Latest news with #bandwidth
CNET
7 days ago
- CNET
Yes, Your Internet Provider Can Throttle Your Speeds. Here's How to Make It Stop
Slow internet can disrupt your workday, your gaming and even your doctor's appointments. Maybe you've noticed a dip in your upload and download speeds. While there are many reasons for a lagging Wi-Fi connection -- and some quick fixes you can try -- there's also a real possibility that your slow speeds are out of your control. Although technically illegal, your ISP could be intentionally throttling your internet connection. TL;DR: If you suspect this is happening to you, get a good VPN. Determine if your ISP is actually throttling your speeds Before we discuss internet throttling and how to stop it, review this checklist of other factors that may be contributing to your slow speeds. Start with these quick fixes: If that doesn't work, consider: Locating local internet providers If your equipment is already in top shape and your Wi-Fi setup is optimized, the next best solution may be upgrading to a faster speed tier, depending on how many heavy internet users are in the house. But if you've already run down the list of solutions and nothing is working, then the issue might be something your internet service provider is intentionally doing: bandwidth throttling. Wait, isn't internet throttling illegal? While technically considered an illegal practice, your ISP can still find ways to throttle your internet connection. The FCC's ruling on net neutrality was thrown out in the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, along with other rules about regulating the internet as a utility. That means, in some states, the practice might still technically be illegal. That said, ISPs can still get around that legal ruling pretty easily. For instance, throttling is technically still allowed if your internet plan has a data cap or your ISP's network is overloaded. Additionally, if your ISP gives notice about slowing your internet speeds, it can legally do so. A proven way to avoid internet throttling is to use a virtual private network. Providers need to see your IP address to slow down your internet and a good VPN shields that identity. This comes with some limitations and downsides, which we'll discuss below. Quick tips to help speed up your Wi-Fi at home Quick tips to help speed up your Wi-Fi at home Click to unmute Video Player is loading. Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Next playlist item Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:15 Loaded : 100.00% 0:00 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:15 Share Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. Quick tips to help speed up your Wi-Fi at home Troubleshoot your slow internet connection So your Wi-Fi is slow, and you think your service provider is throttling your connection. Let's troubleshoot your internet connection first to absolutely rule out other possibilities: Restart your router, check that the router is centrally located in your home, reposition its antennas and double-check your network security. If your laggy internet is caused by your router being too weak to reach a particular room, you can spend as little as $15 on a Wi-Fi extender or invest in a high-functioning mesh network, which we recommend if you're trying to optimize coverage to the whole house. If you've run through the laundry list and your Wi-Fi is still chugging slowly, move on to the next step. CNET/Viva Tung Find a reliable VPN If you've researched your internet health and are still stumped, the next step is to start researching VPNs. CNET's top pick for the best VPN on the market is ExpressVPN due to its excellent privacy transparency, usability and consistent fast speeds. If your internet provider is actually throttling your internet speeds, a VPN is one of the only ways to get around it. While your ISP can still throttle VPN traffic, the VPN will encrypt that traffic using different protocols. You may have to try out different VPNs to find one that works effectively. There are many reasons to get a VPN and just as many factors to consider when settling for one, like security, price and server locations. Keep in mind that using a VPN will still slightly slow your speeds, but you may experience less congestion and slowdown overall while using one. Compare your speed with the VPN Next, test your internet speed again using a service like or Compare the results with the same test when your VPN is active. Using any VPN will slow your speed considerably, so the speed tests should show a discrepancy, with the VPN-active speed being notably slower than the VPN-inactive speed. But a VPN also hides the IP address that providers use to identify you so if your speed test with the VPN is faster than without the VPN, that may mean your ISP is targeting your IP address for throttling. Fix your internet OK, this is the hard part because knowing where to start could be tricky. Even if you find out your provider is throttling your internet, there may not be much you can do. Many people in the US live in regions with ISP monopolies or duopolies, making finding a better provider difficult. But here are a few hopefully useful suggestions: If you do have options, consider switching to a better provider in your area. Not only will you potentially put speed throttling to rest but you may end up with faster speeds and a better deal. Check out our top picks for ISPs and high-speed ISPs in 2025. Use your VPN to maintain more consistent speeds. A VPN can't solve a bad connection or other reasons behind your slow service but it can mitigate throttling from unscrupulous ISPs. Call your provider and threaten to switch providers if they don't stop throttling your internet. This