published: 21st May 2026
In the modern home, our lives are powered by connection. With that new technology comes the need for more devices to connect to your broadband, but many people are finding their old broadband just can’t keep up.
what is a smart home?
A smart home is a household where everyday gadgets and appliances connect to the internet with the goal to make your life a little bit easier.
Devices connect to the internet allowing them to interact with each other, where required, and to be controlled from your mobile.
More and more of the devices are becoming smart home technology. So, if you’re looking at how to convert to a smart home or utilise your existing smart devices, your first step needs to be assessing your broadband!
At toob, we believe your internet should be as smart as the devices it powers. That’s why full-fibre broadband is no longer just a luxury; it’s essential for a truly connected life and the foundation of reliable smart home broadband.
setting the speed standard
So why is full-fibre so good?
In March 2023, Ofcom found that the average download speed of UK home broadband was 69.4 Mbps, this had already risen 17% from the previous year. Fast forward to 2026, Uswitch found that the average download speed was 170.2 Mbps download which is significantly faster based on the Uswitch UK fibre optic broadband statistics report in October 2025.
The implementation of more full-fibre network across the UK has allowed ISPs to launch faster speeds as standard, meaning the average download and upload speeds for customers will continue to rise.
Think of your broadband like a motorway. If you only have one car on the road, a narrow lane is fine, but when you have smart bulbs, security cameras, tablets, and TVs all trying to travel at once, you get a “bandwidth battle”. Full-fibre can carry more data and faster than traditional fibre broadband, giving you 13x faster download and 38x faster upload speeds than the UK average4, and ensuring every device has its own clear lane to run at its best.
what speed do smart devices need?
- low demand: smart sensors, smart plugs, and smart bulbs – these usually need less than 1 Mbps
- medium demand: smart speakers (like Alexa), thermostats, and smart watches – these typically use 1.5-2 Mbps
- high demand: 4K smart TVs and high-definition security cameras – these can consume up to 10-25+ Mbps each
When you add these up across a whole family, and add in additional home devices for streaming, scrolling and browsing, you can see why old copper connections start to struggle. That’s why unlimited broadband for smart devices is so important. You need an internet provider that understands how much your broadband is doing in your home, ensuring every gadget has the freedom to do what you need it to without data caps or speed drops.
upload speeds: the secret weapon for security
Most people focus on download speeds, but for a smart home, upload speed is just as important. If you have smart home technology like a video doorbell or security cameras, they need to upload data to the cloud so you can see the feed on your phone!
You might think, ‘but my internet is 350 Mbps’ which sounds like plenty. What you might not know is that the advertised speed is often the download speed from your provider and that upload speeds are often much slower.
toob offer symmetrical speeds to ensure you have fast download and upload speeds for a smooth broadband experience. This means that if you sign up to our home900 service, you’ll receive 900 Mbps download and 900 Mbps upload, meaning your security alerts are instant and your video footage is clear, whether you’re in the next room or away on holiday.
is your internet struggling?
Not sure if it’s time to switch? Here are 3 signs your current broadband is failing your smart home:
- the laggy look-in: your security camera feed takes ages to load or buffers when you need it most
- slow light-switch responses: you ask your home hub to turn on the lights, and there is a noticeable pause before anything happens
- failed triggers: your smart “routines” (like the hallway light coming on when the doorbell rings) trigger late or don’t work at all
reach and reliability: wi-fi in every room
mesh networks
A smart device is only useful if it can actually connect to your wi-fi. There could be a number of reasons why you aren’t getting the best from your smart home that are broadband related, not just slow speeds. Thick walls, router placement or a large amount of mirrors in your home could all have an impact!
The answer to the best smart home broadband solution could be a mesh network which extends the wi-fi signal from your broadband router to eliminate dead zones around your house.
find out more about mesh networks
wired connection
For fixed devices that require the best connection, we always recommend using an ethernet cable. For devices like gaming console or smart TVs, this will provide a faster, more reliable connection and frees up the wireless connection for smaller smart home devices and portable devices like your mobile phones.
make the switch to toob
Don’t let an outdated connection hold your smart home back. Join over 125,000 happy customers who have switched to a service that is competitively priced, ultrafast, and built for the future.
