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MVNO priority/throttling |
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#1 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 14,647
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MVNO priority/throttling
I got a free Sainsbury's SIM (which is on Vodafone) and texted my nectar card number to them so they would give me a free £15 bundle.
I've noticed though that the data speeds are just terrible - 384k 3G speed at best, even though the phone reports HSPA. It has taken about 15 minutes to download an app from Google Play. I'm wondering if there's any conclusive proof as to whether mobile providers deprioritise/throttle MVNOs like Sainsbury's - so I can know whether it's a local mast issue (e.g. another 3G mast running off of a 28.8k modem which seems typical for Vodafone around here) or something wider - like how people often say that O2 contract customers have priority over PAYG who have priority over giffgaff |
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#2 |
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Join Date: Nov 2008
Posts: 720
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Have you tried a normal vodafone sim aswell? As in some areas Vodafone data speeds are awful, so it may not be down to any throttling or being a lower priority.
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#3 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 14,647
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That'd cost money, so no (I don't have a vodafone SIM on contract or with any credit on it), that's why I asked, perhaps someone who has tried Sainsbury's in a not-rural area and where Vodafone will definitely have good backhaul might be able to say if there's throttling
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#4 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 14,647
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After having downloaded the Speedtest app (it only took 15 minutes), I get approximately 0.13Mbps down, and it can't complete it when it tries to do the upload.
That's got to be a real network issue and not throttling, surely |
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#5 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 983
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Yes I think it is a Vodafone issue not a priority one. I never saw speeds as low as that when I tried Sainsburys mobile a few months back.
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#6 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Nov 2008
Posts: 720
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Ahh fair enough
. If no one else has an answer then I may be able to give you an answer on the weekend. I have a Vodafone sim to test the network out and should be able to sort out a Sainsburies sim when I do my shopping.
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#7 |
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Inactive Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: London, UK
Posts: 178
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I'd be very surprised if Vodafone invested in MVNO prioritisation equiptment
Seems like everyone man for himself as it is |
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#8 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Sep 2007
Posts: 620
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I tried out a Sainsburys sim last year, there was an offer where you got a free sim with some data on it so I thought why not. It was a waste of time, got the sim activated and it showed as having a data connection of HSPA but there was no data whatsoever, nothing in, nothing out.
It was Voda's fault, they have since upgraded the area to 4G and data works now. |
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#9 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 14,647
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Thanks for everyone's replies.
I had a chance to try the SIM in a nearby town and city and the results were not that encouraging there - a personal best was 2.6Mbit down, and again the upload test would not complete. My 3 phone in the same location would happily do 8-10Mbit down, 3Mbit up. Interestingly the phone reported a bad signal even when going past a Vodafone monopole. |
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#10 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: United Kingdom
Posts: 2,888
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Vodafone and O2 3G is such a joke.
I've never seen a higher speed than 6Mbps, ever. Mostly it's around 1Mbps or less. I see why Vodafone is trying to 4G everywhere: keep people off the 3G network! |
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#11 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Swansea
Posts: 871
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Quote:
Vodafone and O2 3G is such a joke.
I've never seen a higher speed than 6Mbps, ever. Mostly it's around 1Mbps or less. I see why Vodafone is trying to 4G everywhere: keep people off the 3G network! |
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#12 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Suffolk, East Anglia
Posts: 667
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Quote:
Vodafone and O2 3G is such a joke.
I've never seen a higher speed than 6Mbps, ever. Mostly it's around 1Mbps or less. I see why Vodafone is trying to 4G everywhere: keep people off the 3G network! |
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#13 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Midlands
Posts: 2,860
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Of course O2 will go backwards again when it gets swamped with 3 customers on the 4g network.
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#14 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 14,647
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I've had 10Mbit+ on giffgaff using the local O2 3G site (in the same location that Vodafone can barely give 0.3Mbps)
Unfortunately with either network you don't have to go too far to be back on GPRS, or EDGE if you're lucky |
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#15 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Hampshire
Posts: 8,104
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Does anybody on this forum actually use 3 or 4G for anything other than running speed tests ?!
