GPRS is often unusable in many locations, until the site is upgraded. And once you have 3G and 4G you don't need GPRS!
(I doubt anyone with a 2G only phone really uses data much).
(I doubt anyone with a 2G only phone really uses data much).
Vodafone and O2 4G experience thread
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Yes, I feel that GPRS used to be a bit faster but that's probably when we all had WAP phones and weren't trying to pull down full web pages.
Isn't it supposed to be good for around 20Kbps though. When ever I test it now it's either 1-3Kbps or doesn't connect at all.
Isn't it supposed to be good for around 20Kbps though. When ever I test it now it's either 1-3Kbps or doesn't connect at all.
Originally Posted by DevonBloke:
“Yes, I feel that GPRS used to be a bit faster but that's probably when we all had WAP phones and weren't trying to pull down full web pages.
Isn't it supposed to be good for around 20Kbps though. When ever I test it now it's either 1-3Kbps or doesn't connect at all.”
“Yes, I feel that GPRS used to be a bit faster but that's probably when we all had WAP phones and weren't trying to pull down full web pages.
Isn't it supposed to be good for around 20Kbps though. When ever I test it now it's either 1-3Kbps or doesn't connect at all.”
I've seen about 15kbps on EE and about 10kbps on Vodafone in Hampshire recently when forcing my android phone to 2G only.
But the problem with most modern websites is the sheer volume of scripting, which needs to be transferred and then executed in the browser. Makes the average web page about 200k when they used to be 10k to 15k when GPRS first arrived.
O2 GPRS just doesn't work in my experience. EDGE is fine-ish.
Vodafone GPRS and EDGE seem to work okay however. EE is the same.
Vodafone GPRS and EDGE seem to work okay however. EE is the same.
Originally Posted by Gigabit:
“O2 GPRS just doesn't work in my experience. EDGE is fine-ish.
Vodafone GPRS and EDGE seem to work okay however. EE is the same.”
“O2 GPRS just doesn't work in my experience. EDGE is fine-ish.
Vodafone GPRS and EDGE seem to work okay however. EE is the same.”
In Farnborough Vodafone GPRS is so incredibly slow that colleagues with Vodafone iPhones have disabled iMessage thinking its broken. Even WhatsApp doesn't work. O2 owning colleagues have a bit of 3G900 that solves the problem!
vodafone 4G is now quite good in Farnborough for those who have the right phone and price plan.
Oh so there's 3G900 in Farnborough now? I didn't know about that.
I don't think there is any in Aldershot.
I don't think there is any in Aldershot.
Although it very much depends where you're based, I'd generally say Vodafone 2G data doesn't work well. Many many places where there is no data throughput at all.
EE is also fairly poor. O2 on the other hand seems to work fine.
Whatsapp is the best test - it uses such a tiny amount of data it nearly always works, so if whatsapp doesn't connect then you've no hope of email or iMessage which seem to require slightly more data.
EE is also fairly poor. O2 on the other hand seems to work fine.
Whatsapp is the best test - it uses such a tiny amount of data it nearly always works, so if whatsapp doesn't connect then you've no hope of email or iMessage which seem to require slightly more data.
Originally Posted by Gigabit:
“Oh so there's 3G900 in Farnborough now? I didn't know about that.
I don't think there is any in Aldershot.”
“Oh so there's 3G900 in Farnborough now? I didn't know about that.
I don't think there is any in Aldershot.”
I'm assuming there is, as I know O2 users who get limited 3G where Vodafone is 2G. However most O2 users are now 4G enabled if their phone was capable, and O2 and Vodafone 4G has been in most of the town since Nov .
I don't think Winchester has much 3G900, if any. I only know of one place (Odiham) that has 3G solely at 900MHz.
Originally Posted by jchamier:
“Yes the red layer on the Vodafone coverage map is just dishonesty. At least in NE scotland the Vodafone GPRS and voice signal is very good, and works everywhere, but GPRS is still horribly slow, for corporate emails :-/”
“Yes the red layer on the Vodafone coverage map is just dishonesty. At least in NE scotland the Vodafone GPRS and voice signal is very good, and works everywhere, but GPRS is still horribly slow, for corporate emails :-/”
Not quite everywhere... there are areas (around Tarves, Methlick and Udny) where EE's 2G (ex Orange) is better. However, in Deeside, Voda's always been the best.
Before the Tmo/Orange merger and MBNL, for 2G overall coverage round here it would be Voda, then Orange, then O2, and T-Mobile was hopeless
Originally Posted by Gigabit:
“I don't think Winchester has much 3G900, if any. I only know of one place (Odiham) that has 3G solely at 900MHz.”
