The Lunsford Site

Interpreting Your Speed Test Results

Download is a measure of how fast your connection delivers content to your computer or local area network.

With most web pages and basic email programs you'll find little difference between, for instance, a 1.5MB download and a 3.0MB download. However, for large files or a connection used by a large number of people a lower download speed can be the difference between a quality broadband experience and a frustrating one.

Upload is the measure of how fast content is delivered from your computer or local area network to others on the Internet.

To achieve optimal delivery, download and upload speed should match or at least be very close. This is very important for applications like VoIP, email, on-line gaming and other interactive programs. Upload speed is even more important if you are operating an email, web or file server at your location.

Many broadband providers, especially cable and phone companies, see broadband as another broadcast medium and don't tailor their connections for optimal upload speeds. The bottom line is that it's important to not underestimate the importance of upload speeds, especially if you are a "contributor" of data to the rest of the Internet.

Kbps transfer rate = kilobit per second transfer rate. There are 8 bits in a byte, so we would divide kbps by 8 to get KB/sec transfer rate.

Broadband Isn't Just About Speed

Backbones and Core Networks: A fast connection doesn't mean much if your provider isn't proactively managing their core network. A good provider operates their own private backbone. Quality and size of Internet backbones the provider is connected to is also key.

To achieve optimal performance, broadband networks should be engineered from the ground up. Providers who are focused on high speed connections "from the edge to the core and back again" are better equipped to provide you with the best and most reliable broadband experience.

Latency and "Ping Times": At Speakeasy, we publish our real-time network data for our customers and the public. The information displayed is a measure, in milliseconds, of how long it takes a single small packet of data to travel from one location to another and back again. Data travels at nearly the speed of light, plus the time it takes to work its way through the core networking equipment (usually just a few milliseconds). Therefore, if your connection is well engineered you can expect the rough equivalent of 20ms per 1,000 miles (round-trip).

Low latency is extremely important for businesses and power-users, virtual private networks, VoIP and highly interactive applications like on-line databases or broadband gaming. If your usage demands low latency and your provider cannot or will not talk with you about ping times on their network (and therefore your connection) you should think twice about your choice of providers.

DNS Servers: When you type a domain name into your web browser (e.g., "www.speakeasy.net"), computers called "Domain Name Servers" attempt to quickly translate that domain name into a series of numbers called an IP address that your computer can understand. This is necessary for the website content to be located, requested and then delivered back to your browser.

DNS Servers are one of several components which help make your connection truly "fast". If these servers aren't functioning or are slow to respond, it can make your connection appear slow or even offline. Make sure your provider has both secondary and primary DNS servers for you to use. Do your own investigation. Try 'Googling' your provider's name and DNS to see if they have a history of problems, (e.g., search for "DNS Comcast").