Thanks to the fast internet networking, the world today is hyper-connected. Whether its work, communication, online gaming, or entertainment, a stable and fast internet connection has become the need of the hour. However, one thing that can severely impact your online experience is jitter.
Internet jitter is the variation in the delay of packet delivery over a network. This leads to inconsistent performance affecting time-sensitive applications, especially including VoIP, Video calls, and online gaming. To ensure smooth connectivity and optimal performance, it is essential to test and manage internet jitter. We, at Call Center Studio, utilize all tools and methods to reduce the lag and improve overall connectivity to ensure customer satisfaction and operational efficiency in our Cloud Call Center Software.
Let’s explore how you can test internet jitter, identify the causes behind it, and how you can reduce the lag to improve internet connectivity.
What Tools Can You Use to Test Internet Jitter?
Here are some internet jitter testing tools and methods:
PingPlotter
This graphical tool shows the latency of packets to various destinations over time. It works on Windows and macOS platforms. To check the jitter, it sends a series of pings to a server or a router and displays the RTT (Round-Trip Time) in real time.
MTR (My Traceroute)
Working on Linux, macOS, and Windows platforms, this network diagnostic tool has the functionality of traceroute and pink to identify jitter along different stops to a destination. for testing, it sends packets to a target continuously and measures latency at each hop along the destination route.
NetFlow/SFlow Tools
Suitable for enterprise-level monitoring, these tools work with Windows and Web-based platforms. These tools collect the traffic data from switches and routers and then calculate different metrics including packet loss, jitter, latency, and bandwidth usage.
Traceroute
Though this tool does not measure jitter directly, it traces the route that packets take to a destination. When the packets are sent to a destination, the tool records the time each hop takes to respond. It works on Linux, MacOS, and Windows platforms.
Ping (with Statistics)
Supported by most operating systems, this command-line tool gives you basic insights into jitter. It sends multiple pings to a destination and looks at the variance in the round-trip times
Cloudflare’s Speed Test (for Jitter)
With this simple online tool, you can get detailed statistics related to jitter, latency, and other metrics. It basically works by measuring the time taken by the data to reach Cloudflare’s server from your device.
How To Improve the Stability of Internet Connection?
Only a stable internet connection can give you a seamless online experience while playing video games, or using cloud-based services. Here are some tips on how to improve internet connection stability:
Upgrade your Internet Plan
Switch to a faster plan for more consistent performance as low bandwidth plans often have poor speed. Ask your Internet Service Provider for other higher-speed options.
Switch to a Wired Connection
As compared to wireless connections, wired ethernet connections are more stable. Also, they are less prone to interference, offering lower latency, and reducing jitter and packet loss.
Optimize Your Router Placement
Sometimes, wrongly placed routers can also affect your wi-fi performance. Try to place the router in a central location, free from all obstructions. Don’t place your router near thick walls and electronic devices.
Use a Good-Quality Router
Old routers may not work with modern internet speeds and demand for multiple devices. so, pick a high-quality router that supports the latest wi-fi standards and offers better range.
Change Your Wi-Fi Channel
In densely populated areas, interference from neighboring routers can cause signal instability. For this, try to change your wi-fi channel using a wi-fi analyzer tool. You can manually set the router to improve connection quality.
Limit Bandwidth-Hogging Applications
Sometimes, large downloads, streaming videos, and other bandwidth-heavy activities can lead to network congestion, causing performance degradation. Reduce heavy internet usage for better connectivity.
Use a Network Extender or Mesh System
In large rooms and offices, Wi-fi signals tend to diminish when traveling over long distances through multiple walls. In such cases, you can use network extenders or mesh wi-fi systems to increase the signal speed.
What Impact Does Jitter Have On Online Gaming Performance?
One cannot deny the impact of jitters on online gaming performance. Jitters can cause delays and inconsistencies in data packet delivery. In contrast to latency which causes consistent delay, jitter causes variation in delay, causing unpredictable lag spikes. Here are some effects of jitter on online gaming.
Inconsistent Gaming Performance
As jitters cause variation in the data delivery from your device to the server and back, you may experience uneven game performance. For every action in the game, there is a delayed response, making the game feel sluggish.
Rubber Banding
Network lag and jitter may also cause the characters or players in the game to teleport back and forth. This is technically termed as rubber banding and occurs due to inconsistent [packet delivery. In rubber banding, you may see your character snap back to a previous location to try to sync up with the server.
Disconnections and Server Sync Issues
In cases of high jitter, there can be a packet loss, causing your connections to drop out. With this, you may experience that your game freezes temporarily as the server tries to reconcile the fluctuating packets of data.
Poor Voice Communication
For online games that rely on voice communication, jitter may lead to delayed voice transmission, giving a feel of garbled or out-of-sync audio. In such cases, your teammates may not hear your commands in real time.
Lesser Competitive Advantage
If you experience jitter while playing games, you are in a disadvantageous position as compared to others with stable connections. In competitive online gaming, even delays of a fraction of a second can impact your ability to react accurately or quickly.
Conclusion
Jitter can profoundly impact the performance of online games or business operations. And this may often lead to unresponsive actions, frustrating delays, or inconsistent performance. Thus, to ensure seamless interactions, it is essential to know some tips to reduce internet latency and jitter. This is not only for online gaming but if you are using Call Center Studio’s Cloud Call Center Software, you must have a stable internet connection to maintain clear, uninterrupted communication with your customers.
Working on jitters can help you improve your online gaming experience and customer service, ensuring smooth and efficient interactions every time.
