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Verizon Has Been the Fastest US Mobile Carrier in Last Six Months: Wirefly (wirefly.com)

Posted by msmash on from the need-for-speed dept.

Verizon was the fastest mobile carrier in the United States during Q4 2017 and Q1 2018, according to 2018 Internet Speed Rankings Report published by Wirefly. According to the report, Verizon Wireless offered its subscribers 19.92 Mbps "overall" Internet speed, followed by AT&T at 18.26 Mbps, T-Mobile at 17.29 Mbps, and Sprint finishing at last with 14.77 Mbps. (The report defines overall speed capability as a summation of download speed with a 90% weight, and upload speed with a 10% weight.) T-Mobile was ranked as the fastest Internet service provider by Wirefly in Q1 and Q2 2017.

Verizon was also the carrier with fastest average download and upload speeds during the aforementioned period. It offered 20.44 Mbps (down) and 15.26 Mbps (up), compared to AT&T, which offered an average of 19.11 Mbps download speed and 10.53 Mbps as its average upload speeds. You can read the full report here. The results were collected from the results of users using the Wirefly Internet Speed Test.

33 comments

  1. Are they still evil? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    nt

    1. Re:Are they still evil? by Penguinisto · · Score: 2

      Hint: Nearly all of the US mainline carriers are "evil", as it's on a spectrum. Their primary goal is to extract as much money as they can while providing as little as possible (without angering you enough to jump to a competitor.) This is part of why I use a secondary carrier - I buy my own device, then to with Net10 (or StraightTalk, or similar) - do a bit of research, and you can use the mainline carrier networks without paying the massive mainline carrier price. I pay $45/mo for 4GB data (which is honestly a lot more than I use), and there's no contract, ETF, or similar lock-in bullshit. Yeah, my phone costs me a bit up-front (I buy an unlocked one one-two generations back from bleeding-edge, then keep it for 2-3 years depending), but I'm not paying subsidy (plus massive interest) over a two-year contract.
      --
      As a bonus, I use Verizon's network just fine, get all the speed and coverage benefits, but I don't have to pay $100/mo. or so just for my one phone. Over the past 5 years I've done this, I've most likely saved around $2700 ($3300 minus the $300 for my current phone, bought two years ago and minus the $300 or so for my previous phone), or the price of a quite nice MacBook Pro.
      --
      Mind, if you're a massive data user, this may not work as well for you, and you'll probably want to do an unlimited plan. If you want something to show off (a bleeding-edge latest-greatest device), then you'd have to pay more up-front (but still save quite a few ducats in the process). However, for my somewhat fairly typical use case (maybe 3GB/mo and a phone that does what I want it to - shit, I'm married, who am I supposed to impress with an iPhone X or the latest Samsung Galaxy?) It works out quite nicely.

      --
      Quo usque tandem abutere, Nimbus, patientia nostra?
    2. Re:Are they still evil? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes. I miss the days when Verizon was awesome. That lasted up until the late 2000's. They used to be so awesome that any time you had a legitimate complaint, they'd give you a $20 bill credit. Their lines were also so clear that I often had to ask the other person to verify I hadn't dropped the call. Then Verizon discovered they didn't have to be great, just a little better.

    3. Re:Are they still evil? by olsmeister · · Score: 3

      Then Verizon discovered they didn't have to be great, just a little better.

      Once I discovered this little gem, my life improved immensely. I think I'm going to put it on my gravestone.

    4. Re:Are they still evil? by known_coward_69 · · Score: 1

      i gave one of my kids an iphone and it's $25 a month on AT&T for unlimited data

    5. Re:Are they still evil? by MightyYar · · Score: 2

      This can only be true if you are adding a line to an existing plan. Your average per phone is higher than that.

      --
      W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
    6. Re:Are they still evil? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      3 lines at $64-72 a month on T-mo, depending on usage (ie if I go over the cap for the $10 kickback, which rarely happens with fiber to the home)!

    7. Re:Are they still evil? by LynnwoodRooster · · Score: 1

      Hint: Nearly all of the US mainline carriers are "evil", as it's on a spectrum. Their primary goal is to extract as much money as they can while providing as little as possible (without angering you enough to jump to a competitor.)

      That is pretty much the goal of ALL businesses, and individuals. You do as little as possible for as much as you can. I know, some will say "but I make sure I cover ALL my work, give 110% effort" etc. but do you also forgo billing 90% of your time? 30% of your time? 10% of your time? If not - you're trying to get as much as you can for as little as you do...

      Personally, I use Verizon because I get great coverage wherever I go - and my business partners with T-Mobile and AT&T often have issues in NYC, Las Vegas, and Minneapolis. So - I go with Big Red because whilst it is more expensive, I can at least always use it.

      --
      Browsing at +1 - no ACs, I ignore their posts. So refreshing!
  2. FCC removed the brakes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Many good decisions in the past year.

  3. Re:And Hitler has been the fastest "settler" too. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Haha you don't dictate terms, you are the buyer not the seller. Enjoy your spotty WiFi coverage snowflake.

  4. And the most expensive by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You get what you pay for

  5. INB4 "I side with Verizon" aka "keep dreaming". by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Acting as if this is not possible is precisely why Verizon keeps keeping it impossible.

  6. And the most expensive... by Kenja · · Score: 1

    so... yeah, still gonna give them a big pass.

