If I Replace My Router Does Everyone Have to Put in the Set Up Wifi Again
Your router just might be i of the near essential gadgets you own -- but in a lot of cases, we set the thing up and so hope to never think nearly information technology again. Heck, maybe you merely went with whatever your internet provider installed when you signed up for service.
It's an understandable blind spot. Betwixt the blinking lights, the ceaseless jargon and the oft-misleading speed claims, routers tin be mystifying. Merely in our current historic period of doing everything at home -- working, learning, socializing, yous proper noun information technology -- having a proficient router running your network traffic is as essential as always.
In general, experts recommend upgrading your router at to the lowest degree every five years. Make that every two to three years if you use lots of smart home gadgets, or if you make a regular habit of buying the latest laptops, phones and other chief Wi-Fi devices. That means that there are probably lots and lots of us that would stand up to benefit from upgrading to a new router in 2021. Here's how to wrap your head effectually all of that, and make the correct upgrade at the right time.
A need for speed
A good router should exist able to take full advantage of whatever internet speeds yous're paying for -- but if your network seems more sluggish than you'd await, and then you'll want to have some steps to exist sure that your router is, indeed, the culprit.
Sometimes, a uncomplicated reboot is all your network needs, then showtime with the obvious and unplug both your router and your modem, then plug them both back in. Dave Coleman, a Wi-Fi expert, author and director of production marketing for Extreme Networks, the company that just ran the Wi-Fi at Super Bowl 55, also recommends rebooting the Wi-Fi drivers on your phone, laptop and other of import client devices.
"Information technology's amazing how that'll solve similar 90% of the problems, considering the drivers are the interface between the radio and the operating organization, and they can get discombobulated," Coleman says. "I know information technology sounds simple, merely it'due south the get-go troubleshooting thing people should do."
It's also a skilful idea to endeavour bypassing the router altogether, which you can do by wiring your computer directly to the modem with an Ethernet cable. Is that hardwired level of online performance noticeably better than what y'all're getting when y'all're connected wirelessly at a short altitude, in the same room as the router? That's a clear sign that the router is falling short of your network's potential.
If problems similar those persist, endeavor running some speed tests in various spots effectually your domicile using a few different devices -- both your phone and your laptop, for instance. I like the Ookla speed test, which is fast, costless, reliable and easy to employ -- you lot can run it in your browser by clicking hither, or yous can download Ookla's speed-testing app to your Android or iOS device, or even to an Apple Idiot box. Whatsoever devices you employ, those results should give y'all a clearer sense of whether the problem is tied to a specific client device or location in your home, or whether information technology'southward a bigger issue affecting everything.
With the numbers giving y'all a better understanding of the status quo, make some quick tweaks and see if things better. Try repositioning the router to a spot that's more open up and central within your dwelling, preferably in a location that's as high every bit possible. While you're at it, adjusting the angle of the antennas might aid boost the signal to specific spots around the house. It's too a good idea to blast the ports in the back and the airflow vents with a can of compressed air to break through dust build-upward -- gunk similar that can crusade your router to overheat and its performance to dip.
None of that worked and your cyberspace still stinks? Yep, y'all probably demand a new router.
Upgrading to the next generation
Router engineering and security are always improving, and we've seen some meaning jumps in the past few years with the arrival ofWi-Fi 6 andWPA3, the latest generations of Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi security, respectively. Generational advances like those get out yesterday'southward routers in the dust, and then it's worth upgrading to a router that supports them as presently as it makes sense for y'all to do so -- fifty-fifty if the ane y'all're using at present is yet getting the job done.
Outside of that, the mere fact that and then many of us are spending so much more than time at abode these days makes the idea of upgrading your router even more compelling.
"People are running into issues where Mom'due south trying to do a Zoom call, but it goes due south, because the kids are upstairs streaming Netflix videos," Coleman says. "That's 1 sign that yous might demand to upgrade your Wi-Fi network."
All of the new routers appear at CES 2021 -- including adjacent-gen Wi-Fi 6E
See all photosUpgrading to Wi-Fi vi, a new generation of Wi-Fi that'due south better suited for dense, crowded environments where you have lots of devices competing for bandwidth, is definitely i way to give your network a boost -- and with lots of new Wi-Fi 6 routers and customer devices available on the market right now, 2021 seems like a specially adept year to buy in.
That said, you'll want to atmosphere your expectations for Wi-Fi 6E, a new designation for special Wi-Fi 6 devices that are equipped with an boosted radio that tin ship signals through a super-broad mass of spectrum in the 6GHz band, which the FCC opened for unlicensed employ last year.
"Wi-Fi 6E is going to exist crawly once information technology gets broad adoption, but broad adoption is going to be slow merely because everything that you own correct now operates on either the ii.four or the 5GHz band," Coleman explains. "The fourteen or 15 billion Wi-Fi devices out at that place across the world right now, they will never connect to that 6GHz Wi-Fi 6E radio."
The Asus ZenWiFi AX is ane of our pinnacle mesh router recommendations.
Tyler Lizenby/CNETMaking the jump to mesh
Is your connexion strong in some places throughout your domicile, but weak or nonexistent in others? If and so, upgrading to a mesh router, which uses multiple devices to extend the range of your network and spread a steadier signal throughout your entire home, might be 1 of the most meaningful tech upgrades you tin purchase into.
Mesh routers accept been around for several years now, only it's but in the last yr or two that we've seen decent options available for less than $300. Now, in 2021, you lot've got plenty of systems to cull from, with prices ranging from entry-level starter kits that cost equally little as $150 or less to superlative-of-the-line mesh systems that cost as much equally $700.
For my money, the all-time strategy for that spectrum of mesh options is to aim for the middle footing. Tri-ring design, which adds in a second 5GHz ring to serve every bit a defended backhaul channel for transmissions between the main router and its satellites, has been the biggest difference-maker in my tests, and it's worth paying a little extra at this point for Wi-Fi half dozen, as well.
You should expect to pay at least $400 for a multidevice mesh organization that takes that sort of tri-ring, Wi-Fi half-dozen approach. Editors' Pick-winning systems like the Asus ZenWiFi AX and the Eero Pro half dozen both go you at that place for hundreds less than those top-of-the-line options, merely y'all tin read more almost all of your options in my total rundown of the all-time mesh systems on the marketplace correct now.
Your router tin't piece of work miracles
I last point: It'south important to understand that your router doesn't generate speed or bandwidth -- it takes whatever bandwidth you're paying for from your internet service provider and sends it out into your home so that wireless devices tin connect. If that incoming bandwidth is limited to brainstorm with, there'due south really not much your router can exercise well-nigh it.
Somewhen, improvements to things similar satellite net and connected 5G and fiber deployments should assist bridge the bandwidth gap in parts of the land that lack admission to high speeds. Merely until that happens, paying extra for an upgraded router is probably overkill.
"I wish in that location was an answer to say, 'Yeah, you could upgrade your router, and that'll solve your bandwidth problem on the ISP,'" Coleman says. "But the answer is non actually."
In a "small pipe" situation like that, Coleman's recommendation is to focus on conserving your bandwidth -- particularly in the situation he described earlier, where Mom's piece of work calls are dropping due to the kids' Netflix habits. His proposition: Look for a router with skillful parental control settings.
"If you're a parent, y'all tin can practise time settings and firewall settings to restrict access of sure kinds of applications, also equally certain times when certain individuals could apply it," Coleman says. "My kids are grown at present, but I used to do information technology dorsum in the day!"
Source: https://www.cnet.com/home/internet/how-to-tell-when-its-time-to-upgrade-your-router/
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