Business Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi 8 – The Smarter, More Stable Wi-Fi Standard

Can Wi-Fi 8 bring the stability of a wired network to wireless? Let’s look at handovers, coordination between wireless technologies, and the influence of AI.

Based on the upcoming 802.11bn standard, Wi-Fi 8 is purported to be smarter and more stable than it’s Wi-Fi 7 predecessor, instead of merely faster.

According to an announcement by Qualcomm, Wi-Fi 8 will respond to new needs in both home networks and business by focusing on reliability and consistency, even in poorer conditions.

Qualcomm’s Vice President of Technical Standards Rolf De Vegt said;

“Wi-Fi 8 marks a fundamental pivot — moving beyond peak speeds to prioritize reliable performance in challenging real-world conditions. It’s designed to deliver consistent, low-latency and near-lossless connectivity even in highly congested, interference-prone and mobile environments.”

Whilst the main design feature of Wi-Fi 7 is to maximize speed and bandwidth, Wi-Fi 8 will focus on stability of performance. In lab conditions, there were impressive results for Wi-Fi 7 speeds, however this is harder to replicate in reality within everyday environments like office buildings and residential areas. Wi-Fi 8 will provide stability even when faced with congestion, interference or multiple devices moving in real world environments.

According to Qualcomm, Wi-Fi 8 plans to offer:

25% higher throughput in challenging signal conditions such as blocks of flats
25% lower latency at the 95th percentile of latency distribution
25% fewer dropped packets when roaming between access points

Handover, What Handover?

Wi-Fi 8 will see the wonders of Single Mobility Domains. Traditionally, small interruptions during the handover process between access points are completely normal happenings. A major innovation of Wi-Fi 8 will mean that devices will be able to move between access points without any interruption or lag. Just imagine – Continuous, uninterrupted connectivity as you move throughout domains within a multi-storey office or large buildings where users (and their devices) are always moving around.

Previous standards saw the edges of a network as a weak spot. Wi-Fi 8 will also bring improvements to this area. Technical adjustments in the optimisation of the physical layer of the protocol means that Wi-Fi 8 doesn’t just increase transmission power, leading to more stable performance even at low signal strength.

Another improvement will see access points working together rather than separately. Wi-Fi 8 will enable the coordination of behaviour and sharing of information between access points in a network. This will help to reduce conflict on the radio frequencies and improve the efficiency of transmission time. Thus, Wi-Fi 8 will bring a smoother network environment for places with many users and devices for example, stadiums, schools or blocks of flats.

Better Coordination Between Wireless Technologies

Research is being conducted to look at how radio systems such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and ultra-wideband can work better together instead of causing interference. The use of multiple wireless technologies by a single device simultaneously (devices using a single antenna for multiple radios) is becoming more prevalent, making the need for better coordination between the technologies vital.

Prevalence of AI Leading Wi-Fi 8 to Focus on Stability Instead of Speed

AI is placing a huge raw demand on networks, especially in terms of reliability and latency.

We’re seeing an increase in prevalence of wearable AI, smart device embedded AI and autonomous AI. In order for AI systems to work effectively, they need to be able to pull from access edge or cloud based systems in near real time, making reliable connectivity vital.

The current Wi-Fi standard is struggling to support the abundance of AI use in everyday life. These struggles aren’t anything new – The ever increasing use of personal devices using wireless connectivity has been putting a strain on Wi-Fi networks for a while.

With the evolution of smart homes, the size and scope of our networks has needed to expand quickly in order to support the number of devices used in our houses.Indeed, larger homes are requiring enterprise-grade networks in order to meet the level of connectivity people expect.

Wi-Fi 8 and Medical Monitoring Devices

AI garners much of the attention when discussing Wi-Fi 8 and the need for stability over speed, however there is another prevailing need increasing in our homes and that is medical monitoring devices.

Doctors are starting to rely on patients self-monitoring from home more and more. For the health of non-critical patients, these home-based options are a real life-line. Doctors can keep tabs on patients without the need for them to visit the practice as regularly.

This is yet another area where network reliability and response time is imperative to enable doctors to communicate with patients via their home network, especially in potentially life-threatening situations.

Will Wi-Fi 8 Bring the Stability of Wired to our Wireless Networks?

In the press release, De Vegt writes that they want Wi-Fi 8 to bring wireless networks closer to having the same reliability and responsiveness of wired infrastructure. Whether or not Wi-Fi 8 manages to get close to that ambitious aim we’ll have to wait and see.

The Wi-Fi 8 standard is expected to be finalised in January 2028, so there’s still a little while to wait. You can read the full press release from Qualcomm here.

by admin8th September 2025

Business Wi-Fi Cat6 Ethernet Cable Connectivity Fibre Broadband Ubiquiti Ubiquiti UniFi Wi-Fi Wi-Fi Advice Wi-Fi Design Wi-Fi for Historic Premises Wi-Fi for Hospitality Wi-Fi Installation Wi-Fi Site Survey Wireless Network

Geekabit Deploys Wi-Fi Solution to New Gastropub in Historic Space in Farnham, Surrey

This week on the blog we’re excited to share the completion of a recent Wi-Fi project for a client over in Farnham, Surrey.

Find out how our Wi-Fi engineering experts helped to transform this remarkable historic space into a well-connected Gastropub.

The Venue

Third Monkey is a new Gastropub, Restaurant and Cocktail Bar providing high-end hospitality and fun family dining in the heart of Farnham.

The historic building was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens in the late 1800’s and whilst much of his original architecture will remain, the updated premises will boast 2 floors of buzzing atmosphere plus a roof terrace.

The building has been used as The South Street Social Club in recent years, formerly known as the Liberal Club, but closed back in 2023 due to the ongoing effects of the pandemic as well as other factors.

Now under new owners, Third Monkey and its Executive Chef are breathing new life into this notable building, bringing with it ‘refined yet relaxed’ vibes through its welcoming Gastropub on the ground floor, and a more elevated dining experience in the Restaurant and Cocktail Bar upstairs. And let’s not forget the Rooftop Terrace complete with weekend DJ’s providing a late-night destination venue for Surrey’s most sought-after town.

You can find this exciting new venue at 46 South Street, Farnham, Surrey, GU9 7RP.

