Calling all gamers

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vodacom3g

Vodacom Representative
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(mostly) Plattekloof, Cape Town
I'd like to get some more, detailed feedback on those of you that see latency issues, especially in games:

We've been trying to understand why some gamers are experiencing problems with lag and high latency:

- What is the problem (lag, latency, ping, disconnects)
- What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)
- Which data card are you using
- Is it a new problem or has it always been
- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours
- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you
- The modem type and firmware rev.
- The APN you used

mods, can you stick this up for a while?
 
- What is the problem (lag, latency, ping, disconnects)
Lag and Latency and ping. If i have 120 ping on speedtest.net then i can play decently otherwise the lag is too frustrating I used to get 80 ping before.
- What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)
Call of Duty 4 and 5
Unreal Tournament 3
Forza motorsport

Mostly COD4 due to the fact that we can host locally

- Which data card are you using
E272 (cradle) with Poynting antennea. If i disconnect the antennea then i get EDGE only and it will not connect.
- Is it a new problem or has it always been
It as gotten worse over the last 3 months
- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours
All times during the day but its far worse during peak hours it has somehow degraded
- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you
I am currently in the Bluff Durban LAT 29deg 55'02''S Lat 31deg 00'33''E
- The modem type and firmware rev.
E272 VMC 9.3 and MDMA as located on this site
- The APN you used
Currently using Unrestricted as it improved my gaming experience by giving me an OPEN NAT on my XBOX i went from "Internet" to "InternetVPN" and finally to "Unrestricted" I struggle to get HSUPA right from the start although my signal is -75 db i have to connect and disconnect a couple of times to get a faster upload than 25 with HSUPA i get approx 1190 avg. This is something new that i noticed.

Any other questions i would be happy to oblidge!

Check this out as well: http://www.xbox-360.co.za/forum/xbox-live-specific-topics/36025-calling-all-3g-gamers.html
 
Last edited:
- What is the problem (lag, latency, ping, disconnects)
Lag is bad, latency is high, even local is ridiculous for a paying service.

- What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)
FPS like cod4 mostly but racing (forza 2 and grid) aswell. Turn based and RPG on xboxlive is almost non existent.

- Which data card are you using
Tried 2 x Vodafone E220 and 1 x E270.

- Is it a new problem or has it always been
Lol latency and response times for wireless 3G/HSDPA have never been decent, I don't think its an issue with MTN or Vodacom I have a feeling its the technology, but I could be wrong.

- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours
All hours of the day. Been playing at 3am and 4am and there was no improvement.

- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you
Durban is all I will give.

- The modem type and firmware rev.
E220 original firmware, then upgraded to the 7.2MB version.

- The APN you used
Tried internet, vlive and internetvpn. Have not requested unrestricted be opened on my sim because of the security risk.

PS: Been using MTN and Voda for xboxlive gaming for about a year now so it's not a one month trial by any means.

My signal strength is really high for both Voda and MTN, since the towers are just up the road, yet i experience the same grievances with both providers. Other issues are 619 errors which popup at least once a week. Another major downside to HSDPA is the cost of bandwidth and the lack of data carry over. Some months I would buy 2GB (to save money) and would only end up using 600MB for the month and so you end up wasting money and bandwidth.

The final Solution for me was to get WiMAX since no ADSL is avaliable. My latencies are the same as adsl and there is data carry over. I can't go back to HSDPA unless there is some major improvement or advantage.

Regards.
 
killer1973 said:
- What is the problem (lag, latency, ping, disconnects)
Lag and Latency and ping. If i have 120 ping on speedtest.net then i can play decently otherwise the lag is too frustrating I used to get 80 ping before.
- What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)
Call of Duty 4 and 5
Unreal Tournament 3
Forza motorsport

Mostly COD4 due to the fact that we can host locally

- Which data card are you using
E272 (cradle) with Poynting antennea. If i disconnect the antennea then i get EDGE only and it will not connect.
- Is it a new problem or has it always been
It as gotten worse over the last 3 months
- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours
All times during the day but its far worse during peak hours it has somehow degraded
- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you
I am currently in the Bluff Durban LAT 29deg 55'02''S Lat 31deg 00'33''E
- The modem type and firmware rev.
E272 VMC 9.3 and MDMA as located on this site
- The APN you used
Currently using Unrestricted as it improved my gaming experience by giving me an OPEN NAT on my XBOX i went from "Internet" to "InternetVPN" and finally to "Unrestricted" I struggle to get HSUPA right from the start although my signal is -75 db i have to connect and disconnect a couple of times to get a faster upload than 25 with HSUPA i get approx 1190 avg. This is something new that i noticed.

