How To Take Advantage of Gigabit Internet

Gigabit is the future of the internet and we target this article at teaching you how to take advantage of Gigabit Internet. Gigabit Internet service delivers data up to 1 Gigabit per second (Gbps) which is equal to 1000 megabits per second (Mbps). Whoops! That’s a lot of speed!

This is multiple times faster than your regular browsing speed. Sounds simple and captivating, isn’t it? Unfortunately, it is not as easy as it sounds. Switching to gigabit Internet and enjoying the many benefits of a fast wireless speed comes with unique challenges. This is not a course for alarm and therefore we are here.

In this article, we will teach you how to get 1gbps internet speed for free. We will also answer the most popular questions.

How To-Do List

What To Do To Take Advantage of Gigabit Internet

Ensure that your device is close to your router

Bearing in mind that household devices like baby monitors, TVs, refrigerators, ovens, and even fluorescent bulbs can affect your wireless performance, try to place your router at a safe distance from them.

These household devices use the same wireless channel as your router (2.4 GHz) and can affect its overall wireless performance.

Use the 5GHz Frequency

While some routers support just the 2.4 GHz frequency. Others support both the 2.4 GHz frequency and 5 GHz frequency (dual-band router). The major difference between the two is that the 5GHz frequency has high-speed performance, however, it is subject to network interference from household/kitchen appliances and walls around your home.

However, the 2.4GHz frequency works at a somewhat lower speed but it has a higher wavelength that is rarely affected by network Interferences.

You might have to interchange between both frequencies per time depending on the overall performance. For gigabit Internet, a router that supports both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequencies will be a better fit for fast and seamless internet.

Get a PC with Advanced Technology Features

While you should make sure that your router has the latest features and configurations, using old computers will not allow you to get the best of gigabit Internet. Hence, switch to a more sophisticated PC with the latest wireless standards and advanced technology features.

Some of these features include support for 5GHz frequency, MU-MIMO (multi-user multi-input multi-output) quad-stream, and 160MHz channels.

Get High-Quality Cable Wires

You can use different wires for your router connection, including Cat 5e and Cat 6 Ethernet cables. However, using Cat 6 Ethernet wiring is best for connecting your devices to your router. Cat 6 Ethernet wire is sure to help you get quick and reliable internet speed up to 10,000 Mbps.

To prevent network interference, ensure that you fix the cable wire connection parallel to power line connections. Also, you can connect Cat 6 Ethernet wire directly to your PC to enjoy faster speed.

Ensure That Your Processing Unit and Ports are Compatible with Gigabit Internet

Not all ports and CPUs are compatible with Gigabit Internet speed. So you should handpick your router, ensuring that the processor and ports support Gigabit Internet.

This is mostly the case with cheap routers. You may have to spend a little more on good and modern routers to enjoy Gigabit speed. If you ask us, we don’t think it is too much sacrifice for your comfort.

Check Your Adapter

You can use adapters as an alternative to Ethernet ports for wired connections. This is because not all PCs feature an Ethernet port, hence adapters can affect wired connections with your router.

There are lots of good options for wired connections. However, we recommend USB 3.0 adapters

To connect your adapter, plug one unit of the adapter into a power unit near your router (you can connect the adapter to your router using an Ethernet cable). Then, plug the other unit of the adapter with built-in Wi-Fi into another power unit in another room to lengthen the wireless coverage. You can connect an Ethernet cable from this point to the first unit while making sure that you properly connect the unit.

Constantly Update your Devices

Your router requires constant updating as the vendors usually come up with newer software features that users will only enjoy when their router is up-to-date. You can access new firmware updates automatically by enabling auto-update settings on your router or by signing in to your router administrator console. After logging in, follow the instructions that follow to upgrade your firmware.

However, for security purposes, you need to be careful about updating your firmware immediately after a newer version is available. It might be helpful to wait for a few days after they release the update.

You can also seize the opportunity to update your mobile devices or PCs to ensure that you are current with the device updates available for the best internet experiences.

Check for Customer Review

It is great to check for the device specifications of a product. However, some of them are not accurate. Hence, while shopping for a new PC or wireless router for gigabit, go through reviews from first-hand customers or your potential device to avoid costly mistakes.

You don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on a new device that won’t give you the result you desire.

Disable QoS Settings on your router

Enabling the QoS (quality of service) option on your router has the advantage of helping you cut down bandwidth consumption by limiting large data downloads on your device. However, it can also harm your internet speed as it screens all the data packets going through your device.

Run an Internet Speedtest on your PC

Different internet activities require different internet speeds. This can restrict you from some activities on the web because of the speed of your wireless connection. Below is a highlight of some internet activities and the speed required to run them:

To browse and search online content, send mail, and stream HD videos on a device, you need up to 5Mbps.
To play online games and stream HD videos while connected to 2 or more devices, you need 6 to 40 Mbps.
To steak 4k videos on 5 or more devices and fast file download of extensive files, you need 100 to 500 Mbps
To stream 4k videos on over 10 devices, you need 950 to 2000 Mbps.

