Do I Need Fast Internet for Smart Home Voice Technology?

288 Views

According to Oberlo’s statistics, 61.91 million households in the US have smart home devices. And when it comes to smart devices, we all know that they rely on the internet to work properly.

One home tech that’s been making some noise in recent years is voice technology. It is being used by many people for a lot of things, and it’s not just through “Hey Alexa” or “Hey Siri”.

It changed a lot of things, but convenience is the biggest part of it. With just a simple voice command, you can turn off the lights, play music, set reminders, check the weather, or even control your entire home setup.

So, that points us to the question: Do you really need a fast internet connection for your voice technology at home?

No matter what type you have, it could be fiber, cable, or satellite internet, what matters more is how stable and consistent your connection is. Let’s talk about this more below.

No, you don’t need a fast internet, but you need a stable one.

Voice commands don’t usually take up a lot of bandwidth. Most smart speakers and assistants just need to send a small request to the cloud and get a quick response back. But if your internet is slow or constantly cutting in and out, you might notice delays, lag, or even missed commands. So, having a fast internet provider is a plus, but it’s not always needed. Here are some considerations that you might need to keep in mind when considering your internet speed for this matter:

  • Number of Smart Devices You Have

The number of smart devices you have can tell if your current internet plan is enough or not. One of the most common mistakes homeowners overlook is that they keep adding and adding all these devices without considering the strain it is putting on their internet. Yes, it’s easy to expand your smart home network, but it’s also important to account for the bandwidth they are taking up, especially if you live in a home where the internet is heavily used.

  • What Else You Use the Internet For

The next thing you must consider is the other things you use the internet for. So for example, if your household is always on top of new streaming deals because you all love streaming and some of you always play online games, you will need to make sure your internet can handle all of that activity without slowing down. Bandwidth-heavy activities can affect your internet’s stability for your smart devices. Always keep that in mind.

  • Your Router’s Location and Condition

If you’ve ever heard some people say that your router’s placement matters, it’s true. If your router is poorly placed, it won’t be distributing the signals effectively. This could mean spotty Wi-Fi in certain parts of your house, especially where your smart devices are located. And when this happens, you won’t be able to take advantage of the voice technology installed throughout your home because you’ll always be repeating yourself, or worse, getting no response at all. Make sure to position your router in a central location where it can reach your devices optimally.

The Bottom Line

Fast internet is not needed for smart home voice technology. However, you need a stable one for it to operate optimally. You must also consider other factors that may affect your internet connection’s speed and stability. Remember that your smart devices, specifically those with voice technology, depend on real-time communication to process commands. So even if the data used is minimal, the timing is very important.