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As broadband technology proliferates and more and more laptops come without Ethernet ports, wireless technology has finally come of age. We look at what you need to consider for a wireless home network setup, ranging from choosing the right broadband service providers to purchasing the right router.

One: Your needs

Do you really need any broadband service in your home? An odd question to probably 95 per cent of our readership, but not everybody needs broadband in the home and at £15 per month for a decent service, it isn’t altogether free. So, for the small handful of you that are concerned Internet in the home and performing a wireless home network setup would be more unnecessary luxury than necessity, think hard and carefully about whether you want this package at all.

Two: Picking a broadband service provider

Many broadband services in the UK are tethered to landlines, so if you have a line in your home, your service provider can easily add broadband connectivity too. But if you are considering switching your broadband service provider, or do not already have a service provider, tools like Broadband Choices are fantastic for selecting the right product relative to where you live.

Three: Your home network

Now that you have a broadband line in your home, you’re going to need to get a broadband router and setup your home network. First things first – do you want to a wired or wireless router setup? The truth is wired routing is dying and many of today’s latest gadgets – most notably smartphones and tablets – can only connect via wi-fi. As such, we’d recommend you stay away from wired only and choose a hybrid wireless-wired routing solution for those devices that do still run on Ethernet.

Make sure it supports the latest 802.11n routing technology (if it does, it will say so on the box), and buy only from reputable companies. We’re partial to Netgear routers for the home user due to their simple yet sophisticated interfacing, which makes wireless home network setup dead easy. The Netgear DG2000 is an established stalwart in home networking, and has plenty routing capability for even the most demanding home user.

Four: Getting your network working

You’re pretty much there, now. All you need to do is insert your user details into you router and off you go. These details you will receive from your service provider, while details on entering them will be specified in your router’s manual.

Is there anything we’ve overlooked, or any additions we could make to make this list even easier for beginners setting up their own home network? Let us know in the comments.