might seem old-fashioned and doesn't guarantee lasting results but some providers have responded positively to such tactics and you may be able to negotiate your way out of the throttling. What's the bottom line on internet throttling? It's never a complete guarantee that your ISP won't throttle your speeds down the line. If you've exhausted all the ways to improve your speeds and are still not noticing a significant change, we recommend switching to a different ISP available in your area. To learn more, check out our guide on the best internet providers near you. Bandwidth throttling FAQs What is bandwidth throttling and is it legal? If you're noticing a long buffering time when trying to stream your favorite television show, you might be experiencing bandwidth throttling. This happens when your ISP purposely slows down your internet speeds by controlling your bandwidth. The FCC's ruling on net neutrality was thrown out in the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals recently, along with other rules about regulating the internet as a utility. That means that although in some states, the practice might still technically be illegal, it is legal in other states. Plus, ISPs can easily get around that legal ruling. For instance, throttling is technically still allowed if your internet plan has a data cap or your ISP's network is overloaded. Additionally, if your ISP gives prior notice about slowing your internet speeds, they can legally do so. Why do ISPs throttle bandwidth? There's no exact answer to why ISPs limit some people's connections and not others. If a network is congested and you're using a lot of internet bandwidth, your provider might slow down your service to encourage you to pay for more data. Or, if you have a data cap and notice a laggy connection, your ISP might be limiting your service when you're near the end of the cap. DSL, cable and fixed wireless connections are more susceptible to network congestion. If available, we recommend going with a fiber connection. Read our top picks for the best fiber internet providers of 2025. In addition, check out our list of the best providers with no data caps. How can I check if my ISP is throttling my bandwidth? If you've checked your internet speed through an Ethernet connection and your results haven't improved, you might want to check if your provider is to blame. A simple connection speed test, like the one through Ookla or M-Lab, can show if your ISP is providing consistent performance no matter the content you're accessing.
The Verge
13-06-2025
- Business
- The Verge
PCIe 7.0 is coming, but not soon, and not for you
The PCIe 7.0 specification has now been released, while many of us are still waiting for PCIe 6.0 to materialize in consumer products. The PCI Special Interest Group (PCI-SIG) announced on Wednesday that PCIe 7.0 is now available to members of its organization, delivering a theoretical maximum bandwidth speed of 512GB per second in both directions, across a x16 connection. 'PCIe technology has served as the high-bandwidth, low-latency IO interconnect of choice for over two decades and we are pleased to announce the release of the PCIe 7.0 specification, which continues our long-standing tradition of doubling the IO bandwidth every three years,' PCI-SIG President Al Yanes said in the announcement. 'As artificial intelligence applications continue to scale rapidly, the next generation of PCIe technology meets the bandwidth demands of data-intensive markets deploying AI, including hyperscale data centers, high performance computing (HPC), automotive, and military/aerospace.' You may have noticed that consumer computing devices weren't included in that statement — the specification is targeting data-driven applications like cloud and quantum computing datacenters for now, and will take some time to even appear in those markets. PCI-SIG says that PCIe 7.0 will be backward compatible with previous PCI Express versions, but there's no mention of plans to bring it to everyday desktop SSDs or GPUs any time soon. That shouldn't be surprising, given the PCIe 5.0 spec that launched in 2019 only started trickling into consumer hardware two years ago, and is still fairly uncommon. Image: PCI-SIG
National Post
05-06-2025
- Business
- National Post
Alphawave Semi Tapes Out Breakthrough 36G UCIe™ IP on TSMC 2nm, Unlocking Foundational AI Platform IP on Nanosheet Processes
Article content First UCIe Die-to-Die IP Subsystem on TSMC's 2nm Process with CoWoS ® Advanced Packaging Technology Delivers 11.8 Tbps/mm Bandwidth Density and a Scalable Path for 64G Die to Die Interconnects Article content LONDON & TORONTO — Alphawave Semi (LSE: AWE), a global leader in high-speed connectivity and compute silicon for the world's technology infrastructure, announced the successful tape out of one of the industry's first UCIe™ IP subsystem on TSMC's N2 process, supporting 36G die-to-die data rates. The solution is fully integrated with TSMC's Chip-on-Wafer-on-Substrate (CoWoS ®) advanced packaging technology, unlocking breakthrough bandwidth density and scalability for next-generation chiplet architectures. Article content This milestone builds on the recent release of the Alphawave Semi AI Platform, proving readiness to support the future of disaggregated SoCs and scale-up infrastructure for hyperscale AI and HPC workloads. With this tape-out, Alphawave Semi becomes one of the industry's first to enable UCIe connectivity on 2nm nanosheet technology, marking a major step forward for the open chiplet ecosystem. Article content 'We're proud to lead the industry into the N2 era with the first UCIe IP on this advanced node,' said Mohit Gupta, Senior VP & GM, Custom Silicon & IP, Alphawave Semi. 