And a serious question, what possible 'real life' use is a fast (> 5 Mb/s) connection on a phone ? |
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#16 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 14,647
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It's about capacity - fast speed test results mean that the network is likely not overloaded, which also means there will not be masses of packet loss or ridiculously high latency, and that if usage picks up (more people in the cell's area) it's not going to get worse
Especially if you're tethering and doing things that need higher speeds to be truly useful (like downloading files) I can certainly tell the difference between the truly woeful performance on Sainsburys/Vodafone and the better performance of 3 |
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#17 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Hampshire
Posts: 8,104
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Quote:
It's about capacity - fast speed test results mean that the network is likely not overloaded, which also means there will not be masses of packet loss or ridiculously high latency, and that if usage picks up (more people in the cell's area) it's not going to get worse
Especially if you're tethering and doing things that need higher speeds to be truly useful (like downloading files) Unless you're out in the sticks, you've got a home broadband connection, where data usage is 'easier' and (per MB) massively cheaper to consume. I don't think I've ever had to use a mobile network to download large files, I visit a lot of companies, at home and abroad, and they always have visitor wifi available. I have a MiFi which I use (if available) foreign data SIMs in, but only then really to just give Whatsapp and Email access and light surfing (like this forum !) on my phone and laptop while 'in the wild'. I've never when connected via 4G or 3G suffered any noticeable problems on my phone using data, Whatsapp and email text bodies only require tiny amounts of data, makes no odds how 'lumpy' it is. |
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#18 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 14,647
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Yes, I have - when I have been away from home. I'd rather pay more on a mobile contract or even for a mobile broadband SIM than on hotel wifi (and most free public wifi is not useful for anything except light browsing and email). It's also been useful in car, on trains etc
I have unlimited data and generous tethering. It costs me practically nothing extra to be able to do it. I'm not downloading tens of GBs but it's nice to have the ability to do so. |
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#19 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Hampshire
Posts: 8,104
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Quote:
Yes, I have - when I have been away from home. I'd rather pay more on a mobile contract or even for a mobile broadband SIM than on hotel wifi (and most free public wifi is not useful for anything except light browsing and email). It's also been useful in car, on trains etc
I have unlimited data and generous tethering. It costs me practically nothing extra to be able to do it. I'm not downloading tens of GBs but it's nice to have the ability to do so. |
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#20 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 14,647
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A bit of both but mostly when not on someone's premises. Some workplace wifi can be hit or miss depending on what restrictions they've placed on it
I vaguely remember my former employer's guest wifi not allowing people to use a certain type of VPN software. The sad thing is that the software was made by my former employer (and it's embarrassing when a contractor comes in, unable to connect, and he asks why it doesn't work on our own network)... I've been most impressed by BT WiFi though (as broadcast by almost every BT broadband subscriber), you can get some impressive speeds if the owner has upgraded to infinity... Train wifi tends to be the worst IMO. I've never had a good experience, and my phone can usually beat it, despite some trains acting like faraday cages and the train's wifi equipment having proper externally mounted antennas and being able to use all four networks |
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#21 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: United Kingdom
Posts: 2,888
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I like to watch Netflix and YouTube on the go. It is a horrible experience on 3G with O2. 4G works fine.
It's just about okay on EE 3G but things appear to load more slowly because of the higher latency. |
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#22 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Hampshire
Posts: 8,104
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Quote:
Train wifi tends to be the worst IMO. I've never had a good experience, and my phone can usually beat it, despite some trains acting like faraday cages and the train's wifi equipment having proper externally mounted antennas and being able to use all four networks
Phones on trains are normally a disaster these days, the sun-dim windows use metal film, which as you say creates a faraday cage. I don't even bother answering the phone on a train now, because seconds later the signal will die, and you end up acting like Dom Jolly, and annoying the other passengers. When I worked for a company (as staff) there was a VPN we used for remote access, that would either not work at all, or sometimes would punch through the wifi, without even the need to log on and authenticate. I've noticed the same with Whatsapp, that will often still punch through wifi networks, that otherwise require that annoying browser style log on. |
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#23 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Midlands
Posts: 2,860
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Its just annoying for the basics as looking something up, reading twitter can be a pain on 2g. Problem is you sort of accept it on o2 whereas people on EE always seem to have a single even out in the middle of no where.
That said hopefully VF/o2 will have caught up loads by the end of the year. |
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#24 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: United Kingdom
Posts: 2,888
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Outdoors I find that you can normally force 3G on EE and you'll get something usable. O2/Vodafone will most likely be stuck on 2G.
However indoors 2G on VF and O2 is still king, EE 3G is just too unreliable indoors in my experience. |
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#25 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Midlands
Posts: 2,860
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Yes why is EE signal in general on 2g or 3g not that good indoors? They have more masts so you would expect better coverage naturally.
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. If no one else has an answer then I may be able to give you an answer on the weekend. I have a Vodafone sim to test the network out and should be able to sort out a Sainsburies sim when I do my shopping.