Simple WiFi Hacks To Get Faster Internet At Home

There are two reasons why you are having a slow internet connection at home. It could be a glitch in you wifi router or the connection through your modem. To determine which one is causing your weak internet connection, you can run a test by browsing the internet from different areas of your home.

First, you need to check the internet strength in the room where your router is located. If it is working just fine, then the problem could be your connection. If you can't connect when you are far from the router, your wireless device is most likely the reason why you are having internet connection issues. It is important to determine the root cause of the poor internet connection to really solve the problem. There are different troubleshooting techniques which you can use to fix your router and boost the internet signal. When all else fails, contact your internet provider.

Tips To Boost Your WiFi Signal

To boost your WiFi signal, you can start by relocating your router. To avoid dead zones or areas where the internet connection is weak, make sure that your router is located in a room or area in your house where the signal can travel far. Place it in an open area where there are no walls blocking the signal. Furthermore, it is highly recommended that you place a wireless accesspoint in your home to maximize the coverage.

You can also put your router in a high place can help spread the radio waves transmitted by your WiFi router. It’s better if you can place it on top of high shelves to avoid interference in the transmission of signals. Refrain from putting your router on the floor. Keep your router elevated, such as on tables or drawers, if you do not have high shelves in your home. You can also use range extenders. Just like boostinga cellphone signal with Femtocells, there are devices which you can use as range extenders for your internet connection. . You might not even need to buy one if you can configure your router to act as a wireless repeater. It is also essential to keep the firmware on your router device up to date if you want to maintain good internet connection in your home or office. When you see an update in your vendor’s website, make sure to download and install it because it can help improve the performance of your wireless device.

The number of people connected to your WiFi can also affect the performance of your router. It can cause slow internet connection which will make uploading and downloading difficult for you. See to it that you setup a security code to prevent other people from borrowing or using your WiFi without your consent.

Finally, when you are having connection problems, the way to boost your internet connection is as simple as rebooting your device. This tactic works in most cases since it cleans up whatever there is in your router enabling it to run efficiently.

These are the simple tricks which you can do to improve your WiFi Signal!

iMessage Flaw Bugs Apple

Apple may take great care of its customers, but if you walk away from the company, fuggedaboutit. That's what a handful of defectors discovered after replacing their iPhones with -- gasp! -- other brands. They could no longer receive all of the SMS messages sent to them from inside Apple's walled garden. After a couple of years of complaining, some sued. Apple now says it's fixing the problem.

Apple vowed Tuesday to fix a persistent bug in its iOS mobile operating system that punishes former iPhone users. The flaw, which has been in iMessage since the release of iOS 5, prevents former iPhone users from receiving SMS messages from current users.

Apple recently fixed a server-side iMessage bug that was causing an issue for some users, and it will provide an additional bug fix in a future software update, it told Re/code. Users still experiencing an issue were invited to contact AppleCare.
Apple's pledge to fix the flaw once and for all comes on the heels of a last week's class action lawsuit filed against it over the bug.

Tortious Behavior

"Apple tortiously interfered with the contract for cellular service between these putative class members and their cellular telephone carrier in that Apple's actions prevented the subscribers from receiving all of their text messages, as they were entitled to obtain through their cellular wireless service contracts," alleges the complaint filed by Adrienne Moore in a federal district court in California.
Furthermore, it continues, "Apple failed to properly disclose to Plaintiff and the putative class members, at the time that they owned their Apple iPhone or iPad devices (or anytime thereafter) that, should they switch away from an Apple device to a non-Apple device, Apple's iMessage and Messages service and application would act to prevent these persons from receiving all their text messages on the non-Apple device that these class members used to replace their Apple iPhone or iPad devices."
Although turning off iMessage before deserting Apple is supposed to prevent the problem from developing, that hasn't been the experience of everyone afflicted by the bug.
"The design flaw goes beyond users who forget to turn off iMessage before they switch devices," Adam Pash, an editor at Lifehacker, told TechWorld.
"I've turned off iMessage," he continued, "and I've received confirmation that my number is no longer associated with any iMessage account, but many iPhone users still can't send me text messages."
Services like iMessage are called "over-the-top" services. Instead of using the SMS channel provided by wireless carriers, they use the Internet to deliver text messages. In the case of iMessage, SMS messages intended for iPhone users are routed through Apple's servers to them.
There are some advantages to that approach. A carrier's charges for text messages can be avoided. In addition, messages can be delivered to multiple devices, so you don't miss a message.
However, as iPhone emigres are discovering, moving to another ecosystem can mean that messages sent to you from your old iPhone pals end up in limbo.

