I’ve got a good DSL internet connection. If I set up a wireless network at home and connect to the internet via 802.11g instead of directly with an ethernet cable, will this degrade my connection in terms of bandwidth and speed? If so will it impact online gaming noticeably or what?
What if I have 2 computers connected simultaneously trying to play the same game over the wireless network, what then?
Thanks…
The speed of your 802.11g network will greatly exceed the speed of your cable or DSL connection. Theoretically you get 54Mbs on 802.11g and your cable will probably max out at 3-5Mbs. Even at 802.11b speeds you’ll be fine, even with a whole host of computers sharing the connection.
What might limit you is your upload speed, so don’t do something silly like host a Torrent or upload porn while you play games. Other than that you’ll be fine.
It won’t affect bandwidth or speed exactly, but I’ve had some serious packet loss issues from wireless. That matters for more twitch games, and depends on the quality of the wireless connection (distance to the hub)
Get with the times, real gamers don’t have broadband.
Chet
I recently upgraded from 802.11b to 802.11g at home and there is a huge difference in reliability for me. Speed as well, but it’s the reliability that makes me regret not having done it sooner.
So I would strongly recommend using only 802.11g. You probably can’t even save much with older 802.11b parts now.
Thanks for the replies guys. Very helpful.
Though I’m a little bummed that I’ll have to give up my habit of simultaneously uploading porn and playing Battlefield: Vietnam. Sigh… those were the days…
We run two PCs and sometimes two laptops simultaneously (four machines) over a D-Link 802.11b router. No problems even when three of the machines are playing MMOs and one is checking an MMO-related website. :D