Imagine you are online gaming. You need to make an essential move, but don’t see the move on the screen until a few seconds after you’ve made it. Game over.
These moments are frustrating, even cringy. Lag during your online gaming is an unwanted disruption. It can cost you the game, if not your sanity. Lag is a result of an unstable WiFi connection. Mostly, it is due to a poor WiFi signal.
If your WiFi signal is weak, your WiFi speeds will suffer, too. (As will your whole network performance.) Without a stable internet connection and internet speeds, you are going to experience lag with online gaming.
So, how do you fix this issue? There are many things that you can do:
Know where the “bad spots” are in your home
It’s likely that your home has areas that get bad wireless connection and that’s why you are reading this article. All homes have good and bad spots. It pays off knowing where these bad (or “dead”) spots are.
By knowing the dead spots, you get a better idea about where you need to start checking your WiFi signal strength. Once you identify where you have a good signal strength and where you need to improve your signal strength you can start fixing the bad WiFi signal strength.
Afterall, without a strong WiFi signal, your gaming experience will plummet, or not exist at all.
Check your router placement
Is your router in an optimal position? What we mean is, is your router centrally located, not blocked by thick walls and off of the floor? If not, it should be. Placing your router in an optimal location will help your WiFi signal connect better with your devices. Give it a try.
If that isn’t the issue, you can always rely on the trusted reboot. Sometimes, your router just needs a fresh start.
If you’ve moved your router to the best spot possible, rebooted it and still experience extreme lag, you might consider investing in a new router. Specifically, one with multiple antennas. Multiple antennas can greatly improve your home wireless signal.
Improve your router antennas
Speaking of antennas, if your router already has antennas, there ways to improve them. The first thing you can do is reposition them.
If you have a router with two antennas, don’t have them both pointing straight up. Instead, tilt one of the antennas parallel to the router and pointed toward your device. The off-set antennas extend the WiFi signal range, which gives your gaming PC a better signal.
Use MoCA network adapters
There are risks when it comes to using a wireless connection for gaming. Sure, Wi-Fi is convenient and allows you to game from anywhere in your home. But it’s likely that you always game from one spot anyways, so why not rely on a more stable connection? That’s right, we are talking wired. Well, more like “wired.” Here’s what we mean:
Using a wired connection to supplement your Wi-Fi network will help you get a connection for online gaming. MoCA technology allows you to plug in the MoCA adapters and go.
Using MoCA technology boosts your internet speeds for gaming by creating a sort of data “superhighway” directly to your gaming device, getting speeds of up to 1 Gbps*. So, with MoCA you get a stable connection that is also fast.
Using MoCA Network Adapters helps make your home network more stable and reliable for online gaming. Learn more about MoCA Network Adapters on the Complete Guide to MoCA.
Similar to MoCA, you can lean on powerline technology if you do not have coaxial wiring and accessible outlets in your home.
Use a powerline adapter
There are risks when it comes to using a wireless connection for gaming. Sure, WiFi is convenient and allows you to game from anywhere in your home. But it’s likely that you always game from one spot anyways, so why not rely on a more stable connection? That’s right, we are talking wired. Well, more like “wired.” Here’s what we mean:
You can create a powerline network using powerline adapters to get a reliable and strong connection every time you queue up your gaming PC. Powerline adapters establish a wired connection through your home wiring that already exists. While it is a “wired” connection, you still have more freedom than running endless amounts of Ethernet cables all over your home. Here’s what you do:
- Take one of the powerline adapters and plug it into an outlet near your router.
- Take the other powerline adapter and plug it into an outlet near to your gaming console.
- Connect your gaming console to the powerline adapter nearby.
That’s it. No new wiring. Same reliable connection.
If you apply these tips and technologies to your home network, you are sure to improve your WiFi for gaming. Want more? Stay in-the-know on the impacts of WiFi and online gaming by following ScreenBeam’s Industry Articles and the ScreenBeam blog.