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A ping or latency speed test shows how long it takes for your device to receive a response after sending a signal to the server.Actions such as surfing the web or streaming videos fall under downloading speed, while sending emails or uploading photos and videos online fall under upload speed. Download and upload speed tests refer to how quickly you can receive and send data to the internet.
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There are many types of speed tests that can help you better understand your internet speed.
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Keep those times in mind - they are ideal for scheduling downloads of large files such as video games or movies. Try running a few speed tests throughout the day for an idea of when your connection is at its peak performance. Test at different times of the day. Depending on your internet connection type, peak usage times (typically weeknight evenings when many stream their entertainment) can hinder your speeds.If speeds drastically differ between devices, you may need to adjust device or router settings to improve performance across all devices. Run a speed test on your computer, phone, smart TV, gaming console, etc. Try running a few speed tests at varying distances from the router and perhaps other rooms or floors of your home to gauge your router's range and identify any dead zones. Distance from the router can affect your Wi-Fi speeds. Test at varying distances from your router.Follow the Ethernet test with a test over Wi-Fi for an idea of the speed difference via Wi-Fi versus wired connection. Often, you can run such tests straight through your router via the router's accompanying app. Testing over an Ethernet connection will give you a better look at the actual speeds you're getting from your provider. Test using both Ethernet and Wi-Fi connections.Here are a few tips to consider when taking an internet speed test. Running a speed test is typically as simple as finding the test and clicking the start prompt, but there are some extra measures you can take to get more accurate and informative results. It's not a huge deal, though it might slightly impact your results, depending on the strength of your connection at the time of the test. One minor downside: Ookla does display banner ads while you run basic speed tests. You can even run the Ookla speed test on an Apple TV. In addition to the website and the smartphone apps, Ookla also has apps you can run on Windows or Mac. The service released a video-specific speed test that measures your network's ability to handle 4K video streams, and it also offers its own VPN service. Ookla's done a good job keeping up with the times by adding new features and capabilities. Ookla's speed test is also the one we use when we're testing Wi-Fi routers. We like Ookla for having everything you need from a speed test: accuracy, the ability to view your speed test history (when you create an account), a wide array of servers to connect to, and even a handy app for speed testing from your Android or iOS device. Without ookla I'm sure I would have been on the phone several more hours including an inperson visit from the provider the next day.One of our favorites is the Ookla speed test, which has a strong reputation for consistency and is one of the first speed tests on the web. Linksys rep ran some diagnostics and a reconciliation app and we used speedtest throughout the process until it was resolved. It turned out that I had to get Linksys on the phone because ookla showed my speeds above contract when connected directly. So, I decided to attach my Mac directly to the modem, bypassing the Linksys router and run speedtest again. I am sure he did this because he realized that I knew a little something about what was going on as it has never happened before. When we couldn't resolve the problem he said he would (Shocker!) schedule a service call to my home. The servie rep said that they too use a 'version" of ookla so if i wanted to use the app I had installed it would be fine. but as we chatted I mentioned that I was using ookla speedtest to verify connectivity speeds. With them on the phone we went through the usual reboot modem, etc etc. I though it was my provider and contacted them. Once I had the website I could use it with only a slight degradation in speed (per ookla). All worked great at first but after a couple days the wifi speed degraded and it began to take forever to find a website, (over 2 minutes). I use Spectrum for my internet access at home, (don't have many options).Īnyway, the new Linksys unit became my primary with two of the old units set up elswhere in the house to act as children/secondary units. I recently upgraded my home wifi with a new Linksys MX4200.