Why is O2 network coverage so poor compared to other providers ?

[Anonymous]

Hi

I have loyally stayed with O2 since they were BT Cellnet (they have been good with retention incentives).

However one very important aspect of their services which has demonstrated no significant improvement in my opinion is network coverage.

Signal strength is consistently less than rivals (e.g. EE), and not uncommonly absent altogether.

I live on the edge of a medium size city, and I frequently have to go out in the back garden to make or receive mobile calls. And as for 3G forget it.

I actually wrote a letter to the customer service dept, who replied with some rather bland non-specific statement about always trying to improve the coverage.

My current contract ends early next year and I will certainly be looking very closely at EE - my GFs phone is with EE and has a constant good signal strength.

It's pretty poor that in 10 years I've seen very little change from O2 in this vital service requirement.

swayzak

[Bambino]

Depending on which phone you have, if you can download the Tu Go app and it works for you, it should help with your coverage indoors for making and receiving calls over WiFi. The app is still not perfect, but it does work for some.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the tip - but it doesn't really answer my question.

[Anonymous]

You are right. The last couple of years have seen me travelling around the UK. I have O2 and EE, O2 being my main phone. The times I have had to use EE in order to get a good 3G signal are too many to count. 

Tu Go has solved my problems at home, but that does not answer why there are no usable O2 masts near to me when everyone else has (O2 claim good signal but it is poor both indoors)

I think I is all down to lack of investment (I know what they claim) but the results speak for themselves. 

The franchising of more stores and the sale of their Broadband and Fix lines to Sky makes me think this is a company scratching round for cash.

[Pickles]

Yes I would like to see more signal coverage everywhere.  Mainly because I have no signal at my house.  But TuGo is working well for me at home, but would be nice to see better coverage.

[Anonymous]

I definitely think they have not invested sufficiently in this area, which is why I shall probably leave them next year.

It's just not good enough - they should get the basics right first, and they've certainly had long enough.

I wish they'd just be honest and say "yep, our coverage is poor & we haven't invested enough to improve it".

I naively thought that, having presumably inherited infrastructure from BT, they would be well positioned to offer competitive coverage compared to rivals.

[Anonymous]

O2 are the only network who have bought their 4G spectrum on the condition that they provide a definite indoor coverage for a percentage of the population.

In 2015 O2 will provide indoor 2G, 3G and 4G coverage to 98% of the population.

[Anonymous]

That's asking me stick with them for another year beyond contract expiration, on a promise.

So it's taken this to "force" them to do something they should have done for existing customers years ago.

Still poor in my view.

[perksie]

Not a question of forcing them to do it, they are still spending over a £1M a day on network improvements and have been for several years.

It was the decision of O2 to choose the band that means they have to increase their coverage to that level.

2015 is the target date for completion so you could get a better signal well before then.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

O2 are the only network who have bought their 4G spectrum on the condition that they provide a definite indoor coverage for a percentage of the population.

In 2015 O2 will provide indoor 2G, 3G and 4G coverage to 98% of the population.

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O2 Failed miserably to reach the target set by OFCOM for 3G - I reserve judgement on 4G

I've constantly heard the 'we will do this by (enter date of choice) mantra, but it has not happened.  I'm supposed to have good coverage on 3G at 2100 and 900. My phone is by me now showing 2G only

You can see I have been with O2 for years but come November, probably not any more as I have to go with the best network for my use.