Ping Issue (Comcast)

[BPhelps]

Hi, I've been using Comcast for a few years, but lately my cable internet seems to be turning a little.. flakey. Whereas I used to have no problem reaching a 25-40 ms ping in Steam run games, I now can't seem to break the 60 mark. What really annoys me is that when I bring my computer to my friend's house down the road (he's also on comcast cable,) I can get great pings. According to online bandwidth testers, his connection operates at a steady 4.5-5 MiB/s, whereas mine fluctuates so much its almost impossible to get a good reading. It's usually somewhere between 1000-3500 Mib/s. Now, I know his connection is faster than mine, but does that difference in bandwidth really account for getting half the ping at his house as at mine? I don't expect anyone to have a magical solution to this problem, because I'm sure its very complicated, but I was wondering:

1. Is there a RELIABLE bandwidth tester somewhere online or available for download?
2. Is there some specific connection speed factor besides overall bandwidth that has a large effect on latency in online games. Could I be lacking in this?

and most importantly:
3. If I complain to comcast (they claim my connection is fine), how can I convince them that them that there is a problem? What should I ask them to look at to show them that my connection is not all it should be? Or is this something I just have to live with?

[bAdWaYz]

As a customer of Comcast they should come out to your home even if they "don't think" there is a problem. The sad fact is you may have to call them every day for a week before you get any attention. Badwidth is only one factor in ping times alot of it has to do with how many computers between you and the server, ect ect. If you are not happy with your bandwidth by all means make Comcast come look at what you are seeing. Show the tech your ping times and speeds. Sometimes its tricky to find whats causing the issue. I had a friend not long ago that was having speed drops and connection outages at random. We got the cable guys out there they ran line tests and come to find out the drop down the street that his connection was running off had water in some of the connectors and housing. They fixed that and he's been happy since.