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Wi-fi slow? Get rid of the baby monitor!

Download speed is reduced by almost a third when using Wi-Fi in the home, according to a new report.

A study by Epitiro, a Cardiff-based internet research firm, has revealed that consumers lose an average of 30 per cent of download speed and face an increase in latency of 10-20 per cent when using home Wi-Fi.

As a result on-line game play, VoIP telephony and video streaming is greatly affected while downloading large files such as MP3s, videos and programs is slower.  JP Curley, chief technical officer for Epitiro, said: “Our data shows that connectivity over Wi-Fi degrades broadband performance considerably in typical circumstances.”

“Consumers who are experiencing performance issues with Wi-Fi should take steps to improve their home environment or connect directly via wired ethernet.”

However the report looked at simple measures consumers could take to improve their Wi-Fi performance. For example, interference can be caused in urban areas as Wi-Fi routers share the same default communication channel, leading to dropped connections or slow service. By selecting a different modem channel this problem can be eradicated.
Wi-Fi speeds will also be degraded by physical barriers such as walls, doors and furniture, as well as interference from other devices in the same frequency range including baby monitors, television remote controls, microwave ovens, garage door openers and cordless phones.

However, Epitiro has also discovered that web page download times are virtually the same using Wi-Fi or wired connections, indicating that consumer Quality of Experience (QoE) is not always directly related to speed. Web pages download times are less susceptible to changes in line speed as the many artefacts that comprise web pages are relatively small in size.“Consumers should be selecting ISPs based on their ability to provide reliable service,“ Mr Curley said.

From November 2010 to February 2011 Epitiro monitored the performance of 14,001 panellists in UK, USA, Italy and Spain. 56 per cent of the survey group connected via Wi-Fi, 44 per cent via wired ethernet connection. Epitiro’s ipQ Quality of Experience Analysis Solution was used to do the testing.