Gigabit Ethernet speeds

scavengerspc

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Almost unbelievably, even though I live in a very rural area my 250\30 speeds were upgraded to Gigabit Ethernet.
But my download speeds cut off at 500-550 Mb's. Is that common?

I have an Intel Wi-Fi 6 (AX200.NGWG.NV)
 
Almost unbelievably, even though I live in a very rural area my 250\30 speeds were upgraded to Gigabit Ethernet.
But my download speeds cut off at 500-550 Mb's. Is that common?

I have an Intel Wi-Fi 6 (AX200.NGWG.NV)
Asymmetric internet speeds are common - symmetric is, from my experience, rare (though my fiber ISP is symmetric). So you get Gb upload, but only 500 - 550 Mb down? That would be rather rare as download speeds seem to be typically the higher of the two.
 
In addition to what I previously said, I assume you also realize, given that your Internet connection is Gigabit, your Wi-Fi will be the bottleneck unless your Wi-Fi, end-to-end, is capable of Gigabit speeds.
 
Asymmetric internet speeds are common - symmetric is, from my experience, rare (though my fiber ISP is symmetric). So you get Gb upload, but only 500 - 550 Mb down? That would be rather rare as download speeds seem to be typically the higher of the two.
Originally my speeds were 250\30 Mb's. After the upgrade, I now can get to 500 Mb's but what I'm wondering is if it is normal for gigabit internet to be slower than the rated gigabit speeds.

In addition to what I previously said, I assume you also realize, given that your Internet connection is Gigabit, your Wi-Fi will be the bottleneck unless your Wi-Fi, end-to-end, is capable of Gigabit speeds.
Now that part I do know, so that's why I listed my network card. Is there more to it than that?

My uploads are still 30 Mb's.
 
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Originally my speeds were 250\30 Mb's. After the upgrade, I now can get to 500 Mb's but what I'm wondering is if it is normal for gigabit internet to be slower than the rated gigabit speeds.
It should be what it your ISP is claiming. However, my fiber ISP offers several tiers above my 500 Mbps rating, specifically, 1Gbps and 2.5Gbps, and they do state specific technical requirements for that to work. I have a 1-Gbps wired network in my home, so in theory, my home network could support up to a 1-Gbps internet connection.
Now that part I do know, so that's why I listed my network card. Is there more to it than that?

My uploads are still 30 Mb's.
I'd say that it is going to be dependent on what WiFi standard is supported by your router and what standard is supported by your network card. Here is a link that lists some Wi-Fi standards and what they are capable of https://www.speedguide.net/faq/what-is-the-actual-real-life-speed-of-wireless-374

I will say that I have a Moto X4 phone that supports 802.11 ac and an Archer TP Link AC1750 router that I use as a WiFi hot spot https://www.tp-link.com/us/home-networking/dsl-gateway/archer-d7/ which also supports 802.11 ac. I have not speed tested the phone, but the WiFi connection between the router and my phone shows a status of 500Mbps when it is connected. In theory, I can get no more than that for internet speed since that is the speed of my internet connection. That speed, however, is only because there are multiple, simultaneous WiFi channels bonded to act as one between my phone and my Hot Spot. From the page I linked

In addition, net IP layer throughput of WiFi is typically 60% of the air link rate due to WiFi being half-duplex with ACKs, and being CSMA/CA. The number of simultaneous connections, and even the type of wireless security can affect and slow down some older routers with inadequate processors/memory.
Below is a breakdown of actual real-life average speeds you can expect from wireless routers within a reasonable distance, with low interference and small number of simultaneous clients:
802.11b - 2-3 Mbps downstream, up to 5-6 Mbps with some vendor-specific extensions.
802.11g - ~20 Mbps downstream
802.11n - 40-50 Mbps typical, varying greatly depending on configuration, whether it is mixed or N-only network, the number of bonded channels, etc. Specifying a channel, and using 40MHz channels can help achieve 70-80Mbps with some newer routers. Up to 100 Mbps achievable with more expensive commercial equipment with 8x8 arrays, gigabit ports, etc.
802.11ac - 100+ Mbps typical, higher speeds (300+ Mbps) possible over short distances without many obstacles, with newer generation 802.11ac routers, and client adapters capable of multiple streams.

So, I'd say do some research on your WiFi router. Finding out its maximum speed will give you an idea of what to expect between your WiFi router and your WiFi NIC. After that, your NIC will have to support the same standards as your router and it looks like MIMO in addition to the base standards that your router supports to get anywhere near 1Gbps.

I chose a wired network for my home for other reasons, but it turns out that there are, to me, many layers of technical complexity with WiFi so that in retrospect, the wired network was a better and simpler choice than WiFi even though I had to run wires through walls and the other complexities physical complexities of running wires.

BTW - I don't consider myself an expert, so I advise researching this on your own.

However, to get back to your original question, if your ISP says that the connection is 1Gbps, then that is what it should be no matter what - the caveat is that your router/home network must be capable of handing that speed as well.

One way of testing this might be to connect a PC/laptop with a 1000Base-T wired NIC (I.e., 1Gbit wired nic) directly to your ISP's modem and run a speed test through something like www.dslreports.com That will help to narrow down the possibility of where the bottleneck is.
 
It should be what it your ISP is claiming. However, my fiber ISP offers several tiers above my 500 Mbps rating, specifically, 1Gbps and 2.5Gbps, and they do state specific technical requirements for that to work. I have a 1-Gbps wired network in my home, so in theory, my home network could support up to a 1-Gbps internet connection.

