Special Considerations for Internet Speeds: Multiple Devices, Peak Times, and Data Usage
In our article on activity-based internet speed requirements, we ran through the impact of different activities on internet speed. Now we delve into specific considerations that go beyond common activities.
This article discusses the effects of using multiple devices, managing a home network, the meaning of peak internet traffic, and the issue of data caps. Let's jump right into these topics.
Multiple Devices and Internet Speed
Consider your home internet to be something like a rubber band. The more things you fit into that rubber, the closer it gets to breaking. Thankfully, “breaking” your internet isn't quite as dramatic as breaking a rubber band.
The things you put into your rubber band can be considered your devices.
How Connecting Multiple Devices Impacts Bandwidth
The more you stretch your rubber band out, the harder it has to work. Stretching out your network can cause it to struggle. In other words, more devices result in a bigger strain on the bandwidth.
According to the FCC, moderate internet speed (under four devices) is between 12 and 25 Mbps. But, if you read our article on activity-based requirements, this might not apply to households full of multiple 4K televisions. You can use data from this activity-based article to add together the use of these multiple devices.
Here's a quick summary of download speed requirements based on our activity-based article:
Activity |
Speed Range |
Online Gaming |
Up1 to 100 Mbps |
Audio and Video Streaming |
Up2 to 25 Mbps |
Video Conferencing |
Up1 to 20 Mbps |
Email and Browsing |
1 Mbps |
Downloading and Uploading |
1 Mbps and up |
With these activity-based stats in mind, it's better to overestimate the potential data consumption of your devices. Smart home devices don't take much more than several hundred kilobytes per second (Kbps). Other devices, like laptops, desktops, or mobile devices, might take around 1 Mbps at a minimum. You can then take this into consideration with your home network.
5 Tips for Managing Bandwidth on a Home Network
Your bandwidth, which we define in another sister article, is the maximum limit of your internet speed. Generally, this is based on the capacity of your internet plan and the power of your home gateway (or router). Knowing these two things is important when managing your home network. Beyond knowing your limits, here are some additional tips:
1. Check Your Router's Settings
Check your router's settings or your internet service provider's application to see if you have parental controls. Parental controls have natural tools that help with bandwidth management. You can control the activity of different devices, which is very helpful for managing your bandwidth and your kids' screen time.
2. Review Device Usage
Both your ISP app and router page showc some data on the different devices on your network. Check your device usage page to learn more about what's using data on your home network. By checking out this page, you can review these devices to learn the cause of this usage. If you identify unwanted devices, step three is for you.
3. Change (or Add) a Router Password
A router password prevents unwanted devices from accessing your home network. These devices don't care about your home network's bandwidth limitations. Without a password, any nearby device can sap your network bandwidth. By reviewing your network usage page, you can identify if there are network intruders.
4. Update Your Router Firmware
An out-of-date router is often slower than one with the latest firmware version. When you regularly check your router for updates, you stay current with bug fixes and security updates. This prevents potential slowdowns from network intrusions and other errors that can slow things down. If you have an ISP app, you can often set this up for automatic updates. Otherwise, you can search your router's model alongside “latest firmware update” if it doesn't have this feature.
5. Prioritize Specific Devices
In addition to offering parental controls, modern routers often incorporate device prioritization capabilities. This lets you prioritize specific devices, which is helpful if you don't have enough speed for everyone. These settings, like parental controls, can be found through your ISP app or router page.
Peak Times and Internet Speed
Peak internet time is the period when internet usage is at its highest. This time is often when most people are available to use the internet. “Peak times” can also be called “internet rush hour,” which refers to the time when most users are online, similar to cars on the highway.
In our review of simple internet terms, we use cars on highways as an analogy for bandwidth and internet speed. This will be important in just a moment.
What Are Peak Internet Usage Times?
Peak internet time is somewhere between 7 and 11 pm. This is aboutafter when most everyone is getting off of their 9-to-5 jobs. When you're first getting off of work, it's great to unwind, watch a movie, or play a video game.
But we don't just use the internet to unwind; pretty much all of us use the internet for work at our jobs. This is evidenced by the secondary peak time from 9 am to around noon. Both times see high internet usage for different reasons.
Peak internet usage times might also vary depending on your internet service provider. For example, Xfinity matches the peak times listed above, while Frontier Internet goes from 6 to 11 pm. Check your ISP's terms of service to see how peak times might vary for you.
So, why are peak times so important? It's because your speed might vary during these times.
How Internet Traffic Affects Your Experience
Like a highway, having more cars on the road can slow down the entire experience. With peak times, this is no different, as more people on the internet can impact the ISP's available bandwidth. In other words, high-traffic internet affects your internet experience by slowing it down.