Expert Wi-Fi Solution for Historic Premises Turned Gastropub

Wi-Fi Site Survey

As with all new Wi-Fi projects, we started with a Wi-Fi Survey. This is Geekabit’s key tool in analysing the performance of your network and helping to diagnose issues.

As you can imagine, a historic building built in the 1800’s isn’t going to have been designed with Wi-Fi in mind! Unlike modern constructions, this type of building can present unique challenges for signal penetration and Wi-Fi infrastructure installation. Therefore, carrying out a thorough Wi-Fi site survey is vital.

Upon visiting, it was clear that the Third Monkey, was a completely fresh and new fit-out –
and we could get involved at the earliest stages to ensure that the possibilities for Wi-Fi
access point placement could work with the new building materials being used.

In this instance for Third Monkey, we used the information gathered during the Wi-Fi Site Survey to advise on the necessary networking equipment required as well as Fibre WAN providers.

Wi-Fi Installation

Whilst some may think that installing Wi-Fi isn’t much more than sticking a box on the ceiling and plugging it in, there is actually a great deal more thought and expertise that goes into it if you want a successful Wi-Fi network.

There’s little point in carrying out a Wi-Fi Site Survey to identify how to equip a historic building such as this with robust internet connectivity, if you’re not going to follow it up with expert installation.

For Third Monkey, Geekabit completed a full Wi-Fi Installation using one of our favoured brands Ubiquiti Wi-Fi and Ubiquiti network equipment.

This Wi-Fi network deployment included:

Full data network installation
Network design
Data network cabinet installation
Termination of Cat 6 ethernet cabling
Setting up of network security devices
Commissioning of equipment, Wi-Fi configuration and optimisation, and post-installation Wi-Fi Site Survey

A big part of any Wi-Fi Installation also involves effectively co-ordinating with other suppliers and installers to enhance network efficiency and security.

Of course, we round off any Wi-Fi deployment right back where we started – With a Wi-Fi Site Survey. This ensures we leave our clients with their optimum Wi-Fi network.

Our Wi-Fi engineers are also on hand to provide ongoing Network Support, Wi-Fi Management and Wi-Fi Guest Portal services. Another benefit of bringing in the expertise and knowledge of a Wi-Fi professional.

Why Robust Wi-Fi is a Must for Hospitality Businesses

Despite the potential complexities that using a historic building for a modern use can have, this project shows that the two can indeed go hand-in-hand.

We know how vital it is for hospitality businesses to have reliable Wi-Fi. A strong wireless network is not only essential for operational efficiency (ie. supporting POS systems and internal communications) but also in enhancing customer experience through Guest Wi-Fi.

This particular hospitality venue is striving for a refined yet relaxed atmosphere, offering diverse customer experiences from casual dining to a late-night rooftop terrace. For this venue and others, seamless Wi-Fi connectivity underpins the ability to deliver high-quality service and attract a contemporary clientele, ultimately contributing to its success and reputation.

This Wi-Fi installation for Third Monkey demonstrates perfectly how you can take the charm of a historic building and bring it up to date with the modern amenities we come to expect from a high-end venue. Strong, reliable Wi-Fi is a must.

Steve Cross, Director at Geekabit, comments:

“We’ve been impressed by the team at the Third Monkey, who have been passionate advocates for ensuring they work with specialists in each field to create a high quality fit-out and venue that really raises the concept of the gastropub and restaurant. From an initial site survey visit, through to the entire Wi-Fi and network installation, we’ve been able to support the transformation of an historic space into a great addition to the Surrey town of Farnham.”

by admin21st July 2025

Business Wi-Fi Ubiquiti Wi-Fi Wi-Fi Advice Wi-Fi Help Wireless Network Wireless Technology WLAN

Ubiquiti is Skyrocketing – Here’s Why

It’s no secret that our Wi-Fi experts here at Geekabit are big fans of Ubiquiti and their range of Wi-Fi devices and equipment. We love their kit and it would seem we’re definitely not the only ones.

We’ve been chatting about the benefits of using Ubiquiti Wi-Fi equipment for your network for years. A blog from a few years back was one of our first on the topic and is a good place to start if you’re unfamiliar with the pros of using Ubiquiti for a business network.

Over the past year in particular, Ubiquiti devices have really increased in popularity, with shares in Ubiquiti Inc (UI) surging up by 222.8% in the past year. Why? Their customer base has seen a gradual yet steady increase in growth, supported by a flexible business model. If you’re into stocks, shares and investments then you might like to research UI as an investment option.

But here at Geekabit, investment advice isn’t really our forte – We’re all about the wireless equipment, and this manufacturer has our attention.

What makes Ubiquiti so popular?

There are many wireless internet device manufacturers on the market – Why are UI doing so well?

In our fast moving world, the demand for the internet is constant. There is a continuous stream of data traffic with the need for round-the-clock access to video, audio, online gaming and social networking (not to mention work emails, online conference calls and file transfers).

This means that we require fast, seamless connectivity that can support these bandwidth-intensive apps whilst simultaneously moving away from wired network connections.

Our need for strong, wireless networks is met perfectly with Ubiquiti’s comprehensive range of products and solutions. From Ubiquiti you can find:

A range of networking devices
Network infrastructure for fixed wireless broadband
Wireless backhaul systems
Routing
Wireless LAN infrastructure
Video surveillance products
Machine-to-machine communication components
And much more

Our Wi-Fi experts and engineers here at Geekabit aren’t the only ones that rave about Ubiquitis products – They have a rapidly growing community that are highly engaged with their range, including:

Service providers
Distributors
Value-added resellers
Systems integrators
Corporate IT professionals

This community might be what sets UI apart. They leverage the strength of the Ubiquiti Community by providing rapid product support and dissemination of information, thus reducing operational costs whilst maintaining a proprietary network communication platform. Ubiquiti works from an extremely flexible business model which can therefore adapt to market demands.

Will Ubiquiti continue to grow?

Continued growth is expected for Ubiquiti, with significant opportunities in developed as well as emerging economies. Emerging countries are relentless in their pursuit of staying connected with the world, and adopting wireless networking infrastructure is a big part of that. Developed economies are always looking to increase bandwidth further in order to bridge the gap between demand and supply.

