Originally Posted by Resonance:
“3G coverage has always seemed a bit strange to me on the Scottish islands. For example EE have more coverage on North Uist than the Isle of Skye, a much more popular island with tourists and with ten times the population (they don't even cover Portree). Islay has more coverage, even though it has a third the population of Skye. Unless it's a council planning problem, it all seems pretty random??”
Alot of it will be to do with getting masts in, and the thorny issue of getting electric in and backhaul back. On the islands I think it's a fair guess to say that the masts are daisy chaned together via microwave on each island and then microwaved back to the mainland, until fibre goes in.
The terrain up in the islands will mean masts need to be high up to get the best coverage, but hilltops don't tend to have electricity and fibre links ready to go, this all before we start with the very thorny planning issue. That is, unless someone has been there before....
Load up the EE map and the MB21 UHF TV sites map, here and here:
http://ee.co.uk/why-ee/network/mobile-coverage
http://tx.mb21.co.uk/mapsys/google/uhftv.php
With a bit of interpreation you can work out where the EE sites are, and sitefinder will confirm. North Uist only actually has one site on it, at Clettraval TV. The other end of the island is covered by this site here, at Leverburgh:
https://goo.gl/maps/isweC9M9DE72
That site looks like it's at an existing comms site. N Uist also benefits a bit from a cell at Scoval TV on Skye.
Skye is similar, coverage from Scoval TV, a new site at Geary, which looks like a classic Orange site:
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1725512
Then there's Penifiler TV (which attempts to serve Portree), Coverage from on Raasay at Inverarish TV. A couple of new sites then, one at Corry (Can't find a pic) and then one at the bridge near Kyle of Lochalsh.
https://goo.gl/maps/bT99DfLDw2x
Islay (an island I've recently visited) is the same again, coverage from Port Ellen TV, Bowmore TV and Portnahaven TV. It also benefits from coverage from Gigha Island TV and a site shared by all networks on Colonsay
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/466458
The point I'm trying to make is coverage has up to now been largely dependant on existing sites and being able to get suitable sites. They will be relatively much more expensive to put in up there, for all the reasons I've mentioned - power, backhaul, physically getting the mast there. Hence fewer sites go in. Adding panels to existing sites is relatively simple in comparison, hence that's what happens.
As to actual experience - I've not been out to the Uists - let's say it's on the to do list! Skye had excellent 2G service when I was there 10 or so years ago, on Orange. Islay I visited recently, I had 3G about 90% of the time (top speed of about 2Meg but that's the microwave backhaul I think?), 2G about 5% of the time (NW of the island) and no service about 5% of the time. I was pretty impressed with that tbh, as it's not an easy place to cover! Coverage on Mull, on the other hand, was cack!
O2 and Vodafone have the real reputation for 2G coverage in the highlands with their shared highland sites. Last time I toured up in the highlands was 2010, Orange as it was then couldn't touch my hiking pals O2 phones - they could make calls in loads of places, and often on the move, I was limited to stopping places I saw with a service! VO2 highland sites look like this:
http://www.prattfamily.demon.co.uk/mikep/phot23.htm
Anyway, Enough, I've been enjoying myself....