their best interest to provide that email service when you’re no longer paying them every month.
ISPs are getting out of the email business
Sometimes ISPs close, go out of business, or are acquired by another ISP. Tiscali was taken over and was asking users to pay to keep their email open. Click here. Or here.Or here.
Some ISPs (VM, Sky) are no longer providing email addresses for new customers. It doesn’t seem they have a long-term commitment to provide email services. I understand that one ISP is proposing to close its email service whilst continuing as an ISP. Click Here
Changing email providers
As anyone who has done it can attest, it’s not easy to change your email address. Think of the hundreds of friends, family, websites, retailers, etc. that use your email address to communicate with you. Do you really remember every important website or service with which you registered your email address? They probably include your bank, utilities, social networks, shopping websites like Amazon, entertainment services like iTunes, iPlayer and Netflix, your school, your employer, various reward/loyalty clubs for stores, ticketing websites, and the list continues. If you switch ISPs, you’ve got to log in to each account and update your email address. What a pain! The email address change process will also take a long time.
Feature Limitations
An ISP’s email service cannot match the feature set of top email services like Gmail or Outlook. There are advantages and disadvantages to using any email provider – let us look at some issues:
Email Integrity
Are the contents of the email you send or receive secure from prying eyes? Be aware that email is generally considered to be quite insecure.
Consider this scenario: You email some sensitive data to several people. Where does this data reside now? On your email provider’s servers and on the servers of the several recipients’ email providers. And you have no way to manage where that data is or who has access, and you have no way to remove it. There are new email services that encrypt the data – these are much more secure.
IMAP vs POP3
Email services from many ISPs only support the POP3 standard instead of the IMAP standard. IMAP allows you to sync your email across multiple devices, such as your smartphone, desktop PC, laptop, tablet, etc. Any change you make on one device, such as deleting a message, will be reflected on all of the other devices. It also supports most email functions, like moving messages into folders.
POP3 is more limited; it simply downloads a copy of an email when you open it on a device and either delete it from the server (so it is only accessible on the device you first viewed it on) or leaves a copy on the server (so when you delete it from the device you viewed it on, it will actually still be on the server and all of your other devices). POP3 is not a secure protocol.
Additional Features and Services
Does your ISP’s email service offer automatic message labelling/sorting, lightning-fast search and filtering, or value-adds like cloud storage, a calendar, or a task list? Does your provider do a good job at identifying and sorting spam emails? Look for an email provider that offers you features you can use to your advantage.
Past Performance
Yahoo’s services had multiple security breaches a few years ago, affecting millions of users. This makes me very unsure about using it as my primary email account. Other email providers have experienced various issues. See here Virgin Media users suffered several multi-day email outages in 2023-25 – see here and here
A user’s experience with Virgin Media (2024)
Yesterday I got a spam email; it went to all my contacts. Then my emails were blocked. Today, I phoned Virgin Media; 3 hours on the phone – I kept getting transferred to different people. Now, I’ve got a new email address and I have had to notify all my contacts – it’s taken 9 hours today. Absolute nightmare. My old one was with NTL, the old Virgin Media one, I’d had it for years. I think they are discontinuing it. Been very stressful
Advertising
Some email providers rely on advertising for revenue and interrupt your email experience with unwanted advertising. All free email service providers are using you as their source of revenue, usually so they can advertise to you. The better email providers do not put advertising into their web-based email solutions or their email applications.
Better Email Solutions
What’s the alternative? The alternative is to use a free email service like Gmail, or Outlook. There are alternatives, but both Gmail and Outlook continue to add features that make managing email easier and faster. These email services also come with secure online storage for files – Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive. Both offer online word-processing and spreadsheet applications (Google Docs, Microsoft Office365) that provide office application functionality, with co-authoring and file-sharing capabilities.
Be aware that free email services usually don’t offer any customer service. This means if you have a problem, you’ll get little help from the email provider. However, these providers have hundreds of millions of customers and there is plenty of advice and guidance available online.
Gmail
The obvious next question is what email address should you use? Gmail has the advantage of being a familiar name, being free, and offering lots of storage for attachments. But it’s also hard to get the email address you want, and you do sign away significant chunks of your privacy.
Outlook
If you can cope with an Outlook.com address then this would be my preference, although the same caveats about privacy apply. Outlook offers all the benefits of Gmail. Microsoft’s Hotmail email service has been incorporated into Outlook.
Users of Apple products may wish to remain faithful to Apple and use iCloud.
Email Security
Email is not at all secure. Email can be made more secure by encrypting the content, but this is complex and not for the average user. If you want a secure email service, there are a few providers of email services with enhanced security, notably Proton Mail.
Email applications
There are plenty of email applications for Windows, Linux, Mac, Android, and iPhone. These offer plenty of features and are often more feature-rich than the standard web-based application. Use an email application (such as Outlook, Thunderbird, etc.) by all means if they offer you what you want.
Email service providers to avoid
Avoid any email provider whose primary activity is being an ISP, eg:- ntlworld, virginmedia, btinternet, talk21, talktalk, sky, vodafone, tiscali, ee, o2, plusnet.
Most popular email services
Gmail – 1,500 million users – 36%
iCloud – 850 million users – 18%
Outlook – 400 million users – 9%
Yahoo – 230 million users – 4%
Multi-Factor Authentication
What is MFA?Two-factor authentication (2FA) or Multi-factor Authentication (MFA) is a way of strengthening the login security of your online accounts. It’s similar to how an ATM works. You need both your debit card (first factor) and your PIN (second factor) to access your account and withdraw cash. The main objective is better security. If your card is stolen, they still need your PIN. If your PIN is stolen, they still need your card. Enabling MFA will help to stop hackers from getting into your accounts, even if they have your password. If you are using an email service that does not offer MFA, please consider switching to an email provider that does. And make use of MFA.
How do I enable MFA on my accounts?Here are links you can use to enable MFA on some of the most popular online services and apps:
The email system was not designed to be secure. Although some email providers use encrypted transport, email content is stored unencrypted. There are ways to encrypt the email content. There are also a few providers making secure email available to all by using end-to-end encryption. It should be noted that when the email is sent to an email provider that does not use end-to-end encryption, then the secure nature of the email will be lost. If the security of the content of your email is key to you, then you may wish to use one of these providers. Proton Mail is just one example of a secure email provider. A list of secure email providers is available here
Passwords
Most important of all, your password is key to the security of your email. – Change your passwords regularly – Use MFA if it’s available – Be sure your password is complex and not easy to guess – Be sure you can remember your passwords – Consider using a password manager – Don’t use the same password for everything
Summary
I recommend not using email addresses provided by ISPs but using the email services provided by Microsoft, Google, or Apple. However, if you can’t stand the thought of not using your old and familiar ISP’s email service, then relegate it to the purpose of signing up for services and websites that you think might send a lot of spam. Then, if and when you decide the website or service is OK, you can update your account with your primary email address.
By all means, use more than one email address; in practice, it’s a good idea to have several email addresses. You can set up your email application and your web-based email reader (Gmail or Outlook) to read the emails of several addresses.
You may want to use one email address for higher security use (eg: online banking); another for online retail (eg: Amazon, eBay), and yet another for social media use, etc.
it will be repaired soon!