Ubiquiti are committed to research and development, and spend significantly on activities that help them develop innovative new products that use state-of-the-art technology – All helping them to stay on the cutting-edge of networking technology with their market offering.

With products that offer both high performance and best value, they continue to beat their rivals. Ubiquiti product families such as UniFi and AmpliFi have both seen improvements and added features.

Invest in a reliable network

Whether you’re into investments, tech, wireless networking or a combination of all 3 – Ubiquiti has something to offer.

Positive market gains remain diverse across various sectors, including finance, healthcare, energy and of course tech industries.

Ubiquiti just so happens to be listed by quite a few investment analyst outlets as having skyrocketing stock with it reaching an all time high at the start of this year. Offering networking technology to service providers, enterprises and consumers, UI saw their stock surge by nearly 21% towards the end of January. Perhaps they have their supply chain improvements and product availability to thank for this?

If stocks and shares aren’t your thing, but you’re ready to invest in a strong, reliable wireless network for your business, then get in touch with our Wi-Fi experts today.

by admin3rd February 2025

Broadband Business Wi-Fi OneWeb Satellite Broadband Satellite Internet SpaceX Starlink

How Does Starlink Compare to OneWeb?

What a time to be alive! Right above our heads, there’s a space race taking place in the skies between LEO satellite broadband providers Starlink and OneWeb.

Making space-based connectivity a reality, these 2 private satellite-broadband companies are building worldwide networks to provide global satellite internet coverage through LEO satellites.

You might think that they are direct competitors, but actually whilst Starlink and OneWeb are similar in many ways, they also significantly differ as well.

So let’s take a look at how 2 of the most innovative companies of our generation compare when it comes to LEO satellite broadband.

What is Starlink?

Just in case you’ve been living under a rock, Elon Musk’s space exploration company SpaceX has a division called Starlink. Starlink consists of a constellation of 6,078 Low Earth Orbit satellites that circle the Earth, aiming to make connectivity possible from anywhere for the average person.

2019 saw Starlink beginning to launch their first satellites, with their satellite broadband service now offering internet access to more than 30 countries.

What is OneWeb?

Founded in 2012 and with investors consisting of the UK government, the Indian telecom firm Bharti Global and Japanese investment group Softbank group, OneWeb is a UK-based broadband satellite organisation that is rapidly expanding connectivity across the globe. CEO Neil Masterson says OneWeb is striving to “provide fibre where there’s no fibre.”

How does Starlink compare to OneWeb?

Let’s take a closer look at the goals, technical specifications, constellations, performance and support of these satellite internet providers.

Business Goals

Whilst to some, Starlink and OneWeb may be considered “rivals”, they are actually more like peers. In fact, SpaceX have even assisted OneWeb by launching 40 OneWeb satellites into orbit using SpaceX rockets.

You may think this is odd, but actually they don’tsee themselves as direct competitors. They have differing business goals and objectives as well as target customers.

Starlink Business Goal

The business mission behind Starlink’s is to provide high-speed internet access to everyone. While that can and does include businesses, the primary aim for Starlink’s is to help residential customers. Especially those based in rural locations where the land-based infrastructure is lacking and connectivity is difficult. Of course, this applies to rural businesses as well.

OneWeb Business Goal

Whilst the business objective of OneWeb is similar, this UK-based company strives to supply high-speed internet to businesses across the globe (rather than residential customers) thus improving IoT. Consumers accessing OneWeb satellite broadband will do so through a secondary business.

Technical Specifications

We can’t host a Starlink vs OneWeb article without looking at the tech specs now can we?

Constellations

First let’s look at the constellations themselves. As we’ve already mentioned, both Starlink and OneWeb’s satellites are in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) – But interestingly they’re not anywhere near each other. Starlink satellites can be found at 550km/340mi from Earth, whereas OneWeb satellites orbit the planet at 1,200km/746mi from Earth.

Starlink has a current fleet of 6,078 satellites in their constellation. They plan to have 7,500 by the end of 2027. OneWeb currently has 648 satellites in their LEO constellation. Although this is the number required for global coverage, they hope to expand to 7,000 satellites in the future.

Whilst Starlink’s fleet might seem more impressive, let’s remember that both Starlink and OneWeb have different objectives and timelines – And both are currently on track to change connectivity through their satellite broadband offerings.

Latency

In simple terms, broadband satellites work by sending and receiving data from Earth. Latency is the time it takes for data to travel back and forth.

Starlink purport to offer a maximum latency of 20 to 40 milliseconds, with field testing finding an average of approximately 40 to 50 milliseconds. This is slightly lower latency than OneWeb, who promise latency of under 100 milliseconds.

Legacy broadband satellites generally have a latency of around 600 milliseconds or more, so both Starlink and OneWeb offer a significant improvement to the previous technology available.

Bandwidth

Starlink and OneWeb both offer substantial bandwidth but each with distinctive features.

Starlink Bandwidth

According to Starlink’s website, Starlink users can generally enjoy download speeds ranging from 25 to 220 Mbps. The majority of customers experience download speeds of over 100 Mbps. Upload speeds are usually found to be within 5 to 20 Mbps.

OneWeb Bandwidth

For those who have critical applications that require a certain bandwidth, OneWeb offers the option to purchase Committed Information Rate (CIR), which ensures a dedicated bandwidth for those applications that are business critical.

OneWeb users can also choose the location of their ground station, allowing the routing of traffic to a specific area.

As part of a demonstration prepared for the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA), the company conducted a Proof of Concept (PoC) test, establishing connectivity with its LEO constellation.

A recent Proof of Concept test for the NCIA saw OneWeb achieve seamless streaming of 4K video feeds and simultaneous operation of various applications, including Microsoft Teams, Twitch, and Google Earth. It also saw download speeds of 195Mbps, upload speeds of 32 Mbps and latency as low as 70 milliseconds. A pretty impressive result.

Reliability

Let’s remember that Starlink and OneWeb both have slightly different business goals, so looking at the reliability of each in critical scenarios will shine a light on the different user needs and thus the suitability of each.

Starlink has shown that it offers a highly reliable internet service, especially for users living in remote areas. It has been praised by reviewers worldwide for its high download and upload speeds. It has also shown itself to be a viable option for those where more traditional connectivity options are not available or reliable.

