Fast and reliable broadband has become an extremely crucial tool in any gamer’s arsenal, whether you’re into fast-paced MMOs or FPS games, maintaining a secure and stable broadband connection is a must for any situation.
Download and upload speeds are a very important thing to consider when looking at broadband for gaming, although a lot of this can be dependant on your area, in most areas this is dependant on your provider and the broadband package you pay for. For example, one broadband provider may have a very high download speed advertised, but then depending on your area you might not achieve exactly these speeds. This is a problem that will affect your experience although it isn’t common.
Network hardware does play a role more in the reliability of the connection, most providers will sell their packages with a router or some amount of network hardware. While sticking with the standard Router or Hub provided by the Broadband Company might not be the best decision for competitive gaming, it should still affect your choice for your provider.
Broadband Reliability should be a very high priority for any online gamer, there are a lot of broadband providers that may cause you problems with network down times or unreliable hardware they provide. Maintaining a solid connection is very important, not just for smooth downloads but for a smooth gaming experience as well.
Broadband providers will always vary greatly with what they offer you and how their broadband packages tailor to different needs. For example, Virgin Broadband generally features very high download speeds, although as previously mentioned that may vary depending on location, their broadband does feature higher download speeds than most. BT broadband offer some of the highest quality network equipment as standard, reliability and range being some of their most notable benefits.
Obviously, price is always something to consider when choosing anything but with choosing the right broadband, what you are actually getting for your money is a more important factor to think about. Some providers may advertise very fast download and upload speeds and a reliable connection with low and infrequent downtime but that package may include a cap on how much data you can use per month. Most broadband packages, even the cheap ones, will be unlimited but it is worth keeping an eye out for ones that may have a cap or require you to pay further charges once you reach their specified limit.
There are obviously a lot of contributing factors when choosing the right broadband to suit your specific needs and requirements so always make sure you know exactly what your needs are, in this article I’ve underlined some of the biggest factors for gaming when choosing broadband but don’t forget other uses you have for your broadband. For example, you might also want to do a lot of movie streaming, or you need broadband that can cope with multiple users and still maintain speed. When choosing a provider there are always going to be countless factors leading to your decision and it will be a challenge to find a provider who suits all your needs so remember to make sure you have your biggest needs underlined, for gaming reliability and speed are the most important but this differs from the needs of someone with a large household where bandwidth is a huge factor.
In conclusion, other than your own hardware, your broadband choice will really decide what your online gaming experience will be like. Whether you play console or PC, whether you are a casual gamer or hardcore or whether you are a multi player gamer or not, this will be one of the biggest factors on the experience you will have with your gaming and the way you play your games. Broadband choices are always something you should make carefully especially when looking at long contracts that you are not sure about, it is always best to pick the deals that best suit your needs even if that means going for a more expensive one, when you are looking at the right deals, spending the extra money is always worth it for a better experience and a much more enjoyable time with your provider.
