Will a New Router Improve My Upload Speed?

Question: Does a better router improve internet speed?
Answer: Sometimes. It depends. It's complicated!

Allow me to elaborate…

There are at to the lowest degree 3 factors that impact someone's perception of how fast or ho-hum an internet connexion is. To aid brand my point, think of your internet connection as a pipeline.

The three factors that affect your speed as it relates to your pipeline are:

1. The size of your pipeline (the amount of bandwidth you have)
2. How quickly things flow through your pipeline (the corporeality of latency y'all have)
3. Whether or not there are leaks in your pipeline (is data being dropped somewhere in the centre)

one. The size of your pipeline

Think of the amount of bandwidth yous take. This is the number advertised by your ISP in Megabits per 2d (Mbps).

Some people have one Mbps, others have thou Mbps. This is the size of your pipeline.The more bandwidth you take, the more data that can flow through it at the aforementioned time and the less it gets clogged up.

Remember to likewise consider upload speed equally well every bit your download speed, as they can both make a difference.

The amount of bandwidth y'all have is certainly of import, only it is non the only gene in determining the speed of your internet connectedness.

2. How quickly things (information) catamenia through your pipeline

This is referred to as latency – it is a measurement of the time it takes data to go from your estimator, through the internet to a remote server (Facebook, Netflix, etc), and and then all the way back (round trip).

Is the data moving slowly like sludge through the pipeline, or is it moving quickly like pure water?

If data moves back and forth quickly (low latency), it is probable that someone would perceive that connectedness as very fast, fifty-fifty if information technology were only a 10Mbps connection.

The opposite of this is also true – someone could have a large pipe with dull period and they wouldn't feel that it is a very fast connection. The best instance of this is Satellite Internet, such equally HughesNet.

Many satellite internet plans provide decent bandwidth (normally somewhere around 25Mbps) but are notwithstanding known to be quite irksome. The reason for this, is due to the added time it takes the signal to go all the fashion up into infinite and then be bounced dorsum down to earth.

This results in a big pipe/wearisome flow scenario, and as such, many people with this blazon of service are generally unhappy with it.

3. Are in that location leaks in your pipeline?

This is referring to the reliability of your internet connection and all of the pathways your information takes through the cyberspace on its way to/from a remote server.

If at that place is an result, either with your Internet service provider or somewhere upstream from them, you may experience bundle loss. Packet loss will definitely slow downward your internet connection.

Come across, your figurer is very intelligent and can sense when parcel loss is occuring. When this happens, it has to re-asking the missing data and expect for it to make it again.

This filibuster, depending on its severity, is typically noticeable to the user as lag/slowness. Alternatively, if there is no parcel loss, then there is no need for data to be re-transmitted. This can effect in favorable speeds and saved bandwidth.

Factors that impact your speed

Now that we've covered the nuts of the 3 of the ways that speed is observed, lets discuss factors that will actually affect your speed.

Congestion/Oversubscription

This is what happens when your pipeline gets full. It simply can't move any more data simultaneously until either the size of the pipeline is increased, or the amount of existing data in the pipeline is reduced.

We've all noticed this before – a sudden outburst of lag that occurs because someone else in the household is suddenly downloading or uploading a lot of information, like a movie or a game. This creates data contention issues, which is noticed every bit a slowdown.

Keep in listen that oversubscription could occur in your household (too many family members or roommates using the internet at the same time) or it could also occur at the ISP level – where there are too many customers eating up large amounts of information (usually during peak times of the day) and it ends up affecting other customers.

How well is your ISP connected to other networks/providers

The internet is fabricated upwards of thousands of pathways that connect diverse networks. In some instances, your information has to go through 20-xxx routers before it reaches its intended destination (that is considered a lot of routers).

In other cases, peradventure it only has to get through viii-10 routers. Mostly speaking, the shorter the path your data has to accept to reach its destination, the faster and more reliably it will get in that location.

These pathways are decided upon past your ISP.

If they have many connections to various upstream providers, including some direct connections (called peering arrangements) with major companies such as Apple, Google, Amazon etc – you lot will likely have a amend experience than an Internet service provider that just has one connection out to the internet.

Other miscellaneous issues that can affect your speed:

• Equipment problems at your ISP or one of their upstream providers
• Issues on the server side – if the remote server yous are accessing is oversubscribed or malfunctioning, yous will notice slowness
• Local issues with your calculator or your router, or perhaps a Wi-Fi issue

Here are some things that a new router could solve:

Wi-Fi environmental issues

Perhaps there are environmental issues impacting your Wireless performance. Perhaps there is interference from too many people nearby on other Wi-Fi networks.

Maybe the guy next door uses a cordless phone or runs his microwave frequently (both of which can bear on Wi-Fi). Or possibly the materials that your home is congenital out of is negatively impacting your betoken.

There are technologies featured on newer routers such equally beamforming, additional bands, etc that can overcome some of these environmental issues and deliver a improve user experience.

New features and standards

Perhaps your onetime router only supports an older/slower wireless standard such as 802.11G or 802.11N, so upgrading to a newer standard such as 802.11AC will definitely give better data throughput and better range.

Additionally, many newer routers have quality of service (QoS) features that would brand the net connection experience faster/more than reliable when data contention is in play.

The bottom line:

You won't know if a better router will improve your internet speed unless you do some testing:

• You could just get out and buy a new router, plug information technology in, and promise everything improves
• You lot could connect your computer directly to your router with a network cablevision to see if there is a performance effect related to your Wi-Fi (connecting directly will bypass your Wi-Fi)
• Or you could bypass your router altogether – in some cases, you lot can plug a calculator directly in to your modem to test

Whatever blazon of exam you run, just make sure that you are consistent in your testing. Run speed tests before and after each alter and certificate the results.

Be sure to employ the same figurer and same browser each time yous test. Use the same speed test website/server each fourth dimension, and try to test at the same time each 24-hour interval, since speeds with some providers differ depending on the time of day.

If you are testing a wired connection, make sure your reckoner is disconnected from the wireless network before you start testing.

Results:

If your cyberspace speeds are identical when you featherbed your router, it is unlikely that upgrading your router will have any noticeable event. Perhaps you should contact your Internet service provider instead to come across if in that location is a problem with your connection.

Only, if your internet speeds better when yous featherbed your router, there is a good chance that a new router volition give you the ameliorate operation you are craving.

Good Luck!

Andrew Namder is an experienced Network Engineer with 20+ years of experience in IT. He loves technology in general, just is truly passionate nigh reckoner networking and sharing his knowledge with others. He is a Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) and is working towards achieving the coveted CCIE certification. He can be reached at andrew@infravio.com.

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Source: https://www.infravio.com/does-a-better-router-improve-internet-speed/

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