Let’s find what you’re looking for. Search our resources, blog, pages, and any other content on our website.
The Internet has come a long way since its first inception. Due to these advances, the web pages and Internet features have become much heavier than in the past. One web page can have any number of things going on in the background, and a slow Internet connection can wreak havoc on your productivity.
The need for speed has become more of a necessity rather than the luxury it once was. Most homes, and definitely most businesses, have multiple devices connected to the Internet almost 24-hours a day, seven days a week: web-enabled smartphones, laptops, tablets, and countless other IoT devices are constantly sucking bandwidth from your routers. In this fast-paced business world, you can’t afford to miss a beat on a single device.
The education sector is a great example due to their large volume of heavy bandwidth users. Schools and universities have both reported needing about 100MBs per 1,000 users, equating to 100KBs per user. Due to the technological developments in a number of areas such as, but not limited to, increased video quality, it is projected that this will go up to 1GPs per 1,000 users, or 1MBs per user.
With most videos these days streaming in HD, an individual streamer would need 8MBs in order to enjoy the full video quality. Video conferencing applications such as Skype, Go To Meeting, and Google Hangouts all require about 8MBs download speed per user as well for a smooth experience. This is a large benchmark, for sure, but it’s the perfect illustration of what your business will require.
Now, that’s not to say that you absolutely need 1GB, 300MBs, or even 100MBs. Many small businesses function perfectly fine with less than that currently. Nevertheless, projections show that needing 1GB for most companies will become commonplace. Every business should plan for growth, especially in the area of Internet speed.
Nielson’s Law of Internet Bandwidth shows that data bandwidth doubles each year. If you are using 50MBs of bandwidth now, chances are very likely you will need 100MBs by the same time next year.
If your company is planning on signing a one year or longer contract, be sure the bandwidth is adequate until the end of that contract. If you are not ready to invest in increasing your bandwidth speed at this point and time, here are some quick fixes that can increase your Internet speed in the interim.
There are plenty of free Internet speed testing applications out there. Simply type “Internet speed test”, and you will be provided a list of sites that offer this service for free. Search engines such as Google and Firefox offer free extensions that do the same thing. Keep in mind that test results can differ depending on the location of the test server.
To reset your modem, you can simply turn it off and on or push the reset button if it has one. A simple reset of your modem can fix many slow Internet connections. This also works with devices as well. For example, the next time you notice your smartphone is slower than usual, reset it may fix the problem.
Depending on how big your office is or how many floors you occupy, the Internet can vary from location to location. People closer to the router will have faster Internet, while those farther away can experience slow and dropped connections. A signal booster can spread the signal evenly throughout the office space. It can be a simpler solution rather than buying a new router.
Most people are vigilant enough to protect their network with a password, but it is still surprisingly common for people not to protect their network with a password. Not only can this lead to people leeching off of your connection, but it can also be very dangerous. If you do protect it with a password, be sure to change it every so often. People whom you shared your network password with sometimes like to share it with others which bogs down the network over time. Protect yourself before something more severe happens.
If you have gone over the data cap, you can experience slower Internet than normal until the meter resets. If you are going over the cap faster than usual it may be time to increase your bandwidth. Your business’s success depends on a good Internet connection. Poor Internet can seriously inhibit productivity and cost you money in the long run. Your network is one of those operational aspects that should be at the top of your priority list. Here at Access One, we keep our clients on top of their game with state of the art services and fast, reliable Internet connections. If you have further questions concerning this topic, or if you have other issues, please feel free to contact us anytime.