Latest news with #Speedtest
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Yahoo
Wi-Fi vs. Ethernet: What I Discovered Testing Them in My Home
Before I started my CNET broadband beat, my primary concern was whether my internet worked. I didn't think twice about the difference between Wi-Fi" target="_self and Ethernet, or what actually made my connection reliable. As I started learning more, I realized how much I had overlooked. What exactly is Wi-Fi? How does it compare to a wired Ethernet connection? The best choice depends on your needs, from your internet speed to how often you use the internet to what you use your broadband connection for most. (Gaming? Streaming? Simple web browsing?) It usually comes down to understanding the difference between advertised speeds and real-world performance" target="_self. After months of researching and writing about home internet as one of the newer members of the CNET broadband team, I decided to run my own tests. I compared my Ethernet and Wi-Fi connections at home. Here's what I found. Read more: Can you go one day without the internet? I tried it" target="_self First, let's clarify: Wi-Fi is a way to wirelessly connect to the internet. Whether cooking in the kitchen or sitting on the couch, a Wi-Fi connection will get your devices online without plugging them into your modem or router" target="_self. Ethernet is different. It's a wired network that gets plugged directly into your router and, from your router, directly into your devices, which can be inconvenient but often results in a more reliable, faster internet connection. Using Ookla's Speedtest, CNET's pick for the best internet speed test, I tried this out for myself by comparing my internet speed over Wi-Fi and Ethernet connections to see which was faster. You might be surprised at the difference; I certainly was. (Disclosure: Ookla is owned by the same parent company as CNET, Ziff Davis.) Over Wi-Fi, I was receiving download speeds of around 126 megabits per second. With Ethernet, my download speed immediately shot up to 395Mbps -- only 5Mbps away from what I'm actually paying for monthly from my internet provider, Comporium" target="_self. I never noticed much lag when streaming with Wi-Fi, but using an Ethernet cable made a noticeable difference in streaming and gaming. Movies, shows and live television loaded much faster on Hulu, HBO Max and Netflix. To maximize response time, I decided to plug my Ethernet cable into my PlayStation 5" target="_self indefinitely. Then I wondered, why was Ethernet faster than my Wi-Fi connection? Read more: Should you buy or rent your equipment? The wrong decision nearly cost me over $1K! In 1997, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers developed, released and patented the first version of Wi-Fi. Since that release, the Wi-Fi Alliance (which now holds the trademark for Wi-Fi) has developed evolved versions of Wi-Fi -- including current-gen Wi-Fi 7" target="_self -- that offer stronger and faster connections. Most routers will be equipped with Wi-Fi 6" target="_self or Wi-Fi 6E" target="_self, and although the connection may be stronger the closer you are to the router, you should be able to access the internet wherever you're located in your house. Some areas of the house may create Wi-Fi "dead zones" with lagging speeds even if you are on your provider's fastest plan. My CNET colleague Trisha Jandoc discovered this when troubleshooting her lagging gigabit speeds at home" target="_self. Dead zones are often inevitable when it comes to Wi-Fi, as frequency bands can't reach every room of the house without some kind of inhibition. You can also run into inferences from your neighbor's network or other wireless devices in your household, including all your smart-home gadgets, Bluetooth devices and more. It may help to purchase a Wi-Fi extender that broadcasts signals to every room, resulting in fewer dead zones and a more reliable internet connection throughout the house. Ethernet standards are also defined by the IEEE and the wired network was the primary way to link devices together and connect to the internet. Before Wi-Fi, Ethernet was your primary option for connection. A wired connection means you have to be near your equipment if you want to go online, but it is possible to wire your house with Ethernet cables, similar to cable wiring, although the procedure can be costly. Over the past decade, Ethernet has undergone many changes, and even more so with the increase of artificial intelligence. According to the Ethernet Alliance, due to the rise and demands of AI, Ethernet connection speeds are evolving and are projected to increase to 800 gigabits or (800,000 megabits per second) and beyond. That's quite impressive, though overkill for most households. Still, once it's easier to incorporate Ethernet cables into your work or gaming setup, you can imagine that consumers will want to ensure they're getting the fastest speeds in those spaces, consuming more bandwidth than others. Read more: My T-Mobile 5G Home Internet experience: The good, bad and the unexpected" target="_self Wi-Fi and Ethernet have advantages and