Which of the following is most directly impacted by latency?

Latency refers to the delay before a transfer of data begins following an instruction for its transfer. It is fundamentally the time it takes for a data packet to travel from the source to the destination and back again. This delay directly affects how quickly data can be transmitted and received across a network.

When latency is high, users experience noticeable delays in data transmission, which impacts various activities such as streaming, online gaming, and real-time communication. The performance of data transmission includes aspects such as speed, responsiveness, and the overall user experience during data exchange, all of which are significantly influenced by latency.

Other factors like bandwidth availability describe the maximum amount of data that can be transferred over a network in a given amount of time, while network reliability pertains to the uptime and dependability of the connection. Hardware compatibility focuses on how well different computer components or systems work together. None of these factors deal directly with the time delay associated with data transfers, which is the essence of latency's impact.