As we've noted elsewhere, it is very important to connect your computer to your home router via an Ethernet cable versus using WiFi for Internet connectivity. This makes a very dramatic difference in the latency in your JamKazam sessions. Most computers until a couple of years ago came with a built-in Ethernet port into which you could plug one end of an Ethernet cable (the other end of the Ethernet cable connects to a port on your home router). Below is an image of what an Ethernet port and an Ethernet cable look like.
Recently, it has become much more common for modern computers to ship without an Ethernet port. So how do you connect an Ethernet cable to a computer that does not have an Ethernet port? The answer is that you need to get an Ethernet adapter for your computer. Modern computers that do not have Ethernet ports tend to ship with one or more USB-C (Windows) or Thunderbolt 3 (Mac) ports. This type of port and connector can be seen in the image below.
An Ethernet adapter for this type of port is shown below. These kinds of Ethernet adapters work just as well as a built-in Ethernet port.
Following are JamKazam's gear recommendations for Ethernet adapters. To be clear:
- You don't need one of these adapters if you already have a built-in Ethernet adapter on your computer.
- Your choice of adapter won't impact your latency in sessions - as long as you are using an adapter that is USB-C or Thunderbolt 3 compatible - so your choice of adapter is really up to you.
- JamKazam isn't selling these adapters to you, and we don't have an interest in which adapter you buy, so we don't have any conflict of interest or ulterior motive to push you in a particular direction. We are making recommendations to be helpful to our user community, in the hope of saving you research time, perhaps saving you money by helping you find a lower-priced product, and by pointing you at quality products that we have used ourselves.
- In the interest of full disclosure, JamKazam has set up an Amazon affiliate account, and the links to the products below use our affiliate code. This means that if you use the links in the tables below and buy any of these products, JamKazam will get a small % of the Amazon sale. The does not cost you anything, and it can help contribute a little money to helping us keep JamKazam running and improving.
OK, so on to the actual Ethernet adapters recommendations.
Ethernet Adapters
Adapter | Approx. Cost | Comments |
uni Adapter | USD$20 Amazon Link | This product has good build quality, and it's plug-and-play, so you don't have to install any software to make it work properly. We've used it with a variety of both Windows and Mac computers. Definitely check the compatibility specs on the page to make sure it will work with your computer. Also note that this adapter suggests you should use a Cat6 or higher Ethernet cable. |
Belkin Adapter | USD$30 Amazon Link | If you're using a Mac, it may be worth the extra $10 to get this product. We ran into one Mac with which the uni adapter above was incompatible. This Belkin adapter is what Apple itself sells in its Apple stores and on its Apple website for use with Macs. |