When first ordering broadband service, most people are excited about the speed boost they’re going to experience. They dream about spending less time waiting on downloads, video buffering, or dealing with unexpectedly being disconnected from the internet.
But, for some people, that excitement turns to frustration when they discover they’re still experiencing lagging or buffering issues—the very things they wanted to get away from!
What’s up with that?!
Understanding bandwidth
The important thing to remember is that, while fiber bandwidth is not shared among neighbors—it is shared within your home.
To make that a little more clear, let’s use a 25Mbps plan as an example. If you’ve got a family that’s using five different internet-connected devices in your home at the same time, and the bandwidth required to operate those devices averages out to 5Mbps each—you’ve just maxed out your internet plan. Connecting even one more device will hinder your internet experience on all your devices. You may experience lag and buffering, or the device may disconnect from the internet.
In this case, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with your internet speed. Your plan promises 25Mbps delivered to your home, and that’s what you receive. It just gets used up quickly by the devices you use.
What you need is a faster plan that offers greater bandwidth.
Adding it up
How fast should your internet be? That depends on three key factors: the number of devices you have in your home, their bandwidth requirements, and the number of these connected devices that use the internet simultaneously.
It’s worth noting that the average home currently has 25 internet-connected devices, including phones, laptops, tablets, and smart devices, such as Smart TVs and smart speakers, like Amazon Echo.
Here’s a quick guide to how much each of your devices might be using:
| Feature | Devices/Apps | Bandwidth |
| Streaming Video | Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Apple+, YouTube TV, Sling, Fubo | Low-Def: 1.5 Mbps Standard: 3 Mbps HD (1080p): 5 Mbps 4K: 25 Mbps |
| Streaming Music | Spotify, Pandora | HD: 2 Mbps |
| Online Games | Xbox, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch | 2 – 10 Mbps |
| Video Calls | Skype, Zoom, GoTo Meeting, Facebook | Standard: .5 Mbps HD: 1.5 Mbps |
| Large Downloads | HD movies, Music, Video Games, Photos, Documents, Torrents | Slow: .5 Mbps Fast: 50 Mbps |
| Email, Browsing, Social Media | Gmail, Google, Facebook, ShapChat, TikTok | .5 – 5 Mbps |
When you consider the number of your internet-connected household devices—and how and when they’re used—you can make the smart choice about whether you have the bandwidth speed you need.
At DataVision, we’re happy to help you determine which speed is right for you. Contact the friendly, hometown staff at https://datavision-internet.com/contact-us/ with your questions. We’d love to hear from you.