disadvantages depending on your personal needs. Here's what you need to know. Pros Convenience Mobility Affordability Cons Congestion Limited range Security risks Pros Reliability Faster speeds Secure connections Cons Limited mobility Limited number of connected devices Cost It might seem like the cost of Wi-Fi and Ethernet would be similar -- since you're paying for the service, not the mode of internet connection -- but Wi-Fi is actually significantly cheaper than Ethernet. That mostly comes down to installation costs and the complexity of setting your home or office up for a wired Ethernet connection. For instance, installing an Ethernet setup often requires specific ethernet ports, costing anywhere between $100 to $200. On the flip side, Wi-Fi installation costs an average of $45 to $100. In addition, Wi-Fi can handle a lot more devices than regular Ethernet cables can. To make it worthwhile, you would have to install a switch box or Ethernet jacks around your house to connect multiple devices to the internet. Ethernet's main advantage is speed. Since your device is connected directly to the router -- compared to wirelessly through Wi-Fi -- you can expect faster bandwidth, which is how much data you can transmit through an internet connection. According to WOW Internet, while Wi-Fi 6 technology can support speeds of up to 9,600Mbps, speeds usually average around 1,600Mbps, whereas an Ethernet connection can offer speeds of up to 10,000Mbps. These speeds seem really promising, but in reality, your household may not even need it. Openvault's Q4 2024 report highlights that the average American household uses under 600Mbps in downloads and just over 800Mbps for larger households (four or more members). So, gigabit speeds (1,000Mbps) should be plenty enough for your home. Plus, if you want multi-gig speeds with the latest Wi-Fi technology, you should first make sure your router is compatible. Ethernet also boasts more consistent speeds since wired signals don't fluctuate as easily as wireless ones do. You also won't have to worry about latency issues or a lag in connection that sometimes occurs with local network congestion. Since lower latency improves online gaming, Ethernet provides a smoother experience for online gamers. One of Ethernet's advantages over Wi-Fi: the connection is safer and more secure. Hackers can more easily intercept data transmitted through Wi-Fi, but if they want to hack you over Ethernet, they need to physically connect to the router. We recommend using Wi-Fi due to its convenience and ability to be used anywhere. Using an Ethernet connection all the time is just not practical. Using Wi-Fi, you can access the internet from anywhere in your house without plugging into a router. Ethernet limits your mobility, which is unrealistic if you have several people connecting multiple devices. Testing my internet speeds with an Ethernet cable did help me pinpoint the root cause of my slow connection. Based on the drastic difference between the Wi-Fi and Ethernet speed tests, I determined that my Wi-Fi connection was to blame for the slow service, not my ISP throttling my speed. By plugging Ethernet cables into my PlayStation 5, I can use faster speeds and lower latency for an optimized gaming experience. I haven't taken any steps yet to boost my Wi-Fi signals, but I might move my router to a more central area of my apartment or get an extender to help my speeds stay consistent. Former CNET colleague Ry Crist looked into more ways to speed up your Wi-Fi, and you can bet I'll be taking his advice. Both Wi-Fi and Ethernet have their benefits when it comes to home broadband. Wi-Fi offers mobility and convenience, meaning you can access the internet anywhere in your home, while Ethernet provides faster and more secure connectivity. Most of us will be better off with Wi-Fi because our homes and apartments are filled with smart devices. Ethernet is a great tool to increase responsiveness, especially for gamers who want less lag with online gaming. Many households use Ethernet cables for certain devices, like gaming consoles or televisions, that are planted in one spot and need fast connectivity. Wi-Fi is the better option for mobile devices -- that way, you can take your phone or tablet anywhere without having to plug it in. Seven different Ethernet cables are available on the market: CAT5, CAT5E, CAT6, CAT6A, CAT7, CAT7A and CAT8. Each differs in purpose, cost and the distance they cover, so do your research before purchasing one for your home. Setting up an Ethernet connection is a pretty straightforward process. Most cables require you to plug one end into the router and the other into your device. You can access the internet once you change your adapter settings to the Ethernet connection. Ethernet offers faster speeds than Wi-Fi since your device will be directly connected to the router. Wi-Fi remains the more convenient option as you can use it anywhere in your home. Low latency is crucial for a lag-free online gaming experience. Therefore, an Ethernet connection would be the better choice here since wired signals feature more consistent speeds than wireless ones.
