I did it. I connected to a Virtual Studio server on app.jacktrip.org via Chrome browser on my iPhone. I know. I couldn’t believe it either. Mic drop.
But here’s the thing: the latency might not be desirable, and the audio quality might not either.
I say TRY IT! Play with it. See what you can do with it. Who knows if the Quality or Latency will ever be acceptable for everyone using a browser and cell phone to connect. We’ll never know or have the opportunity to improve without some courageous and adventurous spirits.
Connecting to studios via browser is certainly something that only works for some use cases & circumstances. We’ve found it mainly to be helpful for meetings, demos, or quickly just getting a feel for what JackTrip is all about without having to download software.
Unfortunately all web browsers on all platforms have certain limitations today that make the kind of low latency you can get with JackTrip’s desktop software impossible. I’m hopeful these will gradually disappear over time as WebAssembly becomes bigger and more widely adopted.
Furthermore, wireless Internet connections (of all types) have inherent problems with network stability and latency. You just don’t notice it most of the time because software compensates (at the expense of adding enormous latency). These will diminish with time. I’ve noticed that the latest standards being created are trying to address these things. But I suspect it will take longer because it requires major infrastructure updates across industries (forget 5G and WIFI6… 6G? 7G? 8G?).
To me, these are all just signs that JackTrip continues to push the edge and redefine what is possible in the realm of live musical collaboration. I feel we are constantly pushing up against the walls currently in place from Internet providers, audio hardware manufacturers, operating system vendors, etc. But these walls are constantly changing. What is not possible today will be tomorrow, and we’ll be here continuing to push that ball forward…