# Wi-fi access in coffee shops getting sloooooowwww?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wi-fi-access-in-coffee-shops-getting-sloooooowwww/536425>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [April 17, 2010, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wi-fi-access-in-coffee-shops-getting-sloooooowwww/536425 "2010-04-17T03:08:38Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2010, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wi-fi-access-in-coffee-shops-getting-sloooooowwww/536425/1 "2010-04-17T03:08:38Z")

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Earlier today I was at a Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, between 5 and 6PM to be precise. After firing up my computer and entering their pin to get past their browser start page, I found that I really couldn’t do anything because it was just too slow. And it’s not as if I was doing anything that was bandwidth intensive; just trying to read and post here and also check a couple of online accounts. I’ve noticed the same thing at an independent cafe that I frequent. OTOH, when I go to a Starbucks, where the Internet access is provided by AT&T Wireless, it’s still fine. Also, of course, it’s fine when I use the computer at home.

Is a general decline in the quality of publicly provided Internet access something that anyone else has noticed? Are the coffee shops purposely dialing down the quality to prevent people ordering only a single small coffee then occupying a seat for four hours while they work online? I do know of one other independent cafe that decided to turn off their wi-fi access all weekend, and all afternoon on weekdays.

It’s bad enough I can’t do this at the local university campus; now are the coffee shops trying to get rid of me too?

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**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\
**Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wi-fi-access-in-coffee-shops-getting-sloooooowwww/536425/2 "2010-04-19T00:49:33Z")

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Nobody?

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**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\
**Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wi-fi-access-in-coffee-shops-getting-sloooooowwww/536425/3 "2010-04-19T00:51:16Z")

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> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#):
>
> It’s bad enough I can’t do this at the local university campus; now are the coffee shops trying to get rid of me too?

Do you even have to ask?