Daniel J Sait89%of home Wi-Fi users say they have up to 20 smart devices at home but are they optimising their, Wi-Fi? Netgear Survey finds lack of awareness when it comes to boosting broadband signal.
We all know that fast internet speeds are important to consumers, but as we purchase new devices, spend more time working from home and increasingly rely on good connectivity to deliver multiple digital entertainment and smart services, the demands on Wi-Fi connections are increasing.
In an online survey just carried out by NETGEAR, the provider of award-winning connected products designed to simplify and improve people’s lives, just under half (49%) of consumers said their priority for upgrading Wi-Fi was better coverage throughout their homes.
While 56% said that faster internet speeds for everyday use was their priority, 42% wanted trustworthy Wi-Fi performance even with multiple users online and just under a third (32%) wanted a seamless connection for all smart devices and home networks with zero delay.
These findings reflect the pressure on consumers to find reliable Wi-Fi that can support a broad range of digitally based activities being carried out in different parts of the household.
Multiple smart devices in use across the home
The survey into wireless connections was carried out online by YouGov on behalf of NETGEAR in February amongst 2179 adults living in the UK. It clearly reflects the popularity of Wi-Fi devices, with 89% of respondents with home broadband saying they have between 1 and 20 in their homes. Amongst these are smartphones, smart TVs, gaming consoles, laptops, security cameras and smart watches.
The importance of strong, consistent Wi-Fi – which 28% of respondents said was a priority for home office tasks – means that innovative technology such as mesh Wi-Fi which delivers comprehensive coverage in every corner of the house, is increasingly important. This is particularly the case among younger groups for whom a flawless signal is essential. 38% of 18-34 year olds said that if mesh could provide Wi-Fi across the home to all devices, they would be likely to buy it in 2024.
Lack of awareness for benefits of mesh Wi-Fi
Mesh Wi-Fi is designed not only to expand the coverage of Wi-Fi with the ability to keep a unique WiFi network, but also to ensure the reliability of the signal across multiple floors and in several rooms. Mesh Wi-Fi is a considerably more powerful solution than Wi-Fi extenders or repeaters and will finally put an end to dead zones. But despite the obvious importance of fast, strong and extensive Wi-Fi to enable everything from HD streaming and serious gaming through to working from home, only 17% of all respondents in the survey were aware of mesh Wi-Fi.
“Consumers today are heavily reliant on their smart devices with 25% planning to buy more this year. But most of them will be missing out on the full functionality of these smart tools because of a mediocre, or even poor, WiFi signal to all parts of the house,” says Gary Newson, EMEA Sales Director at NETGEAR. “Most households in the UK are unaware that the broadband they pay for is not being fully utilised due to sub-standard equipment, thick internal walls or even the layout of the property. Investing in a mesh WiFi system will very quickly allow them to enjoy super-fast, secure and highly reliable connections wherever in the house they are, and on whatever device they are using.”
The issue of enabling connectivity is set to become even more important with the advent of Wi-Fi 7, the new, standard which will deliver four times faster throughput than the previous 6E version, and twice the available bandwidth. This means it can support multiple devices simultaneously, enabling consumers to fully experience smart devices from connected doorbells and heating systems through to Tesla cars and Apple Vision Pro spatial computers.