Question:

How to solve high ping and packet loss caused by laptop charger?

I have a Dell G15 5515 Ryzen Edition laptop and I play online games like Valorant and CS:GO. Whenever I plug in my laptop charger, my ping goes up to 300 ms and my packet loss reaches 30%. As soon as I unplug it, my ping drops to 40 ms and my packet loss disappears. This does not happen when I use mobile hotspot instead of wifi. I have ruled out wifi issues by testing it on another device. I have also tried various solutions such as:

• Restarting the adapter and router
• Reinstalling wifi drivers
• Reinstalling the games
• Changing locations to get closer to wifi
• Resetting my PC with a fresh Windows installation

None

of these worked for me and I am still facing the same problem. I need some expert advice on how to fix this issue. Thank you.

Answer:

If you are a gamer, you know how frustrating it can be to experience high ping and packet loss while playing online games. Ping is the time it takes for a data packet to travel from your device to the game server and back. Packet loss is the percentage of data packets that are lost or dropped during transmission. Both of these factors affect the quality and smoothness of your gaming experience.

One of the most common causes of high ping and packet loss is network congestion. This happens when there are too many devices or users competing for the same bandwidth on your network. However, sometimes the problem may not be with your network, but with your laptop charger.

Some users have reported that plugging in their laptop charger causes their ping and packet loss to spike up, and unplugging it brings them back to normal. This is a very strange and annoying issue that can ruin your gaming sessions. But why does this happen and how can you fix it?

Why does laptop charger cause high ping and packet loss?

There is no definitive answer to this question, as different laptops may have different reasons for this behavior. However, some possible explanations are:

• Power saving mode: Some laptops may automatically switch to power saving mode when plugged in, which reduces the performance of the CPU, GPU, and other components. This can affect the processing speed of your network adapter and cause high ping and packet loss.
• Electromagnetic interference: Some laptop chargers may generate electromagnetic interference (EMI) that can interfere with the wireless signal of your wifi adapter. This can cause signal degradation and packet loss. This may also explain why using mobile hotspot instead of wifi does not cause the same issue, as mobile hotspot uses cellular data instead of wifi.
• Faulty or incompatible charger: Some laptop chargers may be faulty or incompatible with your laptop model, which can cause voltage fluctuations or overheating. This can damage your laptop components or cause them to malfunction, resulting in high ping and packet loss.

How to fix high ping and packet loss caused by laptop charger?

Depending on the cause of the problem, there are different solutions that you can try to fix high ping and packet loss caused by laptop charger. Here are some of them:

• Disable power saving mode: If your laptop switches to power saving mode when plugged in, you can disable this feature and set it to high performance mode. To do this, go to Settings > System > Power & sleep > Additional power settings > Change plan settings > Change advanced power settings > Wireless Adapter Settings > Power Saving Mode and set it to Maximum Performance for both On battery and Plugged in. You can also adjust other settings such as Processor power management and PCI Express to optimize your laptop performance.
• Use a different charger: If your laptop charger is faulty or incompatible, you can try using a different charger that is compatible with your laptop model and has the same voltage and current ratings. You can also try using a different power outlet or extension cord to avoid any potential EMI from other devices or wires.
• Use a wired connection: If possible, you can use a wired connection instead of wifi to connect your laptop to your router. This can eliminate any wireless interference and provide a more stable and faster connection. You can use an Ethernet cable or a USB-to-Ethernet adapter to do this.
• Update your network drivers: Sometimes, outdated or corrupted network drivers can cause high ping and packet loss. You can update your network drivers by going to Device Manager > Network adapters > Right-click on your wifi adapter > Update driver > Search automatically for updated driver software. You can also download the latest drivers from your laptop manufacturer’s website or your wifi adapter’s website and install them manually.
• Troubleshoot your network: You can also use the built-in network troubleshooter in Windows to diagnose and fix any network problems. To do this, go to Settings > Network & Internet > Status > Network troubleshooter and follow the instructions. You can also run some commands in the Command Prompt to reset your network settings and flush your DNS cache. To do this, open the Command Prompt as administrator and type the following commands, hitting Enter after each one:

“`

netsh int tcp set heuristics disabled

netsh int tcp set global autotuninglevel=disabled

netsh int tcp set global rss=enabled

netsh winsock reset

netsh int ip reset

ipconfig /release

ipconfig /renew

ipconfig /flushdns

“`

Restart your laptop and check if the issue is resolved.

Conclusion

High

ping and packet loss caused by laptop charger can be a very frustrating issue for gamers, but it can be fixed with some simple solutions. We hope this article has helped you understand the possible causes and solutions for this problem. If you have any questions or feedback, please let us know in the comments below. Happy gaming!