“I don't think Winchester has much 3G900, if any. I only know of one place (Odiham) that has 3G solely at 900MHz.”
It could be the 4G upgrade that has helped. I noticed Vodafone 3G has significantly improved in speed. The mast by the college / opposite Barons seems to be O2 originally and gained Vodafone 4G in Dec and I assumed was O2 3G900 as well. This is relatively new (last 3/4 years).
There is a similar one on the Costco roundabout, which I think is 3G only at the moment.
Originally Posted by moox:
“Tavistock in Devon (pop 11,000) appears to have VF 4G, but Exeter/Plymouth (100,000 and 200,000 ish) are not yet deemed worthy
IIRC there was some place in Devon that was a not-spot but one of the networks installed a mast and went straight to 4G while doing it. I can't remember if this was Vodafone and Tavistock though
(I wonder how long it will take to do Devon/Cornwall/Somerset - they seem to have otherwise blanketed Dorset in 4G - I know Cornerstone has been busy submitting planning permission applications to Cornwall Council)”
“Tavistock in Devon (pop 11,000) appears to have VF 4G, but Exeter/Plymouth (100,000 and 200,000 ish) are not yet deemed worthy
IIRC there was some place in Devon that was a not-spot but one of the networks installed a mast and went straight to 4G while doing it. I can't remember if this was Vodafone and Tavistock though
(I wonder how long it will take to do Devon/Cornwall/Somerset - they seem to have otherwise blanketed Dorset in 4G - I know Cornerstone has been busy submitting planning permission applications to Cornwall Council)”
Plymouth apparently will get the Vodafone 4G treatment around Easter.... Mind you, they haven't specified which year
Their 4G rollout seems very strange. Not following the usual paths.... Personally I'd be happier if they sorted out their 3G.
Yeah I noticed that Vod seem to just randomly activate masts just anywhere. Perhaps where backhaul is easiest? Having said that EEs can be a bit random probably for the same reason.
EEs coverage map is becoming increasingly inaccurate as well.
The recently activated mast near Harbertonford shows the whole village covered which I can assure you is not correct at all. When the Arqiva TV relay goes live then it will be.
Good to see VO2s 4G nearly rivalling EEs though in Jon Morris's Vid. I think, down here at least their 3G is relying too much on 3G900 which is pants in anybody's book.
EEs coverage map is becoming increasingly inaccurate as well.
The recently activated mast near Harbertonford shows the whole village covered which I can assure you is not correct at all. When the Arqiva TV relay goes live then it will be.
Good to see VO2s 4G nearly rivalling EEs though in Jon Morris's Vid. I think, down here at least their 3G is relying too much on 3G900 which is pants in anybody's book.
The 3G900 that gets activated at the same time as 4G is a different ballgame to the random rural 3G activations over the last year or so, which only do around 0.3-0.5meg.
The newer 3G900 coverage seems super powerful with a huge footprint per cell, and giving speeds around 6-7Mbps. I hope VO2 keep up the good work - I think in a few years they will be very different.
The newer 3G900 coverage seems super powerful with a huge footprint per cell, and giving speeds around 6-7Mbps. I hope VO2 keep up the good work - I think in a few years they will be very different.
Yes, for all my criticism of O2 and Vodafone on this forum and elsewhere, about having such a terrible 3G network, resting on its laurels for so long and falling WAY behind as a result of a lack of investment, things are now changing quite rapidly.
A year from now (and possibly sooner for a lot of people in major towns and cities) both O2 and Vodafone will be nothing like they were just a year ago.
It's about time, but I have to hope that once they do build a solid 4G network with upgraded 2G and 3G off the back of it, they don't then sit still and fail to invest in 4.5G and beyond or we'll have the same discussions in ten years from now.
Mind you, who knows if BT will maintain the level of investment that we saw with EE in ten years from now or just do the same thing; rest on its laurels and just watch the cash roll in without spending it on keeping up with demand and future technologies.
A year from now (and possibly sooner for a lot of people in major towns and cities) both O2 and Vodafone will be nothing like they were just a year ago.
It's about time, but I have to hope that once they do build a solid 4G network with upgraded 2G and 3G off the back of it, they don't then sit still and fail to invest in 4.5G and beyond or we'll have the same discussions in ten years from now.
Mind you, who knows if BT will maintain the level of investment that we saw with EE in ten years from now or just do the same thing; rest on its laurels and just watch the cash roll in without spending it on keeping up with demand and future technologies.
