How to Improve Video Streaming on a Slow Internet Connection?
Video content and video streaming have become an important part of our daily lives, as many of us consume video content for entertainment, education, and work purposes on a daily basis. Video content and video streaming often requires a fast internet connection to have a buffer and lag-free experience, and not everyone has a fast enough internet connection to make that happen. If you are someone who is struggling with low-speed internet or slow internet connection, then it will be difficult for you to stream content smoothly.
However, you needn’t worry, as we will share some effective ways to help you improve the video streaming on a slow internet connection so that you can stream content smoothly, even on a low-speed internet connection.
Choose the Right Video Quality
Whenever you are streaming content on any website or network, you must ensure that you choose the right video quality according to your internet speed. It is one of the most effective and simplest ways to optimize video streaming on a slow internet connection. Almost every streaming service and website offer multiple video quality options, starting from 360p, 480p, 720p, 1080p, and 4K. If you have a slow internet connection, then it is recommended to lower the video quality to reduce buffering and improve the playback stability.
Once you choose a lower video quality that matches your internet connection’s speed, then video streaming will become much better and smoother.
Close Tabs and Applications Running in the Background
On a slow internet connection, if you have multiple tabs or applications running in the background, then these can consume your internet bandwidth and slow down the connection. Since your internet connection is already low on bandwidth, having multiple processes or tabs opened can reduce the bandwidth even more. So while you are streaming, close all unnecessary applications and tabs to free up bandwidth and improve the video streaming performance of your internet connection.
Optimize the Performance of WiFi Network
Enhancing the performance of your WiFi network and optimizing it can also enhance streaming. For this, make sure that you optimize the placement of your wireless router, minimize interference from nearby objects and devices as much as you can, and see this quick user guide to enable the 5 GHz WiFi band for faster speeds.
You also have the option available to enable the Quality of Service (QoS) feature to prioritize video traffic over other network data on the network to have a smooth video streaming experience. Just visit the settings of your wireless router, either through 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1, enable the QoS service, and assign higher priority to video packets so that you can enjoy a smooth playback experience.
Use an Ethernet Connection
Although WiFi connections are quite convenient, they are less stable and slower when compared to wired Ethernet connections. If you are experiencing buffering issues, then consider connecting your PC or Laptop directly to the router through an Ethernet cable. An ethernet cable will provide a more stable and reliable internet connection, leading to a smoother streaming experience, even if you are low on bandwidth.
Optimize the Web Browser
If you are streaming content on a web browser, then using a lightweight browser and optimizing the settings of the browser can help a lot in improving the streaming experience. Instead of using a browser like Chrome, use a lightweight browser like Firefox or Brave, enable hardware acceleration, enable Data Saver or Low Data Mode, clear browser cache and cookies, and disable unnecessary extensions that might be slowing down the video playback.
Use a VPN
Sometimes you can be experiencing issues with video streaming, even after having adequate bandwidth, because some internet service providers throttle streaming speeds to prevent users from consuming excessive bandwidth. You can bypass this by using a VPN, as a VPN reroutes your connection through a secure tunnel and allows you to bypass ISP restrictions, improve streaming speed in some cases, and even access geo-blocked content.
Change the DNS
You can also consider changing the DNS (Domain Name System) of your network to speed up video loading. DNS servers impact your browsing and streaming speeds, and switching to faster DNS servers like Google DNS (8.8.8.8) or Cloudflare DNS (1.1.1.1) can speed up video loading.Video content and video streaming have become an important part of our daily lives, as many of us consume video content for entertainment, education, and work purposes on a daily basis. Video content and video streaming often requires a fast internet connection to have a buffer and lag-free experience, and not everyone has a fast enough internet connection to make that happen. If you are someone who is struggling with low-speed internet or slow internet connection, then it will be difficult for you to stream content smoothly.
However, you needn’t worry, as we have discussed some effective ways here that can help you improve the video streaming on a slow internet connection so that you can stream content smoothly, even on a low-speed internet connection.
