Spark's Big Pipe lets users prioritise streaming video, other types of traffic
Such technology usually used for ill.
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Infrastructure
Big Pipe, a no-contract ISP owned by Spark, has introduced an app that allows customers to prioritise one type of traffic over another.
The "Mode Selector" lets users choose between video streaming, browsing, downloading, communication and gaming modes. The Mode Selector shows what sort of traffic is being used at any given time, and mode changes take effect within seconds, Spark says.
The app is billed as giving users a never-before-seen level of control over their internet connections.
Certainly, it's good to see this type of technology used for good for a change.
Usually, it's been deployed to "shape" or stunt demanding types of traffic like video streaming during peak times, or when someone has got a little too enthusiastic about their unlimited data plan.
If you're having issues with your broadband connection, this Big Pipe app could be worth checking out.
But it can also be worth checking if you're on the best plan with your ISP for streaming video and if your modem/router and home wiring are up to scratch (and aging modem or creaky copper wiring are often slow broadband culprits).
The ultimate fix, however, is to ditch copper for a UFB fibre plan. Then different people in the same household can game, video stream, videoconference and cloud compute in the same household at the same time, with no buffering or stuffing around with an app.
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Spark's Big Pipe lets users prioritise streaming video, other types of traffic
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