10 ESSENTIAL WAYS TO SPEED UP YOUR Wi-Fi

Find the strongest Wi-Fi signal 

There are numerous free apps that claim to speed up your Wi-Fi connection, but most are best avoided. Many of them will change the settings on your mobile device, bombard you with ads and constantly pester you to rate them as 'five stars' in the Google Play store. Worst of all, they don't work. One of the best (and safest) apps for finding faster Wi-Fi is OpenSignal for Android. This uses a compass and a map to point you in the direction of where the wireless signal is strongest and therefore fastest. OpenSignal works equally well whether you're using your home network and want to know the best place to sit, or accessing free public hotspots, when it will save you a lot of wandering around. Slightly different, but just as useful is WiFi Overview 360. This free app constantly scans for available wireless networks, listing the fastest at the top of its results. Our favourite feature is the 'Channel check' option, which shows you what's currently the best channel to use (see tip below), and the speed you are likely to get on it. You can upgrade to the ad-free Pro version for 82p.

Change to a less busy channel 

Wi-Fi routers broadcast on channels, so if you're using the same channel as one or more of your neighbours, you're likely to suffer from slower speeds. Fortunately, it's easy to find out if other people are hogging your bandwidth by installing a free tool called inSSIDer. Run this program, which is available for Windows, Mac OS X and Android, to scan for nearby networks and find out which channel they're broadcasting on. The most commonly used channels are 1, 6 and 11, so if you're sharing one of these with lots of other people, it's a good idea to switch. To change the channel you use, you'll need to go to your router's configuration page in your browser. The web address for this is usually 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1. The username and password should either both be `admins; or the password should be 'password' or blank (if not, try Googling your router's manufacturer and 'router login details'). Once logged in, click Wireless, choose a new channel from the drop-down menu and click Save. With fewer people on the new channel, your speed should hopefully increase.

Boost your signal with a wireless range extender 

If you live in a large house, you'll probably find your signal drops in some rooms. To even things out, you can add a wireless range extender or repeater to your network, which could boost your speed by up to 50 per cent. An extender picks up the Wi-Fi signal from your router and repeats it, providing greater coverage around your home and eliminating any dead spots. Several repeaters can be added to a network. You can buy wireless range extenders for as little as £20 from stores including Amazon and Maplin. We've reviewed TP-Link's latest extender, the TL-WA850RE, on page 20. Other notable brands include Netgear and Belkin.

Discover your true Wi-Fi speed 

As with home broadband, it's useful to compare exactly how fast your Wi-Fi actually is with the potential speed you could be getting, so you can identify any performance problems. Try Speedtest.net, which now offers free apps for Android and iOS, and Windows Phone as well as its web-based version. It calculates the speed of your wireless (or 3G) connection, as well as the 'ping' rate (the time it takes for a server to return a data request). It's worth running the test more than once and comparing the results to get the most accurate overview of your true Wi-Fi speed. See our Mini Workshop on page 46 to find out how to use Speedtest.net.

Adjust your Quality of Service settings 

Most modern Wi-Fi routers offer a feature called Quality of Service (QoS). This analyses all the internet traffic that flows through your router so it can priorities certain applications, such as online games, file-sharing tools and Skype. On a cheaper router, the only QoS option is 'on' or 'off', because the service is managed automatically. A more advanced router will let you decide which programs to give the most bandwidth to, while demoting requests from less data hungry applications, such as email. The method for changing your QoS settings varies between router manufacturers, but you'll usually need to log into your router's configuration page and choose which services should have highest priority. Check the manufacturer's support pages for advice.

Check you've got the latest drivers 

To ensure you're getting the fastest Wi-Fi speeds possible, it's worth upgrading your router's firmware and drivers to the most up-to-date versions, if you don't have them already. You can download the latest firmware (the software that controls your router) and usually the drivers, too, from the manufacturer's website. A major update can give your router a real performance boost.
You can also check for updated drivers yourself. In Windows 7 and Vista, go to Start, click Control Panel, choose 'System and Security' then System (System Maintenance in Vista) and click Device Manager. In the list of hardware categories, double-click the device's name under 'Network adapters'. Click the Driver tab, click Update Driver, then follow the instructions. In XP, you can open the Device Manager from the Control Panel by double-clicking System (or going to 'Performance and Management', System) and clicking the Hardware tab. In Windows 8, you can access the Device Manager by pressing the
Windows key + X to bring up the Windows Tools menu (also known as the Power User menu).

Switch to super-fast new HomePlugs 

If your Wi-Fi speed is too slow, you could try switching to HomePlugs instead. These plug into your existing electrical power sockets to create a home network that's significantly faster and more stable than a router-based wireless set-up. HomePlugs cost between £40 and £100 for a twin pack, depending on their speed. Some of the latest devices promise up to 500 Mbps. The main HomePlug manufacturers include TP-Link, Devolo and Solwise, and TRENDnet, which has a range of Powerline adapters that work in the same way.

Use the 5GHz wireless frequency 

Many routers that use the 802.11n standard offer dual-band support, which means they can operate simultaneously on both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies. The 5GHz band is less prone to interference from other wireless networks and devices, which makes it much faster for streaming, downloading and gaming, although it has a shorter range. The 5GHz network also offers up to 23 non-overlapping channels, so your neighbours are much less likely to slow you down. Even if your 802.11n router can't run both bands at once, you should still be able to switch to the 5GHz frequency. Just log into the configuration page, find the wireless settings section and select the 5GHz option. The new 802.11ac wireless standard runs entirely in the 5GHz band and uses a technology called beamforming to offer a wide signal range. There are already a few 802.11ac routers on sale, including the Netgear R6300, which claims to offer incredible speeds of up to 1,300 Mbps (in theory, at least). You can buy the Netgear R6300 from Amazon for £169.63.

Repair your connection 

If your wireless connection suddenly gets slower or stops working, try repairing it. On a Windows 7 or Vista laptop, go to Start, Control Panel, 'Network and Internet' (Network in Vista) and click 'Network and Sharing Center'. In Windows 7, click 'Troubleshoot problems', choose Network Adapter and follow the instructions on screen. In Vista, click 'Diagnose and Repair'. If you're using Windows XP, right-click the Network icon in your System Tray and select Repair. And in Windows 8, open the Network Adapter troubleshooter by pointing to the upper-right corner of the screen, clicking Search and typing troubleshooting in the search box. Click Settings, choose Troubleshooting, 'Network and Internet' and click Network Adapter. Windows will disable and re-enable your wireless adapter, then reconnect to the network, which will hopefully solve the performance problem. If you're suffering from regular dropped connections and weak signals on your Android phone or tablet, try installing Wifi Fixer. Although this free app can't prevent these problems, it will detect and recover from them automatically to give you as smooth a wireless service as possible.

Find the perfect spot for your router 

To get the fastest speed possible from your router, it's important to choose the right location. Position it somewhere central in your home, between the places you're most likely to be using wireless devices, such as your sofa and bed. If your home is spread over two levels, try putting the router on a high shelf on the ground floor with the antennas positioned vertically. To reduce interference, avoid walls, metal objects, power cables and other wireless devices, and definitely don't leave your router sitting on the floor.