From dial-up to supercharged: why this is the future of WiFi

You may have seen the news recently. As AOL announced the end of its dial-up internet services after more than 30 years, it reminded us just how far the internet’s come in that time.

In fact, for us at Zen, that’s something we feel even more keenly. Because we’ve just celebrated our 30^th birthday. And dial-up is where it all began.

And that got us thinking. Because we’ve been here through it all. We’ve seen the internet develop from a niche thing to absolutely central to our everyday lives. We’ve seen hours-long sessions to download small files turn into full-on video-calling, streaming, shopping and gaming extravaganzas. We’ve seen the internet turn from novelty tool to something that many of us rely on completely for our jobs. To sum it up, we’ve seen profound change, and it’s all been driven by faster and faster internet connections that have changed the world – for better or worse – beyond recognition.

The end.

Or is it?

Because these rapid broadband connections aren’t much use if they’re reliant on us having to plug into the router.

Over the last 30 years, we’ve seen something else emerge. The word ‘WiFi’. This little term has become synonymous with “the internet”. But it’s not the same. In fact, it’s completely different.

“Broadband” describes the internet connection to our homes and businesses. It’s the signal that travels over copper or fibre cables and terminates at our routers. But then what happens?

Well, traditionally, we’d connect our PC to that router and enjoy the internet. But that changed with the introduction of WiFi. And while it took a while to become a regular part of our lives, once it did, it changed the way we use the internet.

And now?

Now virtually every internet-connected device we use connects via WiFi. In fact, it’s kind of unusual to use a wired connection nowadays.

So what’s the point of this article?

We hope we’ve painted a picture of just how much our reliance on the internet has evolved over the last 30 years.

It’s changed from a novelty to a must. And our connections have changed from mostly wired to almost entirely wireless.

And that’s a problem. Because most homes simply weren’t built for the perfect propagation of wireless signals. Walls, floors and distance all get in the way. So while your broadband connection might be lightning-fast, the WiFi signal carrying it around your home often isn’t.

So what do you do when all your devices are wireless, but your WiFi can’t quite keep up? When you (quite rightly) want a smooth, strong connection in every room?

You choose the future of WiFi.

You choose a mesh service.

And that’s the point of this article.

To remind you that the future of WiFi is a service that ensures a super-smooth signal in every room. Whether you’re streaming in the bedroom, working in the loft, connecting from the office, even checking the football scores from the bathroom (we won’t judge), mesh WiFi takes the strongest possible wireless signal from your router and spreads it throughout your home. So there are no more weak or dead zones - just rock-solid WiFi wherever you are.

And at that point, we’ve really reached the ultimate realisation of the internet. Something that tied up your phone line for hours on end, while you plugged your desktop PC into that singing box of tricks, only to spend 10 minutes watching a basic web page load, has now become something completely different. Where no matter the room you’re in, you get instant, jitter-free, smooth connections for streaming movies, accessing applications, gaming, and downloading files.

It's made internet access a friction-free, seamless event, in any room, on any device. And all you need is a Zen EveryRoom or eero service to make it happen. Are you ready to take your broadband to the next level? To bring the future of WiFi to your home? It’s easy. Just visit our website or get in touch.