Have you noticed the new wifi speed tool? Use it to help attract remote workers

[Nick]

Because wifi is one of the top-searched amenities on Airbnb this year, we’re excited to offer you a new tool that can help you showcase your wifi speed to guests. It allows you to test the speed of your property’s wifi—and display it directly on your listing page. 

After you take the speed test, you’ll find out how fast your internet is—along with what it’s capable of. For example, if your speed is 48 megabits per second (Mbps), your wifi is likely fast enough for your guests to hang out with friends and coworkers on a video call or stream multiple HD movies.

By sharing the results of your wifi speed test, you can help set realistic expectations about what kind of connectivity your space offers. 

Learn more about the new tool, and please comment to let us know what you think. 

Besides strong wifi, are there other ways you try to appeal to remote workers?

Thanks

Nick

[Laurelle3]

@Nick Just wondering if this tool is helpful for me or my guests when I pay for top speed and our Australian goverment has pushed out NBN over Australia and citizens in rural or remote areas are disadvantaged because we dont get the true benefits of the goods promised. 

For me coverage in my local area is for aproximately 300 houses about 700 people but what happens on weekends approx 1-2,000 people and on long weekends and public holidays it can be up to 6,000 or more people who are holidaying by the beach. 

I do say on advertising Airbnb that we have Wi Fi at top leavel but it is out of my control if the speed is slow as I am effected too. All I can do is be honest.

[Michelle53]

@Nick   I read the article at the link. I did not run the speed test.

There are a couple of things to note :-

Internet speed and wifi speed are not the same. 

Internet speed:   The speed at which the ISP (Internet Service Provider) delivers internet to one's property.

Wifi: A means for devices to connect to this internet "over the air" (via a router device).   It can best be visualized as a kind of "radio" signal.  This speed is variable, based on a number of factors :-

1. The type of device - newer devices have the wifi connectors built in e.g. smart phones, tablets. Older computers may not have built-in wifi connectivity, and so you need to plug a wifi adapter device into the USB port which allows one to connect to the router.   Different devices connect at different speeds.

2. The type of router - different routers broadcast the signal at different strengths.   There is wide variability in how routers broadcast the signal. One can have blastingly fast internet coming from the ISP and a bad router, which isn't capable of producing a signal strong enough to reach everywhere in a house. 

That means that every single device one owns can produce a different wifi connection speed,  depending on its internal capability, the capability of the router, and the location in the home. 

I have done exhaustive testing of different devices in my home, in different parts of the house. I have a mesh wifi system. The incoming service from my ISP averages around 136 - 140 Mbps.  

The connectivity via wifi to my mesh router varies between roughly 60 Mbps with an older tablet, from a fair distance away, (on the satellite device), and about 138 Mbps on my cell phone, 6 feet from the main router.   

My very old laptop gets about 18 Mbps using its internal wifi adapter, 6 feet from the main router, so I generally use a plug-in wifi adapter for a better signal. 

The moral of the story here is that wifi speed is basically subjective - every device/router/location combination will give a different result. 

So a speed test which populates the wifi speed automatically is almost always going to be an inaccurate representation. 

I take the slowest reasonable speed I can get with my oldest tablet in my Airbnb space to manually enter the wifi speed (60 Mbps) knowing that, for most people, it will be better than that. 

You can test this for yourself using the Ookla speed test at https://www.speedtest.net/

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Nick I can type in an internet speed for our listings but I cannot see a way to get it populated automatically as it suggests in the 'learn about the new tool' link. Is this another example of something only available to our US brethren?

[J-Renato0]

Hello @Nick 

Thanks for sharing this great new feature. (Meaning, the host can inform internet speed in the listing that can be filtered during searching process).

2 of my listings offer wifi at 240mbps (download speed) on 5Ghz devices
(I know this because it is stated in the contract with the Internet provider, however I also have checked it.)

2 others so far offers wifi at 120mbps (download speed) mbps on 5Ghz devices.
(I know this because it is stated in the contract with the Internet provider)
Certainly an upgrade is coming soon !

