The Irish Network with the Best 4G Coverage-
The best mobile network for you is the one that provides the most wide-spread coverage in your area, not the network that provides the best coverage nationally. Building a network that is deserving of such a title is a huge undertaking, especially in a country where soaring hills divide communities and one-off farmhouses.
The race to deploy blanket 4G networks has been a long road, and dare I say, a very bumpy one for some. Vodafone has enjoyed unchallenged dominance in the coverage realm until recently, allowing the network to push out flashy marketing campaigns that emphasised the supremacy of its network. Meanwhile, Three grappled with service issues that plagued its network following a rough, to put it lightly, merger with O2. The smaller of the three, eir, has struggled to keep up with the ever-increasing demand for data, an issue that has been exacerbated by the lack of spectrum which the network holds.
To learn about which 4G network reigns supreme, we will analyse and compare coverage data from multiple different sources, helping us to develop a more detailed picture. Furthermore, we will compare the urban and rural coverage offered by each respective network, find out which network covers our national roads and motorways the best and investigate how they hold up against each other. More importantly, however, we will investigate how the coverage of each network has evolved over time and the plans that are in store for future network expansions.
Methodology
The methodology behind the conclusions in this article needs to transparent and non-biased to ensure each competitor is represented equally. Crowd-sourced data will play an integral in the process of identifying the mobile providers with the most widespread 4G coverage. This is data that has been amalgamated from mobile users of each respective network and includes the quality of the radio link, the connection type (UMTS, LTE etc.) and the precise location of where this data was recorded.
nPerf offers a crowd-sourced coverage map, portraying the crowd-sourced coverage data of Ireland's three mobile providers. nPerf's interactive map is automatically updated with new data on an hourly basis, and recorded data is shown for up to a year before it is deleted. nPerf only retains data that boasts a geolocation accuracy of under 50 metres.
ComReg conducts a thorough coverage analysis twice a year with its biannual drive tests. These tests rigorously examine the quality of the signal offered by each network type from Ireland's mobile providers. The drive tests feature data from the quality of signal recorded on roads throughout Ireland, including motorways and national roads. A report of the results is published by ComReg and the recorded data is displayed on a number of different maps. The raw data is also published by ComReg, and used by the watchdog to ensure that mobile providers are meeting their population coverage obligations as prescribed following the 4G spectrum in 2012.
Finally, Ookla and OpenSignal, which are both considered to be industry experts in the field of mobile network analysis also provide their own crowd-sourced coverage maps. Ookla's crowd-sourced coverage tool is relatively new compared to OpenSignal's service and therefore lacks a substantial data set to warrant its use in this article. OpenSignal's crowd-sourced data is derived from data reported by Android and iOS devices in-app and in the background, making it a valuable source to compare coverage data. OpenSignal's crowd-sourced coverage map is the most populated in Ireland, however, it is limited by the fact that you cannot specify a network type in the same way you can with nPerf.
I will also refer to my personal usage and experience with Ireland's three mobile networks. I have tested each network extensively over the past year and have travelled to a number of locations around Ireland. In each case, the device that I used remained identical during the course of testing.
Urban 4G Coverage
When it comes to providing coverage in urban areas such as cities and large towns, the density of base stations is the most important factor because mobile providers tend to use high-frequency spectrum (1800MHz and above) to offer greater capacity. This spectrum struggles to propagate over long distances and to penetrate buildings. Hence, there is a requirement for a site on every fifth or sixth street, leading to increased network density.
Vodafone and Three provide the best urban coverage in Ireland, with eir falling behind in this respect. In particular, Three's superior density of sites in urban settings, thanks primarily to the assets it acquired from O2, allows the network to offer ubiquitous 4G coverage in cities and large towns throughout Ireland.
Vodafone doesn't fall behind here either, with the company's urban coverage being classified as excellent by most, a result of efforts to provide blanket coverage in such areas. That last point is particularly important, and you will see me referring to it throughout this article. With the launch of 4G in 2013, Vodafone immediately set out to provide wide-spread and consistent 4G coverage in urban areas. Basically, this means that you will find yourself accessing a 4G network for the vast majority of time with Vodafone, and falling back to an HSPA+ network is a rare occurrence.
