When you signed up with an Internet Service Provider (ISP) you probably got a range of options for download speed, ranging from 10 Mbps (Megabits per second) up to 1 Gbps per second (1000 Mbps).
A byte is 8 bits, so 10 Mbps is 1.25 MB per second.
At 50 Mbps (40 MB/s), you will get good Internet access including HD (High-definition) streaming and online gaming. Plus you can share the connection with 3–4 other computers without noticing a slowdown. You can download high resolution photos in seconds and HD videos in just a few minutes.
Let’s suppose you have 50 Mbps service. Can you actually download data from the Internet this fast?
It depends on the Wi-Fi speed between your computer and the router. Here’s a typical home set up for your Internet connection. Anything using the Internet has to first send the data over the Wi-Fi network.
Wi-Fi is subject to a lot of noise interference (see the previous blog). Generally, the further your computer is from the router the slower your Wi-Fi connection is going to be because of interference from walls, ceilings and any other large objects in the path.
You can measure the speed of your Wi-Fi connection with this tool.
https://www.speedtest.net
The Wi-Fi is network is shared among all the computers in your house so you need to run this from each device that uses the Internet. If you find that some of your Wi-Fi speeds are low, you should see if you can move the router and/or the computer so they are closer together.
Then add up all the Wi-Fi download speeds to see if your Internet connection is fast enough when all computers are streaming video. If the Wi-Fi total is greater than your Internet speed on your plan, you might want to consider upgrading to a higher speed. But if the Wi-Fi total is less than your Internet plan, you may want to change your Internet plan so you are paying for only the speed you can use.
