The US falling out of the top 10 in internet speed for gamers.

Fri, Dec 11, 2020 12:34 AM Technology Wifi

The list is topped by Singapore and Hong Kong with the fastest speeds.

Facts

- The U.S. dropped to 11th place for average internet speeds.

- Three countries (France, Switzerland, and Singapore) rank higher than the U.S. for average internet speeds.

- Canada, Germany, Japan countries with strong gaming communities rank below the U.S.

- Internet speeds continue to increase globally however, for serious gamers, having a strong connection is critical for performance.

Global internet speeds have been improving over time, by every real metric you may use. But with video streaming, Zoom, and gaming all competing for the bandwidth of your home internet connection, the demands on the bandwidth within your home continue to increase as well.

It can be frustrating, particularly for gamers, to experience lag while trying to play. A slow internet link can mean the difference between a win and a loss for competitive gamers (and would-be competitive gamers). This could mean an edge against competitive players or teams in slower countries when competing globally.

SpeedTest.net tracks world internet speeds, the U.S.  has just fallen out of the TOp 10 counties for internet speed.

Internet speeds are different in every country.

Notice that the above figures are averages, so this includes places that have especially poor internet in these countries, while also including those with numbers that are better than the above list. A Microsoft survey, for example, showed that half of America has no access to broadband internet speeds, so your average speed and ability to escape gaming lag can vary if you are in a rural area or somewhere with low internet quality.

Latency on Gaming

Latency can also impact the output of a gamer beyond Mbps (megabits per second) since it takes the amount of time data to travel from one stage to another. Most major suppliers have an advertised latency of fewer than 30 milliseconds, which is what you want in a game to prevent what gamers term "lag." In-game lag is where the actions performed will stall before it is possible to restore a link to the game server.

A strong Internet connection is needed for competitive gaming.

In a licensed match played for prize money in a league such as Major League Gaming, you will usually have the players in one house, together in a stadium, so that Internet access is not a deciding factor.

However, a strong Internet connection is required for aspiring pro gamers, World of Warcraft raid completion racers, and other forms of competitive online gaming to have any chance of competing.

Finale

When it comes to internet speeds and links, the gaming community may have special needs, but we have all encountered the frustration that comes when you do not have enough bandwidth to run your household. 

The U.S. may be slipping behind in the race for the fastest Internet in the world, but the good news is that, due to the introduction of 5G networks, speeds continue to increase across the board.

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