50MBPS for Gaming

[Alexdiaz]

I was wondering if Cableone's 50MBP plan is enough for gaming. Only my brother and I use the internet(My parents aren't tech savy 😛). We both really only watch youtube videos and play online. I however do download all my games. The question is, is it fast enough to handle downloading a file and playing online at the same time with less than 100ms ping. Thanks 😀



Btw I currently have 0.95MBP connection D: It can barely handle streaming a video at 360p

 

[Darkbreeze]

It's cable, it's a 50mbps connection, it's fine. Any problems will be at peak times. Unlike DSL, Cable lines are shared throughout neighborhoods by many users and if everybody is doing something during peak times, you'll experience some slowing. I'm on a 25mbps connection and can game while watching Netflix simultaneously.

 

[TechyInAZ]

LOL. 50mbps is an astonishing speed for internet bandwidth. It will do 5x more than what you need.

 

[emdea22]

Ping is something different than bandwidth.

Ping - how long it takes for information to reach the other computer
Bandwidth - how much information can travel during a given time

You can have 50mbps (megaBITS per second) but with a 500ping
You can also have 2MBPS (megaBYTES per second) but with 8ping

Generally watching a 1080p video needs about 512KB/s as long as you're not being throttle by the ISP specifically on youtube.
Gaming requires somewhere between 2KB/s to 20KB/s but there are exceptions requiring much more so lets say another 512KB/s

To do both you need:
1-1.5MB/s or 1.5x8= 12mbps speed


To have a low ping you require a direct connection (WIRED all the way with no WIFI or 3g/4g anywhere between you and the server) and good peering between your ISP and server. OFC this is all irrelevant if you play on a server from far away.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Generally though if you're close enough to the trunk, CO (Central office, for DSL), Headend (For cable) or Fiber, to have a good and fast connection, capable of providing you higher tiered service as determined by your provider, you WILL have a lower ping. Of course, as mentioned, the distance to the game server is going to play a major role in this as well.

Regardless how fast your connection is or how low your ping is to the Headend or CO, if the game server is on the other side of the country, you're going to have a higher ping than if it was in the same town. If you use a game server that's closer to you, when possible, as many games have a variety of server locations, you'll minimize the related lag.

As also mentioned, don't ever use Wi-Fi to game unless you have no other choice. If you can use a wired Ethernet connection, do so.

 

[TofuLion]

in short, 50 mbps is plenty, if not overkill. i have a 25 mbps connection and it is enough for me gaming online on pc, while my brother is on his xbox one as well, and the kids watching netflix, with about 5 smart devices all using the same internet connection, and unless we are all downloading large files at the same time, we don't experience any noticeable lag.

 

[gamerk316]

Generally, you need about 7-8 mbps for streaming, and about 5mbps for gaming, though higher is obviously better. So you should be fine.