You can now test your Internet Speed with your browser with Google
Google reacts differently to specific terms, as evidenced by searching for "speed test."
What occurs with this search is a box with a button that we may push to start a speed test of our Internet connection, as seen in the image above.
The outcome is similar to what we see when we go to fast.com, a Netflix-created speed test page that we previously covered.
Is the speed test accurate?
In our instance, the report from fast.com indicates a speed of 340 Mbps, even though we have a 600 Mbps fiber optic contract. The upload speed is 91 megabits per second.
According to Google, the download speed is substantially lower, at “only” 219 Mbps, while the upload speed is unchanged. The latency figures vary a lot from one solution to the next. We ran the tests 10 seconds apart, with no other data-consuming devices on the same network.
After repeating the test three minutes later, Google reports that we have a download speed of 315 Mbs, twice as fast as before, yet fast.com reports the same amount.
Is your data shared when you take the test?
M-Lab receives your IP address from executing the test, but no other personal information is exchanged. Google has worked with M-Lab to offer these results, and Google included the test results (including IP address) in its global Internet performance statistics collection. M-Lab makes this information public to enhance Internet research. Therefore it’s intended to be for a good cause.
