UK mobile coverage is BETTER than EVER, networks tell Ofcom

Whist I fully agree with the 'wonkyness' of root metrics and the Ofcom report I'm calling you out on your absolute total BS. Mainly due to a lack of understanding how the technology works. It's true that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

I agree with EE that your comments are libellous. I used to work for an independent company which tests Tetra, 2G, 3G & 4G networks in the UK and in many other countries too. I can safely state your comments are absolute tosh.

It's worth knowing that an independent company are paid to perform over 30,000 test calls per month on the 'EE' network alone using custom build hardware that's in use on over 50 mobile networks worldwide. The raw data simply does not back up your statements.

Interesting you should say this, as I have long suspected it on my Tesco account - generally crap coverage when you try to use it even in a modest sized Scottish city, even when signal strength is apparently decent.

From my limited experience, I absolutely agree .

My work iPhone 5 on Orange has abysmal signal in the majority of places. Drop in my personal EE sim and magically I get substantially better signal both in terms of voice and data.

My wife is on Virgin Mobile with ok signal but then in goes a new payg EE sim and signal improves as if I had stood close to a cell tower.

I moved to EE from O2 who were a lot worse in my experience, on O2 I had minimal data and terrible voice (quality and failing calls) and also the dreaded 'no signal' even in London. Moved to EE and the signal is signifcantly better.

I'm not entirely sure where Rootmetrics test phones travelled to but I'd suggest that they missed the majority of the countryside areas - the Derbyshire dales, the lakes, Surrey hills, South Downs national park to name a few. Maybe they consider heathrow as rural these days?

ORANGE V EE

I can only agree with you. I'm one of those who has not upgraded, using 3G to connect on the internet is a painful and slow experience using an iPhone 5S. It will only connect 60% of the time.

Also I have been getting an increasing number of failed calls for instance in Sussex last week I was unable to make a phone call for three hours during the day because of 'call failures'.

I also get quite a few messages through telling me I have had a missed call, yet the phone next to me has never rang of indicated someone had tried to phone.

Yet using a 3 mobile card in my iPad mini I get far faster and more reliable connections even though both phones show full signal strength.

Using Orange feels like going back to old dial up internet. Personally I think Orange have nobbled the system in the hope people upgrade.

We know for sure that there are teirs...

...it's built in to the system, so that first responders such as firefighters, paramedics, and police get first dibs on cellular service in an emergency, or indeed, exclusive use is needed, so it's hardly a stretch to believe that the operators would have the capability to depriotitise traffic they consider of less worth, and of course it's also in their interests to make sure that their higher paying customers stay happy.

Whether it's the right thing to do, especially when denying it, is another matter of course.

A bit of transparency would be good...

... surely the carriers / MVNOs could be forced to be a bit more open about what the agreements are - the consumers should know what they are getting - do they sit in a 'tier' on the network and what tier it is. Then the consumer can make the decision as to whether we want to pay to be in 'higher' tiers - be it PAYG or contract, home carrier or MVNO.

There are clearly people stating tiers don't exist, but all I can say from my own personal experience with O2 PAYG (my usage being light data - browsing, etc.) - in the same locations: O2 was OK, giffgaff was consistently poor (almost unusable) and Tesco has been OK as well. Others will no doubt say the opposite, but the networks should tell us what is going on.

Grab the tinfoil hats!

There is cetainly provision in the GSM standards for levels of service, but this is only used by EE to differentiate between the public and the emergency services.

Any differences you see between the phones are probably (i) subjective, (ii) due to config differences betwen the SIMs/accounts, i.e. different APNs, (iii) due to the size of test subjects, i.e. 2 handsets and 2 sims do not scientific testing make. (iv) due to some other technical reason, i.e. taking a differnent route through the EE core network.

I will agree though that subjectively, the EE network has progressively got worse over the last 5 years (both data and voice).

Finally, I think it's more likely that EE won't go to to court with you because they simply can't be bothered.

Re: good coverage Pah!

"Can the networks please sort out their existing coverage. 1 bar is not good enough in a large town."

And you think they will?

OFCOM seems content to regulate on the basis of network owners insisting that they offer a circa 98% success rate, when from the article quotes user experience of intermittent service (that I suspect we can all attest to) and dissatisfaction levels that in my view are unduly high - although that depends how easily pleased you are with around one in five users dissatisfied.

The problem is that the physical network owner/operators have a nice slice of the pie each, the cost of infrastructure represents a huge barrier to entry, and with no effective competition or regulation the service they can just sit on the behinds and laugh at their customers. MVNOs create a veneer of competition, but as that's just a reseller arrangement it offers no incentive to the network owners to improve their offer.

Re: Hope not.

Using a mobile which is not attached to the dashboard with a hands free kit is illegal whilst operating a car. If you are using a handsfree kit it is legal - and with voice commands you can send texts and do data tests as well.

Re: Independent Survey?

An Independent Reg survey?

Sounds like a plan. Actually one we already have well underway. Watch this space.

As a mark of comparison while Ofcom reports 98.9% Call completion rates, fixed lines are touted as offering "five nines" availability, that is 99.999%

Simon

Re: confused by ...

The meaning is simple, only 1 in 100 does not make mobile calls even though they have a device that allows them to do so. These may be people using only SIP/VoIP.

"I have a suspicion that coverage maps are based on old data"

With a good measure of wishful thinking thrown in I think. The coverage map for the area my sisters house in Kent shows unbroken outdoor coverage for my network, with some patchy indoor coverage. The reality is I've never once had a signal within a 3 mile radius.

The networks have long been accused of using out of date maps, which if true would be more of a problem in the case of Tmobile/Orange. Since they merged to form EE, they've been weeding out "duplication" of masts, which according to residents in some of the areas affected, wasn't duplication at all as masts weren't necessarily on top of each other and changes fail to account for terrain blocking signals. If EE maps are still pimping the same coverage without accounting for the lost masts, they're being disingenuous at best.