Wi-Fi 6 has been available for a few years now, and it is the standard used in most homes and small businesses today. For the most part, it provides very reliable and extremely fast connectivity both within local networks and out to the Internet. If you use Wi-Fi 6 for your wireless connectivity in your office and you are experiencing slower than expected speeds, there are things you can do.
Does Your Router Support Wi-Fi 6?
If you recently upgraded your laptops or other wireless devices and you want to get the fastest connection speeds, you may be disappointed. If your router doesn’t support Wi-Fi 6, then you will not be able to take advantage of the increased speed and other features. To take full advantage of everything that Wi-Fi 6 has to offer, you need to upgrade to a newer router model. This will likely be the problem if you have been using the same router since around 2019 or before.
When shopping for a new wireless router, make sure to find one that supports Wi-Fi 6 (almost all of them on the market today do). You can likely rent a wireless router from your ISP, but for the best performance, you will want to buy your own since the ISP routers are generally entry level options.
Do Your Devices Support Wi-Fi 6?
If you know that your router supports Wi-Fi 6 but you aren’t getting the expected speeds, you will want to check to ensure the devices that you are using can handle this technology. If you are using older laptops or other mobile devices, they will force the router to connect using
Check for Trouble with Your ISP
In many cases, the speed issues are going to be only when trying to access the Internet. If you find that your Wi-Fi performs normally when accessing things inside your local network, but are slow when going to the Internet, the issue likely isn’t actually with your Wi-Fi 6 setup. In this situation, you will need to contact your ISP to see if there are issues. This is especially true if the problem suddenly started after working fine for some time. The issue could also be related to how much bandwidth capacity you have, which can be a problem as your company grows.
How Many Devices are Connecting to Your Router?
Another thing that can cause your Wi-Fi 6 connectivity to slow down is the number of devices that are connected to it at any given time. While Wi-Fi 6 technology has dramatically increased the total number of connections that can be handled at a time, it is certainly not unlimited. In addition, modern offices often have a huge number of things using Wi-Fi at any given time. In addition to laptops, tablets, and smartphones, your Wi-Fi router may be supporting printers, smart monitors, video cameras, and even coffee makers!
Most types of routers say they can handle somewhere around 250 devices at a time. The thing to keep in mind, however, that this is not really an exact number. 250 devices that rarely have any traffic, for example, can easily be handled. If you have 250 devices that are constantly downloading content or streaming video, on the other hand, you will undoubtedly overwhelm the connection.
If you believe that your speed issues stem from having too many devices connected to your Wi-Fi router, the best option is to setup multiple wireless access points. This is a very common strategy for facilities that are physically large since it will help to ensure each device is located near an access point for a strong signal. Adding wireless access points will also spread out the traffic load, which should help with the connection speeds.
Update Firmware on Your Router
The manufacturers of Wi-Fi 6 routers (and all hardware equipment) are always working on ways to improve the products they offer. In many cases, these improvements come in the form of a firmware update. The firmware of a wireless router is code that operates the device. Updating firmware to the latest versions will help you to get the best possible performance.
Signal Strength
One of the simplest, yet most common, reasons why Wi-Fi connectivity is slow is because of poor signal strength. If you are getting reports of slowness in specific parts of a building, it is likely that the area is not getting a good signal from the wireless router. You can easily check on signal strength by looking at the connectivity bars on a smartphone that is connected to the router.
If you find that the signal strength is not very high, consider moving the wireless router to a more centralized location so that everyone can get a strong connection. If that is not a practical option, you can consider upgrading your Wi-Fi router to one with a stronger signal. You can also install wireless repeaters or range extenders, which will boost the signal significantly.
Your Wi-Fi 6 Connections Should be Fast and Reliable
WiFi 6 is a proven technology that can provide exceptional speed and reliability. If you are finding that the speeds of your wireless network are not where you want them, make sure that you take the time to figure out why. One of the above recommendations will almost certainly give you performance improvements right away. If you find that you are still having trouble, however, work with your technical support team to look closely at the issue to get it fully diagnosed and fixed.