I notice that in Stoke / Staffs things are moving on Vodafone improvements bow as the Mono van is outside my local mast now and they have been working on it for 3 days laying the foundations. Assuming once all has set things will move daily quickly.
Vodafone installs 4G and O2 should follow shortly after, right?
Well, wrong. Alton has had 4G from Vodafone for a solid 6 months now and O2 still has nothing. Same with Alresford and Four Marks.
What's up with that?
Well, wrong. Alton has had 4G from Vodafone for a solid 6 months now and O2 still has nothing. Same with Alresford and Four Marks.
What's up with that?
Originally Posted by jonmorris:
“Yes, for all my criticism of O2 and Vodafone on this forum and elsewhere, about having such a terrible 3G network, resting on its laurels for so long and falling WAY behind as a result of a lack of investment, things are now changing quite rapidly.”
“Yes, for all my criticism of O2 and Vodafone on this forum and elsewhere, about having such a terrible 3G network, resting on its laurels for so long and falling WAY behind as a result of a lack of investment, things are now changing quite rapidly.”
Don't be too quick. I've seen Voda 4G perform very well, but turn off 4G and the phone gets a 3G signal that struggles to get anywhere near 1megabit speeds.
Given the need for a relatively new handset (lots of Moto G 3G handsets out for example) and a higher priced subscription - the poor 3G and lack of 3G coverage from both operators is still dramatic compared to the MBNL operators.
3G should be improved once the site has gone 4G though, unless it's just a congestion issue because Vodafone might still have a lot more 3G only users.
That's another reason why networks, including EE, should have been working quicker to move people over to 4G. By rights, they should have just given people 4G access without making them upgrade - but of course, they want some more money for giving people 4G access even if it is more spectrum efficient.
O2 should be better though. Half of its users don't even have a smartphone!
That's another reason why networks, including EE, should have been working quicker to move people over to 4G. By rights, they should have just given people 4G access without making them upgrade - but of course, they want some more money for giving people 4G access even if it is more spectrum efficient.
O2 should be better though. Half of its users don't even have a smartphone!
Originally Posted by jonmorris:
“3G should be improved once the site has gone 4G though, unless it's just a congestion issue because Vodafone might still have a lot more 3G only users.”
“3G should be improved once the site has gone 4G though, unless it's just a congestion issue because Vodafone might still have a lot more 3G only users.”
Not quite, U900 may be added at a number of sites when 4G goes live but that's really to increase coverage. Not provide a better or fast 3G service. It'll likely be quite slow.
Originally Posted by Gigabit:
“Vodafone installs 4G and O2 should follow shortly after, right?
Well, wrong. Alton has had 4G from Vodafone for a solid 6 months now and O2 still has nothing. Same with Alresford and Four Marks.
What's up with that?”
“Vodafone installs 4G and O2 should follow shortly after, right?
Well, wrong. Alton has had 4G from Vodafone for a solid 6 months now and O2 still has nothing. Same with Alresford and Four Marks.
What's up with that?”
Probably like stoke as Vodafone are doing it as not part of the cornerstone agreement.
I have a question about Vodafone. My phone will connect to EDGE in my house and when the signal weakens a bit it will switch over to GPRS.
My question is, why? They're both running over the same frequency right? I don't see why the phone would choose to switch to GPRS for no reason?
My question is, why? They're both running over the same frequency right? I don't see why the phone would choose to switch to GPRS for no reason?
Originally Posted by Gigabit:
“I have a question about Vodafone. My phone will connect to EDGE in my house and when the signal weakens a bit it will switch over to GPRS.
My question is, why? They're both running over the same frequency right? I don't see why the phone would choose to switch to GPRS for no reason?”
“I have a question about Vodafone. My phone will connect to EDGE in my house and when the signal weakens a bit it will switch over to GPRS.
My question is, why? They're both running over the same frequency right? I don't see why the phone would choose to switch to GPRS for no reason?”
Same reason your phone switches between 3G/H/H+
Originally Posted by clewsy:
“Probably like stoke as Vodafone are doing it as not part of the cornerstone agreement.”
“Probably like stoke as Vodafone are doing it as not part of the cornerstone agreement.”
Stoke is being done under Cornerstone Voda are the Lead installer but masts will be VODA/O2
https://planning.stoke.gov.uk/online...ILS-146237.pdf
Ive found 28 applications for CTIL/MBNL mast upgrades/ new installs on Stokes website!
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