There are certain things you can do to help optimise and ensure a seamless Internet connection while working remotely. Whether you work from home, or you run a hub, you will find some useful content here.

Hardwire

This is one of the most common ways to ensure a seamless connection. The speeds from a hardwire connection are generally better than a Wi-Fi signal. It’s best to obtain a CAT6 or higher. By hard wiring to your remote working computer, You’ll be getting priority over other Wi-Fi users. This will help in the case that your connection is sometimes inconsistent to carry multiple devices.

Most routers come with ports that you can connect to the back of, some have one or two and some have up to 5. Network switches can be purchased in electrical and computer stores if you wish to expand on this. An alternative to buying a network switch is to use an old router and by logging into the router settings, you can turn off the Wi-Fi so that the router can act as a network switch to expand your hardwire ports.

Companies like TP link offer an expander whereby you can transmit the incoming Internet from your modem/router through the existing electrical cabling in your property. This can offer LAN cable equivalent reliability and speed in your property. This is especially helpful if you don’t already have LAN cabling already installed in the walls/behind conduit. Another plus of using a hardware connection is that it cuts down on the potential for overcrowded Wi-Fi networks that can potentially drop your connection, especially when using a virtual private network (VPN). Some health experts claim that there is radiation/electromagnetic field energy from Wi-Fi signals and so using a hardwire connection can remove this health risk.

 Routers

What may seem obvious but worth noting, is that the closer you are to the router, the stronger the signal. Most modern routers will contain a dual Wi-Fi band, a 2.4 Hz (frequency)and a 5Hz. The 2.4 Hz has a longer transmission when compared to the 5Hz but the 5 Hz has a faster signal. The 5 Hz doesn’t suffer from Wi-Fi congestion as often as the 2.4Hz as it’s generally less used and can be a preferred connection assuming you are close enough to the router. The 5 Hz can typically be more reliable when using a VPN connection when you don’t have a hardwire connection.

If you’ve been with a provider for couple of years, it’s worth asking or checking if you are entitled to an upgrade as some older routers can lack in speed and performance when compared to newer routers, this is especially true if you have a 4G or 5G router. Some providers offer fibre and a backup 4G connection which you may want to consider if you run important webinars or have an alarm connected to your Internet. If any of the connections coming from the telephone poll outside, for example, fibre or VDSL is not available to you, then some routers even take two 4G SIM cards that will combine the speeds and also offer as a backup. See our previous blog post for all types of connection.

Location of Routers and Modems

Common sense but worth nothing, is that the more central you can place your router in your property or hub the better and as close to your remote working station as possible. Some have their incoming modem in an area like the attic and run a hardwire as mentioned above to the central router for Wi-Fi. This can ensure you get the strongest signal coming to your property and keep the tech stuff out of your view making your home or hub look neater and save space. As mentioned in our previous blog post, it is possible to get a UPS for routers that can keep your connection live for a few hours in the event of a power cut. Some PV solar providers can prioritise certain sockets like your incoming modem/router that will be provided with power from your backup solar or battery. You could ask about prioritising power to your remote working desk or even meetings rooms if you run a hub.

Other points to consider

In our previous blog post, we discussed the option of hotspotting off your phone as a potential backup if your connection goes down.

Also, check out our first blog post where we looked at the different options for Internet. Choosing the best Internet for your needs is one way to provide a seamless Internet connection.

In rare cases where you don’t have a viable connection to your Home Office or Hub, you could consider setting up a wireless bridge from a local incoming property that has a reliable connection and transmit to your outdoor office or hub using a wireless bridge. These typically offer transmission up to a 1 or 2 KM with other Wireless bridges offering longer ranges.

It may be worth fitting a socket timer on your Internet router so that it switches itself off at 12 AM and back at say 7:00 AM if you are concerned about electromagnetic field radiation while sleeping. It would be advisable to occasionally leave the router on at night so that it would receive any required updates.

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4G was the next advancement from the 3G Internet that is still available and both can still be picked up by most routers. 5G is becoming increasingly available in most areas now.  Most of the content in this post is applicable to all generations of mobile Internet but we are mainly focused on 4G in this blog post.

Some of the obvious benefits of 4G include the ability to work almost anywhere. 4G is transmitted from a local mobile network tower and picked up by your sim card enabled router or mobile phone. This is especially true when using battery-powered routers that you can also charge off mains.  However, in my experience, the hotspot options from my smartphone is usually sufficient when on the go with the laptop to justify not having or topping up the battery-powered routers. One thing to consider when hot-spotting from your smartphone is that the internet connection tends to drop down to a lower speed connection like 2G or 3G if someone were to call you and you were in the middle of an important teams call. Another drawback with hot spotting from your phone is that the connection can time out and you have to turn back on the hotspot.  