You see that there are some details about wi-fi that must be considered.
Moderm devices (smart phones and notebooks) has usually 5Ghz available.
Common or older devices (smart phones and notebooks) has 2 GHz available.

My suggestion and a ask you to pass it along.
When filling the wifi field of the form, it should be specified the speed for 5Ghz devices and 2Ghz devices to avoid confusion.

Does it sound complicate? No. Everyone that are concerned with internet download/upload speed are familiar with those terms. If not, they must become familiar with.

From my experience, I can say that the guests that work remotely usually ask me details about internet connection before booking.

[Michelle53]

@J-Renato0   My router offers both 5Ghz and 2.4Ghz bands, and it actively manages the connection based on the device that connects and the location of the satellite or main router. 

5Ghz offers faster speeds but lower range.  2.4Ghz offers lower speeds but better range.   The router selects which is optimal when the device connects, assuming the device has dual band capability.   It doesn't provide the exact speed for 5Ghz vs 2.4Ghz overall, it only knows the speed for that connection for that device. 

[J-Renato0]

@Michelle53 

Thanks for the input.
Yes, the routers I have available also offer both 5Ghz and 2.4Ghz bands.
The guest can see the wi-fi-net-name for botht 5Ghz and 2.4Ghz and connect accordingly to the capability of its device. The guest can pick the connection according to the capability of his/her device.
That is why I said that, it is important to specify the internet speed for 5Ghz devices and 2Ghz devices to avoid confusion.
As for other details (the ones you have mentioned), I do not know them precisely. Certainly there are differences depending on the internet providers and its systems.
Mine´s state in a contract the speed at 5Ghz and 2.4Ghz. The signal gets to the router (in listing) by cable, not via wireless system or even satelite. Certainly it comes from some main router. I do not know more details.

[Michelle53]

@J-Renato0    The amenity asks for "Wifi speed" not "Internet speed".   The speed in the contract from your internet provider has no bearing on the speed you will get connecting a device over wifi. 

Wifi speed is always less than Internet speed from your provider, because your internet provider is using cable, where wifi is using a broadcast system, and speed depends on the quality of the broadcast signal from your router, the type of device that connects, and the distance the signal has to travel from the router.

[J-Renato0]

@Michelle53 

The routers I have are provided by the same Internet provider. So it is an integrated system to provide good results. I can talk for what I use.

Actually I did not came to this topic to discuss things that leads to nowhere.
e.g. :If people goes to a doctor, they want to have some medicine to cure them or to solve their problem. Nobody wants to hear lots of explanation instead of solutions.
If my guests want good wifi they will have good wi-fi ! I will not offer them explanations in order to convince them they can not have what they want to.

I am a practical person and I think what counts are the results.
My internet provider guarnatee in a contract wi-fi at 240mpbs with 5Ghz devices.
If I offer 240 mbps wifi for notebooks and smartphones that has 5Ghz capability, it is what the guest will have in the listing.
In the last months I have noticed that the guests that really need good and fast internet connection are happy with the internet connection I offer them. It is much better than what they need.

I do not pay too much for the internet bill, that is why I can offer good internet connection. Actually good internet saves me money. I do not offer cable tv anymore. Most of the guests nowadays are really conccerned with internet to watch net_flix, you _tube and to work remotely.

To avoid being misunderstood, I have to say I am here just to report my personal experience and give my suggestion, what I did in my first post under this same thread.

[Michelle53]

@J-Renato0  If you're getting that kind of reliable speed over Wifi anywhere in your house for all your guests, that is very good performance. 

I'm not trying to be mean - we have a lot of services that offer high speed Wifi over 5G cellular networks, with a Gateway device which converts the 5G signal to Wifi. Also, a lot of services that offer standard services via cable line, to a modem, which connects to a Wifi router.  Some provide all the equipment.

But they will never guarantee a certain speed in a contract.    They will always use words like "up to" or "typical speed" or "average speed" and say that speeds can vary based on location, availability, signal strength, time of day,  etc etc etc etc. 