If you have done all the above but are still not getting the result you want with gigabit, then it will be beneficial to run a speed test on your PC. Running a speed check will help you to know the actual internet speed you are working with.

1GB internet speed test

You can run a 1Gb internet speed test on your wired and wireless devices to check if your internet speed is up to 1 gigabit (1000 Mbps). The speed test checks the speed of your upload and downloads.

You can use your desktop to run your speed test. Download a Speedtest application on your computer and run the speed test.

To run a fiber speed test on Google fiber, follow the steps below:

Close all running applications
Via your browser, go to speed.googlefiber.net
Press the play button to start the speed test
You will view your upload and download speed to confirm if it is up to 1 gigabit.

Next, we will answer some popular questions that we found on the use of the gigabit internet. Check if you can find the answer to your question about gigabit Wi-Fi on the list.

FAQs

Do I need gigabit internet?

We will attempt to answer this question with another set of questions, don’t worry, they are quite easy.

Do you want a faster internet experience?

Do you plan to connect many devices to your network?

Do you engage in multitasking and heavy-duty internet tasks?

If you answered yes to most or all of the questions above, then you know the answer to your question already.

Gigabit internet is over 10 times faster than the regular Mbps, giving you access to faster browsing speed for your internet activities. However, subscribing to Gigabit internet is subject to a lot of factors which we have discussed in this article.

In addition, one problem with Gigabit internet is that the service is hopelessly new that is yet to be available in some areas. If the network in your area does not support Gigabit Internet, there is no point in subscribing to gigabit Internet. Or else you want to prepare yourself for when it would be available in your area, which is not totally a bad idea.

I have a Gigabit Internet but downloads are slow – What should I do?

If you are using Gigabit internet but your rate of download is still slow, there are a few things you can do to adjust it. Try the steps listed below:

Check your Router Settings
Ensure that your router firmware is up-to-date. An old firmware can affect the speed of your internet.
If your router does not support Gigabit speeds, it can affect your internet speed, including your download rate. Check to be sure that your router supports Gigabit speed or else, get a new router.
Disable QoS service on your router
Confirm if your router’s cooling system works efficiently. Also, be sure that your gaming PC is not overheating.
Too Many Devices Connected to your Network
A lot of routers allow multiple connections of devices. However, connecting too many devices to your network at once can slow your download speed.
Disconnect some of the connected devices, you can reduce it to about 3 devices and check if the download speed has improved.

I have gigabit Internet but the Wi-Fi is slow – What can I do?

If you subscribe to gigabit internet but are still experiencing sluggish wireless connection, then we advise you to confirm that gigabit internet is in your area. There is also a lot of other lists of things that you can check to confirm where the problem is coming from. They include:

Check your router firmware for current updates
Use a gigabit-compatible PC and router/modem for your internet connection
Use quality cable wiring
Turn off the Quality of service option (QoS)
Run a speed test after you check with all the above

How to get gigabit Wi-Fi speeds?

You can get gigabit internet from a range of cable and fiber internet service providers. Some of them include AT&T, Xfinity, Verizon, Spectrum, Cox internet, Optimum, Google Fiber, Century Link, RCN, and other prominent internet service providers.

Before subscribing to Gigabit Wi-Fi on any of these ISPs, ensure that your area supports Gigabit Wi-Fi. Having ticked that off the list, then check for the helpful tips highlighted below:

Make sure your router supports gigabit internet. A Wi-Fi 6 router with an 802.11ax standard is most preferable, but you can also use a Wi-Fi 5 router that has a standard of 802.11ac. Please note that gigabit internet does not mean the same as fiber internet. While gigabit depicts the speed of an internet connection, fiber internet is an internet connection itself.
Get a fiber or cable internet service provider that supplies gigabit Wi-Fi plans in your area
Get yourself adapters that support Gigabit internet

How much is gigabit Internet?

The cost of gigabit internet varies from one internet service provider to another. For instance, while you can get gigabit internet at the rate of up to 299 dollars from Xfinity, you can also get it for as low as 60 dollars from AT&T.

Let’s just say Gigabit internet typically costs 60 to 80 dollars per month (on average).

Lastly,

If you have read this post till this point, we hope that you now know how to take advantage of Gigabit Internet.

Using the Gigabit internet takes a lot more than you think and if you ask us, we think it is worthwhile.

Hopefully, gigabit ethernet will be everywhere in the nearest future. Even if you don’t yet have gigabit internet in your area, don’t worry, you can also use these settings to enjoy a better wireless experience with your megabit internet.

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