Are O2 falling behind with 3G? they are losing customers.

[Frogger]

For a few years, I've been on an annual lads week out on a narrowboat. Four of us have smartphones which we use for navigation, and finding places to eat and drink. We understand canals are not the highest priority for coverage, but around the Midlands coverage has been reasonable. This year we were in Berkshire and Wiltshire on the Kennet and Avon Canal. We travelled through Newbury, Kintbury, Hungerford, Pewsey, All Cannings, Devizes, and Seend. Of course in in Newbury (Home of Vodafone) coverage of 2G and 3G was excellent on O2, but for the rest of the journey 3 of us with O2 , were looking at 'No Service' or a 2G signal that wouldn't even support a call of more than a minute. I am an ex O2 employee and have been humiliated by the fact that the one of the crew with Three mobile service had an almost consistent 3G data service, with speeds up to 10 MBPS. The 3 of us with O2, had to use Three's phones tethered hotspot just to check emails. We went into a pub in Pewsey where on asking for the WiFi password, got the response of 'Oh you must be O2 users then' that sums up the local peoples attitude to O2. All 3 of us are not in contract with O2, and 2 of us have already decided to swap to Three for a reliable service as they also have problems at there home locations. I will try to stay loyal to see if O2 can up it's game, but it is difficult, when my O2 3G service at home has dropped out and O2 networks say they cannot gain access to the base station to fix. What hope have we for a good network when customers are leaving in quantity for a network that actually delivers. I know about the promises of upgrades in next 3 years, but it is a long while to wait, if it ever happens. can anyone give good reason why we shouldn't jump ship now.

[Frogger]

Thank you M15, but as a ex O2 employee, I've tried swapping sims, but 2 iPhones and a Samsung all gave equivalent results in the same area. Anyway in some areas 3G is excellent on my phone is is just that other networks seems to cover a wider area than O2 for 3G.

[jonsie]

Other networks do seem to be overtaking O2 with the speed of their upgrades with many blackspots on the O2 network. Disappointing.

[MI5]

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@Frogger wrote:
Thank you M15, but as a ex O2 employee, I've tried swapping sims, but 2 iPhones and a Samsung all gave equivalent results in the same area. Anyway in some areas 3G is excellent on my phone is is just that other networks seems to cover a wider area than O2 for 3G.

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No worries....

I do find 3g coverage is better on other networks but I can usually rely on O2 to have a 2g signal for calls and texts.

[Frogger]

I have to add more after a year of struggling with very poor data speeds from O2, I though I'd do some tests. I have brought a MiFi unit on EE mobile service to use as a mobile hot spot to use with my O2 phone where I can't get mobile data from O2. Travelling about this week, at my home location I could get 1.2 Mbps d/l on 3 g and 23Mbps via EE network. In Suffolk, NO data service from O2, 11 Mbps from EE. In Norfolk reasonable 3G signal level but seems to be over utilised as I can't get better than 0.6Mbps from O2, but consistent 23 Mbps from EE. 

Its a great shame that 02 are not keeping up with other providers and I may have to move my primary provider rather than run 2 accounts. 

If anyone from O2 is seriously interested I can supply all the test results and locations, by reply. 

I firmly believe that a lot of O2 issues are down to lack of capacity rather than signal coverage. 

[MI5]

We would all agree that it is a capacity issue on O2 3g and it's not just in your area either.
The 4g roll out and fibre backhaul updates are hopefully going to address this issue countrywide.

[Anonymous]

Sorry if I've got this wrong - and I admit I am no techie - but what 4g roll out are you aware of and how do I find out what is happening in my area?  I don't want to move from O2 who I have been with since the original Cellnet days, but I would love to have even slow internet use when I'm out of my home.

[MI5]

O2 are still not telling us or releasing this info.