Five tips to speed up your broadband for Christmas Day

Just like hanging the decorations, putting up the tree, and panicking about last minute gift buying, worrying about the WiFi has become one of those annual festive traditions.

As our homes turn into hubs of activity, filled with family, friends, and a few too many digital devices, our broadband connections play an important role in ensuring a peaceful Christmas Day (anyone with young children or grandchildren will certainly attest to that fact).

Whether we’re streaming Christmas movies, video calling loved ones, or battling over online games, the holiday season tends to put unusual strain on our home networks. But there are some practical steps you can take to help ensure a smooth connected Christmas.

So grab your mince pies, pour the eggnog (or perhaps something more palatable!) and read on for our five top tips to boost your broadband this Christmas.

Tip 1: Find the best position

We’ve made this point numerous times before, but we’ll make it again. The placement of your router can affect the strength and stability of your WiFi signal. To help maximise your WiFi coverage, here are some things you could try:

• Place your router in a central, open location away from walls, furniture and electronic devices that might interfere with the signal.
• Avoid placing the router near microwaves or baby monitors, as these appliances can emit signals that can disrupt your WiFi.
• Raise the router up to improve signal strength. That means not on the downstairs floor, but on the other hand, not on top of an upstairs wardrobe. In fact, as near to the centre of the home as possible is best.
• Try to ensure the router has a clear line of sight to the devices you want to connect to it.

By following these simple tips, you can give your WiFi signal a better chance of reaching more parts of your home, giving you and your guests the best possible broadband experience this Christmas.

Tip 2: Keep your network clear

During the holiday season, your home network can become crowded with devices, each after their own slice of your bandwidth. Here are some tips to avoid congestion and free up your airwaves:

• Pause non-essential downloads during peak hours (usually evenings) to free up bandwidth for the things you’re actually doing now, like streaming, video calling or gaming.
• Use Ethernet cables where possible: If your TV, PC, satellite box or games console are within reach of your router, consider using a wired connection. This will provide a more stable and reliable connection and help to keep your WiFi network less congested.
• Set up a guest network for your guests to connect to: We’ll discuss this more and explain the benefits later.
• Disconnect unused devices from your network: They may be going unused but that doesn’t mean they’re not using up some of your internet bandwidth.

Tip 3: Optimise your devices

To ensure your devices are getting the best possible connection, consider looking into their settings:

• Update device software: Check for and install any available software updates for your computer, smartphone, tablet and other connected devices. Updates often include fixes that can boost overall performance.
• Disable background processes: Your device may well be running a number of non-essential background processes that could be unnecessarily using your bandwidth. This could include automatic updates, notifications, or even other open applications.
• Avoid simultaneous activities: If you’re looking to get the best possible bandwidth for your device, you might need to prioritise one activity over another. So, pause that download while you’re on a video call for example.

Tip 4: Unleash the power of your router

Most modern routers come with advanced features that can be used to optimise performance and enhance your broadband experience. Here are a couple of tips to make your router work harder for you:

• Use prioritisation settings: If your router allows you to prioritise certain devices or types of traffic, that can be a great help for critical applications like video calls or online gaming to ensure they get the bandwidth they need.
• Set up a guest network: We said we’d come back to this one. Setting up a guest network for your visitors can keep your personal network separate and secure. This can help reduce congestion and make it easier for you to manage devices on your network. By isolating devices on a separate network, you can limit their access to certain features and resources. In the Zen FRITZ!Box 7530 router, for example, it’s easy to allocate a percentage of your bandwidth to the home network (up to 100%). Devices on your guest network will only have access to more than that network’s allocation when the home network doesn’t need it.

Tip 5: Change the way you use the internet

We’re not saying ‘speed up your broadband by not using it’. That would be ridiculous. But, over the holidays, when multiple devices are vying for bandwidth, you can make things run smoother by avoiding congestion where possible.

Some tips for changing your usage include:

• Identify bandwidth-intensive activities: Recognising the activities that use the most bandwidth, like large downloads or streaming, can help you understand when you might need to delay them or something else.
• Schedule activities for off-peak hours: If possible, save some of those activities for times when internet usage is lower, like early mornings or late evenings, or when your house isn’t full of guests.
• Pause non-essential activities: If you notice things slowing down on your network, temporarily pause non-essential activities to free up bandwidth for the activities or tasks that need it.

By keeping an eye on what’s using the internet and when, it’s easier to free up bandwidth when you need it and keep things running smoothly.

Bonus tip: Ensure seamless coverage with Zen EveryRoom

If you’re looking for a comprehensive solution to get rid of WiFi ‘not spots’ and ensure coverage throughout your home, you might just want to invest in Zen’s mesh WiFi service EveryRoom.

EveryRoom uses one or more repeaters to extend the reach of your WiFi signal, creating a seamless network that blankets your entire home. With EveryRoom, you can enjoy uninterrupted streaming, smooth video calls, and lag-free gaming whatever room you’re in.

Here’s how it works:

1. Your existing FRITZ!Box router acts as the central hub
2. Repeaters are placed strategically throughout your home to extend the WiFi signal
3. Your devices connect to the strongest signal, whether it’s from the router or the repeater
4. You enjoy seamless coverage and consistent speeds throughout the house

Be better connected at Christmas

As the holiday season approaches and friends and family gather to celebrate, the demand for fast and reliable broadband increases. By following the tips above you can help to ensure that your home network is ready to handle the surge in online activity that the Christmas period brings.

If your need for a broadband boost extends beyond the holidays though, you might want to consider upgrading your connection for faster, more reliable broadband year-round. We have a range of broadband packages that provide the ideal speed for any scenario – up to 900Mbps in fact. To see what’s available at your address, enter your postcode here.