CNET
10-05-2025
- CNET
Wi-Fi vs. Ethernet: What I Discovered Testing Them in My Home
Before I started my CNET broadband beat, my primary concern was whether my internet worked. I didn't think twice about the difference between Wi-Fi and Ethernet, or what actually made my connection reliable. As I started learning more, I realized how much I had overlooked. What exactly is Wi-Fi? How does it compare to a wired Ethernet connection? The best choice depends on your needs, from your internet speed to how often you use the internet to what you use your broadband connection for most. (Gaming? Streaming? Simple web browsing?) It usually comes down to understanding the difference between advertised speeds and real-world performance. After months of researching and writing about home internet as one of the newer members of the CNET broadband team, I decided to run my own tests. I compared my Ethernet and Wi-Fi connections at home. Here's what I found. Read more: Can you go one day without the internet? I tried it My Wi-Fi vs. Ethernet home experiment First, let's clarify: Wi-Fi is a way to wirelessly connect to the internet. Whether cooking in the kitchen or sitting on the couch, a Wi-Fi connection will get your devices online without plugging them into your modem or router. Ethernet is different. It's a wired network that gets plugged directly into your router and, from your router, directly into your devices, which can be inconvenient but often results in a more reliable, faster internet connection. Locating local internet providers Using Ookla's Speedtest, CNET's pick for the best internet speed test, I tried this out for myself by comparing my internet speed over Wi-Fi and Ethernet connections to see which was faster. You might be surprised at the difference; I certainly was. (Disclosure: Ookla is owned by the same parent company as CNET, Ziff Davis.) Over Wi-Fi, I was receiving download speeds of around 126 megabits per second. With Ethernet, my download speed immediately shot up to 395Mbps -- only 5Mbps away from what I'm actually paying for monthly from my internet provider, Comporium. I never noticed much lag when streaming with Wi-Fi, but using an Ethernet cable made a noticeable difference in streaming and gaming. Movies, shows and live television loaded much faster on Hulu, HBO Max and Netflix. To maximize response time, I decided to plug my Ethernet cable into my PlayStation 5 indefinitely. Then I wondered, why was Ethernet faster than my Wi-Fi connection? Read more: Should you buy or rent your equipment? The wrong decision nearly cost me over $1K! No wires needed when you connect a device to a router using Wi-Fi. Maskot/Getty Images What exactly is Wi-Fi? In 1997, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers developed, released and patented the first version of Wi-Fi. Since that release, the Wi-Fi Alliance (which now holds the trademark for Wi-Fi) has developed evolved versions of Wi-Fi -- including current-gen Wi-Fi 7 -- that offer stronger and faster connections. Most routers will be equipped with Wi-Fi 6 or Wi-Fi 6E, and although the connection may be stronger the closer you are to the router, you should be able to access the internet wherever you're located in your house. Some areas of the house may create Wi-Fi "dead zones" with lagging speeds even if you are on your provider's fastest plan. My CNET colleague Trisha Jandoc discovered this when troubleshooting her lagging gigabit speeds at home. Dead zones are often inevitable when it comes to Wi-Fi, as frequency bands can't reach every room of the house without some kind of inhibition. You can also run into inferences from your neighbor's network or other wireless devices in your household, including all your smart-home gadgets, Bluetooth devices and more. It may help to purchase a Wi-Fi extender that broadcasts signals to every room, resulting in fewer dead zones and a more reliable internet connection throughout the house. Five Ethernet cables are connected to a router that can support as many as eight. PhotoWhat is Ethernet? Ethernet standards are also defined by the IEEE and the wired network was the primary way to link devices together and connect to the internet. Before Wi-Fi, Ethernet was your primary option for connection. A wired connection means you have to be near your equipment if you want to go online, but it is possible to wire your house with Ethernet cables, similar to cable wiring, although the procedure can be costly. What is the future of Ethernet? Artificial intelligence has the potential to push Ethernet speeds to 800Gbps and beyond. The Ethernet Alliance Over the past decade, Ethernet has undergone many changes, and even more so with the increase of artificial intelligence. According to the Ethernet Alliance, due to the rise and demands of AI, Ethernet connection speeds are evolving and are projected to increase to 800 gigabits or (800,000 megabits per second) and beyond. That's quite impressive, though overkill for most households. Still, once it's easier to incorporate Ethernet cables into your work or gaming setup, you can imagine that consumers will want to ensure they're getting the fastest speeds in those spaces, consuming more bandwidth than others. Read more: My T-Mobile 5G Home Internet experience: The good, bad and the unexpected Wi-Fi and Ethernet