'Our 36G subsystem validates a new class of high-density, power-efficient chiplet connectivity and paves the way for 64G UCIe and beyond—critical for AI and high-radix networking applications.' Article content Alphawave Semi's one of the industry's first UCIe IP subsystem on TSMC's 2nm process delivers 36G performance with 11.8 Tbps/mm bandwidth density, ultra-low power and latency, and advanced features like live per-lane health monitoring and comprehensive testability. Compliant with UCIe 2.0 standard and supporting multi protocols, including PCIe ®, CXL™, AXI, CHI and more with Alphawave Semi's highly configurable and efficient Streaming Protocol D2D Controller. Article content Alphawave Semi is advancing key ecosystem collaborations to enable groundbreaking technologies, leveraging D2D-based open chiplet interoperability to drive a broader AI connectivity platform for the industry. Alphawave Semi's UCIe IP on the TSMC N2 process affirms its position as one of the leading enablers of scalable, open chiplet ecosystems. Article content 'Our latest collaboration with Alphawave Semi underscores our shared commitment to driving advancements in high-performance computing through design solutions that fully leverage the performance and energy-efficiency advantages of TSMC's advanced process and packaging technologies,' said Lipen Yuan, Senior Director of Advanced Technology Business Development at TSMC. 'This milestone illustrates how close collaboration with our Open Innovation Platform ® (OIP) partners like Alphawave Semi can enable the quick delivery of advanced interface IP and custom silicon solutions to meet the increasing demands of AI and cloud infrastructure.' Article content Alphawave Semi is already executing on its plans to deliver next-generation UCIe solutions, with 64G UCIe support — empowering AI and HPC customers to lead in a rapidly evolving chiplet-driven landscape. Article content About Alphawave Semi Article content Alphawave Semi is a global leader in high-speed connectivity and compute silicon for the world's technology infrastructure. Faced with the exponential growth of data, Alphawave Semi's technology services a critical need: enabling data to travel faster, more reliably, and with higher performance at lower power. We are a vertically integrated semiconductor company, and our IP, custom silicon, and connectivity products are deployed by global tier-one customers in datacenters, compute, networking, AI, 5G, autonomous vehicles, and storage. Founded in 2017 by an expert technical team with a proven track record in licensing semiconductor IP, our mission is to accelerate the critical data infrastructure at the heart of our digital world. To find out more about Alphawave Semi, visit: Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content Media Contact: Article content Article content Claudia Cano-Manuel Article content Article content Article content
CNET
23-05-2025
- CNET
I Gave My Internet a Stress Test: Here's What Broke
The speeds your internet service provider sends to your home are rarely those you'll experience inside the house. Using Wi-Fi, connecting numerous devices to your network and performing bandwidth-heavy tasks, such as streaming and online gaming, will slow your speeds and you'll likely notice a difference between your ISP's advertised and actual speeds. If there's your internet connection is straining, there may not be enough bandwidth to go around for everyone. Maybe you've noticed intermittent drops in video quality on the TV while browsing TikTok videos on your phone. Or your online game lags when someone in the other room jumps on a video call. I've noticed the same, so I ran a few informal tests to see how my home internet would hold up to everyday activities. Streaming slowed my network as expected, but downloading a large file took a significant bite out of my connection, more than I thought it would. Here's what I found out . As I suspected, streaming brought my speeds down, but downloading a video game cut into my connection the most. Screenshot by David Anders/CNET I put my internet connection to the test When I disconnected all devices (around 30) from my network (except the one I used to run a speed test), Wi-Fi download speeds averaged around 590Mbps over three consecutive tests. For context, I have a fiber-to-the-home service with speeds up to 1Gbps. Once I reconnected everything, average speeds dipped by around 8% to 545Mbps. Nothing was actively streaming, but a few Wi-Fi cameras, a smart doorbell and a smart speaker or two were standing by for action. Locating local internet providers Next, I kept all devices online while Netflix ran on one TV and YouTube on another, each at 4K resolution. My speeds averaged 509Mbps, roughly a 15% drop. Unimpressed, I set up various kinds of streaming (4K videos, music on a computer and smart speaker, live camera feed on a tablet) on 10 devices at once. The drop was more extreme this time, down to 468Mbps, cutting my Wi-Fi speed by nearly a quarter. I then stopped the streams and tested speeds while gaming online and downloading a video game. The gameplay itself had little effect on my speeds, but downloading a game approximately 18.5GB in size battered my connection, dropping my Wi-Fi speed by roughly 42% to 339Mbps -- the most of any activity I tested. My home experiment wasn't in a controlled environment and there are a number of factors that could have affected the results. Still, there was no doubt my Wi-Fi speeds took a hit with each increase in device activity. What's hogging my bandwidth? Idle activity, even across 30 devices, had little impact on my Wi-Fi speeds, less than a 10% dropoff. On the other hand, streaming -- which is a form of downloading, even though you