While the average web user will just want to use their connections to update their Facebook status, order the weekly groceries and watch videos of cats falling over on YouTube, the modern gamer’s needs are far more specialised.
Firstly, the download speed is of the essence, because gamers will probably want to access digital content-delivery services such as Valve’s Steam or the Xbox Live marketplace. If your connection is not up to scratch, then downloading the latest patch or piece of DLC will take longer than necessary, eating into time which could well be spent playing with your friends online. You can do a broadband speed test to see exactly how quickly you should be about to send and receive information from the internet. This is worth doing when comparing gaming broadband packages before committing to a contract.
For this reason, fibre-optic broadband is a gamer’s best friend, because it cannot be beaten when it comes to speed. You can get packages offering upwards of 100Mbps download speeds, although more affordable offers ranging from 10-40Mbps are available. The second benefit of fibre-optic broadband is the consistency of the connection. Unlike ADSL, which runs over copper telephone wiring, fibre-optic broadband will not suffer performance dips due to signal degradation over long distances. This means that your broadband connection will come closer to reaching the advertised maximum if you choose a fibre-optic service.
Upload speeds are also important and in general a fibre-optic connection will still be dominant in this regard. If you are a fan of recording gameplay videos and uploading them to the YouTube community, then a fast connection will help you do this in a shorter amount of time, particularly if you are capturing and encoding in high definition.
This brings us neatly on to the question of latency, which is not the same thing as download speed but is just as important for gamers. Latency, or ping, dictates how quickly information is sent from your PC or console to the server that is hosting an online game you might be playing. A lower latency connection will make it easier to react to fast-paced FPS games such as those in the Call of Duty franchise and the same goes for racing titles, beat-’em-ups and many more with multiplayer modes.
Latency and download speeds have become even more important in recent months following the launch of cloud-gaming service OnLive. The concept of being able to stream games over the internet and let a server farm carry out all of the complex processing tasks to take the burden out of your hands is excellent. However, OnLive requires the best possible connection to minimise lag – the gap between you inputting a control and the action being registered onscreen. While a minimum connection speed of 2Mbps is recommended, in reality hardcore gamers will want a much faster line with lower latency in order to make the most out of OnLive, the significance of which will continue to grow over the coming years.
Of course, if you are streaming HD content for hours on end, you will need a broadband package that does not have any monthly download limits. It is easy to quickly rack up gigabyte after gigabyte of usage these days, so a data cap will not be your friend. Check to see if there is a fair-use policy in effect on a broadband service, as this may have an impact on when you can actually game, with peak evening periods typically ring-fenced to ensure average users enjoy a solid online experience.
The intertwining benefits of a gamer-specific broadband package continue when you look at connection ratios. Typically, a connection with a higher download speed and lower latency will be one which is not clogged up by other users sharing the same bandwidth at your local exchange.
Most internet service providers (ISPs) will be able to indicate what connection ratio you are likely to experience when you sign up with them, so look for lower numbers in order to ensure the best experience.
Aside from the technical aspects of a broadband connection, it is sensible for gamers to check out what added extras are bundled with the various packages promoted by ISPs. A free wireless router is a given, but it is worth checking to see which wireless standards are supported. As the Xbox 360 S offers Wireless N connectivity as standard, with the associated faster data transfer speeds, getting a sub-par router as part of a broadband deal may not be appropriate.
There can be other inclusions with broadband packages that can help out gamers. One example is anti-virus software to keep your PC free from unwanted visitors when you browse the web. Some ISPs will even give you access to an allocated amount of cloud storage space, which can be useful for preserving your precious game saves to help keep them accessible in the event that your hard drive fails.
The best gaming broadband deals come with fast connections, low latencies, no monthly download limits and extras which will expand your ability to enjoy the web safely and securely.