Wi-Fi second most desirable after food: Router-manufacturer

Internet has not just become a basic necessity but emerged as the second most sought after or desired essential in life, a new study has found.

According to an International Data Corporation (IDC) info brief sponsored by wireless router manufacturer Linksys, the desirability of internet especially over Wi-Fi has overtaken that of watching TV or owning a new smartphone.

This was revealed by router manufacturer as it announced the launch of its latest product.

According to the brief, almost 30 per cent of people consider food as a day-to-day necessity while 18 per cent consider internet and Wi-Fi as the most essential necessity.

The company also said a majority of internet users are unaware that sharing Wi-Fi passwords at home with friends and relatives could lead to a potential gateway to hackers.

"Anyone gaining access to your friends or relative's phone can possibly obtain the password from the keychain and thereby simply gain access to the home network. Most of us simply give away the passwords to anyone asking for it," says Amanulla Khan, Managing Director, Linksys Middle East, Turkey and Africa.

"With increasing home automation and devices connected to the home network, protecting access to routers is very important," he adds.

According to research home automation will emerge as the second biggest in terms of connectivity to the home network after smartphones.

By the end of 2019, at least 10 billion devices will be connected to the home network, it adds.

According to him the new range of routers the company plans to introduce comes with a built in app that will help the user manage its network, troubleshot the device and even monitor and manage  all connected devices, the data speed and enable restricted access to different users.

Giving further insights into the internet usage at homes he said an average home has at least five devices simultaneously connected to the router but majority of them face buffering and lag issues and one of the main causes for the poor performance is the use of outdated Wi-Fi technology.

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