My previous router, before I converted to a mesh system, also allowed me to set up two different connections - one for 5GHz and one for 2.4GHz.   Most of my guests found that too complicated. All they wanted to do was just connect with as little fuss as possible.   Like the lights -  flip a switch and it turns on. 

I have a separate guest network so there's no conflict between what they are doing and what I am doing, and they can't access my system. 

I'm happy I haven't had a single complaint from the new system. It's like the power or the hot water - nobody notices unless it is weak or not working. 

[J-Renato0]

@Michelle53 

In my case, the properties I have to let are not large, they are small units. So, it is not possible to be too far away from the internal device that broadcast wifi, as long as they are in the limits of the property.

Certainly wifi signal gets less strong or even week if the user is considerably far from the device that broadcast wifi signal. The hosts who have large properties must consider this fact.

Anyway we have to consider and to address the average guest that normally knows that the closer they are to the device the broadcast the wifi signal the better is the signal.

We have to address to the guest that has normal judgment. I believe you agree with me on this point.

Lunatic guests who want perfection must wait for the universe to be created again. Or maybe  ask if the listing was design to offer perfect wifi even if they go out in the streets or if they get in a Faraday Cage!  🙂 

To the hosts, my personal tip goes like this.
Put the device that broadcast wifi in the area where the guests will use the most. Or even close to a desk where presumably they will use their notebooks in case of a guest that works remotely.

There are wifi repeaters, but the ideal condition is to have the main device that broadcast wifi where guests use wifi the most.

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@J-Renato0 Once you get above 50-100mbps the speed is semi irrelevant and most supplies are constrained by the supply not the router. If you really want to get techie then they should also be measuring latency as this has a huge effect on gamers and on-line traders who cannot cope well with the delays on satellite delivered internet connections.

[J-Renato0]

@Mike-And-Jane0 

Thanks for the input.
Actually, I dont want to dispute knowledge on techie. To me things must be simple and within the language that the guest understands.
If the potentioal guests ask me how fast is the wifi, I usually inform them the wifi speed (download and upload) and tell them they will get faster connection if they have a notebook or smarphone with 5Ghz capability.
Then they decide if they want to book or not.

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Nick  I couldn't test the speed, I am stuck on point 5. but anyway, tnx for the speed explanation, I was wondering how fast the internet should be for digital nomads. I even asked in the DN Facebook group and didn't get the right answer, it seems DN-s don't know either :I

[J-Renato0]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 

Hello, till some time ago, I used to offer (download speed) between 15mbps and 35mbps. It was enough for programmers, webdesigners, webmasters.

Recently I have upgraded the internet speed. The prices has lowered considerably in my city. I also decided to  make a change. I do not offer cable or satelite TV anymore, what saves me money to spend on a better internet connection. Too few of my guests used to require cable TV. Most of my guests are concerned with you_tube, net_flix, and the guests that works remotely, depending on their job, i.g. they need to  use zoom video calls for video conference or to teach languages on line. The later examples cover the ones who needs fast internet.

I will give you a practical example using an extract of texts of a guest before booking my listing. It is the one between quotes.

"To me 10 Mbps upload speed and at least 100 Mbps download speed is good. In the USA, at my house, I have available 10 Mbps upload and 180 Mbps download."

The guest who wrote that message works with IT (information technology) and the main thing for him is a good upload speed for zoom video calls.

So it depends on each case. But there is a trend that 10mbps upload speed  is good enough if they do videocalls (and at least 100 mbps download). The best you can do is to talk with the potential guests about "what is fast internet" for them.

My sugestion goes like this. If you have a potential guest that needs fast connection, negotiate with the guest. Ask them what is good enough to him/her. See if it is worth having an upgrade as long as the guest books the listing. You could include the cost in the nightly rate. Of course I am talking about guests that will stay at least one month.
Put the wifi device that broadcast wifi signal next to the desk where the guests are supposed to use their notebooks. Meaning, in the area where the guests are supposed to use wifi.
Let them know that if they connect the router directly via cable to the notebook they may have even a better connection.

It is my practical tips based on my personal experience as a host.