Whilst it has been reported that there are the occasional hiccups (as with all internet provisions, let’s be honest) and its suitability questioned for critical situations and disasters like fires, in ‘normal’ day to day residential life, it performs well and provides reliable broadband where services were previously unavailable.

For larger scale businesses that require a consistent and trustworthy internet experience for critical operations, OneWeb is committed to meet the demand.

It would appear that OneWeb can provide a dependable internet solution in difficult geographical landscapes where ordinary broadband wouldn’t be an option. Business users in hard to reach, remote locations can experience robust and consistent internet connections with OneWeb. Compared to terrestrial networks, OneWeb offers heightened reliability without susceptibility to weather-related disruptions.

Customer Support

If you’ve ever needed to speak to someone about an internet-related problem, then you’ll know how important good customer support is. This is no different in the satellite internet industry.

Starlink’s Customer Support System

The customer support system from Starlink relies exclusively on email support, which could present some problems when trying to provide real-time assistance to users.

OneWeb’s Support System

OneWeb offers an accessible and robust troubleshooting service with 24/7 customer support via telephone assistance.

Starlink vs OneWeb – Quick Recap

As we’ve seen above, the performance, bandwidth, reliability, support systems, and target customer do vary between OneWeb and Starlink. Having an understanding of these differences can help users to identify which reliable, high-performance satellite internet solution would be best for their needs.

	Starlink	OneWeb
Number of Satellites	6,078	648
Bandwidth	Majority of users enjoy download speeds of 100 Mbps, ranging up to 220 Mbps	Download speeds up to 150 Mbps
Reliability	Reliable internet service, occasional hiccups reported	Consistent and trustworthy in challenging landscapes
Latency	Advertised: 20-40 ms, Field tests: 40-50 ms (Slightly better than OneWeb)	Sub-100 millisecond latency
Support System	Email support	24/7 phone support
Consumer Base Dynamics	Consumer-oriented, focusing on residential users in rural areas	Business-focused with an emphasis on IoT

Starlink Satellite Broadband with Geekabit

For many UK SME’s who operate in more rural areas, Starlink satellite broadband can offer reliable internet where more traditional methods of connectivity are not an option. If you would like to speak to one of our Wi-Fi experts about whether Starlink satellite broadband could work for your business, then get in touch with our friendly team today.

Starlink satellite broadband can also provide the ideal solution for outdoor events like festivals, shows and charity events – Especially if you have food and beverage vendors trying to take mobile payments! Here at Geekabit, we offer a Starlink broadband hired service – Find out more here.

by admin11th June 2024

Aruba Business Wi-Fi Wi-Fi WLAN

Could Your Work-From-Anywhere Team Benefit from Aruba Wireless Hardware?

When it comes to wireless products, you’ll find it hard to beat Aruba with their comprehensive portfolio. But what is it about Aruba that’s ranking higher than even the likes of CISCO and other reputable wireless manufacturers on the market? With its advanced capabilities and ease of use, Aruba is dominating the wireless industry.

If you’re in charge of IT infrastructure for your organisation then we’d be surprised if you weren’t considering Aruba for your connectivity solutions.

It’s a wireless world

We live in a wireless world. It doesn’t matter how small or large your business is or what industry sector you’re a part of – healthcare, financial, commercial – Nowadays we’re not restricted by physical boundaries in many jobs. As an organisation, it’s highly likely you need to provide your employees with the ability to access your network from any given device at any time. All whilst making sure your network is secure, that data is kept private and transfer speeds are quick. That’s no small order! But that’s the way business runs in this wireless world – Everyone expects wireless access anywhere and everywhere they go.

Aruba offers an innovative wireless solution

The tech industry is synonymous with fast paced developments – People are always looking for the next best thing. Quicker, smaller, more powerful. But actually when it comes to networking, there’s been relatively little movement when it comes to innovation and technological advancements.

Enter Aruba and their wireless solution. Packed with innovation, with ways of handling:

Volumes
Reliability
Security
Scalability
Ease of management

Not only that, but it’s also backed up with expert support. We know what you’re thinking – That sounds like an IT team’s dream!

How does Aruba compare with CISCO?

We mentioned CISCO briefly earlier and how industry experts are ranking elements of Aruba’s wireless offering higher than that of CISCO.

Recent reviews via PeerSpot have rated Aruba as 4.0 out of 5 which is one of the highest in its field. This could be due to the fact it offers users a simple interface that they can easily interact with, not to mention their laser focus on wireless technology in general.

Reviews overall seem to be showing that Aruba offers the same capabilities as CISCO, but at a lower cost.

These wireless rivals are often pitted against one another as their solutions have very similar capabilities.

Both Aruba and CISCO offer:

Solutions with user friendly set-up and configuration
24/7 customer support options
Similar price points (with Aruba being slightly less expensive)

The main differences between the two come down to specific features and backend visibility for alert management.

You may think that CISCO would have the edge as a well-known, reputable brand, but Aruba seems to rapidly be catching up in popularity. Their focus on wireless features that they’re bringing to the market is going down well with customers.

Aruba customers believe they offer the best, most cost-effective wireless solution on the market. In addition to that, notable features seem to be:

A platform that provides the foundation for multiple levels of security
Secure access for guests and IoT devices
Wayfinding
Location-based notifications
App consolidation
Asset tracking

Why is Aruba wireless rapidly growing in popularity?

Let’s look at some in-depth reasons why Aruba is proving a popular choice among wireless customers.

Aruba Puts Customers First

Aruba’s vice president of Portfolio Marketing, Lissa Hollinger says, “One of Aruba’s guiding principles is ‘customer first, customer last’.”

Aruba are heavily customer centred when it comes to their ethos and approach to business. The root of product development focuses on solving the problems of their customers. They also offer lifetime warranty on some of their many products, as well as free on-call support.

They even have an interactive, peer to peer community of Aruba users called Airheads Social, dedicated to sharing information and promoting technical discussions.

Aruba has Integrated Security with 360 Secure Fabric

IT networks are full of end users who constantly pop in and out on varying devices (not to mention IoT and cloud options). Unfortunately a mere firewall isn’t sufficient for protecting the perimeter on today’s network environments. This means a radical shift when it comes to network security. The key is integration. Aruba’s 360 Secure Fabric protects across all points in any environment – A real game changer.