Three's aforementioned network consolidation and upgrade program has resulted in an effective disappearance of 3G-only masts being operated in urban areas. Pretty much all of Three's urban sites support 4G or 4G+, leading to reliable coverage in every part of your city or town. On the contrary, there are still a relatively large number of 2G and 3G masts operated by Vodafone in dense urban centres.
Looking at the data, RootMetrics found Vodafone to provide the most reliable overall network performance in the majority of urban areas in which it tested, including the capital. Vodafone's lead in Dublin has been documented widely, and this a result of the unparalleled scale of the company's superfast 4G+ (or carrier aggregated) network there. Now, Three doesn't fall far behind in these rankings and has continued to improve its network performance at a rapid pace.
In Cork, crowd-sourced coverage data from nPerf shows that Three performs best, with the availability of 4G and 4G+ beating that offered by Vodafone in the city. The same data also shows that Vodafone obliterates Three in Waterford and Kilkenny because Three's 4G coverage is more patchy in those locations. The one thing that I will say, in the testing of these networks in cities and large towns, is that Three appears to provide 4G coverage in more suburban areas than Vodafone does. Basically, this means that as you travel away from the CBD and inner city, a more consistent 4G experience may be enjoyed with Three's network.
All of the above conclusions can be supported with the findings from ComReg's biannual drive tests which show that urban 4G coverage is great with all three mobile providers. In smaller towns and villages, however, Vodafone and Three manage to pull ahead of eir.
Summary:
Vodafone provides the most consistent urban 4G coverage, with it beating rivals in Dublin, Kilkenny and Waterford. When it comes to large towns, the pervasiveness of Vodafone's 4G network is unmatched. Data from RootMetrics, nPerf, ComReg and OpenSignal repeatedly sights Vodafone as performing outstandingly in urban areas.
Three's 4G+ (or carrier aggregated network) covers more urban areas than any other, and upgrades continue to improve the coverage experience for customers. Three's network is superior in Cork and Limerick, and densification work in Dublin has allowed Three to provide great indoor coverage.
eir's 4G network trails behind Vodafone and Three in urban locations, with 4G+ availability remaining very limited by comparison, and indoor coverage proving poor in many locations due to a lack of network density.
Coverage on Motorways and National Roads
The existence of reliable coverage across our motorways and national roads is of paramount importance for business customers, who require a constant ability to maintain calls and data connectivity in a modern working environment. As well as this, there is an ever-growing number of mobile customers who use their data connection for streaming video and music while travelling, and this activity demands seamless handoffs from one base station to another. Unlike providing urban coverage, networks face fewer issues relating to indoor coverage along roads, with most issues arising from the difficulty presented by offering a reliable connection over long distances. To make matters worse, our roads in Ireland criss-cross hills, rivers and valleys, meaning the architecture of base stations must be designed on a case-by-case basis to ensure maximum performance.
Three has indicated that providing consistent 4G coverage to those travelling on our motorways and national roads has been a priority of its "Big Upgrade" programme in the past two years. The network has undertaken serious work along our primary roads to upgrade legacy Three and O2 masts to 4G and 4G+ services. As you will see from the coverage map pictured below, Three provides ribboned or linear 4G coverage across all motorways and national roads on this island. Essentially, the company has worked its way out from cities along these roads, with coverage becoming increasingly patchy the further the road moves away from a city or large town. In the southeast, 4G coverage along national roads remains disturbingly patchy because this is one of the only remaining parts of the country that has yet to undergo major work with "The Big Upgrade".
eir has implemented a different technique to Three in relation to providing 4G coverage along our motorways and national roads, even if the two are engaged in an infrastructure-sharing agreement (Mosaic). 4G coverage tends to be more blanket and consistent with eir than it does with Three. eir's coverage fairs particularly well on roads located along the east and northeast coast of Ireland. In the south-west, west and north-west, Three's 4G coverage is more consistent along roads than that provided with eir. While this article focuses on the 4G coverage available in Ireland, I want to take a second to explain that Three's 3G network is significantly larger than the one provided by eir. In this way, you will experience an overall more reliable network experience with Three along our roads than you will with eir.
