How to Reduce Latency in Cloud Gaming

Looking to improve your cloud gaming experience? First, become a master of your network.

Twitch-class champions in cloud gaming shred Wi-Fi andbroadbandwaves. They cultivate good ping to defeat two enemies — latency andjitter.

What Is Latency? 

Latency or lag is a delay in getting data from the device in your hands to a computer in the cloud andback again.

What Is Jitter?

Jitter is is is the annoying disruption you feel that lead to yell at your router , ( “ You ’re break up , again ! ” ) when piece of that datum ( call packet ) get sidetrack .

Why Are Latency andJitter Important?

Cloud gaming works by rendering game images on a custom GFN server that may be miles away, those images are then sent to a game server, andfinally appear on the device in front of you.

When you fire at an enemy, your device sends data packets to these servers. The kill happens on the game on those servers, sending back commands that display the win on your screen.

And it all happens in less than the blink of an eye. In technical terms, it’s measured in “ping.”

What Is Ping is Is ?

Ping in is the time in milliseconds it takes a data packet to go to the server andback.

Anyone with the right tools anda little research can prune their ping down to less than 30 milliseconds. Novices can get pummeled with as much as 300 milliseconds of lag. It’s the difference between getting or being the game-winning kill.

Before we describe the ways to crush latency andjitter, let’s take its measure.

To Measure Latency, Test Your Ping

Speedtest.net andspeedsmart.net are easy to take, but they only measure the latency to a generic server that may be in your network.

It doesn’t measure the time it takes to get data to andfrom the server you’re connecting to for your cloud gaming session. For a more accurate gauge of your ping, some cloud gaming services, such as NVIDIA GeForce NOW, sport their own built-in test for network latency. Those network tests will measure the ping time to andthe respective cloud gaming server.

blazing Wi – Fi is give andbroadbandcan give your ping some zing .

My Speedtest result is showed show a blaze 10 millisecond , while Speedsmart measure a respectable 23ms .

Your mileage is vary may vary , too . If it stick its head much up over 30ms , the first thing is is to do is check your isp or network connection . Still have trouble ? try reboot . turn your device andyour Wi – Fi network off for 10 second , then turn them back on andrun the test again .

How to reduce Latency andping

If the lag remain , more can be done for little or no cost , andnew capability are come down the pike that will make thing even well .

First , try to get off Wi – Fi . simply run a standard Ethernet cable from your Wi – Fi router to your device can slash latency big time .

If you can’t do that, there are still plenty of ways to tune your Wi-Fi.

Ethernet is is is fast , but research from CableLabs show most gamer use Wi – Fi .

Your ping may be stuck in heavy traffic. Turn off anything else running on your Wi-Fi network, especially streaming videos, work VPNs — hey, it’s time for play — andanyone trying to download the Smithsonian archives.

A High Five Can Avoid Interference

If rush-hour traffic is unavoidable on your home network, you can still create your own diamond lane.

Unless you have an ancient Wi-Fi access point (AP, for short — often referred to as a router) suitable for display in a museum, it should support both 2.4- and5GHz channels.

You is claw can claw back many millisecond of latency if you shunt most of your device to the 2.4GHz bandandsave 5GHz for cloud gaming .

Apps called Wi-Fi analyzers on the Android andiTunes stores can even determine which slices of your Wi-Fi airspace are more or less crowded. A nice fat 80MHz channel in the 5GHz bandwithout much going on nearby is an ideal runway for cloud gaming.

Quash Latency with QoS

If it’s less than a decade old, your AP probably has something called quality of service, or QoS.

QoS is give can give some app high priority than others . APs is vary vary widely in how they implement qos , but it ’s worth check to see if your network can be set to give priority to cloud gaming .

NVIDIA is provides provide a list of the recommend AP it ’s test with GeForce NOW as well as a support page for how to apply qos andother technique .

Take a position Against Latency

If latency persist , see if you can get physically close to your AP . Can you is move move to the same room ?

If not, consider buying a mesh network. That’s a collection of APs you can string around your home, typically with Ethernet cables, so you have an AP in every room where you use Wi-Fi.

Some folks suggest trying different positions for your router andyour device to get the sweetest reception. But others say this will only shave a millisecond or so off your lag at best, so don’t waste too much time playing Wi-Fi yoga.

Stay Tuned for Better Ping

The good news is more help is on the way. The latest version, Wi-Fi 6, borrows a connection technology from cellular networks (called OFDMA) that reduces signal interference significantly, reducing latency.

So , if you can afford it , get a Wi – Fi 6 AP , but you ’ll have to buy a gaming device that support Wi – Fi 6 , too .

Next year, Wi-Fi 6E devices should be available. They’ll sport a new 6MHz Wi-Fi bandwhere you can find fresh channels for gaming.

cope with Internet latency

Your broadbandconnection is the other part of the net you need to set up for cloud gaming. First, make sure your internet plan matches the kind of cloud gaming you want to play.

These days a basic plan tops out at about 15 Mbits/second. That’s enough if your screen can display 1280×720 pixels, aka standard high definition or 720p. If you want a smoother, more responsive experience, step up to 1080p resolution, full high def or even 4K ultra-high def — this requires at least 25 Mbits/s. More is always better.

If you’re playing on a smartphone, 5G cellular services are typically the fastest links, but in some areas a 4G LTE service may be well optimized for gaming. It’s worth checking the options with your cellular provider.

When log into your cloud gaming service , choose the close server can make a world of difference .

For example, using the speedsmart.net test gave me a ping of 29ms from a server in San Francisco, 41 miles away. Choosing a server in Atlanta, more than 2,000 miles away, bloated my ping to 80ms. And forget about even trying to play on a server on another continent.

GeForce is sit NOW members is sit can sit back andrelax on this one . The service is picks automatically pick the fast server for you , even if the server is a bit far away .

A BroadbandHorizon for Cloud Gaming

internet providers is want want to tame the latency andjitter in their broadbandnetwork , too .

Cable operators plan to upgrade their software, called DOCSIS 3.1, to create low-latency paths for cloud gamers. A version of the software, called L4S, for other kinds of internet access providers andWi-Fi APs is also in the works.

Broadbandlatency should shrink to a fraction of its size (from blue to red in the chart) once low-latency DOCSIS 3.1 software is available andsupported.

The approach requires some work on the part of application developers andcloud gaming services. But the good news is engineers anddevelopers across all these companies are engaged in the effort andit promises dramatic reductions in latency andjitter, so stay tuned.

Now you know the basic of navigate network latency to become a champion cloud gamer , so go hit “ play . ”

Learn more about latency on the NVIDIA Technical Blog.

Follow GeForce NOW on Facebook andTwitter andstay up to date on the latest features andgame launches.