What are the components of Aruba’s 360 Secure Fabric?:

Aruba IntroSpect User and Entity Behavioral Analysis (UEBA)

Provides visibility, monitoring, and attack detection.
Automates threat detection and analysis by providing a consolidated view of security activities in a list format, prioritised using a 0 to 100 risk score.
This type of insight allows IT leaders to review information and make decisions quickly, without using time and resources to collect activity information and evaluate its potential risk.

Aruba ClearPass

Handles authentication through its network access control (NAC) and policy management solution
Syncs up with UEBA to automate threat responses
Aruba ClearPass is key to the Bring-Your-Own-Device culture many businesses operate within today by simplifying the creation of a safe connection to personal devices with customised access control to identify, enforce, and protect access privileges, regardless of the user’s location

Security is at the forefront of Aruba’s wireless design with IntroSpect and ClearPass working together.

Guest Access Control is Strong and Scalable with Aruba

One of the top requirements of wireless infrastructure is guest access – Think customers and contractors. Organisations can combine enterprise-grade security and automated registration with Aruba ClearPass Guest, giving visitors secure access to your wired and wireless networks.

ClearPass also detects anomalies and, if possible, deals with them automatically whilst creating alerts and making you aware of any breaches.

This allows you to expand your user experience, without the risk of a multi-month breach to go undetected.

Security Across Devices

There are currently over 15 billion IoT devices. Any connected devices have the potential to become an entry point for a breach. This is when ClearPass becomes integral to IoT devices, providing maximum protection through 4 categories of defence:

Visibility is created with orchestrated discovery
Access privileges must conform to context-based rules
Enforcement is enterprise-wide across wired, Wi-Fi, and VPN
Automated end-to-end workflows ensure situationally-aware security

AP’s and Remote Access Points (RAPs) from Aruba

For small and medium sized businesses, Aruba Access Points expand Wi-Fi coverage and enable enterprise level networking at a manageable cost.

The user experience is enhanced through Aruba Instant On Access Points by strengthening Wi-Fi coverage and increasing the number of devices a network can support at once.

Aruba’s Remote Access Points (RAPs) take this a step further and allow your work-from-anywhere team to continue to work without issue. Employees can connect to your secure wireless network, regardless of their location or device with Aruba RAPs. The prevalence of remote working might have sharply increased over Covid, but having proved that many employees can indeed get the work done from almost anywhere, it’s extremely useful to be able to give verified users appropriate access and a reliable connection no matter where they are working from.

Aruba Airwave Provides Integrated Network Management

Multi vendor environments can benefit from integrated IT operations management tools through Aruba Airwave. You can mange wired and wireless networks with its unified network management, with step-by-step workflows and streamlined automation capabilities. It also provides granular visibility into devices, users, and applications on the network. Aruba Airwave offers real-time monitoring and control, with detailed health and analytics dashboards.

Edge Services Platform from Aruba Gives Scalability and Security

Aruba Edge Services Platform (ESP):

Identifies issues at network edges
Uses AI to resolve many issues before they become problems
Introduces next-level networking, letting internal teams focus their attention elsewhere while enhancing network security
Secures the network edge to provide a highly scalable cloud-native platform

End User Satisfaction with Wayfinding and Asset Tracking

There is some serious scope for what these capabilities could offer your business.

Aruba wayfinding includes the foundation to build location-based services on top of the network infrastructure. Aruba Meridian is a cloud-based, software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution featuring wayfinding, proximity-based notifications, and digital asset tracking, giving you the ability to evolve the service you offer.

Picture the likes of university campuses, stadiums, airports, warehouses, retail etc – All sorts of new services could be customised for these places with this flexible platform’s tools.

The ability to track assets (for example, shipments) can save your business both time and money as well as increasing productivity.

How could these capabilities benefit your business?

Accommodate Any Need with Breadth and Functionality

Aruba Networks, now known as HPE Aruba Networking, is a subsidiary of Hewlett-Packard Enterprise. This means you don’t just get the security and networking range of products and IT solutions, but also other products for which HPE is known, including WLAN, routers and switches. These are often high-quality and lower priced.

You’ll likely find a complete, end-to-end package to fit your business needs – Who doesn’t love a one-stop-shop?

Could Aruba Wireless Hardware Benefit Your Business?

This list is not exhaustive – There are many other reasons why Aruba is leading in the wireless industry. If you’re intrigued by what Aruba offers and want to see how your business could benefit from the capabilities offered, then get in touch with our Wi-Fi experts today. Our professional wireless engineers can help ascertain how Aruba can help you meet your wireless connectivity goals. Give us a call or drop us an email and let’s get started.

by admin8th May 2024

Broadband Business Broadband Speeds Business Wi-Fi

2023 Internet Failures Lost UK Businesses £3.7bn, Survey Claims

Business Broadband ISP Beaming recently commissioned a survey by Censuswide where UK based businesses were asked about their business broadband connections.

The survey claimed that the surveyed businesses reported over 50 million lost hours due to internet failures in 2023, equating to a loss of £3.7 billion.

Reductions in Time Lost, But a Soar in Associated Costs

Interestingly however, over the last 5 years the time businesses have lost has dropped by a fifth.

In 2023, the survey estimates that UK businesses experienced a cumulative 8.8 million internet failures, culminating in 50.5 million hours of downtime disrupting business processes, the ability to trade and impairing access to vital services. This is down from 60 million hours back in 2018.

Despite a reduction in hours of downtime, the survey claims that the cost of this downtime has increased from £742m in 2018 to £3.7bn in 2023.

Thankfully, things like the adoption of full fibre lines and improvements in broadband and network connection technologies does mean that incidents of internet downtime and failures are less common.

On the flip side however, businesses are relying more and more on reliable connectivity for business process, operations and trading which we’ve seen increase over the last 5 years. This means that the cost of this downtime through missed sales, lost productivity and other business disruptions has risen by a whopping 400%.

15% of UK businesses lose money as soon as connectivity fails

The survey highlighted an increased dependence on connectivity, with businesses relying on a strong connection for things like:

Communication
E-commerce
Access to cloud applications

This means that approximately 850,000 UK businesses would start to lose money the very moment their connectivity fails.

