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Best Network in London?
[Deleted User]
Posts: 5
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Hello,
What is the best network in London for calls and fast Internet speeds? Can you tell what network will be the best for 4G when looking at the auctions and seeing what the networks bought?
I've tried EE and people who call me are constantly going to voicemail, when it does work they can barely hear me and cuts off quickly.. I thought this was the biggest network in the UK?
I'm considering 3 but how will their 4g speed/coverage compare with the others? Won't it get slower in time due to them offering it for free?
Cheers
What is the best network in London for calls and fast Internet speeds? Can you tell what network will be the best for 4G when looking at the auctions and seeing what the networks bought?
I've tried EE and people who call me are constantly going to voicemail, when it does work they can barely hear me and cuts off quickly.. I thought this was the biggest network in the UK?
I'm considering 3 but how will their 4g speed/coverage compare with the others? Won't it get slower in time due to them offering it for free?
Cheers
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BTW yes by market share EE is the biggest network in the UK but not sure how long they will hold on to that for with the best press and problems they having at the moment.
EE is best in London, have a look at the latest root metrics. I am with 3 and struggle to get a signal inside in central London.
Two different questions there, as 4G is great for internet, but doesn't do voice. If the 3G signal is poor then you could have crap calls but lots good 4G internet. (Some handsets you can force switch to 2G which might work, 4G capable iPhones can't sadly).
Get a PrePay SIM from each of the networks and try their calls/texts.
I hadn't considered that when I posted stupid of me hopefully VoLTE rolls out mid of next year like it meant to.
They both share with each other. Three have access to nearly all EE masts only ones they don't is the non-upgraded orange masts which they will have access to after they are upgraded. I can't imagine there is a lot of non-upgraded masts left in London now.
So why am I and everyone I know keep getting the same problems on EE? Wasn't it on watch dog too
So if EE provides the best coverage will 3 have the exact same service as EE without the high prices or doesn't it work like that?
In theory on 3G at least after all masts are upgraded there should be no difference in coverage between the two networks. The same in theory should be true of 4G as well. EE will just have a 2G network and faster speeds on 4G. At first it was assumed that Three would have a slow 4G rollout but with them saying 98% within two years it appears that won't be the case. EE is likely to get new technologies first for example LTE-Advanced and VoLTE. But in terms of coverage I can't see a reason why it would be any different.
that isn't exactly how it works.
EE & Three share each others masts so coverage should almost be identical but the backhaul/backbone is separate, so in the same place you stand you will likely get the same coverage (bars on your phone) but speeds you get can be very different.
For example when me on Three and my friend on T-Mobile (EE) stand in the same place, he gets around 14Mbps where as I usually get around 27Mbps.
To answer your first question, as I have both an O2 and Three phone, Three can be quite poor in some indoor areas but outdoor is far superior, this will likely become less of a problem in 2014 when Three add hundreds of new masts, it'll also become less of a problem if you have a 4G ready phone as it'll provide far superior indoor and wide coverage too.
I have noticed O2 can work quite well in homes with thick walls and underground homes, but noticed their speeds are terrible and their 3G can drop to 2G quite regular at least in my area of London.
EE has been on watchdog quite a lot lately in the last few months and friends have ended contracts with them due to calls dropping and going to voicemail so this is something to consider, Vodafone was also on watchdog recently for the same issue.
Overall I would advise to stay away from O2 as their track record is nothing to go by and they have the least amount of overall spectrum. Three is a very good contender as they are excellent value for money and have provided me a decent service over the last 8 years.
Your right I should of pointed out the coverage will be near identical the quality of the service will be different. In fairness it's not the backhaul that is different it is the cores.
thanks for pointing that out
Do you think Three service will decrease due to them being the only network to offer free 4g and unlimited data plan? I'm really thinking of doing a contract with them..
http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?p=68743718
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006mg74/features/ee-poor-phone-call-reception-4g
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00zkz1k/features/ee-network
3G in central London however is a different story, so it really depends on your requirements.
There 3G one certainly won't as 4G should increase capacity. If they can offer the same 4G experience as other networks that is not yet known.
in honestly I don't think it will decrease.
Firstly around 1.5 million of Three's 10 million customers already have a 4G ready handset so will automatically be bumped up relieving some pressure on their 3G network.
Also before we know it we'll have the next set of frequencies becoming active so will further improve the service.
As you said you have full service with Three, its worth testing it in areas you visit for bandwidth and coverage for about a month or so before entering any long contracts.
Just make sure if you do go for a contract with Three, try to go for a 4G ready handset if you can, it'll be worth it.
I completely agree with this if you can afford 23-9 a month I would get the Xperia SP brilliant mid range 4G device.
Cheers guys do you think 3 will drive all the other networks to make unlimited data plans or cheaper/free 4G?
Are you talking about EE 4G or orange and tmobile?
Mostly im talking about EE3G (t mobile, orange) but a lot of the issues customers are facing with EE are a mix of both
They have the largest amount of spectrum of any network. The 2600 will give them lots of data capacity in time. Their in-building coverage is already great due to 2G/3G on 900MHz.
No idea what you smoking but Vodafone do not have anywhere near the most spectrum. In total EE has 210MHz of spectrum or 2x105MHz. Vodafone have around 140MHz of spectrum. Three has around 70MHz and O2 has around 86MHz. Vodafone and O2 have the most low range spectrum I wouldn't argue with that but certainly not the most spectrum of anyone.
Spectrum means nothing if it's not backed up with local cell towers. They have always had a lot of spectrum but have been the worst network in the Root Metrics reports, huge numbers of dropped calls and shower data performance than others.
Agreed for years both they and Three had the most 2100MHz but it was never very good except in cities. Vodafone are in a brilliant position at the moment while rolling out 4G to update there hardware and hope they do honestly.
Given there is a lot of change right now as networks are upgrading, 4G is coming out, you could consider perhaps paying for a handset up front and going onto a 1 month rolling SIM only deal or similar? Then you retain flexibility to move around as circumstances change?
I've chosen three for now -- I used them back from 2003 onwards but took a little break on vodafone who's 3G data network is often very poor..... good to be back with data. I'm not in london though