Skewered by Its Own Popularity

While this latest bug in iOS may be embarrassing to Apple, the company has dealt with bigger snafus in the past without doing lasting harm to its image.
"It's a bug, and the more bugs you have, the poorer your image is," Yankee Group Research Director Carl Howe told TechWorld.
"Given how many things work right in the Apple ecosystem, I don't think it's a fatal bug," he added. "I think it's an annoyance more than anything else."
The bug could be related to the nature of iMessage.
"It's designed to facilitate messaging among people who are using Apple devices," Howe explained, "so Apple probably didn't spend a lot of development time figuring out how to let people out of that world."
Ironically, Apple's popularity among its users may have contributed to the problem lingering for as long as it has.
"To discover this problem, you need a user who leaves the platform and goes to Android," Michael Morgan, an independent mobile devices analyst, told TechWorld. "We all know with a 93-to-97 [percent] retention rate of the iOS platform, there hasn't been that many people leaving iOS to discover this issue."
However, the flap over the bug could give the carriers some ammunition in their war against over-the-top services, he added. "Now the carriers' old, established SMS service may be perceived as more reliable than these over-the-top-programs that have been eating into the carriers' revenues." 

Moto E back in stock on Flipkart, server errors make it impossible to purchase though

This is what you get when you try to buy it

3

By Sairam /  23 May 2014 , 11:30

Motorola’s latest budget wonder – Moto E – was back in stock today at 11AM, exclusively via Flipkart. Only 20,000 units were put up for sale. Looks like, there were too many takers for the Moto E as several users repeatedly got error messages stating ‘Internal server error’. Several buyers have already begun venting frustration on Twitter.  So, did you get your Moto E?

Flipkart says that it is working on fixing it. Take a look at one such tweet by the estore:

Flipkart has also started selling swappable back covers called Motorola Shells dipped in nine vivid colours – lemon, turquoise, raspberry, violet, chaulk, royal blue, spearmint, cherry and licorice.  Each Moto Shell comes at a steep price of Rs 899, especially considering the device is aimed at entry users and priced at Rs 6,999. However, launch day offer, allows users to buy the cover at 50 percent discount that amounts to approximately Rs 450.

Boost Weak Cell Service at Home: Your Options Even the best wireless networks often can't deliver a consistent signal inside your house. Femtocells and repeaters will usually help, but they'll cost you.

The problem is familiar to many cell phone users: When you're indoors, even within your carrier's coverage area, the network's signal sometimes simply isn't strong enough to support voice calls or data services. With so many consumers ditching their landlines for cell phones, poor reception at home is no longer acceptable. Fortunately, a slew of products now address the problem, though they don't come cheap.

Ssignal-boosting products generally fall into one of two categories: femtocells or signal repeaters. Both types of equipment can deliver strong signals within buildings, but they work in fundamentally different ways.

Femtocells act as miniature cell phone towers that connect to a home network router and use your wired broadband connection to move voice calls and data services to and from your carrier's network. Femtocells don't rely on the carrier's towers at all, but because they use technology that can direct data and calls back to the carrier networks over the Internet, most of them are sold by the carriers themselves.

Repeaters and boosters, on the other hand, amplify and rebroadcast cell tower signals. Since they don't require carrier support, they tend to be manufactured and sold by third parties such as Wi-Ex (under the brand name ZBoost) and Wilson Electronics.

Understanding Femtocells

While repeaters have been around for several years, femtocells are relative newcomers to the mobile scene. Of the four major U.S. carriers, two--Sprint and Verizon--have been selling femtocells (under the brand namesAirave and Network Extender, respectively) for the past few years; AT&T introduced its 3G MicroCellfemtocell last year.

AT&T's 3G MicroCell, made by Cisco. Image: AT&TThe first Sprint and Verizon Wireless femtocells supported only voice calls, but current models support high-speed data as well as voice. Sprint charges $130 for its Airave access point (with a two-year service plan); there's no additional charge for using Airave to enhance coverage with an existing plan, but Sprint does offer a $25-a-month unlimited calling plan for Airave calls--which might appeal to anyone who is considering dropping landline voice service. Current Airave access points support EvDO Rev. A 3G data speeds and up to six simultaneous calls.

Verizon Wireless charges $250 for its Network Extender, which also supports 3G data, and the carrier imposes no monthly service fee. AT&T sells the MicroCell for $150, also with no mandatory service fee; it also offer an optional $20-a-month unlimited calling plan, plus price breaks for customers who sign up for the company's DSL service.

The Beauty of the Femtocell

Femtocells appeal to consumers and carriers on several levels. Consumers like them because they provide immediate five-bar coverage across an area of up to 2500 square feet, regardless of how far you are from a cell phone tower. A strong signal typically means better voice quality, fewer dropped calls, and faster data speeds. Good signals also improve a phone's battery life, since its radios don't have to work as hard.

