Have you ever found yourself feeling helpless while choosing the best dress for your prom? Visiting different brands, trying on multiple dresses, sifting through various colors, and even then not finding the perfect fit can be a very frustrating task. We feel you.
We have all experienced such instances where indecisiveness took the better of us. The same is the case with choosing the perfect internet router. We are aware that choosing the finest internet router for your home can be a very daunting task and without proper information as well as knowledge, you cannot accomplish this.
A majority of people are not that literate when it comes to choosing the proper equipment for their homes. They purchase the wrong thing and then get nightmares. Now numerous router brands are available in the market, and all brands market their products to the best of their abilities, leaving you confused and bewildered.
So the question arises how can we achieve this overwhelming task. How can we choose the perfect internet router for our homes? Do not worry as we have written this article to answer all such questions. So grab a hot cup of tea, make yourself comfortable and keep reading.
1. Consider your Requirements
The main purpose of a router is to give out internet signals and keep track of the amount of traffic amidst the linked gadgets as well as the HTTP servers. All of our wireless tasks are accomplished because of the router.
Hence purchasing it can make our lives very easy. But before purchasing this blessing in disguise, you need to evaluate your requirements. Listing down your needs and then heading out to purchase the router that best fits those needs can make your lives quite simpler.
So ask yourself this question: what type of router will fulfill your needs? What features do you desire? What is your budget? All of these questions will essentially aid you in narrowing down your preferences. Another major question that you need to ask yourself is how significant a router is for you. Do you find yourself indulging in rigorous web-related activities? Or, will a router with simple features be sufficient? Hence, these questions are very important and we would advise you to grab a pen and paper and jot down all these questions. After figuring out the answers to these questions, you should come down to the main question that requires more research and time: From where will you purchase the router that matches the answers to the above inquiries.
If you are tight on budget and focusing more on savings, then leasing one from prominent internet service providers like Spectrum would be the way to go. Spectrum bundle deals will promise to provide you with high-speed internet, and the option to rent equipment, thus making it a win-win situation for you. However, if you have a considerable amount saved up and are ready to spend money, then purchasing your router would be wiser. Now that you have answered all the basic questions, move on to the next step.
2. Take into Account the Cost
As the heading suggests, the next step advises you to take into consideration the cost. As per our analysis and experience, features and pricing are directly proportional to each other. The greater the features, the higher will be the price.
To make it simpler for you, let us walk you through an example. For instance, you work for a tech company and your entire work is dependent on the internet. High-speed internet is your necessity and you cannot complete your daily tasks without it, then purchasing a top-notch router with all the latest features should be on your list.
If that is the case then get ready to spend around $150. On the other hand, if you only need the internet for basic web-related activities then going with a router worth $50 would be wiser. What we are trying to say is that cost is highly dependent on the features and your internet requirements.
3. Make sure your Internet Service Provider is compatible with your router
Now imagine you conduct your complete market research, visit countless electronic stores, evaluate all the features and then choose a wireless router that you believe truly fits your needs. You come back home feeling super proud of your decision.
However, to your surprise, your ISP does not approve of it. What would you do in such a situation? All your money and pride will go down the drain. Thus to save you from all this trouble, we would advise you to take your decisions smartly and make it a habit of consulting with your ISP whenever you are planning to buy a router.
For your convenience, many internet service providers have enlisted the approved modems as well as routers on their websites. Go through those lists, and check if your selected router lies in that category.
4. Properly comprehend the router speed as well as a range
We are aware that choosing the router that highly advertises its lightning-fast speeds can satisfy most of our router cravings, however it also very important to know the following elements:
- Displayed speed: Now the key rule is to never believe the speed mentioned on the packaging. That speed can be misleading. The only way you can know the speed is by testing the router before making any decision. You can also do your little research and go through the customer reviews available online.
- Ceiling speed: The greatest speed at which gadgets can utilize the internet is known as ceiling speed. For instance, a router with a maximum speed of 200 Mbps would be useless for a device with a maximum speed of 150 Mbps.
- Router scale: the router’s range determines how far its signals can be transmitted. Thus, if you reside in a big house, you will need a router with a powerful signal extension.
Final Words
No doubt selecting the perfect internet router can be a very scary and time-consuming task; however, if you follow the pointers mentioned in this article, you will surely get a sigh of relief.
