Easy ways to speed up your broadband

Whether you’re streaming a film or presenting your quarterly results over Microsoft Teams, a fast, reliable broadband connection is key. Virgin Media customers already get fast broadband, but there are plenty of clever little hacks that can bring some extra oomph to your service.

With Virgin Media, you can get faster than ever speeds at home with our future-ready Gig1 Fibre Broadband. It offers average download speeds of 1,130Mbps – that’s 16 times faster than the national average – which enables households to do more online at the same time and on multiple devices.

Here are some easy ways you can up your broadband speed.

If you find your broadband is unusually sluggish, the first port of call should be to power cycle your Virgin Media Hub – in other words, the classic “turn it off and on again” method. It might seem simplistic, but power cycling your Hub (especially if it hasn’t been done in some time) can help to clear the Hub’s memory and CPU of older and no longer needed data and processing. Simply follow the steps below to give your hub a spring clean:

1. On the back of your hub, turn the A/C power switch into the off position (with the “O” pressed in).

2. Leave it off for about 10 seconds.

3. Turn the hub back on by turning the A/C power switch into the on position (with the “I” pressed in).

4. While you’re waiting, check over your equipment for faulty or damaged cables, which can cause problems with your network and slow down your internet speed. Also make sure your cables are tightly connected to the hub (finger-tight is all that is required, do not over-tighten as this could break the connector).

5. The hub can take five to 10 minutes to reboot. You’ll know the connection is back up and running when the white light on the front of the hub is on. The white light is at the front for a Hub3 and a Hub5. For the Hub4 this will be the light ring around the hub.

Want to transfer a lot of data at speed? Need to log in to an important video conference call? When you want the reassurance of a wired connection to the hub via an Ethernet cable, here’s how to do it:

1. Insert one end of the Ethernet cable into one of the marked yellow slots on the back of the hub.

2. Insert the other end of the cable into the relevant slot of your chosen device to be instantly connected.

3. If your device is missing an Ethernet port, consider buying an Ethernet adaptor that will help provide a stable connection.

There are lots of reasons to protect your devices from viruses or malware, including blocking virus-ridden websites or sites with unsuitable content. But viruses and malware can also significantly slow down your internet speed, giving you even more incentive to invest in reliable antivirus software that will scan your devices for hidden dangers.

Does your device feel as though it’s lagging? Browse through our tips to see if your browser is the culprit:

• Some web browsers are simply faster than others, so it’s always worth trying a different one.

• We know it’s tempting to keep all the tabs open on your browser, but having lots of them at once will slow your broadband down.

• Did you know that some browsers have built-in speed optimisation? You can make sure you have the most up-to-date versions by following the instructions below:

Microsoft Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge

Open the Windows Update application from the programs menu. If an update is available, you’ll be given the option to update.

Google Chrome

Follow Google’s step-by-step guide.

Safari

Visit Apple’s support page.

You can also download clever browser extensions that help speed up your broadband. Consider an extension like AdBlocker Ultimate, which does exactly what the name indicates, and is available on Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari and Opera. Or install an extension that will compress files, thereby speeding up your broadband – options include Google Data Saver for Chrome, or SkyZIP for Chrome and Firefox.

Caches and cookies save your browsing data to make it easy to return to the pages you’ve visited online before – but over time, all this stored information can make your device sluggish. Clearing the data will help optimise your browser’s performance and speed up your broadband (just bear in mind that you’ll need to sign in to your favourite accounts again after you’ve finished). To see how to clear your PC or Mac, follow our instructions below:
Microsoft Internet Explorer

1. Select the Tools button, point to Safety, and then select Delete browsing history.

2. Select the Cookies and website data check box and then select Delete.

3. Click on the cog symbol in the upper-right corner of the browser and open the menu “Extras”.

4. Select “Internet options”.

5. In the General tab, select Browser history.

6. When you click Delete, a new window opens.

7. Remove all checks except “Temporary Internet files and website files”.

8. Select Delete to empty the browser cache, which will delete all cache data.

9. Reload the browser.

Microsoft Edge

1. Click on the three dots in the upper right corner.

2. Click on Settings.

3. Under Privacy, Search and Services, click on Clear browsing data, click on Choose what to clear.

4. Check the boxes next to Cookies and saved website data and Cached data and files.

5. Click on Clear.

6. Reload the browser.

Google Chrome

1. In Windows, at the top right, click More. On a Mac, select Chrome from the Menu Bar on the top left, then select Preferences.

2. In Windows, click More tools and then Clear browsing data. On a Mac, select Clear browsing data under the Privacy and security section.

3. At the top, choose a time range. To delete everything, select All time.

4. Check the boxes next to “Cookies and other site data” and “Cached images and files”.

5. Click Clear data.

6. Reload the browser.

Mozilla Firefox

In Windows:

1. Click the menu button and select Preferences.

2. Select the Privacy & Security panel and go to the Cookies and Site Data section.

3. Click the Clear Data button.

4. Check the boxes next to Cookies and Site Data and Cached Web Content.

5. Click Clear.

6. Reload the browser.

On a Mac:

1. Go to History in the Menu Bar and select Clear Recent History.

2. Make a selection in Time range to clear.

3. In the History section, check the boxes next to Cache and Cookies.

4. Select Clear Now.

5. Reload the browser.

Safari

To clear the cache:

1. Select Safari from the Menu Bar on the top left, then select Preferences.

2. Select the Advanced tab.  

3. Select “Show Develop menu in menu bar”, then close the Preferences menu.

4. Select the Develop tab from the Menu Bar on the top left of your screen.

5. Select Empty Caches from the drop-down menu. 

To clear cookies

1. Select Safari from the Menu Bar on the top left, then select Preferences.

2. Click on “Privacy,” then “Manage Website Data”.

3. Click “Remove all” from the drop-down menu.

Ready to upgrade ? To find out if you can get Virgin Media’s Gig1 Fibre Broadband, just click here and enter your postcode into the search box. It’s the quickest way to find out if your home can get up to our gigabit internet speed.

Find out more about upgrading to Gig1 Fibre Broadband by visiting here.