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Vodafone and O2 4G experience thread
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Pedro_C
02-01-2016
I was in the barber shop today and was doing the usual activity of browsing BBC News, The Register etc and it was all loading relatively quickly. Then I look up and find that the device is on GPRS, Giffgaff GPRS. There's only outdoors 2100MHz at this location (Old O2 mast) so this is not surprising, but the fact data was working certainly was!

However, the phone in this case the giffgaff phone was my Bluebird Pidion BIP-6000 with Windows Embedded. This does not have apps per se and therefore does not send/receive any background data, so all is available for the web browser.

I then pop the Giffgaff sim in my S5 and can't browse the websites at all, even with images off. However, I look at device bandwidth and it's happily sending and receiving background data which appears to be using all the bandwidth up!
beans0ntoast
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by DevonBloke:
“Nah, it's so crap down here it doesn't work anywhere.
Actually I think O2 in Totnes is 2100 so it probably works a bit. But none of the 3G900 does.
I was in Morrisons in Totnes with my cousin who's on Vodafone. She was trying to redeem some voucher or some crap (she's mental about vouchers, yeah, whatever).
Full Vodafone EDGE and no data. Nothing. We rebooted iPhone... nothing!
She had to use my iPhone 6 on EE.
Same mast, 3-4 bars 3G, about 12 meg.”

From what I've read up on here, 3G2100 and 3G900 both needed to be active, and on pretty much all of the masts, for the 3G900 to be effective. 3G900 covers quite a large area, due to the lower frequency. If there is only a couple of masts covering a huge area, each masts is going to have a lot of handsets on it and could potentially be swamped if the capacity or backhaul isn't available. Hence why the 3G900 would result in a slow speed.

Based on what you said about Voda's EDGE in Totnes (in the EE thread), I could guess that wasn't going to work! That Totnes mast needs fully upgrading to 3G/4G with 3G2100 as well as 3G900. MBNL's 2100 network is a good performing network in terms of data speeds, and coverage as well (due to more masts in use) - if Voda had done the same, and used 3G900 for further coverage improvements, then they wouldn't be in the mess that they are in now.
Thine Wonk
02-01-2016
There's some familiar names on that forum
lightspeed2398
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by DevonBloke:
“Yes please. Jolly well done.
South Devon. Part of Dartmoor and below. You can include Plymouth and Torbay (west and east) but there are an awful lot of us in between.....
Then if anyone wants to know where that splodge of 3G/4G is near Kingsbridge, it's here.
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.28...7i13312!8i6656”

https://imgur.com/a/tJhsp

There you go Devon. Might be slightly out of alignment but gives you a very good idea of the work to be done. I'm sure if you compare EE 4G with that you will have ammunition for the Vodafone forum for months
moox
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by Vodafone fanboy:
“The South Hams is an area with a thin population in terms of density - 250 per square mile. Compare that to Essex where I am that has a density of 1,040 per square mile - and we have a lot of largely rural areas. My own home town, Southend on Sea, has a population density of 11,040 per square mile.”

Yes, and yet EE / 3 can bathe lots of sparsely populated areas in 3G and even 4G using a frequency band that is less suited to that type of rollout. The world's largest mobile network operator and its 900MHz spectrum needs a new excuse.
beans0ntoast
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by lightspeed2398:
“https://imgur.com/a/tJhsp

There you go Devon. Might be slightly out of alignment but gives you a very good idea of the work to be done. I'm sure if you compare EE 4G with that you will have ammunition for the Vodafone forum for months ”

That's a bit of an embarrassment too!

Vodafone (and O2, to that extent) definitely have a lot of work to do to get anywhere near the same coverage as EE/3. Vod/O2 should have aggressively rolled out 2100MHz, and then aggressively rolled out 3G900 once agreed to do so.
DevonBloke
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by beans0ntoast:
“From what I've read up on here, 3G2100 and 3G900 both needed to be active, and on pretty much all of the masts, for the 3G900 to be effective. 3G900 covers quite a large area, due to the lower frequency. If there is only a couple of masts covering a huge area, each masts is going to have a lot of handsets on it and could potentially be swamped if the capacity or backhaul isn't available. Hence why the 3G900 would result in a slow speed.

Based on what you said about Voda's EDGE in Totnes (in the EE thread), I could guess that wasn't going to work! That Totnes mast needs fully upgrading to 3G/4G with 3G2100 as well as 3G900. MBNL's 2100 network is a good performing network in terms of data speeds, and coverage as well (due to more masts in use) - if Voda had done the same, and used 3G900 for further coverage improvements, then they wouldn't be in the mess that they are in now.”