aren't saving a file -- begged for a bit more bandwidth. The higher the resolution, the more the stream will tax your internet connection. Streaming applies to more than what you're watching on TV. Swiping from video to video on social media is also demanding of your network, especially considering that many content creators are using 1440p resolution. In my home, an Instagram and Snapchat-frequenting iPhone is the second most data-consuming device. Straight downloading, particularly if it's a large file like a movie or video game, can also knock your network down a notch until the download is complete. It certainly did mine. How can you improve your connections? Bandwidth hogs will likely slow your Wi-Fi speeds similar to how they slowed mine. There are a few ways you can prevent your devices from sucking so much speed out of your connection. Most of them involve your router and its settings. Your router is the Wi-Fi headquarters When bracing your internet connection for bandwidth-hogging activities like streaming and downloading, start with the source of your Wi-Fi, the router. Depending on the type of router you have, there may be ways to improve connectivity to individual devices and your overall Wi-Fi performance. Some of these include: Activating QoS settings Changing the band and channel Keeping your network secure Upgrading your equipment Newer routers may offer a QoS, or quality of service, setting that prioritizes bandwidth to certain devices when needed. Some, like the routers designed for gaming, allow you to select the individual devices, such as a computer or console, to receive bandwidth priority. Additionally, most routers are dual-band, meaning they have separate frequencies used for Wi-Fi, 2.4GHz and 5 GHz, which will help reduce signal interference. You'll get a bit more range from 2.4GHz, but more speed from 5GHz. Make sure your low-demand devices, such as Wi-Fi cameras, video doorbells, smart light bulbs, etc. are riding on that 2.4GHz band, preferably on channels 1, 6 or 11. Save the 5GHz for more demanding devices and activities. If you have a Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7 router and compatible devices, you can take advantage of the ultra-wide 6GHz band for more throughput, lower latency and a more reliable connection overall. Asus/CNET The best routers will perform QoS and band designation automatically, but you may need to coordinate the Wi-Fi traffic manually. Most will allow you to adjust the settings via an app, but you can also access your router's settings by entering the router's IP address in your web browser. While you're in your router's settings, take some time to ensure your network is secure. It's possible that someone else's devices are leeching off your network and slowing your speeds. If you still aren't getting the speeds you need or expect, it may be time to upgrade your router. For those renting equipment from their provider, a quick call to customer service may be all it takes to get a newer, more capable router. Otherwise, consider purchasing a new router or adding Wi-Fi extenders to your network to improve whole-home coverage. Other ways to improve your Wi-Fi speeds If your router is optimized for peak performance but your speeds still fall short of your devices' demand, you may be able to boost your Wi-Fi speeds by: Using an Ethernet connection Moving closer to your router Limiting connected devices Upgrading your internet service We've seen firsthand the impact that using Ethernet versus Wi-Fi can have on speeds and connection quality. Using a wired Ethernet connection will improve performance on the plugged-in device and free up some space on your Wi-Fi network, allowing for more bandwidth to other devices. If you can't plug in, try moving closer to the router, if possible. Routers have a limited range, so you'll want to place it strategically and stay well within the range for the best results. Wi-Fi extenders or a mesh Wi-Fi system can boost your router's range. Every connected device in your router's range will tug at the Wi-Fi, so you may also want to consider limiting the number of connected devices. I'm not suggesting that you disconnect your tablet for the sake of your streaming stick, but your robot vacuum and smart pet camera probably don't need to stay online 24/7. Pausing the Wi-Fi connection on individual devices or scheduling time offline can help free up bandwidth for other devices. David Anders You should be able to toggle devices on and off your Wi-Fi network from your router's app. Most will also allow you to create a schedule for individual devices. You could schedule your pet cam to stay connected while you're away and automatically turn off when you're set to return, for example. On a similar note, many devices perform automatic updates, which could randomly strain your network. Turning off automatic updates will help prevent this issue, but if you do this, consistently check for updates and perform them manually; they often contain necessary security patches. Finally, switching your internet plan or provider will help ensure there's enough speed for all your devices. If available, consider upgrading not only to a faster plan but also to a more capable connection type. Cable is often faster than fixed wireless, and fiber is typically faster and more reliable than cable. My final thoughts Given the many ways you can improve your Wi-Fi connection, there's no need to settle for poor performance that can't keep up with all your devices. If one attempt doesn't solve the issue, try another until you're satisfied with the connection quality, capability and range. For more tips on how to improve your home internet connection, be sure to check out the CNET Home Internet page.