Any other questions i would be happy to oblidge!

Check this out as well: http://www.xbox-360.co.za/forum/xbox-live-specific-topics/36025-calling-all-3g-gamers.html
Click to expand...

Firstly, thanks for wanting to help instead of just moaning!

Can you easily get hold of a non-UPA modem? Would like to try a few tests. If not, we can probably get one to you.
 
I have a E270 usb modem but i cannot connect it to the antennea.

I'll be happy to assist if you want me to run some tests.
 
- What is the problem
I can get HSDPA signal, but as soon as I connect the 3g cards kick back to 3G. I get a 298 Ms ping to JHB from CT. Download is 963 kb/s and upload is 88 Kb.s

- What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)
COD4

- Which data card are you using
E620 with a Linsys router

- Is it a new problem or has it always been
No, Only started a month or so ago and find it is getting worse.

- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours
most of the time, But find that it slighty approve conection from 00:00.

- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you
Kuilsrivier - Close to Zevenwacht Wine Farm

- The modem type and firmware rev.
HUAWEI E620 and can not find any upgrade software fo rthe unit.

- The APN you used
I use internet and InternetVPN, But makes no diffrents. Have not tried Unrestricted.

For any other questions, please feel free to ask me. Would realy like to get this solved as I like my 3G and Linksys system. :D:D

Regards

MajSkollie
 
Last edited:
- What is the problem (lag, latency, ping, disconnects)
Lag: comes in spikes, only happens after 3 or 4pm
Latency: 100~120 spiking to >4000 at times
Disconnects: None/Hardly Ever
When mail, MS Messenger, Browsing forums etc and gaming lag tends to be less of a problem


What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)
FPS: Team Fortress 2 (SGS servers 120~160 ping)
Strategy: Warcraft 3 (war3.co.za 100~140 ping)
All Xbox Live capable games (eg Halo 3, PGR 3, etc)

- Which data card are you using
Option Xpress Card (3G+)
I still have my old option card and router if you want tests done on those.

- Is it a new problem or has it always been
Playing Team Fortress 2 previously had some spikes but not bad, now it spikes badly so I havent played for a while. Started playing Warcraft 3 online almost 3 months ago and had lag issues most of the time, though at times it seems worse.

- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours
There is definitely less problem during the day, but at times even during non-peak times there is issues.

- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you
S26 06 00.8 E27 55 43.6

- The modem type and firmware rev.
Linksys WRT54G3G and the latest firmware upgrade, Poynting antenna currently pointing at Honeydew shopping center (clear LOS to tower)

- The APN you used
internet
 
Last edited:
killer1973 said:
- What is the problem (lag, latency, ping, disconnects)
Lag and Latency and ping. If i have 120 ping on speedtest.net then i can play decently otherwise the lag is too frustrating I used to get 80 ping before.
- What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)
Call of Duty 4 and 5
Unreal Tournament 3
Forza motorsport

Mostly COD4 due to the fact that we can host locally

- Which data card are you using
E272 (cradle) with Poynting antennea. If i disconnect the antennea then i get EDGE only and it will not connect.
- Is it a new problem or has it always been
It as gotten worse over the last 3 months
- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours
All times during the day but its far worse during peak hours it has somehow degraded
- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you
I am currently in the Bluff Durban LAT 29deg 55'02''S Lat 31deg 00'33''E
- The modem type and firmware rev.
E272 VMC 9.3 and MDMA as located on this site
- The APN you used
Currently using Unrestricted as it improved my gaming experience by giving me an OPEN NAT on my XBOX i went from "Internet" to "InternetVPN" and finally to "Unrestricted" I struggle to get HSUPA right from the start although my signal is -75 db i have to connect and disconnect a couple of times to get a faster upload than 25 with HSUPA i get approx 1190 avg. This is something new that i noticed.

Any other questions i would be happy to oblidge!

Check this out as well: http://www.xbox-360.co.za/forum/xbox-live-specific-topics/36025-calling-all-3g-gamers.html
Click to expand...
I'm testing some GPS software. Does your road start with a W? ;)
 
vodacom3g said:
I'd like to get some more, detailed feedback on those of you that see latency issues, especially in games:

We've been trying to understand why some gamers are experiencing problems with lag and high latency:

mods, can you stick this up for a while?
Click to expand...