The mast is a pig to get a maps image of. It's here https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.42...7i13312!8i6656
Totnes town directly to the right. The mast can be seen from 80% of it.

Here it is dead centre of the picture. you can just about make it out in the trees. Bloody crappy Google cameras! it's an Arqiva TV relay off the main Marldon Transmitter.
This is taken from the Plains. Main street behind 100 metres or so and to the right.
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.42...7i13312!8i6656

http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/gallerypage.php?txid=185

EE 2G/3G
Three 3G
Vodafone EDGE
O2 3G2100 (I think).
Pedro_C
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by DevonBloke:
“The mast is a pig to get a maps image of. It's here https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.42...7i13312!8i6656
Totnes town directly to the right. The mast can be seen from 80% of it.

Here it is dead centre of the picture. you can just about make it out in the trees. Bloody crappy Google cameras! it's an Arqiva TV relay off the main Marldon Transmitter.
This is taken from the Plains. Main street behind 100 metres or so and to the right.
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.42...7i13312!8i6656

http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/gallerypage.php?txid=185

EE 2G/3G
Three 3G
Vodafone EDGE
O2 3G2100 (I think).”

O2 and Vodafone are both using 900MHz panels in the tx.mb21 pics. Coverage map indicates 2100MHz 3G yes
DevonBloke
02-01-2016
There is also an MBNL monopole here on the Industrial estate which you can see is already covered by the Arqiva mast from this picture. It's a fill-in for capacity.
No sign of 4G here yet, Still the same single cab.
http://s9.postimg.org/degu6gmcv/screenshot_10.png

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.43...7i13312!8i6656
clewsy
02-01-2016
Are you lot being naughty and winding up the forum police over at Vodafone? Lol
DevonBloke
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by clewsy:
“Are you lot being naughty and winding up the forum police over at Vodafone? Lol”

Yes, but hey, they might take their foot off the brakes then don't you think.
DevonBloke
02-01-2016
Who's this shady character lurking buy the Totnes monopole??
Not you is it Peter????
Hahahahahahaha
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.43...7i13312!8i6656
DevonBloke
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by Pedro_C:
“O2 and Vodafone are both using 900MHz panels in the tx.mb21 pics. Coverage map indicates 2100MHz 3G yes”

Cheers, yes, thought it was.
Only bloody 2100Mhz in the whole of rural South Devon then.
Marvelous!
Stereo Steve
02-01-2016
Vod EDGE has never worked in Totnes. There are plenty of threads on the VOD forum about it (unless they have been deleted). It just does not work. At all. O2 have a bit of 3G and I did once manage to check my bank but that was a struggle.

The apologists on the VOD forum are ridiculous and if that is the corporate opinion of VOD, they are done for. South Hams is not that highly populated so you should have to wait at least 15 years (or indefinitely) for 3G, when 5G is around the corner. If they are VOD staff, they need firing ASAP.
DevonBloke
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by Stereo Steve:
“Vod EDGE has never worked in Totnes. There are plenty of threads on the VOD forum about it (unless they have been deleted). It just does not work. At all. O2 have a bit of 3G and I did once manage to check my bank but that was a struggle.

The apologists on the VOD forum are ridiculous and if that is the corporate opinion of VOD, they are done for. South Hams is not that highly populated so you should have to wait at least 15 years (or indefinitely) for 3G, when 5G is around the corner. If they are VOD staff, they need firing ASAP.”

The O2 in Totnes is 2100. Did that not work at all?
I guess if that's the only one on then everyone is on it.
EE covered by the Orange mast at Windmill Hill, this one and the monopole.
beans0ntoast
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by DevonBloke:
“The mast is a pig to get a maps image of. It's here https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.42...7i13312!8i6656
Totnes town directly to the right. The mast can be seen from 80% of it.

Here it is dead centre of the picture. you can just about make it out in the trees. Bloody crappy Google cameras! it's an Arqiva TV relay off the main Marldon Transmitter.
This is taken from the Plains. Main street behind 100 metres or so and to the right.
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.42...7i13312!8i6656

http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/gallerypage.php?txid=185

EE 2G/3G
Three 3G
Vodafone EDGE
O2 3G2100 (I think).”

I can see from those pictures that it's difficult to get to! The best pictures by far are from that mb21 page.

By going with what Sitefinder is saying:
Bottom panels (slightly tilted up) are Vodafone EDGE on 900 (12m)
Next panel up is O2 3G2100 (16m)
The top panels (at 20m) are MBNL 2G/3G.
The omni aerials at the top (which I initially confused for O2/Voda 900) look to be, according to SF, TETRA.

Cornerstone really need to come along and 2G/3G/4G that mast - possibly using 2100 on the lower antennas and 900 on the higher ones?

