Slow and sluggish internet takes away the relaxation we want to experience when playing high-end games. Some internet connections for home are better than others concerning online gaming.
Home internet users should determine their gaming needs and the type of home wifi they need for an uninterrupted gaming experience. Several factors come into play when deciding which gaming home internet connection is ideal. The article delves into understanding internet needs, comparing ping versus speed, data, and anticipated internet requirements for gaming.
Understanding the Internet Needs
Gaming differs from other internet habits or practices like streaming videos and movies or surfing social media platforms. When choosing an internet connection, three categories come into the spotlight when understanding the internet needs of home gamers.
1. Overall gameplay
The surprising fact is that the bandwidth requirement for gaming is minimal. Any home internet connection with more than 2 Mbps speed and less than 75 ping works well for most gamers. The factors influencing gameplay are:
- Network efficiency
- Distance between players in multiplayer game setup
2. Communication and streaming
Similar to video or movie streaming, the tactic to avoid lags and interruptions in playing games is to identify the sweet spot between connection consistency and the quality of the stream. The quality of game streaming depends on the upload bandwidth, which is lower than the download bandwidth for most home users.
3. Downloading game files
Gaming online doesn’t consume much data, but downloading them is a different story. Downloading games can take up to file sizes around 45 GB to 50 GB or more. It is more than the average internet home user consumes in a month by streaming bandwidth-intensive activities. If the intent is to download games, it is better to pick an unlimited internet data plan or package.
Understanding the internet needs helps to pick the ideal home Wi-Fi and offer a wholesome experience.
Ping Versus Speed: Understanding Things that Matter for Gaming
When it concerns gaming, ping is pivotal, and low latency is more important than bandwidth. Latency is the time data packets reach the home devices from servers. However, ping is the time taken for a data packet to leave the device, reach the server, and come back. Both latency and ping measure the lag, and they are essential for gaming and real-time communication through home wifi. It holds when multiple players are competing against each other or interacting. Even a few nano-seconds out of sync ruins the entire gameplay. A relatively sluggish DSL internet connection offers an excellent gaming experience as long as there is low latency to curtail the lag.
Most Internet Service Providers (ISPs) advertise their plans and packages by bandwidth and hardly mention pings and latency. Mentioning latency is complex because it varies from one location to the other. One way to ensure that ISPs offer low latency is to evaluate neighbors’ home Wi-Fi setups and finally consider gaming. Home internet users leverage the benefits of internet speed test tools to assess latency and pings.
How Much Data for Gaming?
The needs for data vary widely from one home user to another. A home wifi connection should offer a minimum of 25 Mbps download speed. It is good enough for playing low-end games on the internet. Serious gamers need 1 Gbps speed and unlimited data to enjoy a seamless gaming experience. It indicates that if a home gamer offers an hourly rundown for high-end gaming and other internet usage, it varies based on the devices used, games played, and other users (family or roommates) on a shared home internet connection.
Minimum Internet Needs for Playing Games Online
Based on several studies and surveys, there are minimum internet needs and requirements for playing games.
- The minimum data package for gamers should range from 50 GB to 100 GB. If the plan is limited, users should keep track of the data used to avoid paying overage expenses.
- 1 to 2 Mbps up/down is the minimum speed requirement for gamers
- The maximum ping for gamers ranges from 75ms to 100ms
The effective way to anticipate the monthly data requirement is by measuring daily usage habits. Some Internet Service Providers offer online or over-the-phone usage readings to keep track. Users can keep track of themselves with the use of software applications.
Conclusion
Playing games online differs from browsing social media platforms or streaming videos and movies. Picking the ideal home wifi connection is pivotal in enjoying a seamless and uninterrupted gaming experience.