Money-saving secret your cable and internet provider doesn't want you to know
When you’re driving, spotty cell coverage is a drag. Music, GPS, and calls just won’t go through. Here’s a quick guide to boosting your service no matter where the road takes you.
What about a travel pro tip if you prefer to fly to your destination? You can see which flights include the most legroom with the right tools. I tell all my tall friends about this trick. Tap or click here for the secret — it’s No. 5 on the list.
If you’re heading off for a long trip, spending time in a seasonal home, or otherwise away, here’s a smart way to save money: Pause your cable and internet. Yes, you can do this and keep many of your service’s perks.
Here’s why canceling isn’t your best option
When you’re going on an extended trip, there’s no reason to pay for internet service back home. You might think canceling and reactivating is the way to go. That’s a bad idea.
- You’ll often face a cancellation fee.
- Canceling your service is frustrating and takes time. You’ll likely be bombarded with questions about why you’re canceling and offers to keep you. And once you’re through with everything, you’ll have to take time to return equipment to your provider.
- You’ll often pay an activation fee to reactivate your previous service or sign up with a new one.
- Resuming service takes time, too. You’ll need to set up your plan, payment, and equipment.
The good news is many ISPs and cable/satellite providers allow you to pause your service, which is much more convenient. Below I gathered info on some of the biggest providers in the country. If you don’t see yours, check its website or call them.
NOTE: Before pausing any service, speak with a representative to ensure you won’t lose any special pricing or features. For example, if you’re on a price-for-life rate and pause your plan, you might lose that rate when you restart it. You don’t want to give up a great rate that you’re locked into to save a few bucks while on vacation.
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Comcast Xfinity
Xfinity’s Seasonal Convenience Plan lets you put your TV, internet, and voice services on hold while you’re away. You keep your equipment, phone number, and Comcast.net email address, which you can still access during the hold.
If you upgrade to Seasonal Internet Access, you’ll still be able to control your smart devices at home while you’re away, too. There’s no reconnection charge, and you won’t need a service call when you return.
5 ways to increase your PC's download speed
You may have a poor internet connection if downloads take forever to reach 100%. Outages or poorly-constructed websites could also be to blame. Whatever the cause is, try these tricks to increase the download speed on your PC.
Warning: Scammers are pretending to be your cable and internet company
Scammers employ seemingly endless means to trick people out of their money or personal data. And it’s not always through email — some even go so far as to physically mail you malware in the post. Tap or click here for tips on spotting counterfeit packages.
Free or low-cost internet? Here’s who qualifies and how to get it
Depending on where you live, you might not have many internet access options. That can leave you with a more expensive package than you budgeted for or insufficient speeds. However, things are slowly changing as some cable companies are offering free internet services.
Cable companies offering free internet service - See if you qualify
Access to the internet is, for many, a basic necessity. The pandemic has proven a need for stable, high-speed connections so that people can work from home. But it also serves as a vital tool for those looking for employment.
A mesh router system that covers up to 4,500 square feet: Nightgear Nighthawk MK63-100NAS
According to your answers, the Nightgear Nighthawk MK63-100NAS is the best router for your needs. You get three boxes that work together to create a mesh network that extends your Wi-Fi range up to 4,500 square feet. You can also connect up to 25 devices with reliable Wi-Fi performance.
8 proven ways cheap people lower their monthly internet, cable, and streaming bills
The average American will pay $32,400 for internet access throughout a lifetime. This number, calculated by researchers at Reviews.org, doesn’t even include today’s big dogs. I’m talking about your cable, streaming, cellphone and other subscriptions.
Sick of slow internet? How to check you’re getting what you pay for
We all know the pain of “slow” internet: videos buffer, downloads take ages, and a single page can take forever to load. We wonder whether it’s our browser, our device, or the website we’re visiting.
