For the last two years many people have been working from home, due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation. Working from home has largely been a success, with a lot of people reporting in increase in productivity; and for those that have found it more challenging, there have been a number of solutions available to make the transition easier. A lot of IT companies began focusing on helping other businesses equip themselves for remote working – such as Tec Quarters, who specialized in IT services London companies would need during this time. One of the most important things that Tec Quarters identified has been ensuring that home-based workers have the internet connection necessary to access company data and other resources needed for work. Of course, there are plenty of internet service providers available, so there is always a choice. One factor that many people don’t consider with regard to their internet is the router they are using.
What is a Router?
A router is a networking device needed to access the internet. It works be trafficking data between computer networks – this data includes anything from a web page, to an email. A router guides that data in the form of packets – different packets are used for different types of data – by reading it and choosing the best route of transmission. Most people recognize a router as the little box that plugs into one of their power sockets and requires a password to connect to.
Don’t I already have one?
Yes, most people have a router. In fact, most internet service providers provide their customers with a home router when they subscribe to the service. Generally, these types of routers are quite simple – only transferring the fundamental data necessary to connect to the internet. For most personal home use, these basic routers are all that is needed. But, if you are one of the many that works from home, and is likely to continue working from home, you may want to consider upgrading to a more high-tech router.
You might think that all routers are basically the same; if their job is simply to connect your devices to the internet, how different can one be from the other? In fact, there is a great deal of variation in routers. The ones that internet service providers give their customers are usually preconfigured and might even have caps on certain settings, and don’t normally offer the best signal in your home.
Premium routers, on the other hand, are generally built with much better tech, and are more configurable. Below are some of the best routers available today:
1- Netgear Nighthawk
The Nighthawk brand from Netgear is well known among tech enthusiasts. The one of the benefits of these routers is the antennae they come with – these guarantee you excellent signal; sometimes more than 1500 square feet of coverage. The Nighthawk router can also support connections with up to 25 different devices – probably more than enough for the average remote worker. The Nighthawk router also has a lot of excellent security features you rarely see on a generic router.
2- TP-Link AC1200
This router has been a consumer favorite for 5 years now. The TP-Link AC1200 is compatible with all internet plans, and it is specifically built for 4K streaming – meaning the data transfers it can handle are plenty big enough for the needs of a remote workers. Once again, it features great security features, and it also has parental control features, so it’s a great router for both work and home use. What is more the TP-Link Tether app means that users can control the settings of their router easily from their phone.
3- Netgear Orbit Tri-band
This is the second Netgear router listed on this article, which probably tells you that this brand is highly trusted for all kinds of network equipment. The Orbi Tri-band has a coverage of up to 5000 square feed and can support more than 25 devices simultaneously. This is a mesh network router, meaning it is able to distribute Wi-Fi signal throughout your home, meaning roaming the house while browsing the internet is a breeze.
4- ASUS ZenWiFi AX
Mesh network technology, as mentioned above, is becoming increasingly popular, due to its ability to guarantee the most consistent signal strength even throughout very large homes. The ASUS ZenWiFi AX offers this in droves – it guarantees overage of up to 5500 square feet, and it provides data transfer speeds up to 6800 Mbps. This router also offers lifetime free network security upon purchase.
5- TP-Link AC4000
The second of the TP-Link brand routers listed, the AC4000 is supports 4K streaming and gaming, which tells you what you need to know about its data transfer abilities. The other interesting thing about the TP-Link AC4000 is that, unlike many of the other routers that feature just 4 antennae, this router has 6 antennae, which is sure to offer very reliable signal strength for your work device.
