T-Mobile’s data and network speeds are catching up with bigger wireless carriers like Verizon and AT&T in metro areas, but the self-proclaimed “Un-carrier” still lags behind the competition at a national level, according to a new report.
In the report from RootMetrics that covers the first half of 2016, Bellevue, Wash.-based T-Mobile recorded the fastest download speed of any carrier in any market. The study found that in Lansing, Mich., a T-Mobile user could download an episode of a TV show in HD — approximately 600MB in size — in approximately two minutes.
T-Mobile finished ahead or tied with its competition in more states and metro areas than it did in the last survey monitoring the second half of 2015. In the latest survey, T-Mobile blew out rival Sprint when it comes to data and network speed in cities and surrounding areas, while Sprint made up ground outside major population centers.
“T-Mobile has invested heavily to expand its LTE coverage, and consumers are clearly benefitting from strong data results in a host of metro areas,” according to the report.
Overall, Verizon continued to dominate, placing first overall in the report and beating out rival carriers in all major metrics like data, network speed, reliability, calling and texting. AT&T came in second in all metrics except for calling, where Sprint took the number two spot.
Verizon was named the top carrier or tied for the number one spot in 48 states — including Washington, for the sixth consecutive time — as well as 98 of the 125 metro areas studied by RootMetrics. AT&T won or tied in eight states and 51 metro areas. T-Mobile tied for the top spot in one state, and Sprint did not record any state wins, according to the report. T-Mobile also won or tied in 40 metro areas, a big increase from the second half of 2015 when that number was 17. Sprint won or tied in six markets.
As CNet notes, these reports can be extremely important to carriers as they trumpet the strength of their networks to stand out from rivals. Other testing services have declared T-Mobile the fastest network.T-Mobile CEO John Legere has called for RootMetrics’ reports to be banned as a source for network benchmarking. Bellevue-based RootMetrics has defended its results, arguing its scientific testing method ensures the best possible findings. The firm pointed to the extreme levels of research it undertook to come to its conclusions in the latest report.
To determine which network led the performance race in the first half of 2016, we drove over 265,000 miles while testing performance on highways and in big cities, small towns, and rural areas across the US. To put that in perspective, consider that the distance from New York City to Los Angeles is approximately 2,800 miles, the circumference of the earth is 24,901 miles, and the moon is about 239,000 miles away. While collecting samples for our national report, our professional testers could have driven from NYC to LA about 95 times, circled the earth over 10 times, or made it all the way to the moon (and then some). All told, we collected approximately 3.7 million test samples while driving and at more than 4,200 indoor locations.
T-Mobile and Sprint have been jockeying to position themselves as the alternative to telecommunication giants Verizon and AT&T. Last year, T-Mobile fulfilled its promise to pass Sprint to become the third biggest wireless company in the U.S.
In one of its Un-carrier moves, T-Mobile announced last week a shift to a single wireless plan offering unlimited data. Shortly following the announcement, Legere and Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure sparred on Twitter and in TV interviews.
RootMetrics notes that we are in the middle of a transformation of what people want out of their phones. It started with calling and texting, then expanded to internet browsing and social media. Today, users expect more from carriers than ever, including the ability to download and stream videos pretty much anywhere.
“Mobile carriers today must ensure they have enough capacity to support the evolution of consumer behavior that is increasingly shifting toward data-centric activities, particularly the consumption of video services. Consumers want to stream their favorite television shows and movies, download high-definition films, upload videos to the web, and much more,” according to the report.
