Wi-Fi Archives - Page 2 of 9 - Rick's Daily Tips

9 practical tips for extending the range, speed and security of your wireless WiFi network

Posted on February 6, 2022

Note: The links in this post are affiliate links.

Wireless routers make it very easy to share your high speed Internet connection with guests and family members.

They also make it easy to use your laptop or mobile devices in any room in the house without running cables all over the place.

But if you live in a large house and/or have multiple devices all using the Internet at the same time, chances are your WiFi connection is weaker and slower than it could be due to obstructions, distance and bandwidth limitations. [Read more…]

Q&A: Can just anyone use Xfinity’s WiFi hotspots?

Posted on January 11, 2022

Question from Donna: I have a co-worker who said she often uses the free Xfinity WiFi hotspots to access the Internet every time she goes to the beach.

She said Xfinity has hotspots just about everywhere so there might be one I can use when I visit my mom in Cleveland.

The thing is I’m not an Xfinity customer. Can I use one their hotpots even though I’m not a customer of theirs?

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

What to do if your hotel room has a weak WiFi signal

Posted on January 4, 2022

If you do a lot of traveling you have probably found yourself stuck in a hotel room with a weak WiFi signal on more than one occasion.

Several variables control the strength of the WiFi signals in any building, and many older hotels (and even some newer ones) have rooms with weak signals and poor connections.

If you really need to use the Internet during your stay, there are several things you can try in order to get a better connection when you’re stuck in a room with a poor WiFi signal: [Read more…]

Q&A: Should I let my neighbor piggyback off my WiFi network?

Posted on October 22, 2021

Question from Mallorie: I need some advice Rick, and it’s sort of a touchy situation.

We live in a duplex and our neighbor has a 14 year old son who bought a Straight Talk phone from my daughter.

The thing is she didn’t reset the phone before she sold it to him because he said he’d like to just take over her phone number, and she said that would be fine.

This phone still automatically connects to our WiFi network, and I know for a fact that he uses our WiFi a lot because he told my daughter that he does.

My question is do you think he could cause us any problems by piggybacking off of our wireless network? [Read more…]

Q&A: Is it safe to share my Internet with a neighbor?

Posted on September 21, 2021

Question from Natasha: A few days ago a guy rented the vacant apartment next door to mine. He moved in yesterday, and this morning me knocked on my door and introduced himself.

My new neighbor and I talked for a few minutes, and before he left he asked me if I would consider letting him piggyback off of my WiFi connection because he wouldn’t be able to afford Internet service of his own for a while.

He also said that if I’d accept his offer he’d buy me a brand new $200 wireless router kit to replace my old router as long as I’d be willing to accept it in lieu of his portion of the monthly Internet charge.

This sounds like a pretty good deal to me because I really do need to upgrade my router, but I was wondering if you know of any reason why I shouldn’t accept his offer? [Read more…]