Compared to 5 years ago, this is 81,000 more firms.

39% of UK businesses would lose money during an 8-hour outage

If a business were to have an 8-hour internet outage, in other words a standard working day, 39% of UK businesses would lose money. This is an increase of 5% from 34% in 2018, and equates to 240,000 companies across the UK.

Financial losses begin from 6 hour internet failures

The survey found that the median time for financial losses to begin following an internet failure is 6 hours for businesses with employees. This was true for employers of all sizes, from micro-companies (2-10 employees) to big businesses with more than 250 staff members.

Internet disruptions worst for SME’s

During 2023, it was found that SME’s were hit the hardest by internet disruptions.

They experienced an average of 3-4 failures culminating in 19 hours of downtime each. For those working a standard 8-hour day and 5-day week, more than 2 working days a year were lost to internet downtime.

Biggest financial impact of internet downtime on Hospitality, IT and Manufacturing sectors

The sectors most affected by internet failures and downtime were found to be hospitality, IT and manufacturing. These sectors suffered the biggest financial impact.

Hospitality businesses lost on average 27 hours to internet downtime in 2023, with businesses in the IT sector losing an estimated £555 million because of connectivity failures.

A Couple of Caveats

As always with studies like these, there are a couple of cautions to take into consideration.

The study doesn’t explicitly define what an ‘internet failure’ actually is, so that could be anything from a problem with a site’s broadband ISP connection to a local network failure in an office.

These different issues have likely been lumped together for the purposes of this survey.

It’s also important to remember that Beaming being a UK based business ISP proves a vested interest in the results of this survey.

by admin20th March 2024

4G 4G Mobile Broadband 4G Router 5G 5G Mobile Broadband 5G Router Broadband Broadband Speed Business Broadband Speeds Business Wi-Fi Connectivity Mobile Broadband Project Gigabit Satellite Broadband Satellite Internet Starlink Wi-Fi

Is Your Business the 1 in 5 with Insufficient Internet Speeds?

Business leaders and decision makers from 160 UK companies were surveyed on their businesses broadband speeds during June 2023 by Neos Networks – 1 in every 5 were found to have broadband speeds that were insufficient.

Furthermore, 42% of those surveyed planned to move to a higher capacity connection during the next two years as part of their key growth plans.

Investment in Connectivity

Over the previous 2 years, 11.2% of respondents who had already invested in connectivity said it had a direct impact on their business profitability.

And it’s not just profitability that’s impacted by good connectivity in business. 98.3% of surveyed businesses said it also impacted:

Productivity
Staff retention
Client collaboration

Why Are Businesses Prioritising Higher Capacity Connectivity?

Why might businesses prioritise higher capacity connectivity? Better performing broadband impacting many parts of the business, including:

Increased computer power (22.4%)
Operational development in terms of more data and higher capacity requirements (21.2%)
Greater device usage for each employee (11.6%)

With the prevalence of AI being used in business, this also influenced decisions to improve and increase connectivity with 1 in 10 businesses actively looking to increase connectivity in order to better integrate AI into their business processes.

What Is The Negative Impact of Insufficient Broadband Speeds in Business?

Poor internet connectivity, speed and/or reliability doesn’t just negatively impact employee productivity and retention, it can also cause businesses to risk losing a customer or client. 55.6% of businesses surveyed felt like they were at risk of losing custom down to poor internet.

Has Project Gigabit Had A Notable Impact on Business Broadband?

The businesses being surveyed were asked if they felt their business had felt a notable impact from Project Gigabit, of which 52.5% said yes.

Project Gigabit is a £5 billion government broadband plan aiming to deliver next-generation gigabit broadband to over a million households and businesses across the UK. You can read about their progress here.

Project Gigabit didn’t actually start to award contracts until August 2022, so it’s possible that the above percentage figure is reflective of respondents including other similar schemes (like the Gigabit voucher and GigaHubs Dark Fibre) or other commercial upgrades to broadband services.

Let’s Focus on the Positives

It’s clear that businesses are seeking high-capacity connections to keep up with new technologies as well as support their employees and customers.

Of course, businesses that are based in more rural areas may well be part of the 1 in 5 businesses without sufficient broadband speeds that need improved network accessibility to achieve better connectivity. Other means of connecting to the internet may be useful, such as mobile internet through the likes of 4G/5G routers or Satellite broadband like Starlink.

But if 1 in 5 businesses don’t have sufficient broadband, that means that 4 in 5 do! Recent data from Think Broadband suggests that only 21% of UK premises are yet to be reached by gigabit-capable broadband. That means 79% of business premises in the UK are covered by a broadband connection that is gigabit-capable.

By 2030, the UK government is hoping to reach their target of having nationwide coverage. Network operators are hoping for more support so that they are able to help businesses with poor connectivity sooner than that.

Rural businesses may be able to improve their connection through AltNet options. AltNet are alternative network providers offering fibre broadband packages. Although smaller in scale, AltNets compete with the UK and England’s big brand internet service providers. AltNets offer their own full fibre connections and don’t rely on the Openreach network and can sometimes offer higher upload speeds in comparison to the major network providers.

This could mean that rural businesses in hard to reach locations could have access to better internet services sooner than the national telecoms provider can offer, giving them next generation speeds like 2.5, 3 and 10 gigabit services across certain networks before national providers have even started trials.

Let’s also remember that even though 1 in 5 businesses are receiving insufficient broadband, that doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t have access to it via other networks. There might be other options to the one they are currently using.

The broadband demands of differing businesses also vary hugely. A graphic design studio or video editing company would need higher speed internet than a takeaway shop that could rely on a slower link.

As always, these types of surveys should be taken with a pinch of salt. Whilst it is undeniable that there are 1 in 5 businesses with insufficient broadband, there should be options for them to explore like mobile broadband and satellite broadband like Starlink.

Can we help your business improve its broadband connection?

If your business is struggling with a poor internet connection, then get in touch with our expert Wi-Fi engineers who will be able to advise if mobile broadband or Starlink satellite broadband could be a viable option for you. Give us a call or drop us an email today and let’s get it sorted.

by admin4th December 2023

4G 5G Business Wi-Fi Connectivity SME Wi-Fi Wi-Fi Advice Wireless Network

Is Poor Connectivity Costing Your SME Money?

