No, Christmas lights won't slow down your Wi-Fi — but these gadgets will

If you’re thinking about shifting or taking down your Christmas lights because you heard such holiday decorations can slow down your Wi-Fi network, hold it right there. Lots of things cause Wi-Fi issues, but unless your home is absolutely swathed in Christmas lights, (think Griswold), holiday decorations are not one of them.

Electrical appliances can interfere with Wi-Fi signals, but the amount of current running through decorative lighting is almost always too low to be troublesome — unless, of course, you stick a finger into a socket.

The related rumblings started modestly enough, with a brief mention in a press release that announced a Wi-Fi speed-check tool from Ofcom, a British agency that regulates Internet. The release noted that Wi-Fi connection issues could be related to “something as simple as interference from other electronic devices, such as a microwave oven, baby monitor, a lamp — or even Christmas fairy lights,” which is apparently Brit-speak for Christmas lights.

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