[imagesource: PC Mag]

As Joni Mitchell once sang, long before Counting Crows butchered it, ‘Don’t it always seem to go, that you don’t know what you got ’til it’s gone’.

Why am I quoting a song from 1970 in relation to router placement? Through circumstances beyond my control, I’m currently working somewhere with glacial WiFi speed and have spent much of the morning trying to eke out any small gains and dreaming of my high-speed connection at home.

The easiest short-term fix, short of working from somewhere else, is to optimise where the router is placed.

For tips on that front, we head to CNET.

Find the right router for your space

First things first: It all starts with choosing the right router or other equipment. Not all routers are the same and the size and layout of your home will determine what type of wireless network you need…

Regardless of whether you have a single access point or a mesh network, where you place the primary access point still matters.

It’s probably best that you chat with your local Internet Service Provider (ISP) and their support teams for more on that.

Where should you put your router?

Choose a central location – Routers send the signal out in all directions, so if it’s left in the corner of your home, a significant percentage of your wireless coverage is being sent outside your home.

Raise the router – Routers tend to spread their strongest signals downward, so it’s best to mount the router as high as possible to maximize coverage.

Avoid other electronics – The more walls, large obstructions and electronics near your router, the higher the chances are that something will interfere with the signal.

Those funny-looking antennas do actually matter

Some routers have no antenna at all, but some have up to eight. These antennas help direct the signal. If there are two or more antennas on your router, don’t position them all in the same direction.

Image: The Techie Guy

Instead, make them perpendicular to one another — position one horizontally and the other vertically. Or slightly change the position of all the antennas to cover a wide range of angles. You might have to experiment a bit to find the most effective configuration.

For those who really want to dig deep, you can use Wi-Fi mapping software like NetSpot to show which areas of your house are suffering from a weak signal.

Of course, your first port of call should be ensuring you’re getting a decent line speed from your provider at the right price while keeping an eye out for deals.

A higher-speed fibre line like 35Mpbs, uncapped, is on promotion at RSAWEB from R295 a month (Octotel) and a 25Mpbs uncapped fibre connection is R445 a month (Openserve).

Which deal is available to you will depend on which area you live in.

Combine a great fibre deal with optimal router placement and you should be saying goodbye to that buffering spinning wheel of death for good.

[source:cnet]