Research commissioned by Three found that issues with poor connectivity were costing SME’s in Britain £18.77 billion per year.

Research found that small to medium sized businesses (including micro businesses) in the UK who give employees work phones are losing out on over 1 hour of work time per employee, per week. Poor connectivity leads to employees being unable to get online or complete their work effectively.

1 hour per week per employee may not sound like a big deal on the face of it, but for medium sized businesses, this equates to 250 hours of working time being lost every single week.

This loss of working time has a bigger impact on things than you may think. In partnership with YouGov and Development Economics, Three’s research found that:

The British economy is significantly impacted by loss of business revenue. The amount of economic output lost is estimated to be £7.7bn per year.
The cost of poor connectivity hits the professional and retail sectors the harders
Businesses are already facing challenging times – almost 75% of SME’s are reducing costs

Which industries are hit hardest by poor connectivity?

Two of the largest sectors in the British economy were hit the hardest with poor connectivity – Retail, and Professional Services (including legal, accounting and media businesses).

How much revenue is lost in these sectors due to poor connectivity?

Professional Services – Loss of £5.3 billion per year (annual output loss of £2.8bn to the economy)
Retail – Loss of £3.7 billion per year (annual output loss of £560m to the economy)

Connectivity isn’t the only challenge for SME’s

SME’s aren’t just facing a challenge with poor connectivity – They’re also facing challenges with the cost of living crisis and talent shortages.

SME’s are also feeling the heat of rising costs, with 71% looking at where they need to reduce spending. 32% of SME’s are looking to cut costs on things like phone contracts, which they believe they are spending too much on.

29% of SME’s (and 48% of medium sized businesses) also worry about losing employees due to not having good technology, which is cause for concern when there is also a shortage of talent in the majority of industries.

Combine all of this with poor connectivity causing problems with work effectiveness and you can see why it’s causing a bit of a headache for small and medium sized businesses.

Do SME’s need more tech support?

In order to operate, grow and thrive in business, it is absolutely vital for SME’s to have a strong online connection.

36% of SME’s believe that better mobile phone connectivity would enable them to perform better. 1 in 5 SME’s are also concerned that their business could get left behind if they don’t know how to use the latest mobile phone technology.

Unfortunately, almost 50% of SME’s feel that the tech industry uses complex language that makes it difficult to understand the latest technology, creating a barrier for these businesses without proper support and knowledge.

What can be done to provide SME’s with tech and connectivity support?

It seems that many tech schemes and concepts are aimed at larger corporate structures, failing to meet the needs of SME’s in a more cost effective way. It’s so important for tech providers to recognise the needs of SME’s and tailor their services to meet them. SME’s need simple, straightforward tech offerings with a level of service that large corporates would expect.

For a business to be able to perform and for their employees to effectively do their jobs, it all comes down to connectivity.

For most businesses, connectivity is the core of it all – Poor connectivity is simply not an option. It’s imperative for SME’s to carefully consider the options available to them when it comes to connectivity, tech and mobile. They need a simple, cost effective option that leaves them in control.

The research outlined above just goes to show how poor connectivity can really hold a business back. Research from The Federation of Small Businesses found similar results which showed that 45% of small businesses experience unreliable voice connectivity (going up to 57% in rural areas).

SME’s are a big part of the UK economy. To see growth and productivity, we need strong and reliable digital, mobile and vocal connectivity. That includes 4G and 5G accessibility for all.

Can Geekabit Help?

If you are a SME and are struggling with poor connectivity, then call in the experts. Our experienced Wi-Fi engineers can help at any stage of network deployment – From site surveys to design to installation.

We’re only a phone call away, and can help get your business properly connected.

Thinking you’re too rural? We’ve got 4G for that! Our mobile and satellite broadband options could be just the thing you’re looking for.

Get in touch with our Wi-Fi experts today.

by admin31st July 2023

Business Wi-Fi Hampshire Ubiquiti Ubiquiti UniFi Ubiquiti UniFi Status LED's Wi-Fi

Why Are My Ubiquiti UniFi Access Points Flashing?

Are you seeing flashing lights? There’s nothing more infuriating than getting lights flashing on your device and not knowing what it means.

If you’re experiencing flashing lights on a UniFi device then read on to find out why, and what you need to do about it.

The images below show blue and white LED’s flashing in different formats depending on the status they are showing. Each type of flashing applies to all of the following UniFi devices:

Access points
routers
switches
UDM base model

My UniFi AP is flashing white and then off every few seconds

If your Ubiquiti UniFi device is flashing white/off every 1 or 2 seconds, it means that the device is intialising and starting up.

Why does my UniFi AP have a steady white light?

If you UniFi AP (or other listed device) is exhibiting a steady white light, it means it is ready for adoption. This means it is ready to begin the process of connecting to the UniFi application that will manage it.

Why is my UniFi UDM flashing blue?

This applies to UDM units only. If you see a flashing blue light, it means that a client device is connected to the network via Bluetooth.

Why is my UniFi UDM flashing blue and then off?

Again, this flashing only applies to the UDM units. If it is lighting up blue and then going off after 5 seconds, then back to blue, then off, it means it is not connected to the internet.

What does a constant blue light mean on my UniFi access point?

A steady blue light means that the UniFi device is adopted (connected to the UniFi application managing it) and is in normal operating mode. The Access Point (AP) is broadcasting SSIDs (Service Set Identifier – Typically a network name).

Why is my UniFi AP rapidly flashing white and off?

If you UniFi access point is strobing white/off then you will need to power cycle it. If that doesn’t work, then you will have to get in touch with Ubiquiti’s customer support team for further help.

Help – Why is my Ubiquiti UniFi Access Point flashing white then blue?

If your UniFi AP is quickly flashing white then blue, it means the device firmware is being upgraded. It’s important you do not interrupt this process.

On a UDM unit, it will flash only white during this upgrade.

Why has my UniFi AP got a blue steady light that goes off every 5 seconds?

If your UniFi AP is blue but flashing off every 5 seconds, it means the AP has lost connectivity and is looking for a wireless uplink.

I have a rapidly flashing blue light on my UniFi AP – What does it mean?

