WiFi might claim to offer us the utopia of on having demand content anywhere in the home but the truth can sometimes be a little more complicated.
Old buildings, slow internet speeds and a whole range of other problems can lead to that classic case of WiFi 'notspots' - places in your house where the WiF refuses to work.
Turns out you're not alone in this regard as the Commander-in-Chief of the United States of America is also having something of a WiFi problem in his house.
US President Barack Obama revealed in an interview with CBS that one of the first things his predecessor should work on is sorting out the quality of the WiFi in the White House.
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According to the President and the First Lady, the 200-year old building is notoriously bad for having complete blackout zones where the WiFi simply doesn't reach, causing an issue of contention both for the couple and their children.
While the President's WiFi nightmare might require some major remodelling, us mere mortals have some rather handy tools and tips at our disposal to cure our homes of this modern-day nuisance.
Google's first router wants to take the stress out of WiFi
Ofcom, the UK's independent regulator for Internet and Phone connectivity has unveiled a handy app called the Ofcom WiFi Checker which will analyse the strength of your WiFi and then offer some helpful tips on how to improve it.
You can download the app via Apple App Store or via Google's Android Play Store and it's compatible for both smartphones and tablets.
OR, if you'd rather just get stuck in now here are some helpful tips:
- Move your router away from electrical devices: Halogen lamps, electrical dimmer switches, stereo or computer speakers, fairy lights, TVs and monitors and AC power cords have all been known to cause interference to broadband routers.Keep your router as far away as possible from other electrical devices as well as those which emit wireless signals such as baby monitors etc.
- Move your router to a different part of your home: The walls and furniture in your house act as an obstacle to the Wi-Fi radio frequencies. Ideally routers should be kept centrally within the home and placed on a table or shelf rather than on the floor
- Try restarting your wireless router: This may automatically select a less busy Wi-Fi radio frequency.
- Use an Ethernet cable to connect directly to your router: An Ethernet cable is a computer networking cable which should give you a faster, more reliable connection.