    --

    "Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"
  7. Should then break down the average speed... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    They should then break down the average speed into how much each of those MB costs...

  8. #1 With The NSA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Go USA!#1!!*

    *Actual rankings may vary greatly, USA actually #38

  9. Hello Verizon livestock. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And that is the case precisely because of you acting that way.

    What is Verizon going to do if nobody gives them any money anymore? Get their money from another America they hadn't tried yet?

    Verizon et al may be evil, but livestock like you are the root of all evil. The fertile soil. The supporters.
    It was literally like that with the Nazis back then. I'm German. I know.

  10. Twice the price by hunter44102 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    For double the price of T-Mobile I would hope they are faster. But it looks like not much

    1. Re:Twice the price by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      T-Mobile now, former Verizon. Verizon cannot touch T-Mobile in terms of speed and customer service. There is simply no comparison. I will not voluntarily go back to Verizon unless I live somewhere where T-Mobile sucks, which is increasingly unlikely. At the moment, I live just north of the rat hole they call Houston. I would like to move to either Issaquah or Snoqualmie, WA, and in both places T-Mobile works just fine.

    2. Re:Twice the price by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      T-Mobile now, former Verizon. Verizon cannot touch T-Mobile in terms of speed and customer service. There is simply no comparison. I will not voluntarily go back to Verizon unless I live somewhere where T-Mobile sucks, which is increasingly unlikely. At the moment, I live just north of the rat hole they call Houston. I would like to move to either Issaquah or Snoqualmie, WA, and in both places T-Mobile works just fine.

      I recently switched from Verizon to T-Mobile. Have an iphone 6s. I live near Issaquah and work in Seattle. My download speed on my iphone is a consistent 97 Mbps and upload is averaging 33 Mpbs. I use my phone as a hotspot for PS4 gaming and VPN to work at home. Speed is fine.

      However, if you walk into buildings around Seattle (like the Chase Bank or haircut place in South Lake Union, your T-mobile signal dies while Verizon has a signal. The tradeoff even in a city where T-Mobile has their headquarters is that the GSM signal is weaker in places where Verizon always has a signal, even if a poor one.

    3. Re:Twice the price by mlw4428 · · Score: 1

      It's also coverage. T-Mobile has poor coverage in terms of sq miles covered. Verizon wins on both speed and sq miles covered.

    4. Re:Twice the price by hunter44102 · · Score: 1

      Maybe 10 years ago they had poor coverage but not anymore. I have traveled all over the country with no issues

    5. Re:Twice the price by mlw4428 · · Score: 1

      I can go to their coverage maps and see the difference.

    6. Re:Twice the price by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Until T-Mobile gets their 600MHz band rolled out...

  11. Come to my neighborhood... by eaddict · · Score: 1

    I guess 0 bars and the inability to connect would make you a winner... and T Mobile and Sprint. Damn AT&T is the ONLY service I can get and I am in a suburb!

    --
    "If you are on fire you can just stop, drop, and roll. If you fall into Lava you are just dead." - my 5yr old daughter
  12. T-mobile by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I've been with T-mobile for years now. I'd never go back to one of the bigger carriers. T-mobile is just better on price, customer service, terms, and user rights. Perfect? Hardly. But better. Only downside is the network is still discernibly worse than the biggest players, but it's getting better.

    1. Re:T-mobile by Mattcelt · · Score: 2

      Verizon: 11% faster than T-mobile. And 1000% worse to deal with.

  13. NOW... by slipped_bit · · Score: 1

    ... we can hear you.

  14. Does it matter? by b0bby · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I get that it's great that infrastructure is improving, but does this really matter? Once you get above a certain point (for me, on a phone, that's about 3 Mbps) it's "fast enough" and other factors become more important. For me, those are basically cost and coverage. Verizon is bad on cost, good on coverage, so for me, AT&T through Cricket is the better choice - lower cost and almost as good coverage. Sprint coverage around me is not good enough; T-Mo coverage is just barely good enough. All are plenty fast for what I need a phone to do.

    1. Re:Does it matter? by mlw4428 · · Score: 2

      Your mistake is looking at this from a "you" perspective. Frankly no one cares about what's good enough for YOU. I want 1000000000000000Tbps. It doesn't exist yet...but that's MY personal speed threshold and I'd be willing to pay the carrier who is closest to that number my dollars. So it matters, maybe not to you, but honestly you don't matter in the grand scheme of things. Neither do I really.

    2. Re:Does it matter? by PhrostyMcByte · · Score: 2

      Agreed. Bandwidth is great but it's high enough now that it's not as important. What I'd be interested in seeing is latency and "connectedness" if that makes sense. How long does it take for me to load main page, and click a few levels deep, on the top 100 websites? What if I haven't been using my phone for an hour? How often do I open up an app and it just spins for 5 seconds while things get connected?

    3. Re:Does it matter? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Let this sink in: most web browsing, video-watching and application usage is done on mobile devices.

      May people under 30 don't even own a laptop any more; a tablet and phone are perfectly adequate for everything they want to do. These people don't want to spend $50 on cable just to get bandwidth-capped, tied-to-one-location wifi, when an extra $40 on a better cellular plan such a better deal.

      Just because you don't use something doesn't mean that nobody does, and in this case you are the anomaly rather than the majority.