Fast speedtest, Slow Tethering

[Sailing Basta]

Hi,

I'm just trying to find some info in regard to T-Mobile service when using your device as a Hotspot. 

I get fast speedtests (upwards of 40mbps) but it seems like tethering may be capped at 0.5mpbs

Is there any way I can work around this issue. It appears that bandwidth testing services such as Ookla Speedtest, or TMN are on some sort of whitelist but everything else is capped. 

I'm using an unlocked OnePlus 2 running Android 6.0.1 and also trying to make my router work with the same sim card, a Huawei b593u-501. Same issue with the router, fast speedtests, but slow download using uTorrent or anything else on the web. 

[Sean]

It looks like they are doing some sort of traffic shaping, similar to the Irish Three network. 

 

First try using a different DNS such as Google (8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4) to rule out a slow DNS. 

 

The next suggestion would be to try the Data Saver plug-in with the PC's Chrome browser.  This will route your browsing traffic through Google's server, which is likely to be prioritised.  Unfortunately this will not improve downloads, which the browser does directly.

 

Another workaround is try a VPN service that uses OpenVPN.  As OpenVPN traffic is carried over port 443 (same as HTTPS), most ISPs will give the it the same priority as HTTPS.  If secure websites such as Amazon load up pretty quick, there is a good chance an OpenVPN based connection will get around the throttling.

 

HMA is one I know that supports connecting over pretty much any port number with OpenVPN.  So if the ISP is prioritising port 8080 (to prioritise Ookla Speedtest traffic), just make the VPN connection over port 8080.  I used this trick last year with the Three network until it stopped prioritising certain port numbers.