Using a slow internet can be frustrating. You need high-speed internet to download and stream content from the internet. Sadly, most internet service providers throttle data use, especially on unlimited data plans. For the unlimited plans, once you reach a certain data cap, they throttle your data and make it slow.
If you use the Straight Talk data and you notice the internet connection is slow, this post is for you. Most times, reporting the issue to their customer support will yield little or no result. In this post, you will understand why your Straight Talk internet is slow and some Straight Talk high-speed data hacks to apply to increase your internet speed.
Why Is My Straight Talk Internet Slow?
There are two main reasons why your Straight Talk internet is slow.
a. Weak Signal
If your Straight Talk internet is slow, it could be a result of weak signal coverage in your location. If the signal coverage is weak in your location, it will affect the internet connection speed.
b. Throttled Data Use
The second reason is that your internet connection got throttled by Straight Talk. This happens especially if you’re on an unlimited data plan. What happens is that Straight Talk, like most internet service providers, places a cap on data usage even on unlimited data plans.
Once you exceed the data cap, they throttle your internet connection and make it slow. This way, you can continue to access the internet but you won’t consume much data.
How To Bypass Data Throttling On Straight Talk
There are two ways to check when or if your Straight Talk internet has been throttled.
a. Check For Downtime
First, check your Straight Talk phone signal bar to confirm if the signal bar is full. If the signal bar on your Straight talk phone is full, check in with your neighbors using the Straight Talk network to confirm if they are experiencing a slow internet connection.
Also, check the Straight Talk social media handles to see if they made mention of any downtime issue in your location. If the signal bar is full and there is no news of downtime in your location, the internet connection has certainly been throttled.
b. Check For Internet Speed
Another way to confirm is to check your internet speed. Visit this site to check your current internet speed. Also, you can check your internet speed on YouTube. Click on any video to play the video, right-click on the video and click on ‘Stats for nerds. You will find your internet connection speed there.
How to Maintain High-Speed Internet On Straight Talk
There are two ways to remove data throttle and maintain high-speed internet on a Straight Talk data plan. The first is to use a VPN, and the second method is to change the APN details. We will explain both methods in detail below.
a. Use A Quality Signal Booster
A signal booster amplifies your signal strength and increases internet speed. You can combine it with an external antenna to get the best result. There are several signal booster products out there, but these are some of the quality ones we recommend on Amazon.
b. Get a VPN
Virtual Private Network (VPN) hides your device’s IP address when you visit some sites. For instance, there are sites people from a particular location can’t access, you can get a VPN to change your IP address to the said location to allow you access the site.
What most people don’t know is that VPN works on your Internet Service Providers (ISP) too. When you use a VPN, it makes your device invisible to your ISP. That makes it difficult for your ISP to track your internet activities.
What happens is that, when you browse the internet, your ISP measures your data consumption. The provider then places a limit on the amount of data you can consume per day, week, or month. Once you reach the said data cap, they throttle your internet to become slow.
Since a VPN makes you invisible to your ISP, they can’t measure the amount of data you use in a given period. Thus, your ISP won’t know when you’ve reached the data limit and to throttle your internet.
So with a VPN, you can continue browsing at the same high-speed internet connection on your Straight Talk unlimited data plan. For it to work, it’s advisable to opt for a premium VPN.
c. Change Access Point Names (APN)
APN are settings that provide your phone with the information needed to connect to a wireless network. If you’re dealing with a throttled internet connection, you can bypass it by changing your phone’s APN. We will provide you with APN settings that will boost your Straight Talk internet speed. But make sure you copy down the default setting first before you change the setting.
APN Setting 1
APN Name: Straight Talk
APN: wap.tracfone
Proxy: 80
MMS Proxy use: 66.209.11.32
MMS Port use: 80
MNC use: 410
MCC use: 310
MMSC use: https://mmsc.cingular.com
APN Type use: default, mms, supl.
APN Setting 2
APN Name: Straight Talk
APN: tfdata
Port: 80
Proxy: proxy.mobile.att.net
MMS Proxy use: proxy.mobile.att.net
MMS Port use: 80
MNC use: 410
MCC use: 310
MMSC use: https://mmsc.mobile.att.net
APN Type use: default, mms, supl.
APN Protocol: IPv4
Authentication Type: PAP
Conclusion
So far, this post has outlined some hacks you can apply to speed up your Straight Talk internet connection speed today. Before you use the APN settings in the third method, ensure you save the default APN settings. You can easily revert to the default setting when there is a need for it.