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There is an actual problem here, but wireless carriers use the actual problem of how to balance traffic as a fake cover for charging more. However, assuming we
by big_chungus 7y ago
There is an actual problem here, but wireless carriers use the actual problem of how to balance traffic as a fake cover for charging more.
However, assuming we bypass the garbage tiering, there is a legitimate reason to do this. Page-loads are simple and fast. Every one loading pages is not much of an issue, as they typically load at different times for a brief moment and then are done. This means for a rated connection speed, you don't need as much actual capacity.
Video streaming (or other downloads) are constant. To stream video at rated speeds, you must build to provide most users that speed at the same time. Problem two here is that in cases of high traffic, video streaming is greedy. If it's not going at full resolution, it will suck up all available bandwidth it is given. If more is given, it will raise quality (by default settings, at least).
A sensible solution to this is to stream video and audio over UDP and have the router just drop UDP when TCP needs bandwidth (to a point). The point is, requirements are different. People sending e-mails shouldn't have to wait a minute to send because you really want to stream your netflix every where you go and in 4k.
Which reminds me, I thought mobile connections were for simple stuff. Light browsing, email, what-have-you. Even with "unlimited" plans, you're throttled after twenty-odd gigabytes of data per month. Why can't people just download netflix in advance? Failing that, I'm not sure why people expect to use a wireless internet connection in the same way as a wired one.