diff --git a/buffer.go b/buffer.go
deleted file mode 100644
index 191c14855..000000000
--- a/buffer.go
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,85 +0,0 @@
-// Go MySQL Driver - A MySQL-Driver for Go's database/sql package
-//
-// Copyright 2013 Julien Schmidt. All rights reserved.
-// http://www.julienschmidt.com
-//
-// This Source Code Form is subject to the terms of the Mozilla Public
-// License, v. 2.0. If a copy of the MPL was not distributed with this file,
-// You can obtain one at http://mozilla.org/MPL/2.0/.
-
-package mysql
-
-import (
-	"io"
-)
-
-const (
-	defaultBufSize = 4096
-)
-
-type buffer struct {
-	buf    []byte
-	rd     io.Reader
-	idx    int
-	length int
-}
-
-func newBuffer(rd io.Reader) *buffer {
-	return &buffer{
-		buf: make([]byte, defaultBufSize),
-		rd:  rd,
-	}
-}
-
-// fill reads at least _need_ bytes in the buffer
-// existing data in the buffer gets lost
-func (b *buffer) fill(need int) (err error) {
-	b.idx = 0
-	b.length = 0
-
-	var n int
-	for b.length < need {
-		n, err = b.rd.Read(b.buf[b.length:])
-		b.length += n
-
-		if err == nil {
-			continue
-		}
-		return // err
-	}
-
-	return
-}
-
-// read len(p) bytes
-func (b *buffer) read(p []byte) (err error) {
-	need := len(p)
-
-	if b.length < need {
-		if b.length > 0 {
-			copy(p[0:b.length], b.buf[b.idx:])
-			need -= b.length
-			p = p[b.length:]
-
-			b.idx = 0
-			b.length = 0
-		}
-
-		if need >= len(b.buf) {
-			var n int
-			has := 0
-			for err == nil && need > has {
-				n, err = b.rd.Read(p[has:])
-				has += n
-			}
-			return
-		}
-
-		err = b.fill(need) // err deferred
-	}
-
-	copy(p, b.buf[b.idx:])
-	b.idx += need
-	b.length -= need
-	return
-}
diff --git a/connection.go b/connection.go
index 3531595fc..3ec060d96 100644
--- a/connection.go
+++ b/connection.go
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@
 package mysql
 
 import (
+	"bufio"
 	"database/sql/driver"
 	"errors"
 	"net"
@@ -22,7 +23,7 @@ type mysqlConn struct {
 	charset          byte
 	cipher           []byte
 	netConn          net.Conn
-	buf              *buffer
+	buf              *bufio.Reader
 	protocol         uint8
 	sequence         uint8
 	affectedRows     uint64
diff --git a/driver.go b/driver.go
index 4b699b1f0..f6f42660e 100644
--- a/driver.go
+++ b/driver.go
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@
 package mysql
 
 import (
+	"bufio"
 	"database/sql"
 	"database/sql/driver"
 	"net"
@@ -43,7 +44,7 @@ func (d *mysqlDriver) Open(dsn string) (driver.Conn, error) {
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}
-	mc.buf = newBuffer(mc.netConn)
+	mc.buf = bufio.NewReader(mc.netConn)
 
 	// Reading Handshake Initialization Packet
 	err = mc.readInitPacket()
diff --git a/packets.go b/packets.go
index 7c56245de..20324b963 100644
--- a/packets.go
+++ b/packets.go
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ import (
 func (mc *mysqlConn) readPacket() (data []byte, err error) {
 	// Read packet header
 	data = make([]byte, 4)
-	err = mc.buf.read(data)
+	_, err = io.ReadAtLeast(mc.buf, data, len(data))
 	if err != nil {
 		errLog.Print(err.Error())
 		return nil, driver.ErrBadConn
@@ -53,7 +53,7 @@ func (mc *mysqlConn) readPacket() (data []byte, err error) {
 
 	// Read packet body [pktLen bytes]
 	data = make([]byte, pktLen)
-	err = mc.buf.read(data)
+	_, err = io.ReadAtLeast(mc.buf, data, len(data))
 	if err == nil {
 		if pktLen < maxPacketSize {
 			return data, nil