To understand the advantages of USB over Wi-Fi for high-bitrate video streaming, let’s first explore the concept of Burst Traffic. While modern Wi-Fi often claims speeds of several hundred megabits per second (Mbps), video streaming at high bitrates introduces a unique challenge: Keyframe Bubbles.
Keyframes, which are significantly larger than other frames in a video stream, often exceed 200KB in size for 1080p resolution. At different frame rates, the instantaneous network throughput required to handle these keyframes is calculated based on frame interval:
At first glance, Wi-Fi networks appear capable of meeting these speeds when measured in seconds. However, when measured over time slices of tens of milliseconds, Wi-Fi struggles to sustain such speeds over long-duration streams.
For 4K resolution, keyframes are larger than those of 1080p, further increasing the demands on the network.
The result is often instantaneous frame rate drops or stuttering. If the receiver adopts an aggressive low-latency strategy, such stuttering becomes frequent. Conversely, if the receiver uses a scalable buffering strategy, accumulated latency becomes unavoidable.
Challenges and Industry Solutions
To address this challenge, the industry has developed techniques such as bandwidth shaping and controlling the size of I-frames(Intraframe Compression Optimization). However, these solutions often increase power consumption on both the sending and receiving devices and offer only limited improvement in sustaining smooth, low-latency video streams.
USB: The Simple Solution to a Complex Problem
USB streaming provides a simple, effective solution by naturally overcoming these challenges. Unlike Wi-Fi, USB requires no complex workarounds. It ensures consistent performance with near-zero latency, no packet loss, and reliable handling of bursts, even at high resolutions like 4K. Its straightforward design eliminates the need for power-intensive computations, making USB an ideal choice for professional-grade video streaming.
Conclusion
While Wi-Fi protocols like NDI offer the convenience of wireless streaming, their inherent limitations in handling bursts make them less suitable for high-bitrate, low-latency video streaming. USB, with its unmatched reliability and simplicity, remains the superior choice for delivering seamless, professional-quality streams.
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