The holiday season is always exciting as it brings a lot together—family, friends, food and a lot of bandwidth hogs. Visiting relatives logging onto Wi-Fi, streaming holiday movies and shows, new gaming consoles that may have come from under the tree and smart home devices all contribute to holiday device overload.
If there is ever a perfect time of year for a network stress test, it’s in November or December. In this blog, we will break down why the holiday season puts a strain on your network and ways you can mitigate it.
Why the Holidays Stress Your Internet Out
So what are the main culprits of holiday overload? The short answer is that parties, guests and other holiday activities can double the amount of devices on your network in a day.
1. More Connected Devices
Phones, tablets, laptops, smart TVs, watches and consoles already take up enough bandwidth on their own. However, this issue only gets exaggerated after guests start bringing their own devices.
2. High-Bandwidth Hogs
Some devices use a ton of bandwidth when performing certain activities, especially when multiple people are using them simultaneously on the same network. Those can include:
- 4K holiday movie streaming
- Online gaming
- Video calls to family
- Smart speakers playing music
- Uploading and downloading holiday photos and videos
3. Smart Holiday Devices
The holiday season is when the smart home gets even smarter. Smart plugs, connected light displays, video doorbells monitoring package deliveries and more already take up more bandwidth than normal.. When your house starts to fill with people, cracks will begin to show.
How Fiber Delivers Stress-Free Holiday Hosting
Unlike traditional internet connections, fiber doesn’t crack under the pressure of bandwidth. Featuring symmetric upload and download speeds and dedicated bandwidth, fiber ensures smooth performance in any digital hotspot. It is also incredibly reliable during harsh winter weather with its direct connection to your home network through fiber optic cables.
Why Mercury Fiber is the Best Gift For Your Home
Getting your home the gift of fiber is one of the best presents your family will receive this season. Ultra-fast fiber will set your home up for seamless connectivity throughout the hustle and bustle of the holidays. Everyone can enjoy:
- Multiple 4K streams
- Hours of gaming
- Room-to-room smart home automation
- Massive photo and video uploads
- Holiday gatherings with dozens of connected devices
Easy Tips to Maximize Your Holiday Internet Performance
When your first holiday guests arrive, here are some quick tips to optimize your network connection:
- Update your software and hardware for your network and router
- Place your router in a central location with minimal barriers
- Create a “Guest Wi-Fi” network with bandwidth limits in your router’s admin controls
- Hard-wire high-bandwidth devices with Ethernet cables
Upgrade Before the Holidays
Don’t wait until guests arrive to upgrade to Mercury Fiber. We can upgrade you to our fiber network, whether you need help choosing the right gear or want a full-home connectivity plan, our team is here to guide you.
We’re proud to serve families across Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, and Ohio. Check to see if we’re available at your home to enjoy seamless, high-speed internet that keeps up with every device, every guest, and every tradition.