Femtocells are low-power wireless access points that operate within a licensed spectrum to connect standard mobile devices to a mobile operator’s network via residential DSL or cable broadband connections. Image: Femto ForumAnother benefit: You can configure the femtocell to recognize and prioritize the phones you authorize, so neighbors can't mooch off your service at your expense. Interestingly, Verizon Wireless's FAQ for its Network Extender says that, though you can prioritize up to 50 Verizon Wireless numbers, the device will remain available to all Verizon Wireless subscribers within range when priority numbers aren't using it.

This brings us to a big reason why wireless providers like femtocells: They offload some of the expense that the carriers might otherwise incur in order to expand network capacity and/or coverage. Femtocells also help retain customers in locations where carriers can't significantly improve reception on their own (such as basements, suburbs that don't want new cell towers, locales with difficult topography such as steep hills and valleys, and skyscrapers with thick walls). In fact, forum posts indicate that Sprint has occasionally given customers Airave units to keep them from switching to another carrier.

The legal ways to boost your mobile phone reception

Paul Ockenden explains how to beat a mobile deadspot without breaking the law

What do you do when your home or office is situated in a mobile reception blank spot, or in a place where receiving a signal involves standing on the washing machine with one leg on the fridge and your head pressed against the ceiling?

Either situation is an impossible way to run your business life, and with the advent of mobile clients for social networks, such a lack of signal may adversely affect your social life too. Of course, you could simply change network, selecting the one that offers the best signal for your location, but for people with a company-supplied mobile phone that isn’t even an option, since you usually have to take what you’re given.

Perhaps you live or work in a location where there isn’t the faintest signal from any of the mobile networks: such places do exist, especially in remote coastal valleys. Changing networks wouldn’t make a jot of difference there, so what do you do in a situation like that?

You’ll find several UK companies selling repeaters on eBay or Google, but none of them mention that using such devices is totally illegal

Actually, there’s a host of things you can try, but the one I urge you not to try is installing a cheap mobile phone booster or repeater. You’ll find several UK companies selling these on eBay or Google, but none of them mention that using such devices is totally illegal. It’s one of those peculiarly British law mess-ups that makes it legal to sell repeaters, legal to own them, but not legal to use them!

Ofcom says “Repeater devices transmit or re-transmit in the cellular frequency bands. Only the mobile network operators are licensed to use equipment that transmits in these bands. Installation or use of repeater devices by anyone without a licence is a criminal offence under Section 8 of the Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006. Any person found guilty of installing or using such devices without a licence would be liable on conviction to a fine of up to £5,000 and/or up to 51 weeks’ imprisonment.”

Given this clear and unambiguous prohibition, I find it amazing that various forums are littered with people discussing their use of repeaters within their homes and small offices, some even posting photos of how they’ve installed the kit. They might as well post a picture of a £5,000 cheque made payable to HM Court Services.

Legal options

Luckily, you have several legal options, the first being to use Voice over IP (VoIP) to make and receive calls from your black spot, which of course involves having a wireless network, a smartphone with Wi-Fi capability, and some kind of VoIP client software.

Some phones (notably Nokia’s higher-end devices) have VoIP built in and properly integrated into their operating system, but for others you’ll need to download and run a VoIP app. With most of these applications you’ll struggle to seamlessly route calls direct to the phone when you’re within mobile signal range and via VoIP when you’re not, and even if you find a system that does provide this functionality, it will probably involve changing your mobile number to route incoming calls via a third-party.

As an alternative, forget VoIP and use one of the “find me” single-number providers that ring round a programmed sequence of numbers to locate you – mobile, office, home and so on. The problem is that unless you regularly update them to try your current location first, they give a shifty and, frankly, unprofessional impression to callers as they ring around all your different numbers. (Some VoIP providers offer a similar system.)

Not sounding too good so far, is it? Luckily, not all black-spot remedies are clunky or illegal – I’ve recently started testing some better solutions and will report back more fully in a few months’ time. Probably the most mature of these is UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access) over Wi-Fi, and the only network that currently offers it in the UK is Orange. It requires a phone that has Wi-Fi and is also UMA-enabled, which to date – considering only mainstream models – restricts you to half-a-dozen BlackBerrys, a few Nokias, and odd models from Samsung, HTC and LG. I’ve been doing my own UMA test using a BlackBerry Bold 9700 and a Nokia 6310.

The legal ways to boost your mobile phone reception

Paul Ockenden explains how to beat a mobile deadspot without breaking the law

What do you do when your home or office is situated in a mobile reception blank spot, or in a place where receiving a signal involves standing on the washing machine with one leg on the fridge and your head pressed against the ceiling?

Either situation is an impossible way to run your business life, and with the advent of mobile clients for social networks, such a lack of signal may adversely affect your social life too. Of course, you could simply change network, selecting the one that offers the best signal for your location, but for people with a company-supplied mobile phone that isn’t even an option, since you usually have to take what you’re given.