And there is also mains adapters routers which are the most common 4G routers which can also be backed up by UPS (Universal power supply).  A UPS is typically quite pricey to have to back up your home connection but may justify itself if you run important meetings and were likely to experience an outage, or your home alarm was connected to the internet.

4G can work for those working from home and some remote working hubs, either long-term or while waiting for a fixed connection if the hub needs to open sooner.

4G speeds can often be faster than other broadband connections such as the older DSL copper connection and potentially some fibre-to-cabinet connections.

Pricing

In my opinion, 4G is generally the most lucrative Internet connection you can obtain for your house or small hub. There are very little exceptions to this rule such as in very rural areas where there is almost no signal available from any network. The cheapest way to get up and running is to purchase a second-hand router or use a post-contract router that you or someone received from typical 4G Internet providers.  In either of these cases, you may need to unlock the router if you wish to change to a different provider. By unlocking a router or purchasing an unlocked router, you can avail of the strongest or least congested network signal for your given area and also get the best value.  

Currently in Ireland, the 48-network operator has a starting package of €6.50 for 3 months and then €12.99 euros after this with a cancel anytime. 48 are using the 3 network. 48 impose a 200GB fair usage policy which should be loads for households with 2 or 3 people, once the 200GB is used up, you will be unable to use any data services until you purchase your next plan or you purchase a 1GB Data Add-on for €3.  

The GOMO network offers an unlimited 4G and 5G data sim for €14.99 euros with a cancel anytime also. GOMO impose a 120GB fair usage policy, so after 120 gigabytes of usage, they may slow down the network until your next billing cycle but the key thing is, you will still be always connected. GOMO uses the EIR network.

Other mainstream providers such as Three, Eir and Vodafone typically average around €20 no contract sim deals for unlimited usage. Again, its important to check the data allowance within the fair usage policy in these sim-only deals.  1-2 year contract deals average around €35 a month with some tracking inflation but you will usually get the router free of charge and get to keep. If joining one of these contracts, it may be a good idea to ask if they can provide the best category router and pay the difference in price, it could be the difference between being able to stream video consistently or not.

Ways to optimize speed.

There are different types of routers. Some routers are 5G enabled with the ability to switch to 4G also.

There are also different categories of routers, the higher the category the faster the speeds. Currently, in Ireland, providers you join through a contract,  will be category 7 to 12.  Three is offering category 7 and the Eir network have category 12 routers.  Typically shops like Harvey Norman, sell category 4 or 6 and these routers come already unlocked. All routers can be unlocked by requesting an unlock code from your provider once you meet and certain criteria such as being out of contract. There are companies that offer unlocking options you could search for on the web.

In order to receive the best signal into your house there are certain things you can do to optimise this such as placing the Router at a window or perhaps in your attic and pointing it at the network tower if its location is known for that given network.  External Aerials can be mounted to most routers and some areas can be outdoor but it’s important to note that signal losses can occur from some outdoor aerials to the router due to the length of cable and in many cases experience lower speeds using an externally mounted aerial.

As also mentioned above, congestion can be one of the biggest drawbacks of 4G and can be typically during the evenings when most people are on. This is why it’s best to experiment with different SIM providers to obtain the strongest signal across your 30-day billing or top up cycle and also identify where the strongest signal may be in the house.  You can search your local mass locations on the comreg website (ComReg SiteViewer) to try figure out which is the best signal for your house and where you would like to position the router. See also this link; Service Coverage – Commission for Communications Regulation (comreg.ie). It’s important to notice that the closest and most direct line of sight may not be the fastest signal when you take into account congestion which can be 1 draw back of mobile internet.

Another factor which can affect speeds is that the 4G routers 10 collect data similar to a computer device and by doing a factory reset every few weeks or months it will help restore speeds. The reset button is usually at the back or the bottom of the router and you will need to press and hold with a sharp object to perform the factory reset. If you’ve configured a different password or settings, you will probably need to redo this.  Some routers display the signal strength on the outside and many have it showing when you connect to the router via ethernet on a laptop or through a smartphone app for the router. This way you can position the router and check where the strongest signal is and also by doing a speed check.

