How much broadband is your network provider giving you? 100,200, or more? Is 200 Mbps good for gaming? Will the game stall? In this article, we’ll delve more on the speed of your internet connectivity and the suitability of 200 Mbps for gaming. Keep reading to find out….
When it comes to gaming, internet speed and stability of your connection are of the essence. In most urban or suburban settings, the average internet connectivity speed range is 100 – 200 Mbps. Most Internet Service Providers (ISPs) offer 200 Mbps as an entry-level internet speed tier. With that being said, is 200 Mbps good for gaming? To answer this and other related questions, keep reading….
When it comes to download speeds, especially for gamers, it's essential to know what speed you can get in your area. How fast are you downloading games?
For instance, Home internet connections use data speeds measured in megabits per second (Mbps).
For most home and small business users, the most common internet speed is 50 Mbps download/10 Mbps upload. For a single household of no more than 4 internet users, 200 Mbps is more than enough for streaming games in 4K video quality at 60 fps.
However, it’s important to note that the strength and stability of your connectivity may fluctuate if more devices connect to the network. Meaning if the internet speed is kept constant at 200 Mbps, adding more devices onto the network will affect the ping rate and frame rate of the connection.
What is Mbps?
The abbreviation Mbps stands for Megabits per second or a million bits per second. Mbps is an expression of the data transmission bandwidth of a digital communication channel.
Simply put, the abbreviation is representative of the estimated internet connectivity speed of your home network or office internet connection.
The abbreviation Mbps stands for megabits per second. It's the amount of data transferred in one second, ranging from 1 megabit (1 million bits) up to 1 gigabit (1 billion bits).
Most residential and office Internet speed is usually measured on a scale of 1 – 1000 Mbps. On this scale, 200 Mbps is within the “average” speed category. Meaning it is fast enough for basic household and office tasks like streaming games online, watching videos, accessing social sites, etc.
That said, it’s also worth mentioning that some internet connections are very slow. The speed is often measured in kilobits per second (Kbps). Because a kilobit is a thousandth (1/1000) of a bit, such slow connections have speeds in the range of 0 – 1 Mbps if you do the math 1Mbps = 128 Kb/s.
Similarly, connections faster than 1000 Mbps are often measured in gigabits per second (Gbps).
What is The Impact of 200 MBPS on The Game?
Online gaming mainly focuses on two numbers; FPS and Ping Rate. The FPS refers to the number of frames per second that the game uses and is primarily determined by the computer's hardware.
On the other hand, Ping Rate refers to a measure of latency or lag of your internet connection. With regard to gaming, the Ping rate measures the reaction time or delay time of the game. In theory, a 200Mbps network speed is not too slow for low ping rates.
However, if the network is unstable and fluctuates, for instance, when more people are using it, the ping rates may rise. Remember, connections with low ping rates and a high amount of Frames per Second (FPS) are better for gaming.
On the other hand, connections with a high ping rate and low FPS are unstable and usually result in buffering, unresponsiveness, and excessive lag during gameplay. Both FPS and Ping Rate are important considerations in how MBPS affects the fluidity of your gameplay.
Is 200 Mbps Good for gaming?
Some online games, such as League of Legends, generate very little traffic during the gameplay, somewhere in 40MB-60MB per round. Meaning if you’re operating at 200Mbps bandwidth, you’re connection is okay. However, note that you’ll need a very stable connection to enjoy a much better gaming experience.
WebPage games usually require you to load many maps at the beginning. To download such resources, you need high network speeds with low ping rates and above-average or high frame rates. In that regard, 200 Mbps internet connection speed is good enough for a smooth online video gaming experience.
Today's most online games are hosted by the publisher of the game itself and require a very stable internet connection for the best gaming experience. Some publishers host several servers and provide different connection speeds so players can choose one that matches their Internet connection speed.
With a connection speed of 200 Mbps, a publisher can host up to ten online gamers at a time. Meaning it is good enough for gaming.
If you want to host your own game through a streaming service like Xbox Live or PlayStation Network, 200 Mbps is probably too slow. Most streaming services limit the maximum number of connections per second depending on the service used.
For example, PlayStation Network currently allows up to 100 connections per second for its 2.4-gigahertz (GHz) network and up to 150 contacts per second.
Internet Speed Test
The popularity of online games has increased throughout the years. Most gamers prefer to play their favorite game in a faster network environment. One of the factors that most affect the gaming experience is Internet speed. In other words, high-speed Internet can improve your gaming experience.
The last decade has seen considerable improvements in Internet technology and speed, so much so that we can now enjoy reliable connections up to 200Mbps, almost three times faster than a standard broadband connection.
However, does your device support this speed? Some online games generate very little traffic during the game.
You should know that games like LOL create very little traffic during gameplay. It is because they have a client-server architecture, where all of the information is located on their servers, and your device only sends data to them when you click the mouse or press a button.
You can check this site to see if your actual Internet speed matches what your carrier offers you.
How do I Get Faster Internet Speed?
There are a number of methods you can implement to achieve a boost in your internet connection speed. Below, we have put together a quick summary of some of the best options:
1. Use an Ethernet cable to connect to your computer
If you are playing on your laptop using a Wi-Fi network, you should use an Ethernet cable to connect directly to your laptop. The Ethernet cable will offer you a faster and more stable internet connection than Wi-Fi, that’s normally prone to fluctuations and unstable connections.
However, it’s important to ensure that your Ethernet cable is well connected to the router or LAN socket and the port on your PC. Double-check that to enjoy an unbeatable gaming experience.
2. Switch to a faster router
If your network has been upgraded, your router is still the old generation type; you might experience lags and connectivity fluctuations. Old routers were not built with the technology for handling superfast data transfers to the tune of 200 Mbps and above. It would help if you had a gigabit router to enjoy the best internet speeds.
Broadband connections can reach up to 1 gigabit per second (Gbps), about 100 times faster than the average U.S. connection. According to a report by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), some cities have even begun implementing gigabit-speed networks.
3. Reduce latency by modifying DNS
If you know that the game server you are playing is in a particular region, modifying your computer's DNS to that region will give you slightly faster speeds. Changing DNS servers can help you achieve faster internet speeds.
There are different DNS servers. The OpenDNS type tends to be more reliable and suitable for achieving faster internet speeds suitable for gaming. They also offer free services that can help you monitor your network speed and diagnose any issues with your internet connection.
4. Buy a game accelerator
Game accelerators are vital in stabilizing the ping rates and improving the frame rate of your connection. Moreover, it can also help you bypass blocked networks, thus helping you achieve much faster connection speeds while gaming.
A game accelerator is handy in improving your connectivity, especially during multiplayer gaming. It improves the gaming experience and allows you to play with less lag, thus making the gameplay very immersive and enjoyable.
Conclusion
Is 200 Mbps good for gaming? Well, now you know that 200 Mbps is good enough for gaming. However, this will only work if the network isn’t shared with many users.
More uses would mean a higher ping rate and low frame rate that adversely impact your gaming experience. If that’s the case, you may consider using an Ethernet cable or a game accelerator to improve the strength and stability of your connection.
