4 ms·

"so I can instantly change my game session from my phone to my TV?" Clearly the latency advantage is the main benefit. Just as stated in the quote you used.

by golfer 8y ago

"so I can instantly change my game session from my phone to my TV?" Clearly the latency advantage is the main benefit. Just as stated in the quote you used. Can you explain why that is a horrible design choice?

johnyzee 8y ago
How does it improve latency? The device it is connected to is already internet connected and there is no meaningful latency between the controller and the device. So how does the on-board wifi help? Adding wifi to a device for no reason is horrible, I don't suppose it needs explaining.
- satysin 8y ago
  By directly connecting the controller to the service via WiFi it removes any potential issues with the device having to act as a proxy for the controller input. For their dedicated Stadia set top box it isn't a big deal (as they will control the hardware) but when used with phones, third party STBs and such it can be problematic. Google will have no control over the WiFi hardware in all these devices and many cheaper WiFi chipsets are buggy in a multi-device setup. Adding WiFi to the controller removes all those potential issues and allows them to tweak things to be as good as they can be for latency, power consumption, range, etc. (at least in theory anyway).
  - dougmwne 8y ago
    Yes, I was thinking along the same lines. It seems like the combined latency of bluetooth, passing that input through the OS, browser, then out to wifi could be considerable, especially if the machine's wifi and bluetooth chips are not optimized for low latency. Since Google makes the hardware of the controller, they can use all the lowest latency chips and drivers possible. I'd be very interested to see some latency benchmarking of the stadia controller vs an xbox controller. I'd also be curious if a future version of this controller could connect directly to an even lower latency 5G connection, bypassing the wifi router and cable/fiber modem and removing yet another latency question mark. Even when playing locally, input lag can be considerable, so this might be a very smart hack to make this streaming service playable with a larger range of games.
    - satysin 8y ago
      Yes 5G is what is on my mind also although that comes with different problems such as network access. How about a controller with an RJ-45 so I can plug directly into my router :)
- golfer 8y ago
  "no meaningful latency" --> citation needed. In gaming, every ms counts. "for no reason": I can think of a variety of ways it will be beneficial to the overall utility and simplicity of setup. Seems like an odd thing to be so negative about.

by golfer 8y ago

johnyzee 8y ago

How does it improve latency? The device it is connected to is already internet connected and there is no meaningful latency between the controller and the device. So how does the on-board wifi help? Adding wifi to a device for no reason is horrible, I don't suppose it needs explaining.

satysin 8y ago
By directly connecting the controller to the service via WiFi it removes any potential issues with the device having to act as a proxy for the controller input. For their dedicated Stadia set top box it isn't a big deal (as they will control the hardware) but when used with phones, third party STBs and such it can be problematic. Google will have no control over the WiFi hardware in all these devices and many cheaper WiFi chipsets are buggy in a multi-device setup. Adding WiFi to the controller removes all those potential issues and allows them to tweak things to be as good as they can be for latency, power consumption, range, etc. (at least in theory anyway).
- dougmwne 8y ago
  Yes, I was thinking along the same lines. It seems like the combined latency of bluetooth, passing that input through the OS, browser, then out to wifi could be considerable, especially if the machine's wifi and bluetooth chips are not optimized for low latency. Since Google makes the hardware of the controller, they can use all the lowest latency chips and drivers possible. I'd be very interested to see some latency benchmarking of the stadia controller vs an xbox controller. I'd also be curious if a future version of this controller could connect directly to an even lower latency 5G connection, bypassing the wifi router and cable/fiber modem and removing yet another latency question mark. Even when playing locally, input lag can be considerable, so this might be a very smart hack to make this streaming service playable with a larger range of games.
  - satysin 8y ago
    Yes 5G is what is on my mind also although that comes with different problems such as network access. How about a controller with an RJ-45 so I can plug directly into my router :)
golfer 8y ago
"no meaningful latency" --> citation needed. In gaming, every ms counts. "for no reason": I can think of a variety of ways it will be beneficial to the overall utility and simplicity of setup. Seems like an odd thing to be so negative about.