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Smart phones and tablets. Computers and gaming consoles. Smart TVs and speakers. Video doorbells and security cameras. Smart home assistants and robot vacuums. Smart watches and exercise equipment. Thermostats and bathrooms scales.

It’s estimated that U.S. households currently have an average of 11 connected devices – and that number is only growing every year.¹ From the tiniest to the largest device, this connected technology consumes the bandwidth in your home.

That leads to the question: what internet speed do you need? The simple answer is: it depends.

Devices share bandwidth over your network, so the more devices you have connected, the more speed and capacity you need. Some of the fastest, highest capacity internet available right now is gigabit internet. 

Internet featuring gigabit download speeds gives you a smoother internet experience — helping you connect more devices and avoid buffering, slow downloads and lag. What can you do with a gig? Here are some examples of what gigabit internet speeds can do for your home.

Video Calling and Virtual Meetings

Video calls are a part of everyday life now – whether you’re working from home, distance learning or having a virtual game night with friends. And if you work from home, you know the necessity of having good internet to stay productive and keep up with virtual meetings.

Gigabit internet speeds give you extra capacity for these calls - helping eliminate poor video connections, so you can handle more virtual calls, classes, happy hours and more at the same time.

Binge Watching

Streaming video comprised more than 60 percent of all consumer internet traffic in 2019 – and it’s only going to keep growing.² By 2022, it may account for 82 percent of all internet traffic.³

Do you ever watch The Great British Baking Show while someone else in your house is streaming Doctor Who and your toddler watches a favorite show on YouTube on their tablet? Are your roommates all watching something different in their rooms on their individual TVs, computers or tablets?

All this streaming takes up bandwidth – but having the extra capacity you get with gigabit internet means less buffering and a happier household.

Gaming

Have more than one gaming console on your network? Those gaming consoles share bandwidth with the rest of your home’s devices. And online multiplayer games – like Minecraft, Fortnite and World of Warcraft – take up even more bandwidth.

Young children love to play interactive games on the internet. Even educational games take up your network’s capacity. Having gigabit internet helps you say goodbye to slowdowns and lag, letting gamers play on without slowing other devices down.

Home Security and Automation

Home security systems use your internet to connect your video doorbell, smart door locks, motion sensors, smart thermostats and more to your in-home hub, as well as to your mobile phone and/or a professional monitoring center. If you have security cameras or other devices that back up to the cloud, faster speeds mean faster uploads and security notifications.

If you have an Amazon Echo or Google Home device, these take up bandwidth, too – as well as any smart technology like a connected fridge, Roomba vacuum and more. They connect to the internet – but having gigabit speeds means you can connect these devices and still have plenty of capacity for your streaming, working and entertainment devices, too.

 

 

 

Services may not be available in all areas, and some restrictions apply. Enter your address to check serviceability, or contact us. This material includes references to products, services and/or equipment not manufactured by Midco. The respective companies retain trademark and registered trademark ownership for those referenced items.

1 U.S. Households have an average of 11 connected devices, and 5G should push that even higher – Variety.com

2 Report: Where Does the Majority of Internet Traffic Come From? – NCTA.com

3 Video will account for 82% of all internet traffic by 2022, Cisco says – FierceVideo.com

4 Speed and package availability varies by area. Actual internet speeds may vary depending on your computer or mobile device’s capacity, the number of devices accessing the internet at once and web traffic. Speeds may also be impacted by third-party equipment (such as your computer or router). Shop online to see what packages are available for you.