- What is the problem (lag, latency, ping, disconnects):

The problem i have is all of the above. It varies during the day. Sometimes get lag spikes of up to 30 seconds. Latency varies, 1 minute i i get under 100ms, the next minute it shoots up to 4500 to 6000ms, then later gradually builds down. Sometimes it goes up and down for like hours which can be rather frustrating. On the other hand sometimes the problem comes from the Server ISP as well. Regarding the disconnects, i've noted this issue before, is when the modem just suddenly drops to R99 for no reason then i get disconnected from the server.

- What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)

The game i'm playing is WoW. MMORPG. Its a private server locally hosted.

- Which data card are you using

Using an E220.

- Is it a new problem or has it always been

Its always been erratic. 1 day it works, 1 day it doesn't.

- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours

All times of the day, but i suspect some of the problems come from the Server ISP, not just from Vodacom 3G.

- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you

From 9am to 6pm in Somerset West, From 7:30pm till late in Gordon's Bay.

- The modem type and firmware rev.

HSDPA 3.6 E220, Firmware 11.110.05.00.

- The APN you used

Both the internet and internetvpn APN's.
 
Hey hey help at last!!!!

- What is the problem
latency starts off just peachy and then after about 20 lines of ping responses it jumps from a steady 130ms to a steady 260ms. Signal mostly 4 bars on VMC

- What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)
COD4 (FPS xbox live)

- Which data card are you using
E620 in desktop pc using pc card adapter.

- Is it a new problem or has it always been
Was beautiful a couple months back, but is only getting worse.

- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours
week days appear to be better, end of month is ridiculously bad, 8pm is also bad

- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you
Cape Town - Monte Vista - close to N1 city

- The modem type and firmware rev.
HUAWEI E620 and 11.18.02.60.00

- The APN you used
Switch between internet and internet vpn with definite differences in reliability and latency. Unrestricted apn is totally unreliable.

Another funny thing is that on the internet apn i get assigned 64kbps upload and on internet vpn i get 384kbps upload. WIERD WIERD WIERD!

Please help US
 
- What is the problem (lag, latency, ping, disconnects)
Horrible Horrible Lag, I would give my left nut to get latency below 100ms. I was playing with an HSDPA phone and i get full 3g signal (am in Port Elizabeth)

- What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)
COD4 and Forza 2 (have given up now though, i cant bare to play with 2 second lag)

- Which data card are you using
e272 modem or my hsdpa nokia cell.

- Is it a new problem or has it always been
At times it is ok, but over the last month it has become unplayable

- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours
Only ever played at night, usually after 9pm

- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you
Newton Park, Port Elizabeth (very close to cape road)

- The modem type and firmware rev.
Not sure

- The APN you used
What is this???
 
- What is the problem (lag, latency, ping, disconnects)
Irregular latency. Disconnects from switching between UMTS and HSDPA. Sometimes for no reason will simply drop right into GPRS, terminate the session and wont reconnect until i unplug device, close mobileconnect application and start over.

- What game are you playing (is it a FPS, real-time or turn based etc)
MMORPG: WoW
RealTime: GTA4 and MGS4 (PS3)

- Which data card are you using
Huawei e220 (Neutral)

- Is it a new problem or has it always been
Havent been using service long enough to know if always. Has been since i started using it though (2 months)

- Is the problem experienced at all times of the day or only during peak hours
To a lesser extent, it becomes more of an issue during peaktimes, but relatively small changes.

- The exact location so we can also check the site covering you
Chestnut Crescent str, West Acres, Nelspruit

- The modem type and firmware rev.
Huawei e220, E220Update_Firmware_11.117.09.00.00, as per Huawei's site.

- The APN you used
Internet. Have tried Unrestricted, never connects. Tried InternetVPN, same as Unrestricted.



Thx, hope it helps.
 
For the past few days I have seen a marked improvement in lag, so have a few of the guys that we pay against. Latency has remained around the 120 - 180 mark.
 
rabbiddog said:
For the past few days I have seen a marked improvement in lag, so have a few of the guys that we pay against. Latency has remained around the 120 - 180 mark.
Click to expand...

Sadly, International bandwidth such as used by WoW, remains unstable, unpredictable and all-around bad.
 
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