Internet Speed Test

This internet connection speed test checks the speed of your internet connection - along with a good portion of extra details like ping, jitter, upload and download speeds, streaming latency, and packet loss - and gives you comprehensive feedback on which kinds of functions their network is capable of performing. These functions include things like VoIP (or voice over IP), live video buffering on Hulu or YouTube, game playing, and others. In contrast to most internet speed checks, Wirefly's speed test runs without Javascript or Flash. Instead, it employs the more widely functional HTML5, a programming language that enables the test to operate on any device, such as laptops or mobile phones. As the speed test runs, the animated speedometers will activate and supply users with the details of their online connection speed within 30 seconds.

News: See Wirefly's rankings of the fastest cell phone carriers in the United States in the most recent report here.

How to Determine if a Connection is Good Enough for VoIP

The first step is to test the network to determine the speed that it is operating at now. If the results are adequate, then the connection can handle VoIP. Inadequate results, on the other hand, may be fixed by carrying out these tasks:

• Determine how many units are connected to the network. The more units on a network, the less available bandwidth, a concept frequently called a “network blockage.”
• Check the wires. Insufficient test results sometimes happen because of unconnected cables or worn out wires in the network.
• Upgrade the machinery. Outdated units (such as routers or modems) often substantially decrease the speed of a network.

The speed test on this site is designed to deliver an in-depth report that covers a connection's speed, quality, data packet rate, and other important details. It will help users to gain a clearer understanding of how their existing web connection works and if it can handle VoIP service. If your internet connection is not as fast as you'd like it to be, you can compare internet providers to find a better ISP.

The Components of a High-Quality Internet Connection

Determining the speed of a connection is absolutely essential, because the findings will allow you to identify what applications it can effectively support. In basic terms, these speed test results indicate how quickly information passes through a network. This is particularly vital for VoIP service, which requires a strong web connection to transmit, assemble, and receive packets of information, which are then converted into sound files.

Another important factor to look at is the kind of VoIP service that is required, namely either business VoIP or residential VoIP.

With business VoIP, it's essential to consider how a connection's bandwidth is allocated. A network's devices must all share bandwidth, and as a result, the greater the number of devices or employees tied into a connection, the more slowly that connection will execute tasks.

With residential or household VoIP, the connection is distributed to all units in the home. Web games, downloads, movie streaming devices, cell phones, and laptops are common functions for a household web connection. However, there could be other elements slowing down a connection's general speed. Some ISPs transmit information in different ways depending on what they think are favored functions for a household network.

Related: Mobile Data Speed Test

What the Speed Test Results Indicate

Once the speed test has run, users are supplied with several different results for different measurements. Below is a brief explanation as to what your test results mean in relation to your current broadband connection:

• Ping or execution delay: A measure of how long it takes one data packet to be dispatched from one PC to another and then return.
• Jitter: A measure of several ping results in a row. A good jitter figure should be very close to zero.
• Download Speed: Rather than a pure measure of speed, this figure shows the number of bps that may be downloaded by one unit from another through the web.
• Upload Speed: Like the download rate, this is not a true speed measurement but simply indicates the number of bps that may be uploaded between computers through the web.
• Bufferbloat: A latency test that is executed whenever a connection is experiencing low bandwidth. Normally, this is accomplished by performing a bandwidth check to enhance the connection's speed.
• Data Packet Loss: This test measures how many packets of information reach their specified arrival point when dispatched from a PC. The best figure for packet loss is 0%.

Ways to Boost Connection Speed

In order to achieve maximum internet speed efficiency, users must have a dependable and fast-speed web connection. With that in mind, there are a couple of steps that can be taken to enhance an existing web connection and make sure it's running at the quickest speeds achievable:

• Perform the network speed test on this page. Using this speed test is an important first step in determining the speeds a connection is presently operating at. If the results shown are suitable for VoIP service, then it's safe to say that the connection itself is not the culprit.
• If the results displayed are unsatisfactory, it will be necessary to first determine how many other units are sharing bandwidth. This will ideally entail creating a checklist of all telephones, laptops, PCs, et al. that are presently sharing the web connection.
• Users should never use a wireless connection to test speeds or operate VoIP services. It's best to connect the VoIP unit right to the modem provided by the ISP. This will enable users to immediately gain entry to their household or commercial network to investigate any problems, which protects against any remote disturbances that might hinder the test's ability to perform.
• If the speed test findings are still less than satisfactory, the problem is probably with the ISP. They will have to be directly contacted for assistance in order to ensure that a network can handle VoIP services. On the other hand, if the results displayed are sufficient, then it's probably safe to say that the residential and/or commercial network is causing the latency.
• In order to properly evaluate residential and/or commercial network problems, the PC will need to be connected straight to the unit that sends input to the modem, which would generally be the router. Once the connection between these two units has been established, the speed test must be performed once more. Adequate results indicate that the network supporting the router is the problem, at which point the ISP and router can be eliminated as possible factors.
• Next, users should check the upstream path of the network's wiring. It will be necessary to perform the same procedure mentioned above again on all the units that are linked to the network, which essentially means conducting a speed check on every unit until the results become poor. This allows users to identify the location of the issue in their network. At times, the remedy is something as easy as swapping out a worn Ethernet wire or damaged hardware component.