Connectivity demystified: Why it’s important to understanding the “language” of connectivity
By Craig Blignaut, Product Manager: WiFi and Theo Van Zyl, Head of Wireless at Vox
In an age where connectivity is the foundation of our digital existence, understanding the complexities of modern connectivity offerings is critical. The Internet, a global network of interconnected computers, devices and databases, makes it possible for us to access information and communicate from anywhere in the world. WiFi, on the other hand, allows us to connect our devices to the Internet. A WiFi connection can come from fibre, LTE, wireless or a satellite connection.
Making
sense of connectivity
While the distinction between WiFi and the
internet might be obvious to some, others think about them as being one and the
same. In part, this is because most users think about WiFi as something we use
to connect to the Internet. So, if you can’t get online, you automatically
assume that the bridge between you and the Internet – the WiFi – must be the
issue. But this isn’t necessarily the case.
While one can get away with using these terms
interchangeably in most conversations, there are situations where understanding
the “language” of connectivity can help you make the right purchasing
decisions. For a customer setting up a network in their new home and
understanding the lingo can be useful when chatting to service providers about
their connectivity requirements.
If you work from home and spend your days on
video calls, you must make sure that you have the necessary speed and capacity
to handle this. Or if you’re a TV and movie buff and you want to stream 4K
content on your TV, your connectivity will need to keep up. And as more and
more items in our home connect to the Internet, we also have to remember that
the bandwidth we have is being shared across all of these devices, thus
affecting the speed. This must also be taken into account when choosing a connectivity
offering that delivers what you need.
In addition, making sure that you have the right WiFi equipment is important.
If you’ve upgraded to higher fibre speeds but your router can’t handle these
speeds, your hardware won’t be able to deliver the level of experience you’re
paying for.
The more one understands, the easier it is to
come up with workarounds when things aren’t working as they should. As South
Africans, we’re all too familiar with loadshedding and the connectivity
challenges that come along with it. During power cuts, mobile connectivity
suffers. If your mobile signal in your home isn’t working well when the power
is out, you can actually offload mobile calls onto your WiFi using your fibre
line so that your connectivity won’t be affected.
Making
informed connectivity decisions
With technology changing at such a rapid
pace, it can be challenging to keep up with everything. But, again, knowledge
is power and understanding the different connectivity offerings can help you
ensure that you choose the right solutions to meet your unique needs.
As a simple example, if you have rooms in
your home where the WiFi signal is a little patchy, you’ll likely be familiar
with WiFi repeaters or extenders, which essentially rebroadcast signals further
across your home. While traditional WiFi extenders work well enough, the more
extenders you use, the lower the quality of your experience because your speed
is negatively affected every time you “hop” from one extender to another. Newer
mesh technology offers improved coverage, performance and scalability. Where a
regular extender can solve connectivity issues across smaller areas, mesh
systems eliminate dead zones and provide uninterrupted connectivity by joining
two or more Wi-Fi access points together to create a seamless WiFi
network. Mesh networks work incredibly well in larger homes and environments,
making it possible for a user to walk from one room to another without any
break in connectivity. This is an absolute game changer for the modern user
because it delivers a seamless and reliable WiFi experience throughout your
home.
Ultimately, the more you
understand about what’s out there, the better equipped you are to communicate
your needs with the service provider helping you get online. This doesn’t mean
that you need to become an expert on the subject, but a little insight can go a
long way to making sure that you’re always connected.
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