However, Three has reclaimed its status as the most reliable network and for best network performance in Scotland and Wales. The report puts Vodafone top for performance in Northern Ireland and notes that EE is leading the way in 4G, with its users able to access 4G 90 per cent of the time.
Vodafone (82 per cent) and O2 (81 per cent) are not far behind, but the same cannot be said for Three, which has a 67 pe rcent success rate on 4G.
The RootMetrics report places EE in top place in England for mobile performance, network speed and data performance. This coupled with England’s high population density resulted in the company’s UK-wide win.
Nation-by-nation, England leads in 4G availability while Wales trails behind:
- • England – EE (91 per cent), Vodafone (83 per cent), O2 (82 per cent), Three (69 per cent)
- • Northern Ireland – EE (90 per cent), O2 (83 per cent), Vodafone (80 per cent), Three (61 per cent)
- • Scotland – EE (83 per cent), O2 (80 per cent), Vodafone (76 per cent), Three (59 per cent)
- • Wales – EE (79 per cent), Vodafone (60 per cent), O2 (60 per cent), Three (54 per cent)
“These latest results have really shaken things up and show the increasing competitiveness in the UK, particularly over the last six months,” said Scott Stonham, general manager of Europe for RootMetrics. “EE continues to lead the way, but Three and Vodafone are close behind. What is clear is that each operator showed strong performance in at least one particular country, while nobody was able to sweep the board at the four-nations level. UK consumers have strong mobile options depending on how and where they use their devices most.”
“To succeed, mobile operators must secure sufficient radio spectrum and invest in the necessary equipment, sites and operational teams to ensure consumers enjoy fast reliable mobile broadband,” added Ian Fogg, senior research director for mobile and telecom at IHS Markit. “With new UK spectrum allocations soon to be auctioned in the run up to 5G, these performance results provide a snapshot on the competitive balance between the UK mobile operators now, and highlight which operators most need to acquire new spectrum capacity if they are to be a future mobile performance winner.”
