EE has beaten its rivals in recent RootMetrics network quality tests, winning five of six categories outright and tied for first place with 3UK in network reliability testing.
“Continuing a pattern that we have seen in each of our previous special summary reports, EE once again proved to be the most impressive mobile network when looking at performance across the entirety of the UK,” RootMetrics said in the Mobile Network Performance Review for the second half of 2014.
The test results will no doubt come as welcome news for BT, which recently agreed definitive terms to buy EE for £12.5 billion. However, RootMetrics also noted that 3UK finished second in every other category it tested, including network speed – even though the company was the last to launch a 4G network.
“Three’s second place finish in network speed at the UK level is particularly noteworthy,” the company said. “Three does not have the same breadth of 4G footprint that the other networks have…but its consistency not only in urban areas but also in rural spaces helped it outperform O2 and Vodafone, both of which were much slower outside the larger metro areas.”
While EE continues to benefit from the early launch of its 4G network, RootMetrics noted that 3UK remains its closest competitor.
“ In summary, EE might have the lead at the moment, but the race with Three is a close one. Three’s continued strong performances make it another strong contender for consumers looking for performance at the UK level,” the company said.
Overall, the network testing company said mobile networks in the UK are getting better, saying it saw improvements in speed, mobile Internet performance and network reliability. It added that call performance was also better, with the exception of a slight dip in Vodafone UK’s blocked call rates.
“In short, performance is trending in a positive direction, and consumers should benefit from this change,” RootMetrics concluded.
The operators have certainly been under pressure to improve their performance, most recently agreeing a deal with the government that commits them to guaranteeing voice and SMS coverage to 90% of the U.K.’s geographic area, thereby halving the number of partial not-spots and reducing complete “not-spots” by two thirds.
-You can see more details of the RootMetrics report and its methodology here.
