There are lots of smart devices in our homes nowadays, from smart speakers, smart TVs, and Security cameras to our phones, laptops, and dishwashers. I tried to use my phone’s hotspot to connect these devices, but my phone was always overheating and draining the battery.
I decided to try a wireless router, but picking the right one from the many options in the market was challenging. In fact, I got it wrong several times before knowing exactly what to look for. Now, with that hard-earned experience, let me share how to choose the right wireless router for your home network.
How to Choose the Right Wireless Router for Your Home Network
A wireless router is the hub for smart devices at home. It receives the internet signal from your Internet Service Provider and makes it into a wireless radio wave. That signal is the Wi-Fi network that you’re probably using to read this.
Nowadays routers come with all bells and whistles. Shopping for a wireless router is no more a blind hit on the buy button. Fortunately, I have done the hard work for you. Here is a compilation of the key things to consider when choosing a wireless router for your home network.
USB Ports
USB ports add functionality such as connecting your printer to the router. That way, you print wirelessly from a laptop connected to the WiFi. It’s a great way to reduce cables in a home office.
USB ports also allow you to turn the router into a Network Attached Storage by plugging in an external hard drive or flash drive to create shared storage accessible to all devices on your network. I love using this method to store the files I download.
Something I have noted is that USB 2.0 is slow. So, if planning to use your wireless router in this way, go for premium or mid-range routers with USB 3.0 ports.
Number of Connected Devices
When choosing a wireless router, the number of devices that simultaneously use the Wi-Fi truly matters. For example, if your child streams online classes while you work from home holding multiple video conferences in high resolution and another person is watching 4K movies on a smart TV, a cheap entry-level router cannot handle that. However, if you have few devices a cost-effective entry-level router is ideal.
Home Layout
The right wireless router depends on the size of your home. If you live in a penthouse you might need to purchase a premium wireless router with a wide coverage unlike one who lives in a small two-bedroom flat. Another factor to determine is how the home is built.
Walls, floors, and even the materials your house is built with can affect the strength of your Wi-Fi signal. Typically, super-thick walls or metal reinforcements can make your Wi-Fi signal weaker no matter how costly your router is.
If that’s your situation, a traditional router might not be enough.
You can either purchase a router with a mesh Wi-Fibsignal or if you’re tech-savvy, you can create your own mesh network using multiple routers from the same brand. This can be a more affordable option but requires some configuration knowledge.
Speed
Internet speed is measured in megabits per second (Mbps). Typically, your internet service provider sets the maximum speed limit for your connection, but you can upgrade your plan if it doesn’t meet your needs.
Although a router might offer high speeds as stated on its packaging it’s real-world performance usually lags behind. For instance, if your ISP provides 200Mbps service and your router offers speeds that exceed 1Gbps it cannot break the speed barrier.
This means that it will only function at 200Mbps and the reverse is also true. If you want to maximize speed it is advisable to choose a router with speeds that meet or exceed what your ISP offers
Security
Cyber threats are evolving. It seems attackers are spending sleepless nights trying to come up with hacking techniques. For instance, a Sophos report shows that 66% of businesses were attacked by malware and ransomware in 2021.
The shocking news is that this is a 78% increase in cyber attacks in just over a year and around 37% increase just from 2020 to 2021. There have also been high-profile data breaches of over 228 million Deezer users and over 200 million Twitter users. Right from these statistics, you can tell router security is not something to joke with.
Remember, you’re sharing the same network across secure and insecure devices. I mean the same network you’re using to stream movies or play music on smart home theater is the same network you’re using for security cameras and to access your online bank accounts on the laptop.
So, if the attackers find a vulnerability through the smart speakers, they can extend to access the whole network and reach your online accounts. So, when choosing a wireless router, make sure it has the following security features.
Parental Controls
The internet has made almost everything available to anyone, even to kids. Somehow, it’s not a cool thing. Imagine finding your kids watching adult content. In fact, the same information accessible to you is accessible to kids, as long as they know how to browse and query the search engines.
The best way to limit this horribly risky exposure is to invest in a router with parental control features. You have your own Admin password that you use to set the content kids can access on the internet. I like using this option because my kids think the internet doesn’t have harmful content and apps, not knowing I have blocked them through the router.
Another thing I like about router parental controls is the ability to set time limits for internet usage. You don’t have to get into running battles with your kids, trying to get them to do something, only to find them still sticking to the internet.
It’s a good way to establish a balance between screen time and other activities. Some routers even allow you to monitor online activity. This option is great because not only do you block harmful sites, but also you see what’s running in the minds of your kids.
WPA3 Encryption
Wireless Protected Access encryption is a way of scrambling data moving between your router and connected devices. For example, when an attacker gets in the way between your phone and router, he can access readable information.
But with WPA encryption, the attacker gets scrambled data, which is useless garbage without the encryption key. There are advancements in WPA encryption, moving from WPA, and WPA2 to the latest WPA3.
WPA2 is almost impossible to crack with its 128-bit encryption key. But now make things even tougher by going for a router with the latest WPA3 192-bit encryption. These routers also use Simultaneous Authentication of Equals (SAE) to block attackers attempting to guess passwords.
Final Thoughts
My priority when choosing a wireless router is speed and security. I want something that serves me reliably and securely. Remember, you’re not looking for the most expensive, but one that offers the best value for money.
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