how to speed up internet on an android tablet

[ValYooNeek]

I've enjoyed my Le pan 10.1 tablet for couple months now and for some reason my internet has started to become extremely slow. I've Google research a possible cause and several were ones that I could handle OK. Like clearing cache under setting, deleting browsering history in Google chrome (my only browser)...the next feat I'm not sure how to do: removing widgets! I know a little of what they are and how to move them around on my screen but deleting one is another thing. All the Google advice tells u to long hold the widget until the garbage can appears or turn red or something appears asking u whether or not to delete it. All that's fine if either of those things occurred when I did it. Nada! Then I started doubting myself that maybe I'll be deleting the app itself...or would I? Now my false confident started to crumble! Removing unutilized widgets (which I have quite a few...most from preinstalled apps) maybe isn't quite the right thing to be doing. As u can see, help is needed! This all started because my internet dragging itself...before my tablet would just blast to a site with the simplest touch. Now it takes 10 or 15 seconds to go a new site! I had 16gb of memory available to start with, after several apps I have around 9.45gb available... not that bad, right! Then why is my tablet sooo slow now? Can I get some layman term advice? I'm kinda frustrated and tired! I need help bad!! :'(

 

[B. Diddy]

It would help to know if it's only the browser that seems slow, or if every aspect of the device's performance is slow. How is your wi-fi connection? Do other devices or computers get fast speeds when connected?

Removing a widget from the homescreen doesn't uninstall it from the device, so feel free to remove as many widgets as you like. If you have a lot of widgets on the homescreen, they can contribute to a bit of slowdown, depending on what the widgets are doing. But it's unlikely the main cause for your problems.

App caches can build up a lot of data over time, and this can sometimes lead to slowdowns. Go to Settings>Storage, and tap the Cached Data listing. There should be an option to Clear Cache (you may have to press the Menu button to find it there). You can also install apps like App Cache Cleaner, which makes it easier. I would strongly recommend against using "RAM boosters" or other apps that claim to speed up your device or save battery by killing apps automatically. This can actually be counterproductive on Android devices, and cause them to use up more battery.

If you haven't rebooted your device recently, that's a good idea as well. Sometimes certain apps can start to bog down a device, especially if they aren't coded well. A reboot can clear the slate, so to speak, and restore some snappiness.

 

[ValYooNeek]

Thanks for your speedy reply!! To answer your first couple questions... only the browser is slow not tablet performance. That's a good thing right? My internet provider is att DSL internet 6.0 (suppose to be the fastest and highest available).. overall my internet speed fluctuates and drop connection whenever I use my laptop. I don't know what's up with that but its a headache! The speed on my other devices (I only have a laptop, tablet and two smart TVs connected wireless), my TVs r OK, I don't see too much different in their reception when I'm using internet. The laptop is a whole different story! The speed is fine I assume for watching videos, going to various sites and amazon primetime movies...not much lag time. The problem there is the constant internet disconnection. I've complained to att about the problem but they seem oblivious to the problem. I've had my modem replaced thinking that would help but nothing really changed. I've accepted that its probably DSL thru att for constant disconnections. Would u have any ideas to help with the constant disconnection issues? All advice/help will be appreciated.

I've cleared all caches within the apps and Ive notice some improvements but I still get the ten or fifteen second buffetting when I go from one tab to another. I probably will get the cache app you suggested but then there's this other problem I'm having: popup ads mainly from ad choice! I've pretty much got it covered on my laptop but my Android tablet is a whole new ball of yarn! I have the add on detector to search my apps to see the luggage associated with them...but its kinda confusing because I really don't know what I'm looking for!! I've even uninstalled a couple apps that I thought caused the problem ( mainly games app) but I still get these giant ad choice ads that takes up most of the tablet screen forcing me to stop whatever I was doing to try and closing it. It can occur ever ten or twenty seconds sometimes, making my tablet experience pretty much a drag! I installed ad blocker from the Google store and believe it or not my tablet performance became extremely slow and a lot of freezing of screen. I immediate uninstalled it and everything went back to normal performance...Im soo afraid to even download any new apps afraid of the potential danger of add ons that may add to my already troublesome tablet experience! I admit that I really don't know what I'm doing and how to fix the problem. I feel like I'm being held prisoner by my tablet...can you please help me!!

 

[Rukbat]

1) Not too likely, but if the laptop is using 802.11B while the tablet is using 802.11G (or the laptop is using 802.11G while the tablet is using 802.11N), the tablet is causing the wifi connection to shift down.

2) Where is the internet disconnecting? Street to modem? Modem to router? Router to device? If your router is causing the problem, there's not much AT&T can do about it.

 

[ValYooNeek]

Thanks Rukbat! How can I tell which one is using what? Most times I'm using both at the same time! I'm watching a video or movie on m 17 inch laptop and then I'll get bored..pick up my tablet and start playing a game. I have too much time on my hand I know! I'm slightly disable and tablet gives me more freedom than my big nine cell laptop! Whats the difference between 802.11 G, B and N and how can I tell which device is on which one?

 

[Rukbat]

You have to look in the properties of the wifi adapter in Network and Sharing Center (if the laptop is Windows) and the specs can tell you what your phone runs. Or you can just lock your router to its fastest mode (it's b then g then n - ignore a or ac) and see if the laptop can't connect and the tablet can. That will tell you that you have to run in mixed mode and whenever a lower speed device is connected, that''s how fast your wifi is.

You could connect the laptop to the router with an Ethernet cable, eliminating all of that.

But I'm suspicious of something else (which I couldn't begin to diagnose without being there or at AT&T's head end) - because about the fastest single download you're going to get these days is about 2mbps (and that only if you have a good path to the server you're downloading [or streaming - same thing as far as the internet is concerned]), and if your wifi connection is capable of 6mbps (and I haven't seen one that slow in so long I'm not completely sure of the model number - BEF-something, I think) you should be able to stream a movie to the laptop and one to the tablet at the same time with no slowdown.

The general rule of thumb today is to allow 2mbps per connection and you'll have more bandwidth than you need. So with a 54mbps router (about the slowest you can find these days), you should be good for more than 20 connections - download a few files and watch a video on each device at the same time.

If the tablet slows down only when you're streaming video on the laptop, it would have to be diagnosed at AT&T's end, and their tech support people aren't capable of that, even the level 2 tech support people. Wireshark might show what's going wrong, but not even many network administrators know what it is, let alone how to use it.

The more information you can gather, the better the chance that something will jump out. Do a speed test on the tablet (speedtest.net) with the laptop off. Then with the laptop connected to the internet. Then with the laptop streaming video. Then do the same thing, doing the speed test with the laptop and do things with the tablet. The results of all that might tell us something.

 

[ValYooNeek]

Rukbat you have given me my assignment for the next couple hours! First thing , I went to the speed test.net do test on my tablet and got the message I need adobe flash (which I can't get from Google) and javascript enabled. I need to get adobe flash...how can I get it without fear of bad stuff happening to my tablet?

 

[ataur rahman3]

hello