A HIDDEN letter in your Wi-Fi settings or on the box can reveal whether it’s time for a new router.
If there’s a need for speed in your household, you should try a wireless-N router instead of the common wireless-G.
1
Microsoft explains the difference between the two on its support page.
“In general, when buying new equipment, purchase wireless-N technology.
“Although wireless-G may be the most common wireless network, wireless-N is at least two times as fast.
“It also has better range and stability. Wireless-N is backward compatible with 802.11a, 802.11b, and 802.11g, meaning you can still use any wireless equipment that you already own.
“However, you won’t see much improvement in performance until you upgrade your device or network adapter to wireless-N,” the tech giant explains.
If your router is old, it’s likely a wireless-G router and could be slowing you down.
It’s easy to double-check this by going to your Wi-Fi settings page or looking at the router itself.
A wireless-G router would only allow a 2.4GHz frequency option but wireless-N will also give you the option of 5Ghz.
Most read in Phones & Gadgets
This means you can look for these figures on the device or online.
The 2.4GHz band tends to be better for reach, giving you a better connection the further away you are from your router.
And the 5GHz band offers much higher speeds at a lower range or distance.
Often, the bottom of the device should say whether a 5GHz signal is possible.
Sometimes, switching bands involves accessing an admin page for your router online.
If you have an app that connects to your Wi-Fi router, it may mention wireless-G or wireless-N and the GHz available.
Generally, you need to find out your router’s IP address and type that into a web browser to access an admin page.
Use your router’s username and password to log in and access the security settings.
Here you should see frequency options and more information about your device.