This is one example of data throttling, which is when an ISP deliberately slows down your internet. We'll revisit this topic when we review ISP data caps.
In this case, the throttling takes place across an entire time zone in their service area. Sometimes, this throttling depends on the internet usage in an area. But because this high consumption time is consistent, you might face this throttling regardless of data usage in your area. After all, ISPs save money when they use less traffic (which uses less power).
Try using the internet during off-peak times to avoid slowdowns caused by high usage.This is challenging for some people who get off during the regular 9-to-5 schedule. But, as more people get flexible schedules, we might see these peak times changing.
But peak internet times aren't the only thing causing internet slowdowns.
Data Caps and Internet Use
Having a general awareness of how much you use the internet is very important when it comes to data caps. In this section, you'll learn more about data caps and how you can manage them.
Understanding Data Caps: What Are They, and Who Implements Them?
Data caps refer to the limitations your ISP puts on your internet usage. These are typicallytyically applied on a per-month basis, meant to control the amount of data of account holders under specific ISPs. For example, if your data cap is 100 GB and you download 101 GB worth of files, you've gone over that data cap by 1 GB.
Data caps are implemented by ISPs in an attempt to curb costs. The more people use their service, the more money it costs. Servers, much like any electrical device, need to work to move your files between locations. By capping usage, ISPs ensure each user earns them more profit than what their servers use.
When users go over data caps one of two things can happen:
- You will pay a data overage fee.
- Your data will be throttled to incredibly slow speeds.
Sometimes, both of these situations happen simultaneously, leading to frustrating emails for users. having to pay extra when you already pay high fees for internet isn't fun. If you have faster speeds, you'll likely hit these caps faster.
Most major companies, including Xfinity, satellite internet (like HughesNet), AT&T, and Cox Communications, have data caps. Check the internet plans and add-ons these platforms offer to be certain of these data caps.
Naturally, most people want to avoid hitting their cap. In this case, you have one of two choices: pay extra for unlimited data or follow our next section for tips.
While data caps were common a few years ago, they are fairly rare now. Most users who still have a data cap are also unlikely to ever hit them with typical daily usage.
7 Tips on How to Monitor and Manage Your Data Usage
If you want to control your data usage, here are seven tips you can use.
1. Set Data Alerts
Mobile applications for your ISP will notify you when you are closing in on your data limit. By setting up notifications for this, you can react to coming close to your data limits. Knowing when you typically start to exceed data can also help modify your behavior for the following month.
2. Reduce Streaming Quality
High-quality streaming, especially in the 4K variety, can take up hundreds of megabytes a day. Over 30 days, this can quickly eat up your available data. By reducing your streaming quality, you can save a lot of data typically taken up by HD video. Audio streaming can also be controlled, but this is typically not as much of an issue because audio streaming takes far less data.
3. Limit Background Data
Both mobile and desktop devices can have different applications that work in the background. By reviewing the background data access on these two devices, you can control how much data you use. By limiting these nonessential apps, you can control your data usage more effectively. Look for mobile games, cloud storage apps, and torrenting programs to find the biggest offenders.
4. Use Cellular Data
If your WiFi data limits are being taken up, use your cellular data. You can apply the same logic when reaching your cellular data limits. You can also use mobile hotspots to move over WiFi data usage to your mobile device. The point is to use what you have available and have these two different options in mind.
5. Go Offline
If you're nearing data limitations, now is the time to start turning off devices. Review your device list (via the router screen or ISP app) and ask yourself which ones aren't essential. Then, remove those items until you reach the following month. Data caps tend to reset at the beginning of each billing cycle.
6. Check Sync Settings
Sync settings are an aspect of computer backup systems like cloud-based apps. Check your settings to see if your files mirror each other. If your files are mirrored, you are allowing your cloud system to take up the most data. Ask yourself whether it is necessary to have the full file sizes on both computers. If not, you can change these mirror settings to other backup settings.
7. Manage Automatic Updates
Applications on your mobile and desktop devices are set up for automatic updates. These updates increase your data usage in the background. You can turn off these automatic updates to have better control over your data. You can also control when your device makes automatic updates (such as once a month or a week).
Final Considerations for Internet Usage
Internet usage limitations can feel frustrating, but with a bit of work in understanding, you don't have to worry so much. This article, in combination with our article on activity-based considerations, gives you a good idea of different aspects of data management. This, alongside an awareness of data throttling and different situations, help improve your experience and expectations.
You can also check out the internet service providers in your area to see which ISP is best for your needs.