compared Wi-Fi and Ethernet have advantages and disadvantages depending on your personal needs. Here's what you need to know. Wi-Fi Pros Convenience Mobility Affordability Cons Congestion Limited range Security risks Ethernet Pros Reliability Faster speeds Secure connections Cons Limited mobility Limited number of connected devices Cost Which is cheaper? It might seem like the cost of Wi-Fi and Ethernet would be similar -- since you're paying for the service, not the mode of internet connection -- but Wi-Fi is actually significantly cheaper than Ethernet. That mostly comes down to installation costs and the complexity of setting your home or office up for a wired Ethernet connection. For instance, installing an Ethernet setup often requires specific ethernet ports, costing anywhere between $100 to $200. On the flip side, Wi-Fi installation costs an average of $45 to $100. In addition, Wi-Fi can handle a lot more devices than regular Ethernet cables can. To make it worthwhile, you would have to install a switch box or Ethernet jacks around your house to connect multiple devices to the internet. Which is faster? Ethernet's main advantage is speed. Since your device is connected directly to the router -- compared to wirelessly through Wi-Fi -- you can expect faster bandwidth, which is how much data you can transmit through an internet connection. According to WOW Internet, while Wi-Fi 6 technology can support speeds of up to 9,600Mbps, speeds usually average around 1,600Mbps, whereas an Ethernet connection can offer speeds of up to 10,000Mbps. These speeds seem really promising, but in reality, your household may not even need it. Openvault's Q4 2024 report highlights that the average American household uses under 600Mbps in downloads and just over 800Mbps for larger households (four or more members). So, gigabit speeds (1,000Mbps) should be plenty enough for your home. Plus, if you want multi-gig speeds with the latest Wi-Fi technology, you should first make sure your router is compatible. Which is better for gaming? Ethernet also boasts more consistent speeds since wired signals don't fluctuate as easily as wireless ones do. You also won't have to worry about latency issues or a lag in connection that sometimes occurs with local network congestion. Since lower latency improves online gaming, Ethernet provides a smoother experience for online gamers. Which is safer? One of Ethernet's advantages over Wi-Fi: the connection is safer and more secure. Hackers can more easily intercept data transmitted through Wi-Fi, but if they want to hack you over Ethernet, they need to physically connect to the router. Which is better overall? We recommend using Wi-Fi due to its convenience and ability to be used anywhere. Using an Ethernet connection all the time is just not practical. Using Wi-Fi, you can access the internet from anywhere in your house without plugging into a router. Ethernet limits your mobility, which is unrealistic if you have several people connecting multiple devices. Testing my internet speeds with an Ethernet cable did help me pinpoint the root cause of my slow connection. Based on the drastic difference between the Wi-Fi and Ethernet speed tests, I determined that my Wi-Fi connection was to blame for the slow service, not my ISP throttling my speed. By plugging Ethernet cables into my PlayStation 5, I can use faster speeds and lower latency for an optimized gaming experience. I haven't taken any steps yet to boost my Wi-Fi signals, but I might move my router to a more central area of my apartment or get an extender to help my speeds stay consistent. Former CNET colleague Ry Crist looked into more ways to speed up your Wi-Fi, and you can bet I'll be taking his advice. What's the bottom line? Both Wi-Fi and Ethernet have their benefits when it comes to home broadband. Wi-Fi offers mobility and convenience, meaning you can access the internet anywhere in your home, while Ethernet provides faster and more secure connectivity. Most of us will be better off with Wi-Fi because our homes and apartments are filled with smart devices. Ethernet is a great tool to increase responsiveness, especially for gamers who want less lag with online gaming. Wi-Fi vs. Ethernet FAQs Can I use both Wi-Fi and Ethernet? Many households use Ethernet cables for certain devices, like gaming consoles or televisions, that are planted in one spot and need fast connectivity. Wi-Fi is the better option for mobile devices -- that way, you can take your phone or tablet anywhere without having to plug it in. What are the different types of Ethernet cables? Seven different Ethernet cables are available on the market: CAT5, CAT5E, CAT6, CAT6A, CAT7, CAT7A and CAT8. Each differs in purpose, cost and the distance they cover, so do your research before purchasing one for your home. How do I set up an Ethernet connection? Setting up an Ethernet connection is a pretty straightforward process. Most cables require you to plug one end into the router and the other into your device. You can access the internet once you change your adapter settings to the Ethernet connection. Which is faster: Ethernet or Wi-Fi? Ethernet offers faster speeds than Wi-Fi since your device will be directly connected to the router. Wi-Fi remains the more convenient option as you can use it anywhere in your home.
