I currently use PS3 Media Server to stream videos from my PC to my PS3. For the most part, it works a treat, however 1080p content is liable to lag, especially with low compression settings. It also tends to lag when I've got Bittorrent running, so I get the feeling that my network is the limiting factor here.

Wikipedia says the PS3 has a "gigabit Ethernet", which is faster then normal ethernet isn't it? The router, which is how my PC and PS3 are connected, only says "100mbps". So, I assume that if I were to get a new router that supports gigabit ethernet, then I should have much faster video streaming to my PS3, which means less lag right? Assuming my PC supports gigabite ethernet as well that is. The manual says the network adaptor is "10/100/1000 ethernet LAN on system board", so that's a yes, yes? So all I need is a router that supports gigabyte ethernet? I don't need new cables as well do I?

Is your PS3 hard-wired into the network, or is it running on wireless? It's gigabit ethernet, btw.

If it's actually wired in, you really shouldn't be having any problems. Try TVersity to see if you get any better experience.

What are the specs of the computer, and what specific brand and model of router do you have?

It's using wired.

I've tried TVersity, I found it's video quality and interface to be... Less than good.

Specs are:
CPU: Intel Core i7 960 @ 3.20 ghz
RAM: 9GB of DDRIII
GPU: 2x GTX 460s in SLI

More than capable I think.

My current router is a Netgear WGR614 v9

Aza, you need either a new switch or a new router. You can use a Gigabit switch with the existing router. No new cables needed. Just plug everything into the Gigabit whatever you buy.

Spend a few extra dollars on the switch. Many gigabit switches will link at the appropriate rates, but cannot actually pass that volume of traffic, stalling out as low as 100Mbps. Do some research before you buy.

Side note:

• Ethernet = 10Mbps
• Fast Ethernet = 100Mbps
• Gigabit Ethernet = 1Gbps
• 10-gigabit Ethernet = 10Gbps
• 100-gigabit Ethernet = More than anyone except you needs for hentai streaming

Switches? Wouldn't a router also do the job of a switch? That's what I've currently got, 'cuz I also use it to grant internet access to my consoles. It seems kinda silly to have two devices when you can have one that does both, unless there's a big price/performance difference to having two pieces of hardware.

Looking at my current hardware, it looks like 1gbps would be my limit, since it looks like that's all my PC, and PS3 can support. I'd probably need some new network hardware to get 100-gigabit ero streaming goodness woulden't I?

There is no consumer gear past 1Gbps speeds. The least expensive 10Gbps gear I've seen costs thousands, and 40Gbps and 100Gbps is brand-new, and probably will cost several tens of thousands of dollars for a small switch.

Sorry about referencing a switch without clarifying. Consumer routers do the job of a switch as well, but because they do dual-duty, they also do not often reach high numbers, while dedicated switches tend to be better at getting higher speeds. Do some research either way to find out what delivers the best numbers.

Okay, so you think getting a 1gps switch and connecting the PS3 and my PC with that is the way to go? What about internet? How do I get internet from my router, to the switch where the PS3 and PC are connected?

A switch simply need be connected via a network cable from a port on the switch to a port on the router. It's just a pass-through. Your router would still handle the internet traffic.

Okay then!

I'm looking at the pricelist of the PC shop around the corner from where I work, and I see they have a category for "5 gigabit switch". I assume that these switches support the 1gbps speed I'm after, with the "5" representing the number of ports it has? I have a choice of the following brands:
Tenda = $35
TP-Link = $48
Edimax = $43
Netgear = $48
D-Link = $52

Also, I've been reading up on switches, and I've seen some gigabit switches saying stuff like "2Gbps per port in full duplex mode". What the hell? Is it a 1gbps or a 2gbps switch, which is it?

simple answer, yes. It's 1gbps each way regardless, it's just marketing being an ass.

FireAza wrote:I've been reading up on switches, and I've seen some gigabit switches saying stuff like "2Gbps per port in full duplex mode". What the hell? Is it a 1gbps or a 2gbps switch, which is it?

Speeds are measured in three ways for marketing purposes: link speed (10Mbps, 100Mbps, 1Gbps), max theoretical transfer speed (like the 2Gbps in full duplex, sending and receiving 1Gbps at the same time), and maximum actual speeds (500Mbps actual throughput, for example). All are meant to mislead you to some degree, with the max actual throughput being the smallest lie. Here's why.

When working with network throughput, all traffic measurements are done using IP-based traffic. It makes sense, as it's the most common protocol. However, there are ancillary protocols to IP, the two most common of which are TCP (transmission control protocol) and UDP (user datagram protocol). These have differing levels of overhead, as the computer has to keep track of more information for TCP connections than for UDP connections. Frequently, companies will use uniform-sized packets with UDP to measure throughput. The packets are sometimes jumbo packets, too, which can be up to six times larger than standard packets, reducing overhead. It causes a huge headache for people like me trying to size enterprise-level equipment, and when it causes us headaches, the average home user is pretty much totally lost.

However, in the absence of all other information, trust the company that provides actual throughput. A crappy network chip can link at gigabit speeds but only move 80Mbps (0.08Gbps) on a good day and still claim to be gigabit. The best computers generally max out at around 600Mbps, mostly because they can't come up with data to feed the stream fast enough for very long, so the chips aren't designed to handle max link speeds.

Still, do some research. Something that moves 150Mbps may work just as well for you as something that can move 400Mbps, and be half the cost.

Thanks for that, Martin. So far, I haven't seen anything rated "150mbps" or anything in that range, it normally says "10/100/1000", so I'm probably stuck with 1000mbps.

You're still kind of missing it. When you see 10/100/1000, that indicates the link speeds that it can reach, so it falls into the first category of marketing. Most companies do not mention their actual throughput at the consumer level, and those that do are pricey. You'll have to look around for other people's experience with the products. For example, I have a little LinkSys gigabit switch model EG005W (or maybe E6005W) which seems to max out for me at about 150Mbps.

Side note: megabits per second is Mbps. When you use mbps, it technically means millibits per second. Coming from a metric country, you really should know that.

Arugh, so needlessly complicated...