I have a refurbished 2019 16-inch MacBook Pro that has worked normally since I got it in May 2025. A few days ago, internet performance became terrible while gaming in Windows through Boot Camp, even though my other devices and macOS connection are fine. In macOS, I get around 127 Mbps download speed with 19 ms ping, but in Windows I only get about 0.74 Mbps, which causes severe lag. I checked the DNS settings and saw 8.8.8.8 listed, and nobody else playing my main game seems to be having the same problem. What could be causing the slowdown in Boot Camp, and should I reinstall or update a Windows network driver or change a setting?
2 Answers
Check whether Windows is using the correct Boot Camp network driver rather than a generic one. Download the latest Boot Camp Support Software while in macOS or from Apple’s support site, extract it in Windows, and run Setup.exe from the BootCamp folder. Afterward, restart and test the connection again. It is also worth checking the Wi-Fi adapter’s Advanced and Power Management tabs: disable options that allow Windows to turn off the adapter, and try setting wireless mode or band preferences to match your router. If Ethernet works normally in Windows, that further confirms the issue is limited to the wireless driver or configuration.
Since the connection is normal in macOS but drops to less than 1 Mbps in Windows, the hardware and internet service are probably fine. This points to the Windows side of Boot Camp, especially the Wi-Fi driver or its power-management settings. Reinstall or update the Boot Camp Support Software and the wireless driver from Apple’s official Boot Camp downloads. In Windows, you can also open Device Manager, find the Wi-Fi adapter under Network adapters, uninstall the device, restart the Mac, and let Windows reinstall it. The 8.8.8.8 address is Google’s public DNS and is not unusual, but changing DNS will not normally fix such a massive download-speed problem.
That makes sense. I’ll focus on reinstalling the Boot Camp drivers first and check the Wi-Fi adapter in Device Manager. I was worried that seeing 8.8.8.8 meant something was misconfigured, but it sounds like the driver is the more likely issue.