Phone Arena
05-05-2025
- Phone Arena
Data shows that the Galaxy S25 series performs best on T-Mobile's 5G network
If you're a smartphone enthusiast, you're probably familiar with Ookla. That's the developer behind the Speedtest app which measures your phone's data speed on your network (cellular or Wi-Fi). Available for iOS and Android, the app allows you to see both the download and upload speeds. It also reveals the latency of your network via the "Ping" results which measure the reaction time of your internet connection. Ookla also publishes speed tests posting results of various network data speed tests conducted at certain times of the year. Recently, the developer, which is a subsidiary of the large Ziff Davis media company, decided to measure the performance of the Galaxy S25 series. The goal was to help those with older versions of Samsung's flagship line decide whether to upgrade to the latest model or sit tight for now holding on to their older handsets. However, the study revealed something else entirely. According to Ookla, all three Galaxy S25 models offer much faster performance on T-Mobile compared to Verizon or AT&T. This might not be a huge surprise to many since T-Mobile typically delivers the fastest 5G data speeds in the US. However, when you compare the same phone across all three major stateside wireless providers, the results are even more stunning. All Galaxy S25 models run faster in the US over T-Mobile's 5G network. | Image credit-Ookla On T-Mobile , the median 5G download data speed on the Galaxy S25 during February and March was 397.55 Mbps. The same phone running over Verizon 's 5G network had a median download speed of 232.81 Mbps and on AT&T , the speed was 136.97 Mbps. This means with the Galaxy S25 , T-Mobile 's performance downloading data was more than 75% faster than Verizon 's and 190% faster than AT&T 's. Older Galaxy S models also run faster on T-Mobile. | Image credit-Ookla The Galaxy S25+ also was faster on T-Mobile with a median download data speed of 411.72 Mbps. That was 52% faster than Verizon 's 271 Mbps and 122% faster than AT&T 's 185.27 Mbps. The top-of-the-line Galaxy S25 Ultra ran at a median download data speed of 449.54 Mbps over T-Mobile compared to 327.30 Mbps for Verizon and 225.40 Mbps for AT&T . Compared to Verizon and AT&T respectively, the Galaxy S25 Ultra is 37.3% and 99.4% faster connected to T-Mobile 's 5G cell network. Median upload speeds on the Galaxy S25 line also favored T-Mobile . However, when comparing the data with older Galaxy S Ultra models, the media upload speed on the Galaxy S23 Ultra was slightly faster on Verizon . Galaxy S25 series upload speeds are faster on T-Mobile. | Image credit-Ookla The real goal of the test wasn't to show that those who own one of the Galaxy S25 series handsets would be better off running the device on T-Mobile . The goal was to help owners of older Galaxy S models decide whether they need to upgrade to the Galaxy S25 line. The data shows that no matter the wireless provider used, the median download speeds on the 2025 flagship models are at least 100 Mbps than the median speeds of older versions of the same model. With one exception, older Galaxy S units had faster upload speeds on T-Mobile. | Image credit-Ookla Ookla also points out that even if you don't plan on ditching your current carrier for T-Mobile , all three carriers involved in the test had their fastest data speeds with the Galaxy S25 Ultra . Even if you have no plans to switch wireless providers, Ookla says, "There is still meaningful improvement in the network experience to be gained by staying on your current network." That is assuming you plan on buying the Galaxy S25 Ultra . There are situations pointed out by Ookla in its report where users can triple their current data speed by upgrading to a newer Galaxy S25 model and switching carriers. A look at the graphs that accompany this article should help you find a combination consisting of a newer phone, a higher tier model, and another wireless provider that together will deliver impressively faster performance than what you have been used to.