If your UniFi AP is rapidly flashing blue and then off, it means the device “Locate” feature was activated in the UniFi Network application.

Why is my UniFi AP flashing white, blue and then off?

The device is in TFTP mode (Trivial File Transfer Protocol is a simple lockstep File Transfer Protocol which allows a client to get a file from or put a file onto a remote host).

To enable this mode:

Hold the reset button before powering on.
Continue to hold the reset button until this LED sequence appears.

If you haven’t intentionally put your AP into TFTP mode, make sure that the reset button on the device isn’t jammed. It should click when pushed.

There is no LED / light visible on my UniFi Access Point?

If you can’t see any light on your AP device and the LED is completely off, then it means the device is offline. To try and resolve the problem:

Check it has a power supply
Check POE (power over ethernet) cables
Check Ethernet cables

Ubiquiti UniFi Bridge to Bridge Devices

If you have a UniFi Bridge to Bridge device, then there are two more statuses to look out for in addition to those above.

My UniFi Bridge has a red light with circulating blue light

If your UniFi Bridge device is showing a red with circulating blue LED, it means the 60 GHz link cannot be established or has dropped due to bad weather.

If the UBB fails over to 5 GHz, the LED will remain red. When the 60 GHz link is re-established, the LED will turn blue (or the custom colour selected in the UniFi Network application).

It’s worth noting that if the other bridge device is within range and the UBB LED is red, Uniquiti recommend adjusting the UBB’s position to enhance the signal strength.

Why does my UniFi bridge have a green light?

If your UniFi Bridge is showing a green light, it means that the Alignment Tool is enabled in the UniFi Network application and the UBB devices are aligned properly.

If the other bridge device is within range and the UBB LED is green and red, Ubiquiti recommend adjusting the UBB’s position until the LED is green.

How to Disable Device LEDs

Did you know that you can disable device LED’s? Using the UniFi Network application, you can choose specific device status LED’s or the whole site’s to be disabled.

To disable (or re-enable) status LED’s:

Open the UniFi Network Application
Go to Settings
Go to Site
Go to the Services section
Edit the LED feature

If you want to specifically configure individual devices:

Open the UniFi Network application
Go to the Devices section
Click on the device you wish to edit to bring up the Properties panel
Go to Config, then General, then LED
Switch the Site Settings to On or Off

Ubiquiti UniFi Fault Finding

For more information on any of the above, or to find LED patterns for specific ports, head to the Ubiquiti website here.

Is Ubiquiti UniFi right for your business Wi-Fi?

If you’re wondering if Ubiquiti UniFi is the best option for the Wi-Fi needs of your business, then get in touch with our Wi-Fi Experts today. We can advise what the best network options would be for your premises, and take you from the site survey stage, through to design and deployment. No one should have to tolerate bad broadband or slow Wi-Fi at work.

All imagery from ui.com/wi-fi with thanks.

by admin15th May 2023

Broadband Business Wi-Fi Fast Internet Law Hampshire Home Network Home Office Home WI-Fi Rural Broadband Wi-Fi Working From Home

Law Passed to Give Everyone Right to Fast Internet in Germany

In April 2021, all German citizens were promised the right to fast internet for the first time ever via a new law passed by the Bundestag.

Whilst that sounds great in theory, what does that actually mean in practise? Giving everyone the legal right to fast internet sounds like a blanket statement, but in reality it will likely affect people differently rather than a universal thing.

Does everyone in Germany have fast internet?

Germans have been used to slow internet with pages taking a long time to load and unreliable connections. This promise of faster internet for all should have brought a quicker connection to the people of Germany this summer just passed, with the law forcing an improvement in upload speeds, download speeds and latency.

Prior to this, internet users in Germany were entitled to functional internet access – At a speed of 0.056 mbps. The recent law aimed to significantly increase this minimum speed.

Who will benefit the most from this law change?

To ascertain how much the speed needed to increase, the average download and upload speeds plus latency were calculated.

The highest 20% of internet speeds were not included in the calculation as much of the German population already enjoyed faster internet speeds. The lower 80% had slower connections and would benefit more from the law change.

With this in mind, those who lived in rural areas were more likely to be positively affected by the law change, as many of the more major cities in Germany already had fast internet available to them.

For people who were struggling with an unreliable, slow connection (particularly those in rural areas who notoriously grapple with bad internet connections), a commission to a new provider with relocated broadband access would be investigated.

But even with the law change, will the minimum internet speed be enough?

Faster internet speeds – What about the UK?

In UK law, it is the legal right for every home and business to request a decent, affordable broadband connection.

‘Decent’ is defined as meeting the internet needs of an average family. It has been deemed by previous Ofcom research that a speed of 10mbps (download) is enough to meet these needs, enabling multiple family members to be online at the same time.

Affordability is based on paying no more than £48.50 per month for broadband. Many people pay much less than this for their internet connection per month.

The UK saw the government ensure that everyone in the UK had access to broadband speeds of at least 10Mbps by 2020. This universal high speed internet is delivered by a regulatory body as a Universal Service Obligation.

Post pandemic there has been a huge upsurge in working from home, and people needing strong, reliable, fast internet for business operations at their kitchen table. Think Zoom calls, Teams collaborations, Slack messages and data transfers. That’s a lot more internet traffic than our home networks are used to.

It’s also worth mentioning that in 2022, the average internet download speed is 79.1Mbps. That is significantly faster than the 10Mbps deemed fast enough for the average family home. So whilst the legally mandated minimum is 10Mbps here in the UK, the current average internet speed indicates that this probably needs to be much, much higher. Especially as the European Union has plans for universal broadband of 100Mbps by 2025.

The increase of those working from home also means that the importance of good upload speeds has also increased. Think remote designers needing to download, edit and upload large files, or group video conference calls.

In essence, the majority of households need a strong, fast and reliable internet connection in order to work and play from their homes. The current USO doesn’t meet the average speed of internet use across the UK.

The way we use the internet has changed dramatically over the past couple of years, and we need UK law to reflect this. The pandemic showed the volume of data double almost overnight.

Our home broadband networks need to reflect the increased prevalence of remote working. This need for fast internet on a reliable connection needs to be written in law, and the USO minimum speed increased.

by admin3rd October 2022