The mobile technology Long Term Evolution (LTE) provides for gaming on the go.
Not only high data rates contribute to an improved gaming experience and more sophisticated applications. Even low response times ensure smooth gameplay fun.
Netbooks, Smartphones, Tablets and Consoles
Netbooks and notebooks are based on your home PC when it comes to games, so single-player or multiplayer title, or even online games. Portable consoles like Nintendo DSi or the playstation Portable (PSP) was a few years ago exclusive consoles for mobile players. Meanwhile, however, they are beset by smartphones. As far as processing power and screen size to bring smartphones to more and more. Also controlling approaches to partially: Sony has released a smartphone that has a rather classic QWERTY keyboard and directional pad buttons for video games.
Many games today require an Internet connection, but generally very little bandwidth. The data for the game are stored on your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone. Between the game server and the computer of the player need only a few data are exchanged. Depending on the genre are the position data of the character, their actions and their impact on the game environment and the player. There need not a combination of a few hundred kilobits per second(Kbit/s). A stable connection via HSDPA also do this.
Latencies must fall
What’s important than the data rate is the reaction time. And input of the player must match the server of the online game will be transmitted. The response, which indicates the change in the game environment or to other players must be sent again on the way to the player. This delay is known as latency. The higher the latency, the more difficult the game is control. For games that require quick reactions, a high latency often means the difference between winning and losing, between fun and frustration.
LTE comes into play here. The mobile technology offers not only high data rates but also low latency that will finally compete with stationary terminals. During a DSL connection has 20-50 millisecond delay, it is the case of UMTS and HSDPA 170-200 still 60-80 millisecond. A lag of one or two tenths of a second sound like much, but in games quite noticeable and measurable impact.
With LTE latency to 20 milliseconds are possible. In this way, the delays between the input and reaction are hardly recognizable. Even for players who move into professional gaming leagues, LTE is a real option for Sun.
Onlive – An alternative
Another way of mobile gaming for LTE users could open in the future: the games-on-demand service onlive. This project from the USA is based on streaming as a method for uncomplicated video games. The game data is stored on high-performance computers in the server park of onlive. The hardware of the player must support the demands of the game not once, just for mobile surfers an argument, they are not usually traveling with technically upgraded PCS.
The game comes to video stream rather than on the device, where it is acoording to data from onlive in about one millisecond decompressed. The inpurts of the player as playing online games submitted to the online server and returns the result of interaction. To represent games in HD 720p resolution, you need at least 5-megabit connection, which also remains stable. And HSDPA connection not afford it. As with other games that take place online, with games on onlive the latency is a critical factor. The low latency and LTE are again an argument. Heading to play the latest, sophisticated graphic title on the netbook over an LTE connection, then perhaps is the way for mobile players.