Originally Posted by DevonBloke:
“There is also an MBNL monopole here on the Industrial estate which you can see is already covered by the Arqiva mast from this picture. It's a fill-in for capacity.
No sign of 4G here yet, Still the same single cab.
http://s9.postimg.org/degu6gmcv/screenshot_10.png

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.43...7i13312!8i6656”

That's good planning, MBNL know what they are doing. It's already covered by the main mast, but chances are the industrial estate would use up a lot of the main masts capacity, thus slowing it down for everyone else. Hence the use of a fill in - or would the fill in be used to provide indoor coverage? Most industrial estates have a lot of metalwork for the buildings walls, and of course metal blocks any RF signals quite effectively.
beans0ntoast
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by DevonBloke:
“The O2 in Totnes is 2100. Did that not work at all?
I guess if that's the only one on then everyone is on it.
EE covered by the Orange mast at Windmill Hill, this one and the monopole.”

Which would result in severe congestion at the mast, slowing things down very nicely.

Either that, or it's a lack of backhaul at the site.
Gareth_Beer
02-01-2016
Has anyone got anything positive to say about Voda? Oh well guess not...

Re God awful customer experience instore & on phone this gentleman is responsible it would seem since August (good luck bud!):-

https://www.linkedin.com/in/neilblagden

It would seem there was a few changes half way through last year...

And those sickofants on the 'vodaforum' want a bunch of wallies.
DevonBloke
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by lightspeed2398:
“https://imgur.com/a/tJhsp

There you go Devon. Might be slightly out of alignment but gives you a very good idea of the work to be done. I'm sure if you compare EE 4G with that you will have ammunition for the Vodafone forum for months ”

Thank you.
Most excellent work there Sir!
Yes,... not looking good is it.
Can anyone looking at this map, (and bearing in mind I live almost in the centre of South Devon, the completely white bit at the bottom), wonder for one minute why I might be slightly annoyed by VO2? Like they simply don't think we exist?
I run an IT business and am just as important to the economy as a similar IT guy in a city.
Frankly it's pathetic. Utterly stupidly crappily idiotically pathetic and I hope they all go bust the F******s!
If it was 5 years, fine. But this is at 15 years!! How long do I have to wait??

For comparison here is EE3G
http://s9.postimg.org/3v75czyun/screenshot_11.png

Here is EE4G
http://s9.postimg.org/i31ffe0xb/screenshot_12.png

Here is EE double speed with 4G+
http://s9.postimg.org/px210s8q7/screenshot_13.png

Oh and most of the white bits will be filled in shortly with 4G800.
Gigabit
02-01-2016
I always found EE's coverage checker particularly inaccurate.
jchamier
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by Gigabit:
“I always found EE's coverage checker particularly inaccurate.”

No worse and no better than Vodafone's, and I've been carrying both networks for 10 years. (Personal = EE, formerly Tmob, Work=Vodafone, formerly O2).
lightspeed2398
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by DevonBloke:
“Thank you.
Most excellent work there Sir!
Yes,... not looking good is it.”

No problem Devon. I have to say I was shocked on how little coverage there was. And as you said before considering most of that's going to be old 3G900.

If anyone wants anywhere else doing I'd be happy to. Takes about 30 seconds to do.
japaul
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by DevonBloke:
“Thank you.
Most excellent work there Sir!
Yes,... not looking good is it.
Can anyone looking at this map, (and bearing in mind I live almost in the centre of South Devon, the completely white bit at the bottom), wonder for one minute why I might be slightly annoyed by VO2? Like they simply don't think we exist?
.”

But you don't exist. I mean who in the hell goes there? Look at it from my point of view. I've travelled to most areas of the country reasonably recently but the last time I went to Devon, Orange hadn't even launched. I drove all the way down to near Torquay to be with some girl and I spent the night having to sleep on the floor. So you tell me, what's the point in that? Hahaha
Gigabit
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by jchamier:
“No worse and no better than Vodafone's, and I've been carrying both networks for 10 years. (Personal = EE, formerly Tmob, Work=Vodafone, formerly O2).”

Yes they're all terribly inaccurate.
d123
02-01-2016
Originally Posted by Gigabit:
“That "Community Champion" is a disgrace.”

Have you seen his latest pearls of wisdom?

Vodafone can't roll out the same amount of coverage as EE because Vodafone has to roll out coverage in many countries while EE only has to roll out coverage in the UK.

Yes, really .

Quote:
“ Vodafone has a huge number of mobile markets to invest in and build out whereas EE only has the UK to worry about.”

I don't think he quite understands how the Vodafone Group is set out or works...
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