As more households rely on the internet for remote work, streaming, gaming and smart home devices, the demands on home Wi-Fi networks continue to grow.
In April, Fidium officially launched its newest fiber internet upgrades in Katy, making the community the first in Texas to receive the company’s updated Wi-Fi 7 technology, and speeds from five to eight gigabits per second.
“We’re seeing household creation; we’re seeing customers moving to Katy, and we’re seeing work-from-home, school-from-home, telehealth appointments and entertainment needs,” Fidium Vice President of Product Growth Ari Schnitzer said. “Katy is growing, as are the needs for connectivity locally, and we are expanding to meet that demand.”
What does this mean for customers?
While eight-gig speeds may sound highly technical, the goal of the upgrade is simple: to help modern households stay connected more reliably as more devices compete for internet access.
Schnitzer explained that today’s homes regularly have dozens of connected devices running at once, including TVs, gaming systems, laptops, phones, security cameras, baby monitors and smart appliances.
“It’s not uncommon for a home network to have 50 devices connected to it,” Schnitzer said.
The upgraded service is designed to help:
- Reduce lag during gaming and video calls
- Stream on multiple devices with fewer interruptions
- Upload large files and videos much faster
- Improve internet coverage throughout the home
- Better support smart home technology and connected devices
Even customers who are not signing up for the highest-speed eight-gig plan can benefit from the network upgrades. This is because Fidium is increasing the total capacity of its network to support faster speeds overall.
Schnitzer compared it to widening a pipe. By making the entire system larger and more capable, customers using one- or two-gig plans also experience smoother, more reliable performance.
“The richer our network is, the more capacity we can provide for everyone,” Schnitzer said.
How does the technology work?
There are three main ways to explain how the technology works:
- A bigger “data pipe”: Think of internet connection like a pipe. To deliver eight-gig speeds, Fidium is expanding the funnel from the top down. By making the main pipe larger, it ensures that even customers on standard one- or two-gig plans have plenty of room for their data to move without getting squeezed.
- Wi-Fi 7 as a “super highway”: Wi-Fi 7 is the latest standard in wireless technology. It uses wider radio lanes and allows devices to use multiple frequencies at once.This helps eliminate the lag and dropped connections people often face during video calls or gaming when multiple devices are competing for bandwidth.
- Future-proof glass: Fidium uses a 100% fiber-optic network made of end-to-end glass, unlike older networks that switch to copper wiring at the end. The glass lines can last for decades, and the company only has to upgrade the electronics at the ends to keep increasing speeds for decades.
Prioritizing price stability
Recognizing the rising cost of living, Fidium is pairing this technology with a price-for-life guarantee. This allows customers in Katy to lock in their rate, so they can budget confidently without worrying about their internet bill fluctuating like other expenses.
How does the installation process work?
Fidium began trialing installations for its newly upgraded network in February, and is now actively scheduling appointments for new five-gig and eight-gig service. Fidium emphasizes a clean installation process, treating customers’ houses with the same care as their own, and the process is simple.
After a resident makes an appointment, either by phone or on the company’s website, the team visits their house and installs the technology. Existing customer upgrades typically take about an hour, since the fiber wiring is already in place, while new customer installations can take between one and five hours, depending on the home setup.
“We’re really deliberate about the work we do,” Schnitzer said. “We make sure that the fiber wiring is connected to the house as discreetly as possible, and that any hole we might have to drill to bring wires into someone’s house is done with the utmost care.”
Since installation began, the company’s product team has been actively reaching out to users to ensure satisfaction, and they have received great feedback.
As Katy continues to grow, Fidium plans to continue investing in infrastructure designed to support the area’s increasing demand for fast, reliable internet service.
Click here to learn more about the new technology, or make an installation appointment by calling 855-459-2889 or visiting their website.
The above story was produced by Senior Multi-Platform Journalist Sydney Heller with Community Impact’s Storytelling team with information solely provided by the local business as part of their “sponsored content” purchase through our advertising team.