Perhaps you live or work in a location where there isn’t the faintest signal from any of the mobile networks: such places do exist, especially in remote coastal valleys. Changing networks wouldn’t make a jot of difference there, so what do you do in a situation like that?

You’ll find several UK companies selling repeaters on eBay or Google, but none of them mention that using such devices is totally illegal

Actually, there’s a host of things you can try, but the one I urge you not to try is installing a cheap mobile phone booster or repeater. You’ll find several UK companies selling these on eBay or Google, but none of them mention that using such devices is totally illegal. It’s one of those peculiarly British law mess-ups that makes it legal to sell repeaters, legal to own them, but not legal to use them!

Ofcom says “Repeater devices transmit or re-transmit in the cellular frequency bands. Only the mobile network operators are licensed to use equipment that transmits in these bands. Installation or use of repeater devices by anyone without a licence is a criminal offence under Section 8 of the Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006. Any person found guilty of installing or using such devices without a licence would be liable on conviction to a fine of up to £5,000 and/or up to 51 weeks’ imprisonment.”

Given this clear and unambiguous prohibition, I find it amazing that various forums are littered with people discussing their use of repeaters within their homes and small offices, some even posting photos of how they’ve installed the kit. They might as well post a picture of a £5,000 cheque made payable to HM Court Services.

Legal options

Luckily, you have several legal options, the first being to use Voice over IP (VoIP) to make and receive calls from your black spot, which of course involves having a wireless network, a smartphone with Wi-Fi capability, and some kind of VoIP client software.

Some phones (notably Nokia’s higher-end devices) have VoIP built in and properly integrated into their operating system, but for others you’ll need to download and run a VoIP app. With most of these applications you’ll struggle to seamlessly route calls direct to the phone when you’re within mobile signal range and via VoIP when you’re not, and even if you find a system that does provide this functionality, it will probably involve changing your mobile number to route incoming calls via a third-party.

As an alternative, forget VoIP and use one of the “find me” single-number providers that ring round a programmed sequence of numbers to locate you – mobile, office, home and so on. The problem is that unless you regularly update them to try your current location first, they give a shifty and, frankly, unprofessional impression to callers as they ring around all your different numbers. (Some VoIP providers offer a similar system.)

Not sounding too good so far, is it? Luckily, not all black-spot remedies are clunky or illegal – I’ve recently started testing some better solutions and will report back more fully in a few months’ time. Probably the most mature of these is UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access) over Wi-Fi, and the only network that currently offers it in the UK is Orange. It requires a phone that has Wi-Fi and is also UMA-enabled, which to date – considering only mainstream models – restricts you to half-a-dozen BlackBerrys, a few Nokias, and odd models from Samsung, HTC and LG. I’ve been doing my own UMA test using a BlackBerry Bold 9700 and a Nokia 6310.

No Signal? 5 Quick Ways to Boost Your Cell Phone Reception. Updated.

Anyone with a cell phone has suffered from those "no signal" or "service lost" moments. And they usually happen when your car has broken down or someone's chasing you through the forest with a large axe. As I live in snowy Colorado and have a Virgin Mobile (weak reception) I have been researching and testing methods to boost my phone in case ofemergencies. Here are the five methods that worked, with varying success, for me. (See also: The 1-Cent Cell Phone Protector, and Other Hacks)

Metacafe has once again come to my rescue on this one, it's a great resource for those how-to videos I love so much. And as always, I've tried to find cheap methods that require little-to-no technical know-how. So, grab a pen, jot down your favorite and make your very own cell-phone booster. It could literally get you out of a potentially dangerous situation.

1. A simple piece of wire

Very simple and cheap method using insulated wire.

2. Major boost using empty cans

This one got me from zero bars to three bars, in an area I never get a signal in. I keep this one in the trunk when the weather sucks. The additional wires I got on eBay for a few bucks each. Takes less than five minutes, looks stupid but works well.

3. The paper clip booster

This one didn't work as well as I had hoped, but it did give me an extra bar (which is great when you have zero bars). Good if you're in the office and need to use your cell, maybe for making one of those "personal" calls.

4. The Tesla coil effect

Hands down the easiest one I found. All you need is tape and those little twisty-ties you get with cheap garbage/sandwich bags. Worked better than the paper clip for me.

5. An old radio antenna

From YouTube. I apologize in advance for the quality and illegibility of this video (I don't speak the language, if there is anything out of order here I'm sorry) but the idea is a great one. Just grab an old radio antenna and keep it in your car for those times you need a boost. Terrific. Worked a treat, although not as well as the cans.

Of course, I'm always open to new ideas so if you have any better ways to boost your signal, let us know.