Exploring web protocols for use on cellular networks : QUIC on poor network links

Abstract: New developments in web transport such as HTTP/2 and first and foremost QUIC promise fewer connections to track as well as shorter connection setup times. These protocols have proven themselves on modern reliable connections with a high bandwidth-delay-product, but how do they perform over cellular connections in rural or crowded areas where the connections are much more unreliable? A lot of new users of the web in todays mobile-first usage scenarios are located on poor connections. A testbench was designed that allowed for web browsing over limited network links in a con- trolled environment. We have compared the network load time of page loading over the protocols QUIC, HTTP/2 and HTTP/1.1 using a variety of different network conditions. We then used these measurements as a basis for suggesting which protocol to use during different conditions. The results show that newer is not always better. QUIC in general works reasonably well under all conditions, while HTTP/1.1 and HTTP/2 trade blows depending on connection conditions, with HTTP/1.1 sometimes outperforming both of the newer protocols.