The best place to position your MiFi Router for better performance and signal strength

Recent research has shown that an average household has at least 8 smart devices. These are tablets, smartphones, laptops, TV’s or other devices that could require an internet connection. Having separate data plans for all these can quickly skyrocket your data bills. Most people, therefore, decide to invest in MiFis. These are portable Wi-Fi hotspots that use cellular data to create a home network.

We have all been there. You’re connected to your own cute little hotspot, decent speeds, your binge-watching BuzzFeed on YouTube or maybe jamming to your tunes when poof, “No Connection”. You go to settings and your signal strength is almost nonexistent. But all you did was move a few feet!! Turns out, there is a right and wrong way to position your MiFi or router. Let us look at tips that can help your router send a stronger signal throughout your home/apartment.

Advertisement - Continue reading below

Rule of thumb; Try have a direct line of sight with your MiFi.

Having a clear line of sight between your device and the MiFi is a sure way to ensure a strong connection. Concrete in itself is a dense material and is only semi-permeable to electromagnetic signals, especially 5GHz. The reinforcing steel rebar in the concrete, somewhat depending on its denseness, pulls even more juice out of your signal. If you and the MiFi are in different rooms and your walls are made of reinforced concrete you will definitely see a degraded signal.

Place your MiFi in a central place.

Wi-Fi devices like a MiFi broadcast the signal evenly outwards. Placing it in a corner of the house means it will be a lot further from the opposite side of the house hence shitty reception. having it in the middle of the house/room means the signal can easily reach most parts of your house so less buffering on YouTube, and who doesn’t like that?

Set it up somewhere high up

MiFi devices emit radio waves, which spread out and down from their source. Mounting the MiFi on a wall or setting it on a high shelf can give you a better signal throughout the house. In story buildings, this could also help improve the signal strength on both floors.

Avoid placing the MiFi in areas of the house with a lot of metal

Research has shown that metal dissipates electromagnetic energy quite efficiently. This means the kitchen is not the best place for your router to live. All the metal in the sinks and your cutlery will most likely degrade your WiFi signal. And why would you have your MiFi in the kitchen anyway?

LIKE WHAT YOU ARE READING?

Sign up to our Newsletter for expert advice and tips of how to get the most out of your Tech Gadgets

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.