When multiple people are streaming videos on the internet in a household, you need to have a strong internet connection along with a powerful WiFi router; otherwise, the result is usually buffering, lag, and dropped connections. Multiple device streaming is quite common in modern households and offices, which means that the WiFi router at the center of it all must have the right features to keep up with high internet demands. Let us discuss the features of WiFi routers that help with multiple device streaming and make seamless multi-device streaming possible.

Dual-Band Technology

Traditional WiFi routers that have only single-band WiFi transmission often struggle under heavy traffic because all devices are competing for the bandwidth on the same frequency. Dual-band routers split this load between two channels: 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz. This split helps to spread out devices on two different WiFi channels and reduce congestion. For households with multiple people streaming simultaneously, a dual-band router is a great choice to allow seamless streaming without interference or buffering.

QoS (Quality of Service) Settings

Not all online activities are equal, and there are some activities that require prioritisation over other activities on the network. For instance, watching a movie on Netflix requires smooth and continuous data, while downloading a large file can happen in the background, due to which movie streaming requires priority over other activities on the network for smooth streaming. This is where the Quality of Service (QoS) feature comes into play.

The QoS feature allows you to prioritise streaming, gaming, or any other type of traffic on the network. With this, you can configure your router through http://192.168.1.1 so that video streaming always gets bandwidth priority on the network, even if someone else on the network is downloading a file. This ensures smooth and uninterrupted streaming sessions.

Beamforming Technology

Generally, WiFi routers broadcast WiFi signals equally in all directions, which can waste energy and reduce efficiency. With beamforming technology, you can focus WiFi signals directly towards connected devices to strengthen the connection and improve the internet speed. For instance, if you are streaming a movie on your smart TV, you can use the beamforming technology to direct WiFi signals in the direction of the smart TV to concentrate them, improving speed and stability, and reducing buffering.

The beamforming technology feature can be enabled through the Wireless or Advanced Settings section when you visit the default gateway address http://192.168.0.1/ or the admin panel of your WiFi router.

MU-MIMO (Multi-User, Multiple Input Multiple Output)

Traditional WiFi routers serve one device at a time, and with multiple devices connected, each device must wait for its turn, which causes delay. The MU-MIMO technology changes this equation and lets your router communicate with multiple devices simultaneously. So with MU-MIMO technology, your router can provide smooth and consistent performance across all connected devices, instead of dividing bandwidth sequentially. For households with multiple devices, this is a must-have feature in a WiFi router.

Strong Processor and RAM

The hardware of the WiFi router, specifically the processor and RAM, plays a huge role in determining how many internet connections it can handle simultaneously. The more devices and tasks your router has to handle, the more processing power it needs. Routers with weak processors often struggle when multiple devices are streaming simultaneously, leading to choppy performance, while routers equipped with multi-core processors and sufficient RAM handle multiple streams, video calls, and even background downloads smoothly without slowing down. 

Dedicated Router Apps

Modern routers come with dedicated router apps that allow you to manage your network effortlessly. With the help of these apps, you can monitor the devices connected to the network, prioritize streaming devices in real time, and adjust QoS settings as you want to with just a few taps. These apps eliminate all the hassle and allow you to optimize your network instantly from your smartphone, so that you can get the best possible streaming performance without needing any technical expertise.