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“Do you guys have wi-fi?” has to be one of the most commonly asked questions of the 21st century. Thankfully, a lot of us now have our own wi-fi at home. So we don’t have to enter in that 16 letter password before we can surf the web. But there are still a few things which are helpful to know before signing up to 4G wireless broadband.
Wireless broadband, wireless internet, or more commonly known as wi-fi, is what gets us online watching our favourite shows, jamming to music and laughing at the latest TikTok video. And as the name suggests, it’s wireless. So there are no cables to trip over. It’s almost as easy as connecting to the internet on your mobile. In fact, you actually do connect to the 4G network, but you do it through a modem.
NBN fibre is typically a ‘fixed-line service’, connecting your home to the internet through cables underneath your street. However, NBN also has satellite and wireless services, such as NBN sky muster, and fixed wireless. On the other hand, home wireless broadband is a ‘mobile service’, so it connects you to the internet via a 4G/5G tower, similar to your mobile.
If you’re looking to set up the internet in your home, you may have the choice of either. So it may be beneficial to work out which option best suits you. If you’re having a hard time with the NBN or it hasn’t yet made it to your suburb, then home wireless broadband could be a safer bet. You can set it up wherever and be on the web in a matter of seconds, as long as you’ve got a decent signal.
To set up your home wireless broadband you’ll typically require three things:
Once you have your equipment (see question above), all you need to do is plug in your modem and get online. On the back or bottom of your modem you’ll generally find a wi-fi-network name and password which you use to connect your devices. Super easy. Then your wi-fi-network will work its magic and use radio signals to send information through your wireless-connected devices to the internet.
Here’s a list of things you should consider when deciding on a plan and provider:
If you’re currently renting, there may be different wireless broadband plans that appeal to you more than say home owners. These can include plans with features like:
It can be hard finding a provider that’ll tick all the boxes, but aim high. If you’d like a little help comparing products from a range of providers, feel free to reach out to our friendly team! You can call us on 13 19 20 and someone from our team will be happy to assist.
Many plans come with at least 200GB a month. This could be sufficient for general browsing on the web and maintaining your daily dose of Netflix. But if you’re a big time streamer it might be worth getting a larger data package.
If you’re still deciding whether or not wireless broadband is for you, here are some other advantages to consider:
Before you lock in, you may also want to consider the disadvantages:
Overall, wireless is a quick and easy way to get on the web. But a few groups in particular may get a lot out of it.
Singles or Couples: home wireless broadband works well in smaller houses, where there aren’t as many walls blocking the signal and people hogging the Netflix account. So it’s pretty spot-on for singles and couples.
Students: it’s probably safe to say students are the demographic more likely to jump from share-house to share-house. So they definitely want to avoid being bogged down by a lock-in contract. In this case, a wireless plan could be ideal.
To determine if wireless broadband is a good fit for you, ask yourself the following questions:
If you answered yes to any of these questions, then home wireless broadband might be a good fit. But before you lock-in to a plan make sure you check your network coverage and compare wireless broadband providers. If you’d like to learn more about finding an internet plan that works for you, feel free to call our friendly team on 13 19 20.