Your router’s primary function is to deliver your internet wirelessly, but why not take advantage of everything your router has to offer? From device prioritization, to guest Wi-Fi and parental controls; wireless routers now have more features to make your online experience better than ever! If you’re ready to start shopping for a new router, whether you have DISH Network Internet, Verizon, Frontier, AT&T, or MetroNet, check out this list of five must-have features you should have in your next Wi-Fi router.
1. Guest Wi-Fi
Even though nearly all Wi-Fi routers have guest Wi-Fi network capabilities, it is an important feature you should double check that you’re getting with your new router. Many shoppers overlook the guest Wi-Fi feature because it is only used when guests over, but when it is put to use, a guest network is one of the easiest ways you can keep your network and personal information safe.
Remember to ask your guests to use the guest Wi-Fi when they come over and to never share your main Wi-Fi network password with anyone who doesn’t live in your household. It only takes a few minutes to set up and it’s easy to do within your router manufacturer’s smartphone app.
2. Parental Controls
If you have children and you’re not utilizing your router’s parental controls, you could be really missing out. Parental controls won’t replace teaching your children about online safety or general parenting, but it can make protecting your children from online dangers easier and more realistic for busy parents. You’ll be able to see what they’ve been up to without hovering over their shoulders or nagging if they’re doing their homework.
When you set up on board parental controls, you can set daily internet use time limits, monitor what sites your children use, set filters so they can’t see inappropriate content and even pause the internet for specific devices. Each router manufacturer makes their own parental controls so features may vary, but most parental controls have similar features.
3. Mobile App For Your Smartphone
No one really wants an extra app on their smartphone, especially if it isn’t a fun app, but downloading the app for your router will make managing your Wi-Fi easier than ever before. Say goodbye to outdated and user unfriendly router interfaces and hello to a new way of managing your Wi-Fi network. You can set up your Wi-Fi, test your internet speed, change your network username and password, see your household’s data usage and so much more.
4. Device Prioritization
Device prioritization can be the best thing since sliced bread when it comes to sharing your Wi-Fi amongst other users in your household. After you set up your Wi-Fi network, dive into your router’s device prioritization settings. From there you can prioritize what devices or applications on your network will get the most bandwidth. If you have good internet service and set up your device prioritization settings right, you’ll have less nights being frustrated with buffering YouTube videos or lagging battles on Fortnite. That also means you can consistently have enough bandwidth to work from home with no slowdowns or hiccups.
5. A USB Port
Do you remember those lonely USB ports on the sides of your laptop? USB ports still have lots of use left in them and one of them is with your router. You can easily plug in an external hard drive or printer that can be shared with the whole family. Set up is very simple and in most cases all it takes is to plug it in.