Forbes
20-03-2025
- Forbes
Apple's Latest iPhone 16e Beats iPhone 16 In These Critical Ways
The new iPhone 16e brought some surprises to the Apple phone range, including an all-new modem made in-house by the company, the Apple C1 instead of the Qualcomm modem used in the rest of Apple's range. Now, a study shows that the iPhone 16e outperforms the more expensive iPhone 16, based on the C1's performance. Apple iPhone 16e Ookla, a network intelligence company which you may know best for its highly useful Speedtest app, has monitored cellular performance data across different carriers and put the results into a study. 'Although it's early in the adoption curve for the iPhone 16e, we analyzed the performance of the new device from March 1st through March 12th, and compared it to the performance of iPhone 16, which has a similar design and the same 6.1' screen. Both devices run on the same Apple-designed A18 SoC. However, it's important to note that unlike the iPhone 16, the iPhone 16e does not support mmWave spectrum,' it says. That last qualifier is important because it means that since it doesn't support the much faster mmWave, that it can't compete in part of the spectrum. 'Some of the performance differences that Speedtest data picked up between the iPhone 16e and the iPhone 16 may also be attributed to the fact that the C1 modem doesn't have all the same capabilities that are featured in Qualcomm's modems,' Ookla said. Connection speeds compared on iPhone 16 and iPhone 16e. However, it doesn't mean that the C1 always lags behind. It depends which carrier you're with. The iPhone 16e outperformed the iPhone 16 in terms of download speeds for two carriers, AT&T and Verizon, but not for T-Mobile. 'When we examine Speedtest Intelligence® data for the bottom 10th percentile (those with the lowest overall download speeds) of iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 16 users, we see that iPhone 16e users experienced better download speeds compared to iPhone 16 users across all three mobile providers,' the report goes on. In other words, when your download speeds are not fast, they're actually faster on the iPhone 16e than the iPhone 16, whichever carrier you're using. And there was one way that the iPhone 16e and its Apple C1 modem consistently outperformed the Qualcomm modem in the iPhone 16: upload speeds. Ookla's measurements of iPhone 16 and iPhone 16e upload speeds 'We saw iPhone 16e users on Verizon and AT&T experiencing higher upload speed performance than those using the iPhone 16. T-Mobile users, however, experienced just slightly higher upload speeds on the iPhone 16e compared to the iPhone 16. The gap was the biggest with AT&T iPhone 16e customers, who experienced median upload speeds of 14.63 Mbps, which is at least a 38% increase over AT&T iPhone 16 users who experienced median upload speeds of 8.60 Mbps,' Ookla said. The Apple C1 modem also contributes to the iPhone 16e having exceptional battery life, beating the iPhone 16, for a start. While the results here may not sway potential customers to the more affordable model outright, it's interesting food for thought.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Yahoo
From DC to Doha: I Put Starlink Wi-Fi to the Test on a 12-Hour Flight
PCMag editors select and review products independently. If you buy through affiliate links, we may earn commissions, which help support our testing. DOHA, Qatar–Wi-Fi on international flights has usually been a solo or duo performance, but a cast of thousands delivered it on a recent Qatar-bound trip from Washington, DC. Having Starlink's vast constellation of low-Earth-orbit satellites provide connectivity on a Qatar Airways flight instead of the usual one or two satellites in far-off geostationary Earth orbit allowed for an enormous upgrade in speed and latency at no cost to me in seat 35A. It also subjected SpaceX's bandwidth to a much tougher test than my previous experience—a 2023 press flight on the boutique carrier JSX. Where that hour-long hop had only 17 passengers sharing space-based broadband, Saturday's 12-hour flight appeared to have every one of the 354 seats on this Boeing 777-300ER occupied. Starlink shrugged off that load, consistently delivering speeds fast and reliable enough to hold up against most airport and hotel Wi-Fi—if less than the 350Mbps Qatar Airways touted when it announced its Starlink partnership in October 2023. Eleven runs of Speedtest app from Ookla (owned by PCMag's parent firm Ziff Davis) yielded an average download speed of 108.14Mbps, with uploads averaging 29.57Mbps. Even at its slowest—a 27.7Mbps download measured after breakfast when almost everyone on the plane should have been online, and a 6.15Mbps upload in the middle of the night—Starlink's speeds comfortably exceeded most in-flight Wi-Fi services that I've tried. Ping times averaged 74ms, a tenth of what I see for 'GEO' satellites 22,000 miles away (compared to the roughly 350-mile altitude of Starlink satellites). The Android version of Speedtest also