Other notes to consider

Connected to the admin access of the router you can also configure different settings such as turning off either the 2.4Hz or the 5Hz Wi-Fi or both if you wanted to just use the router as a modem and hardwire the router to your computer or another Wi-Fi only router. This way you can obtain a strong 4G signal from a window or attic and then position your router in a more central location in the house that may not have a strong 4G signal such as under a stairs. This is especially true in well-insulated concrete homes. By doing this you can just have one Wi-Fi network for simplicity and also reduce the risk of Wi-Fi congestion. Some health experts suggest that all routers emit small radiation, so the fewer transmitting devices you have the best. There are signal extenders that use the power connections in your home to send a hardwired signal around the house if you don’t have Internet cables already in your walls.   

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This blog is divided into 2 main sections, Wireless and Fixed Wired broadband. At Hotspace, we prefer Wireless Options for remote workers and even some potential future hubs, read on to see why….

1. Wireless Broadband 

There are various wireless options and many of the most common have been collated here.

4G

4G connections has to be most versatile and best value for money. Why pay for more speed than you need? Evolving on from the steady 3G connections, 4G can outperform many other connections in terms of speed and in some urban cases it can be faster than some fibre-to-cabinet connections. It’s possible to be set up with a connection in a matter of minutes or even the hotspot option from your smartphone if you’re well, pretty much anywhere. With some Irish-based providers offering unlimited broadband from €12.99 with only a 30-day contract, 4G is our preference for the average remote worker and even some smaller hubs in some examples. 4G will generally support most users’ needs, but if you live In a rural area’s and have more than 2 people at home with multiple devices, you may run into congestion issues. 4G also can suffer from congestion in the evenings when most homes are using the network.

4G mains routers and battery-powered routers make them ideal for remote workers that travel and as it enables them to work from almost anywhere.

Stay tuned, as in a later blog we will explore 4G further, including the different Irish providers based on your location, budget and the different Internet routers to meet your needs.

5G

Evolving on from 4G, 5G is the latest GSM mobile network in Ireland.  In some cases, speeds are matching and surpassing fibre.

Similar to 4G, some 5G connections can be set up in a matter of minutes. Some downfalls of 5G is that its not available everywhere and is mainly rolled out to town areas by the mobile phone providers. Fixed 5G broadband providers for rural and urban areas are typically around 150mbs download.

Fixed Wireless Broadband

There are other providers for homes and businesses that are independent from mobile mast networks. Westnet is one provider of this service but we understand is just available in the West of Ireland.  Even with their most basic package speeds of 6Mbs download and 3Mbs, it can actually outperform other faster on-paper providers that suffer from congestion as Westnet is constant and steady.

Satellite broadband

So providers say, satellite broadband can be connected to any home or business offering another broadband solution that may be the only option viable option for some rural areas. In recent years, Satellite broadband has dramatically improved. One issue is that it is sensitive to latency, meaning professional video calls or real-time gaming multiplayer is not recommended.

Free Outdoor Public WiFi (WiFi4EU initiative)

The WiFi4EU initiative promotes free access to Wi-Fi connectivity for citizens in public spaces including parks, squares, public buildings, libraries, health centres and museums in municipalities throughout Europe.

WiFi4EU went live in many Mayo Towns the end of 2021 such as: Balla, Ballinrobe, Castlebar and Belmullet.

Adjacent Participating map  can be accessed via this link:WiFi4EU Networks – Maps | Shaping Europe’s digital future (europa.eu)

2. Fixed Wired Broadband

When referring to fixed broadband here, we mean a cable installed into your office or home, generally from a roadside poll or underground cable. The majority of connections across Ireland would be availing of this type of connection and one most main steam providers try to sell first. Many remote workers, assume that if there is no fibre available , they simply wont have fast broadband. As we described above, this is not true. Although most wireless connections cannot match the speeds of fibre, there are almost always other wireless solutions for busy offices and homes.

VSDL

This broadband is sent via the older copper wire usually on telephone poles. Prior to the rollout of Fibre, disconnection was sufficient for most users and still is depending on how close you are to your nearest exchange. However, homes and businesses that are greater than 4 kilometers, simply won’t have fast enough connection to deal with streaming and Webex calls. This should typically be assessed by your provider prior to install.  In rural areas where there are limited or no wireless connections (very rare), This may be your only option and at least will serve for the likes of e-mails and non-streaming tasks.

Another benefit for some users of fixed wired broadband is Voice over IP (VoIP).  Offered by some providers, it’s a phone service that works the same as your old landline but is better value and better quality.

Finally, you can find if your premises is already connected, or included in the National Broadband Plan or when its estimated date for Fibre upgrade is, click here: Welcome to National Broadband Ireland – NBI

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