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Mobile Broadband Comparison

  • 15-05-2007 11:44am
    #1
    Akula
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 791 ✭✭✭


    Given that the battle over mobile broadband seems to be hotting up I'm interested to here peoples impressions on the quality of the service.

    1. General Reliability
    2. Coverage (anyone got good maps?)
    3. Actual speeds attained
    4. Latency
    5. Any port blocking/traffic shaping etc..
    6. Fallback service. If you don't have 3g coverage what do you get? Will you get edge with any provider? What happens with three, can you roam onto the vodafone gprs network?
    7. Will any of the providers allow you to put a sim in a phone/pda so you can use it as both a tethered modem and a mobile voip phone?


Comments

  • #2
    culabula
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,213 ✭✭✭culabula


    Akula wrote:
    Given that the battle over mobile broadband seems to be hotting up I'm interested to here peoples impressions on the quality of the service.

    1. General Reliability
    2. Coverage (anyone got good maps?)
    3. Actual speeds attained
    4. Latency
    5. Any port blocking/traffic shaping etc..
    6. Fallback service. If you don't have 3g coverage what do you get? Will you get edge with any provider? What happens with three, can you roam onto the vodafone gprs network?
    7. Will any of the providers allow you to put a sim in a phone/pda so you can use it as both a tethered modem and a mobile voip phone?

    I've addressed your questions in several threads but I'll recap here.

    I use the SIM from my 3 datacard in my new N95. Currently I am getting erratic service but I do not know who to blame -3 or the N95? I never use the datacard because I never use a Windows PC so until the new USB modem is released, I have tried the SIM in a variety of handsets (6630, SE v800) where it has always worked well and now in the N95 (for the HSDPA) where it does not. Or rather, it does sometimes.

    At the moment I'm in Temple Bar (excellent Nepalese squid, BTW) getting 1MB speed. Often it hovers around 300-400kbps. In Leeson St, I can often get over 1MB and in RTÉ (strangely) I get on occasion well over 2.4MB. I have yet to achieve better anywhere.

    When I get on the train back to Belfast soon, the performance will be poor. I will roam onto Voodoo around Drogheda. There will be total blackspots and I will often have to reconnect and even reboot the phone. I regard this as a failing of the phone and not of 3.

    BUT -if I choose to use my X-series UK SIM instead I get rock-solid performance, stable, faster, dependable. I usually use this in my E61. It's worrying, because it allows me to point a finger at 3 IRL and wonder what is wrong with their SIM. Why does a foreign SIM, using the exact same network outperform a native SIM doing exactly the same task?

    As I travel up and down the country several times a week i can say that its performance on a train is not great.

    On the other hand, as I use the SIM in a handset, I can also access their other services, such as the new mobile TV stuff. I also use Mail for Exchange, GMail, GPS, fring, TruPhone and so on. All these ports are open.

    Bottom line for me is that the 3 offering works and works well most of the time. There is no HSDPA in the north which is a pain, but this is offset by the fact that it is free to use while 'roaming'. I was in Italy recently too and again there is a 3 presence in that country. To do the same on Vodafone would cost an utter fortune and is simply not realistic for me. To use the Voda offering even just in the north would require giving them 40€ a month plus a further 99€ (I believe) to allow 'free' international roaming.

    I am hoping that they will give me a new USB modem and that this may remove any niggles that I have. The N95 was not the solution to high-speed access.

    Hope this helps.


  • #3
    StealthRolex
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,293 ✭✭✭StealthRolex


    Akula wrote:
    Given that the battle over mobile broadband seems to be hotting up I'm interested to here peoples impressions on the quality of the service.

    1. General Reliability
    2. Coverage (anyone got good maps?)
    3. Actual speeds attained
    4. Latency
    5. Any port blocking/traffic shaping etc..
    6. Fallback service. If you don't have 3g coverage what do you get? Will you get edge with any provider? What happens with three, can you roam onto the vodafone gprs network?
    7. Will any of the providers allow you to put a sim in a phone/pda so you can use it as both a tethered modem and a mobile voip phone?


    I am currently with Three using their USB modem and I can answer some of your questions:

    1. Reliability - Questionable. Cannot answer this accurately as it is not fast enough to test
    2. Coverage. If you can believe their hype they're at 85%
    3. Actual speeds: normal daylight hours 5K - 50+k. 3am - 8am 200K - 1.5Mb
    4. Latency: Poor. Ping rates to irish sites are over 1 second

    5.6.7. Not tested.

    8. Customer service: Almost but not quite worse than Sky

    9. Satisfaction: Nil

    10: Personal experience: :mad: :mad: :mad: :( :eek: :confused:


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