reported packet-loss figures that averaged 1.27% over seven readings. I noticed only two dropouts of service—one not long enough to interrupt Spotify streaming and another so brief enough that I only realized it had happened when my Pixel 9 Pro warned me that its US-only satellite emergency-messaging feature wasn't available. From looking at apps that I used as I would on the ground—meaning, no speed-testing utilities—there was no practical way to tell that my bandwidth came from tiny satellites zipping overhead at some 17,000 miles an hour instead of a wireless router plugged into wired broadband. An episode of The Diplomat on Netflix streamed over the web without interruption; for once, I didn't have to gripe about that service removing video downloads from its Windows app. YouTube clips also played smoothly. Photos I took uploaded to Flickr too fast for me to try to time their progress. And when I used Facebook Messenger to treat a friend to a livestream of our landing at Hamad International Airport here, the only issue was that app's comically inept autofocus blurring the video every few seconds. At the start of my trip to speak at Web Summit Qatar, Qatar Airways departed from the Starlink template of gate-to-gate service—an aspect the airline had touted in its October announcement of Starlink's debut—by not turning on Starlink until close to 10 minutes after our takeoff from Washington Dulles International Airport. Then an 'OryxComms' network—the same name Qatar uses for its regular, paid Wi-Fi—showed up on my phone, requiring neither a password nor a click-through screen. The same single-click connection worked on my laptop, a 2022 HP Spectre x360. A second, odder departure from broadband as usual came late in the flight, when I thought I'd download a photo to illustrate a story and found that the Getty Images site would not load at all on my PC. And then I got the same type of could-not-reach-the-site error on my phone. Activating the Private Internet Access VPN app on my phone let me connect to Getty Images, but then I couldn't reach the PIA site on my laptop to download that Windows app. That's when I realized I'd downloaded the app's installer months ago. Installing it let me connect to both Getty and PIA's sites. In retrospect, I should have tried changing DNS settings first. But even if you see no other need for a VPN service, you may want to keep a free VPN app handy for connection troubleshooting. (Before anybody suggests that SpaceX's politically divisive CEO Elon Musk might have ordered some interference, note that one of his least favorite news sites, NPR, worked just fine. SpaceX itself did not answer an email sent to its PR office asking what might have happened.) Qatar Airways is off to a fast start with its Starlink deployment, announcing Tuesday that by speeding up its installation times, it had been able to put Starlink on 30 of its 57 777s and will complete that rollout in the second quarter. 'We worked closely with the Starlink team to reduce this time from three days to nine and a half hours,' Badr Mohammed Al-Meer, group CEO at the Doha-based airline, said in a panel at Web Summit Qatar. 'By the end of this year, inshallah, Starlink will be installed on all our widebodies.' Not all are in service yet, but a list maintained by members of the frequent-traveler forum FlyerTalk shows Starlink confirmed active on 18 of those twin-engine jets, listed by the last three letters of their registration codes and with links to FlightRadar24 pages tracking those planes. Qatar doesn't break out Starlink availability on its own flight-status pages, but if you see a 777 with two flat rectangles barely protruding from the top of the fuselage aft of the wing instead of a larger dome forward of the wing, you're looking at a Starlink-equipped plane. The most significant of them for US travelers will be United Airlines, which announced in September that it would put Starlink on its entire fleet of 1,000-plus planes. In January, it said it would speed up this work and have the first Starlink-equipped commercial flight this spring. Hawaiian Airlines began putting Starlink on its planes last year and in September announced that it had completed that installation on all of its Airbus narrowbody and widebody aircraft, to be followed by upgrades to its Boeing 787 widebodies. Outside the US, Air France and SAS plan their own fleet-wide Starlink upgrades, giving passengers additional options for free Wi-Fi on long-haul flights. Meanwhile, SpaceX is continuing its own Starlink buildout. Less than half an hour after I began my journey from Dulles to Doha, 22 more Starlinks had a much faster and shorter ride from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California to Earth orbit atop a Falcon 9 rocket. With a subsequent Starlink launch on Thursday, that brings the total in orbit to 7,082, per the count kept by astronomer Jonathan McDowell. Disclosure: I moderated three panels at Web Summit Qatar, with the organizers covering my airfare and lodging.
