Flutter Packages for Slow Internet Detection

Тhere are several Dart/Flutter packages available for detecting slow internet connections. These typically work by pinging servers or measuring response times, rather than just checking if a connection exists (which connectivity_plus handles but doesn’t quantify speed or slowness). Below, I’ll highlight the most relevant ones based on popularity, features, and ease of use.

Recommended Packages

Package	Description	Key Features for Slow Connection Detection	Pub.dev Link
internet_connection_checker	A reliable library for checking internet availability and explicitly detecting slow connections via configurable timeouts.	– Enable slow detection with SlowConnectionConfig (e.g., threshold of 1 second). – Customizable pings to multiple addresses. – Streams for real-time changes. – Handles auto-refresh on reconnection.	pub.dev/packages/internet_connection_checker
network_speed	Real-time speed monitoring plugin for Android/iOS.	– Continuous speed updates (download/upload). – Network type detection (WiFi/mobile). – Uses native APIs for precision. – Define “slow” based on thresholds (e.g., < 1 Mbps).	pub.dev/packages/network_speed
flutter_internet_speed_test	Performs full speed tests with progress callbacks.	– Measures download/upload speeds. – Server selection and error handling. – Custom file sizes for tests. – Detect slow by comparing results to benchmarks.	pub.dev/packages/flutter_internet_speed_test
internet_speed_test	Simple plugin for on-demand speed tests.	– Integrates easily for spot-checks. – Returns Mbps values. – Useful for one-off “slow” detection before API calls.	pub.dev/packages/internet_speed_test

Quick Implementation Example (Using internet_connection_checker)

Add to pubspec.yaml:

dependencies:
  internet_connection_checker: ^1.0.0  # Check latest version

Basic usage to detect slow connections:

import 'package:internet_connection_checker/internet_connection_checker.dart';

void checkConnection() async {
  final checker = InternetConnectionChecker.createInstance(
    slowConnectionConfig: SlowConnectionConfig(
      enableToCheckForSlowConnection: true,
      slowConnectionThreshold: const Duration(seconds: 2),  // Adjust threshold for "slow"
    ),
  );

  final result = await checker.hasConnection;
  if (result) {
    print('Connected (fast or slow)');
    final isSlow = await checker.isConnectionSlow;  // Explicit slow check
    print('Slow connection: $isSlow');
  } else {
    print('No connection');
  }

  checker.dispose();  // Clean up
}

Other Utilities

• Custom HTTP-based check: No package needed—use http package to download a small file (e.g., 100KB) and calculate speed (bytes / time). See GeeksforGeeks tutorial for code.
• connectivity_plus: Great for basic connectivity (WiFi/mobile/none), and web support includes rough speed categories like ‘slow-2g’. But pair it with a speed tester for true “slow” detection.

For production, start with internet_connection_checker—it’s lightweight and directly addresses slow detection. Test on real devices, as emulators can skew results. 

Internet_connection_checker_plus package (version 2.9.1) does not have built-in functionality for explicitly detecting slow internet connections, such as an isConnectionSlow method or a configurable SlowConnectionConfig like its predecessor (internet_connection_checker).

Key Details from the Package

• Core Functionality: It excels at checking internet reachability via pings to configurable URIs (e.g., hasInternetAccess for one-time checks or onStatusChange stream for real-time updates). It supports custom timeouts in InternetCheckOption and custom success criteria (e.g., response status codes or even a full custom checker using Dio).
• Slow Detection Limitations: While you can implement slow detection manually (e.g., by measuring response times in a customConnectivityCheck function and setting thresholds), there’s no out-of-the-box support for it. This makes it less plug-and-play for your use case compared to the original package.
• Migration Note: This is a fork/rewrite of internet_connection_checker, but it dropped the explicit slow-check features to focus on speed and customization. If slow detection is essential, stick with the original or explore network_speed as I mentioned earlier.