Windows 7 - Download Speed

How can i speed up my download speed?

Get a faster router ... I use a 1Ghz PC with 512MB RAM running Linux. Next, you'll need to purchase from your ISP at least 5mb down. Keep in mind that some sites cannot deliver that fast.

It all depends on your location or possibly your ISP. Mine is TalkTalk, they offer 8MB but I only get 2MB on a good day. It might be helpful to test your MTU. MTU Setting..pdf

You can speed your download speed. If you have, let's say 20Mbit download speed, you can't download faster. If your ISP is offering you 20Mbit, you'll have 20Mbit.

There is no point in buying a faster router since the interface from it to the PC is generally much faster than that from the ISP (for example, mine connects to my PC at 100Mb, yet the ISP link is ~4Mb). The exception to this would be if you have a home network, which might benefit from a 1Gb internal network speed as opposed to a 100Mb one.

As regards speeding up your download speed, it all depends on the site from where you are downloading the file. Some sites are slower than others (depending on the load placed on them), and there isn't a great deal you can do about that. Another factor is how you connect with your ISP, i.e. by cable or over the phone line. With the phone line, your maximum speed is limited by the physical nature of the line itself, namely the distance to the exchange. In both cases, you might be able to get higher speeds by subscribing to a higher package, bearing in mind that there is no point in doing so if your physical connection isn't capable of supporting it.

On my internal home network, when my family on their computers are each hitting the internet, a 1Ghz PC acting as the router is much faster than a dlink routing all the packets ...

The only way to speed upload/download speeds up is to get a faster DSL from your ISP. All the other Mickey Mouse games will yield nothing.