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Polruan/Fowey 3/4G
andycat
10-07-2015
Hi all, off to Cornwall for my jollies and apparently mobile signal is "the pits" according to the cottage owner. Has anyone any experience?
mupet0000
10-07-2015
Three coverage is non-existent, you might get some Vodafone & EE 2G outdoors, it looks like O2 has the area decently covered in 2G.

I just used the network's coverage checkers, I've not actually seen the real coverage, but it certainly looks like O2 is your best bet in that area.
joeluken
10-07-2015
Originally Posted by mupet0000:
“Three coverage is non-existent, you might get some Vodafone & EE 2G outdoors, it looks like O2 has the area decently covered in 2G.

I just used the network's coverage checkers, I've not actually seen the real coverage, but it certainly looks like O2 is your best bet in that area.”

My place in Lostwithiel (near Fowey) I can only use Three or EE. Both offer decent 3G data speeds, calls and texts. Can't even get 2G on O2 or Voda. Same in places on the north coast need to let O2 friends use my hotspot to use email.

I use Three around Cornwall but my O2 sim is pants especially for data.
mupet0000
10-07-2015
Originally Posted by joeluken:
“My place in Lostwithiel (near Fowey) I can only use Three or EE. Both offer decent 3G data speeds, calls and texts. Can't even get 2G on O2 or Voda. Same in places on the north coast need to let O2 friends use my hotspot to use email.

I use Three around Cornwall but my O2 sim is pants especially for data.”

Based on the coverage in Lostwithiel, it looks like Three has some masts around there, then you look down at Fowey and it's showing almost no coverage down there:
http://i.imgur.com/b8BtG3T.png

O2s checker shows good coverage in Lostwithiel (for 2G), maybe O2s checker is severely over estimating the coverage.

According to the Ofcom checker (could be wrong because it's outdated), there is an O2 and Orange mast over the water in Bodinnick, but with Orange using 1800MHz and O2 using 900MHz, you are more likely to get O2. There's a 900MHz Vodafone site at the top, and the site on the left is Airwave:
http://i.imgur.com/jNpWumQ.png

The nearest Three/EE(3G) site is near Par Sands.
joeluken
10-07-2015
Originally Posted by mupet0000:
“Based on the coverage in Lostwithiel, it looks like Three has some masts around there, then you look down at Fowey and it's showing almost no coverage down there:
http://i.imgur.com/b8BtG3T.png

O2s checker shows good coverage in Lostwithiel (for 2G), maybe O2s checker is severely over estimating the coverage.

According to the Ofcom checker (could be wrong because it's outdated), there is an O2 and Orange mast over the water in Bodinnick, but with Orange using 1800MHz and O2 using 900MHz, you are more likely to get O2. There's a 900MHz Vodafone site at the top, and the site on the left is Airwave:
http://i.imgur.com/jNpWumQ.png

The nearest Three/EE(3G) site is near Par Sands.”

Lol - I have a Three sim and an O2 sim and spend a lot of time in Cornwall. Do you ?

There are loads of places no network covers down here but I find Three better on the whole especially for data . Par isn't very far from Fowey as the crow flies. I wouldn't put much faith in network coverage maps as where I'm now has "good" 3G coverage according to O2 map but data is non existent.

The only way the OP can know what work in the precise location he needs i.e. a specific cottage is ask the cottage owner if they know what works and what doesn't.
mupet0000
10-07-2015
Originally Posted by joeluken:
“Lol - I have a Three sim and an O2 sim and spend a lot of time in Cornwall. Do you ?

There are loads of places no network covers down here but I find Three better on the whole especially for data . Par isn't very far from Fowey as the crow flies. I wouldn't put much faith in network coverage maps as where I'm now has "good" 3G coverage according to O2 map but data is non existent.

The only way the OP can know what work in the precise location he needs i.e. a specific cottage is ask the cottage owner if they know what works and what doesn't.”

No, as I said, this is information from coverage checkers, and I'm not claiming to be right, this is just the info that's available.

Based on my experience, if a coverage checker shows barely any outdoor coverage and a lot of no coverage, I get no signal at all. I find operators like to overestimate their coverage rather than underestimate it. Of course nothing is going to be as accurate as being there with a phone in your hand. It just seems unusual for operators to underestimate coverage.

In my area (a town with relatively good coverage), I know many places that show good indoor coverage can be awful or non-existent.

If you take a look at the (crowd sourced) RootMetrics map, it looks like all networks have pretty good coverage in Fowey (I looked around PL23 1ET) except for Vodafone:
http://webcoveragemap.rootmetrics.com/uk

If there's actually coverage there, it makes me wonder why the maps are so inaccurate.
andycat
10-07-2015
Well I'm on Virgin (EE) so looks like I stand a better chance than the others according to the Rootmetrics map anyway!
plymouthbloke1974
10-07-2015
EE is the most comprehensive in the SW... This is from someone who's lived in this neck of the woods since 1985! Yes there are some spots where O2 and Voda are better but they are few and far between... and 4G? No one else has it but EE.
moox
10-07-2015
I live in Cornwall - full time, not one of those holiday or weekend home owners for which I have to moderate my opinion or risk breaking the rules. I'm not right next to Fowey or Lostwithiel, but I'm not that far away either.

In general 3 and EE remain unbeatable for likelihood of 3G (or 4G, in EE's case), and for actual 3G performance.

Vodafone and O2 have an edge on 2G coverage (pun not intended), but that's just it - you'll be getting 2G most of the time here if you go with them. Vodafone especially - they have a bit more 3G 900 now, but there's something rather wrong with it that means the performance is crap
plymouthbloke1974
11-07-2015
It's because they've only allocated 5MHz for 3G900 on certain sites... which is borderline lunacy...
artnada
11-07-2015
You're going on holiday to get away from modern life for a few days, I assume. Why not turn the phone off?

I did recently, and wow, it's a liberating experience.
andycat
11-07-2015
Originally Posted by artnada:
“You're going on holiday to get away from modern life for a few days, I assume. Why not turn the phone off?

I did recently, and wow, it's a liberating experience.”

I want it for family contact (WhatsApp etc), personal email and gaming (Ingress) which are all relaxation to me!

My work email will be checked when i want, it will be off!
lightspeed2398
11-07-2015
Originally Posted by plymouthbloke1974:
“It's because they've only allocated 5MHz for 3G900 on certain sites... which is borderline lunacy...”

What's the logic behind this? Lack of backhaul or just plain craziness?
moox
12-07-2015
Originally Posted by plymouthbloke1974:
“It's because they've only allocated 5MHz for 3G900 on certain sites... which is borderline lunacy...”

I am not a RAN expert by any means (though there are obviously some people on here who are) - but surely 5MHz would still be workable, especially in the rural areas that I'm on about?

I'm talking data speeds of less than 1Mbit, with 2Mbit if you're lucky. 3-EE in the same spot from the nearby cell site will do 20+ easy. Even with a non DC-HSPA device (which would mean it only using one 5MHz channel anyway? again not an expert) you get good speeds

It's almost like they've just plugged in a 3G base station and done no other upgrades. It lets them tick a box for Ofcom's coverage obligations and it fills in one of the many gaps on their map, but it doesn't actually work properly. It's a shame because the signal propagates wonderfully around here. O2 also has 900Mhz 3G here but I don't have a means to test it
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