Here’s a couple of avenues for you to explore!

Here, we’re offering you multiple ideas and solutions. We encourage you to try them out, but, naturally, don’t ever hesitate to contact Customer Service for help! If you want to contact us because you prefer getting more personnel help or because you notice no difference with your connection issues after attempting some of the fixes below, you can write to us via our different platforms (Facebook Messenger, SMS, or email). We’ll be happy to help you!

First off, here are some useful links you might want to keep around

Service Status Page

Click here to see how our services are doing

The status page collects and presents a multitude of data points from across our network. Here, you can find news and updates about our current situation; the presence of a problem and the estimated resolution time will be displayed. In the case of a large outage or issue, you will be warned through our official communications channels, be it through our Facebook page or with a text message and email.

Speed test

Click here to measure your internet speed

Do note that, even if we are giving you the link to our speedtest from the get go, this is only so you can access it quickly. Make sure to read the rest of the page before performing tests! Reading through the entire article will let you understand the difference between the numbers you see on the testing screen and the numbers written in your oxio subscription details.

Let’s dive into it!

A multitude of factors can affect your connection speed. This means that the numbers you get from a speed test may differ from the ones found in your oxio Client portal (and on your invoices). Let’s pour over some of these factors and what you can do to reduce their impact :

Factors affecting the device used to perform a speed test :

Software and processes that run intermittently or constantly in the background

Any antivirus, when installed must analyze every piece of data that enters your device. This process can slow down your connection, as the software must parse through large amounts of information;
⠀➥⠀Solution : We do not suggest you turn off your antivirus, just that you keep in mind its potential effects whenever you run speed tests.

A VPN (personal or corporate) can slow down your connection speed, as, whenever activated, it creates a “tunnel” of sorts between the server and your own device. This leads to information packets and data travelling through longer, more convoluted channels than if you were freely surfing the web. This offers protection, but can cause a slowdown;
⠀➥⠀Solution : It is important to turn off your VPN when you’re trying to measure your actual internet speed. You can freely reactivate it afterwards, but it shouldn’t be on during your test. If you wish, you can also perform a test both with the VPN on and without it.

Any videoconferencing, audio and video streaming, video games or instant file-sharing can slow down your internet speed. All those types of software require important amounts of bandwidth to properly function;
⠀➥⠀Solution : Make sure none of these software programs are running during a speed test. For example, a webpage with Netflix, even when minimized on the taskbar, dock, or open in the background (on mobile devices), will still consume bandwidth as if it was fully open and visible. This applies for all the previously mentioned programs. Don’t forget that videoconferencing software (such as Zoom, Teams, or Meet) will also use up a large quantity of your uploading bandwidth. If you can’t quite tell if a program is off, restarting your device will usually leave you with a clean slate to do your tests.

Automatic updates can be in the process of being installed on your computer or mobile device. This may sometimes lead to a perceived drop in internet speed, and it can also mess with your speed test results. These updates are usually done without you being aware of them, making them a little difficult to spot;
⠀➥⠀Solution : If on Windows or macOS, make sure no system update is currently running before performing a speed test. On mobile, double check if any apps are updating or if a system update is pending and waiting for installation.

Quality of communication equipment (wireless network cards, installed drivers, etc.)

Computers and mobile devices can, over time, deteriorate and become unstable, possibly affecting your connection speed. It is also possible to have a new update improperly install new drivers. Not all updates are always a perfect leap forward. Devices can also simply be too old to function properly, could it be your case?
⠀➥⠀Solution for mobile devices : Considering tablets and other mobile devices receive updates all the time, it can sometimes happen that one update to fix an issue causes another one somewhere else. Mobile devices are, by nature, instantaneous. It’s always possible that your device needs a restart, too, which could slow it down. We suggest you restart your device before doing a speed test, and you communicate with your device’s manufacturer if the tests remain inconclusive on your mobile device. You can also perform tests on another device.
⠀➥⠀Solution for computers : If you suspect your computer or laptop is out of date, get professional help to get it back on its two feet. It can be softwares, drivers, components, updates, etc. so don’t be shy to ask for help! No matter the device, if it’s not running the best and needs some updating, we suggest you perform your test on another on, as it could be a cause of a speed slow down.

Factors coming from your local network:

Equipment installation:

The oxio gear shares, for the most part, very similar electrical outlet cables, leading to mixups from time to time. If the power cables are reversed (meaning someone used a modem cable to power the router, or vice-versa), some issues tend to arise. A slowness in your connection or even frequent cuts in internet access are some such symptoms. We are aware of this potential confusion, and we are working on ways to make identification more efficient and painless.
⠀➥⠀Solution : Check, just to make sure, that your cables are used with the correct devices. This page here shows the correct setup quite well, but, in short, you must use the cable marked with a red sticker with your modem (identified with the Technicolor, Motorola, Arris or Hitron logo) and the cable with a green sticker into the router (either SmartRG or oxio).

Other devices on your local network and their apps

As explained earlier, any device connected to your network other than the one using to perform the tests can lead to a slowdown, be it videoconferencing, file sharing, video or audio streaming, video games, automatic updates, etc. Your connection is shared between all your devices, so do be mindful of what possible bandwidth consuming processes you have going on elsewhere in your house.
Nowadays, we also have more and more devices that automatically save and store a bunch of data, usually at preprogrammed hours. It’s likely that during these saves and backups your upload may be saturated by the large amounts of data transferred.
Finally, oxio gear can be defective or downright broken. It is a possibility! In such a case, it will be our pleasure to send you functioning equipment so that you can enjoy our services peacefully.
⠀➥⠀Solution : Isolate your device used to run tests from the rest of your local network. To do so, turn off as many devices connected to your network as you can, even they appear to be in sleep mode. A video game console, for example, even in idle mode, can take up bandwidth. Give your house a look and get everyone involved: try to get as many devices off as possible during the time of testing. You can then turn devices back on one by one to figure out if a specific one is causing a slowdown. It can very well be that the culprit is not who you thought it would be!

