Wi-Fi 7 promises a big jump over Wi-Fi 6 and 6E, with some estimates putting its theoretical peak around 46 Gbps. Yet plenty of new owners on forums like Reddit are confused about why their speeds fall short, Engadget reported on October 19. Router placement, the number of connected devices and one of the standard's headline features can all drag results down.

Placement comes first. Citing XDA, Engadget said a router tucked too close to drywall sends signals bouncing off the walls and back toward its antennae, which degrades the original signal. Moving it to an open shelf, or at least three feet out from a corner, and rerunning a speed test may help.

Device count is the next suspect. Most homes have at least 20 connected devices, according to Netgear, from phones and tablets to wearables and appliances. Engadget suggested noting whether slowdowns happen only when everyone is home and streaming or stay consistent through the day.…