I'd say that it is going to be dependent on what WiFi standard is supported by your router and what standard is supported by your network card. Here is a link that lists some Wi-Fi standards and what they are capable of https://www.speedguide.net/faq/what-is-the-actual-real-life-speed-of-wireless-374

I will say that I have a Moto X4 phone that supports 802.11 ac and an Archer TP Link AC1750 router that I use as a WiFi hot spot https://www.tp-link.com/us/home-networking/dsl-gateway/archer-d7/ which also supports 802.11 ac. I have not speed tested the phone, but the WiFi connection between the router and my phone shows a status of 500Mbps when it is connected. In theory, I can get no more than that for internet speed since that is the speed of my internet connection. That speed, however, is only because there are multiple, simultaneous WiFi channels bonded to act as one between my phone and my Hot Spot. From the page I linked



So, I'd say do some research on your WiFi router. Finding out its maximum speed will give you an idea of what to expect between your WiFi router and your WiFi NIC. After that, your NIC will have to support the same standards as your router and it looks like MIMO in addition to the base standards that your router supports to get anywhere near 1Gbps.

I chose a wired network for my home for other reasons, but it turns out that there are, to me, many layers of technical complexity with WiFi so that in retrospect, the wired network was a better and simpler choice than WiFi even though I had to run wires through walls and the other complexities physical complexities of running wires.

BTW - I don't consider myself an expert, so I advise researching this on your own.

However, to get back to your original question, if your ISP says that the connection is 1Gbps, then that is what it should be no matter what - the caveat is that your router/home network must be capable of handing that speed as well.

One way of testing this might be to connect a PC/laptop with a 1000Base-T wired NIC (I.e., 1Gbit wired nic) directly to your ISP's modem and run a speed test through something like www.dslreports.com That will help to narrow down the possibility of where the bottleneck is.
Ok this is good advice. I am going to dig into this and call my ISP also. You also mentioned wired so Im going to see what I get with a quality cable.

I don't consider this a big problem really because even at 500 - 550 Mb's I'm not exactly suffering. Anyway, thanks for everything man.
 
Ok this is good advice. I am going to dig into this and call my ISP also. You also mentioned wired so Im going to see what I get with a quality cable.

I don't consider this a big problem really because even at 500 - 550 Mb's I'm not exactly suffering. Anyway, thanks for everything man.
Glad to help, and Yes, 500Mb is a great speed. ;)

Just a note on calling your ISP - I have heard horror stories of people calling their ISPs in that they may try to sell you the Moon when you already have all that you need. This happened to my brother, actually, though he is not all that technically inclined. We have Spectrum in our area, though they are not my current ISP. Spectrum's reputation is quite less than stellar and they will try to take advantage of such situations if they can. When I called Spectrum to cancel because I had fiber installed, the rep tried to use scare tactics on me to get me to stay. Essentially, I just told them "not interested."

FWIW, I think you just need to figure out where the bottleneck is, and you should be all set.
 
FWIW, I think you just need to figure out where the bottleneck is, and you should be all set.
Just a followup, but that turned out to be right on.

I bought a 20' Cat 8 cable, plugged it in and boom, 1044 Mb's download.
My ISP says it's the modem (I have had it since 2013) and they are sending another one.

Thanks again man.
 
Just a followup, but that turned out to be right on.

I bought a 20' Cat 8 cable, plugged it in and boom, 1044 Mb's download.
My ISP says it's the modem (I have had it since 2013) and they are sending another one.

Thanks again man.
(y) (Y)That sounds like an easy fix with the cable. I do know that when I was on Spectrum, they had made some changes that required modems that handled newer standards. So if your provider is providing service over cable, it makes sense, to me, that they would want to upgrade your modem.

It's great that your ISP just upgraded you to a faster speed. Spectrum has been doing that with customers in our area. A day or two after I switched to the fiber provider, I received a letter from Spectrum telling me that they were upgrading my 100Mbps download to 200Mbps download for no extra cost. I had to laugh because the fiber was 500Mbps down and up for less cost. My bet is that Spectrum is giving people higher speeds in our area because they are feeling the competition from the fiber provider. Just like in CPU manufacturing, competition is a good thing. ;)

Anyway, I am glad things are working out for you. Enjoy! :cool:
 
(y) (Y)That sounds like an easy fix with the cable. I do know that when I was on Spectrum, they had made some changes that required modems that handled newer standards. So if your provider is providing service over cable, it makes sense, to me, that they would want to upgrade your modem.

It's great that your ISP just upgraded you to a faster speed. Spectrum has been doing that with customers in our area. A day or two after I switched to the fiber provider, I received a letter from Spectrum telling me that they were upgrading my 100Mbps download to 200Mbps download for no extra cost. I had to laugh because the fiber was 500Mbps down and up for less cost. My bet is that Spectrum is giving people higher speeds in our area because they are feeling the competition from the fiber provider. Just like in CPU manufacturing, competition is a good thing. ;)

Anyway, I am glad things are working out for you. Enjoy! :cool:
So brother, I thought I would do a followup.
I got the new modem today. Setup according to instructions was a breeze and now even my Wi-Fi midday speeds are 1006 Mb's so I'm set now.

And yeah a lot of people were surprised at that upgrade and the price is still the same as my 250 was. Now another thing you said is true because other companies offer gigabit for roughly the same price but still we are all pleased.

Thanks again man. I owe you a beer. Or a case of them :D
 
👍Awesome! It sounds like you made out well. I am glad that my posts helped you; that is all the thanks I need.

I wonder if your ISP is facing increasing competition. In my area, it was the only thing, IMO, that lead Spectrum to start delivering the speeds that the system is already capable of doing without charging customers more.
 
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