The quality of the wired or wireless signal

The device you are using to test the connection speed could be too far from the router (when it comes to wireless connections), or the wire could be too long or damaged, especially in the case of cables running through and inside walls.

⠀➥⠀Solution : If using a wireless device, get considerably closer to the router. Run a first test and, if it’s conclusive, step back a bunch and try again. This way, you can spot zones in your house where the Wi-Fi doesn’t work as well and try to remedy them. Contact our customer service about that, and they will be happy to offer help! Also, if your home equipment allows for it, try doing your tests by plugging directly into the router or even the modem via a network cable. This also helps pinpoint the area where the problem may lie: if your connection directly from the router is excellent, then you know your cable isn’t damaged!

Interference in your household (wireless signal)

Some devices have a nasty tendency to produce their own waves and create interference. Microwaves are notorious for this, but home phone stands and the routers of neighbours can also be an issue. The speed of your connection can be affected, and, sometimes, even completely drop to 0 temporarily.
⠀➥⠀Solution :
Check if you haven’t made any recent changes in your house’s configuration. For example, installing a new wireless phone, or moving the router.
If your network is split into two different frequency bands, try connecting to the one you are not connected to presently. You will see two networks when browsing the list of available ones: “oxio-xxxx” and “oxio-xxxx-5G.” Learn more about the difference in these frequencies by reading this article here!
If you notice a slowdown at specific moments during the day (or the evenings, for example), it may be that numerous interference sources are present not only in your house, but also your neighbors’ ! It is possible to modify the channel at which our devices output their Wi-Fi network to avoid such disturbances. Contact our customer service agents, and they will gladly help you reorganize those. This solution usually takes care of most if not all intermittent interference issues.

Factors coming from elsewhere in the network :

The quality of the service’s connection you are trying to use

Sometimes, it happens that the service you are attempting to use is not having a great time! Problems can arise directly at the company.
⠀➥⠀Solution : If you notice that Zoom (a videoconferencing software), for example, is having connectivity issues, it is possible that their servers are having issues. If you notice that a website is slow to respond, try another one. See if it’s a localized issue or if all websites are slow. You can also always perform a speed test on our servers by clickin here to monitor the possibility of issues directly linked to the service you were trying to use.

Network traffic

It is possible that, when traffic is high on the regional network, you notice a small decrease in connection speed. We are always striving to better our services and upgrade our systems to offer you the best possible telecom experience even in high traffic periods.
⠀➥⠀Solution : As mentionned earlier, if you notice intermittent slowdowns during certain parts of the day, it is possible that the network is, in that moment, supporting a larger number of customers than usual. Infrastructure-wise, our technical teams are constantly planning ahead to keep up with the growing demand and client base oxio has. However, it does sometimes happen that our predictions are surpassed, leading to a higher traffic than what the network is able to support comfortably. In such cases, you can rest assured that we always warn customers via an official communications channels, be it through our Facebook page or with a text message and email. It is also possible that the issue comes from your own place of residence or neighborhood. We encourage you to then try out the different fixes mentioned above.

Meteorological factors and sector outages

Since the Videotron infrastructure is as large as it, it is possible that some meteorological factors (fully out of our control) may influence the quality of your internet connection. During storms, trees can fall and damage cables, and snow can overload some installations. There is a myriad of ways nature can cause issues across the entire physical network. Similarly, your sector can experience an outage or a network outage. Since we are using the Videotron infrastructure, if damage or a technical failure affects the network, you may be affected as well. It is also a possibility that our oxio equipment can be affected by an outage. In such rare occasions, we strive for transparency, and you will be warned as soon as possible. Our teams work efficiently and quickly when it comes to such issues, so you can be confident that we’ll be taking care of issues right away!
⠀➥⠀Solution : Sadly, there is no remedy to a bad stroke of weather. We always do our best to warn clients when there are issues with the larger network, and we work tirelessly until we have fixed the issue or problem. You can always contact our customer support directly to find out if something has happened due to weather or an outage.

Click here for a crowd-sourced outage map that monitors Videotron outages. This link is crowd-sourced, it is not official, so use it as an indicator and not as proof. It can be handy when trying to see how your area is doing, but don’t rely entirely on it. Note that we also don’t offer any support when it comes to this website.

Human error

Finally, keep in mind that to err is to be human. Here at oxio, we are all humans trying our absolute best to give you the most pleasant experience. Satisfaction is kindof our thing. When we’re working to upgrade our hardware or when we’re pushing new software, mistakes can happen. Just like for outages, we gave ourselves an objective : be transparent and warn clients as soon as possible.
⠀➥⠀Solution : In such cases, you can rest assured that we always warn customers via an official communications channels, be it through our Facebook page or with a text message and email. We encourage you to check out our automatically updated status page, so you can stay informed of any and all developments concerning fixes and problem resolutions.

Small reminder!

On this page, we have listed some issues that we frequently encounter during technical support. We have given you some solutions that you can try yourself so that you can be knowledgeable about what’s going on in your own household. We share this information so that you can help fix and prevent connection speed issues yourself in a quick and efficient manner. This page will change over time, so check back from time to time!

In any case, if you prefer contacting us or if you see no change in your connection quality despite attempting some fixes, we’re always available via our different platforms (Facebook Messenger, SMS, or by email) to help you out!

Updated on: 18/01/2023