It could be your Wi-Fi signal. Wireless networks are notorious for connection problems. Tap or click for ways to boost your Wi-Fi coverage for good, including changing the router’s channel, which hardly anyone does.
Find your router's password fast (then change it!)
If you’re like most people, the day you got your router, you installed it (or had it installed) and soon after got busy using it. Just minutes after you plugged it in, it was working perfectly.
Suddenly, you and your family were logging long hours on the internet with all your gadgets. Those hours turned into days, then weeks, then months. You browse the internet, stream TV shows and movies, and chat it up on social media without a care in the world. Tap or click here to see if your neighbors are stealing your Wi-Fi and what to do about it.
Are your neighbors stealing your internet? Here's what to do about it
You’re at home ready to stream the latest episode of your favorite show. The popcorn is popped, you’re in your favorite spot and everything is perfect. When you fire up Netflix, though, the video is fuzzy and keeps buffering. Is your internet provider slowing things down? Maybe.
If you're struggling to pay your internet bill, read this
When it comes to finding information about coronavirus, there’s no shortage of online resources. That can include specific infection numbers in your area, tips on going back to restaurants again, when to expect a vaccine and just about anything else you can think of.
How to Google something when you have spotty internet connection
With everyone practicing social distancing, there’s a definite strain on most internet connections. Kids are playing games or taking online classes, neighbors are working from home and every IoT device in your home is only making things worse.
Internet providers will keep you connected, even if you can't pay your bill
We’re more reliant than ever on the internet to keep up with what’s going on in the world — especially in the face of a global pandemic like what we’re experiencing with the coronavirus.
There is plenty of solid information online to help track the spreading of the virus, along with what to do if you’re feeling symptoms. Tap or click here for ways to get a coronavirus assessment without leaving home.
How much speed do you need to stream? Requirements for each service
You have your popcorn and you’ve got your movie picked out on your favorite streaming service. You’re cuddled up on the couch ready to go, but five minutes in, the video starts buffering.
Frustrated, you check your router, and it’s definitely working. What’s wrong? The answer might be your internet speed. Tap or click here to learn how to check your internet speed.
PC makers are finally starting to take your security seriously
The last thing you want to do is expose sensitive information found on your phone, tablet or laptop. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what you’re doing every time you leave home and connect to a public network.
Cybercriminals are out there waiting for you to make the mistake of using unprotected Wi-Fi found at the local coffee shop or airport. Once connected, they are able to steal your bank account information, usernames, passwords and more.
5 biggest things to come out of Google I/O 2019
Smarter voice assistants, incognito map searches and 3D augmented reality. Those are just some of the new products, features and updates being unveiled at the Google I/O developer conference. Artificial intelligence was at the core of almost all the new and updated software products. Read this article and we’ll tell you the best things to come from the conference.
Don’t get ripped off, check your internet speed
Many internet service providers make claims about how fast their internet speed is, and that can be really important when it comes to how we use it. Many times you will be streaming or trying to connect a new device and it will get extremely slow or sometimes not work at all. But that’s why I have a solution for you. There are free online programs you can use to check your internet speed and make sure your ISP is being truthful about their speed claims.
What's the difference between your modem and router?
Whether you’re calling your internet provider for help or talking to your kid, getting technical support can be frustrating. Between all the abbreviations (LTE! Mbps!) and the secret code language for all the computer stuff, you just want a translator to explain why the Wi-Fi is down. Sometimes even two little grey boxes that look the same do completely different things.
How to get Netflix for free
Netflix’s huge library of streaming TV shows and videos can be yours for free, but there are some catches and the free ride may not last forever.
Speed up your internet for free
Some of the most frequent questions we get are about computer speed and internet speed. Seems lots of folks don’t care much for waiting and waiting – and waiting some more – for the video to load, the movie to download or the upload to send. We don’t blame them. Even now, sometimes the internet can seem horribly slow. But before you commit to paying your internet provider for a faster connection, let’s see if we can help you speed up the connection you have right now.