Again, there is no surprise with Vodafone, as the company's 4G coverage across Irish motorways and national roads can be classified as fantastic in the vast majority of cases. For example, in the south and south-east, Vodafone remains the only reliable option for maintaining a 4G signal while travelling. If you decide to deviate from a motorway or national road, the chances that you will maintain a connection to Vodafone's network are high, and the same couldn't be said for eir. Something I've noticed, however, in my extensive testing of Vodafone's network, is the fact there are still quite large sections of roads which are served only by 3G coverage. I suspect this to be a result of Vodafone's efforts to provide 4G coverage in the areas flanking the roads, whereas Three has focused on merely covering the roads in most areas, ignoring the communities which lie further back.
Lucky for us, as I mentioned in the urban coverage section, ComReg conducts comprehensive biannual drive tests to analyse network performance and ensure that mobile providers are fulfilling their coverage obligations. This data paints a pretty picture for Vodafone, with the company's 900MHz HSDPA (3G) network crushing its competitors along roads. When it comes to 2100MHz 3G, though, Three holds a league of its own with the most consistent coverage across tested roads. Finally, and most importantly, the results show that 4G coverage is most consistent along roads with Vodafone. Before I proceed, I want to make it clear that these results were published at the beginning of this year, so recent upgrade work undertaken by Three will not we portrayed.
Thankfully, I have a solution to the above issue relating to out-of-date data, nPerf's coverage map, which is updated every hour, backs up the above conclusions. Something interesting, however, which the data does portray is the breadth of Three's 4G+ network. nPerf's map shows that Three's 4G+ coverage is the most extensive along roads in Ireland.
Summary:
Three's 4G coverage across motorways and national roads in Ireland is brilliant, with the company covering more roads than Vodafone or eir with 4G+ coverage. Data shows Three's 4G coverage fairs very well in the south-west, west and north-west. 4G coverage along roads in the south-east is very poor when compared to Vodafone and eir.
Vodafone's 4G network performs consistently well across roads in Ireland, with superior 4G coverage being provided on National Secondary and Regional Roads compared to Three and eir. Vodafone beats its competitors in the south and south-east. There are still large sections of National Roads covered by only 3G coverage.
eir's 4G network is superior in the north-east, and performs similarly to Three's network in the midlands. 4G coverage is less patchy than it is with Three on many National Secondary roads, but fewer Motorways and National Roads are covered with blanket 4G coverage.
Rural Coverage
Vodafone's 4G network remains unmatched.
Without question, this is probably the most anticipated section of the article, stemming from the critical role which mobile providers play in keeping those living in rural areas connected to the Internet. As Irish people have come to learn, our broadband infrastructure sucks in rural areas, representing a failure on behalf of the state to ensure citizens have access to a facility as fundamental as the Internet. For many, access to a 3G or 4G network is the only means by which they can connect to the Internet in their home and businesses.
Before we proceed with a section of utmost importance, I want to reflect on the rural coverage landscape over the last number of years to allow us to gain a greater insight into the issue. Before the merger of Three and O2 in 2015, Vodafone was the only Irish network that provided coverage to the majority of the Irish landmass. Of course, most of Vodafone's rural sites, at the time, were restricted to providing 2G services. The dominant scale which Vodafone wielded allowed the company to hoover up rural customers who basically had no other network to choose. Seeing this, Three quietly signed a deal with Vodafone that allowed their customers to roam on Vodafone's 2G or EDGE network throughout the country. This dramatically expanded the number of areas in which Three could provide coverage, allowing them to grow their customer base. Separately, Meteor (O2) engaged in a network-sharing agreement with O2, which allowed the company to roam on O2's 2G network for voice and text services.
At the same time, Telefónica's O2 was suffering from a severe lack of capital investment in its network as Hutchinson (Three) approached with a deal to snap up the network. O2 was the second largest Irish network behind Vodafone, but the company's decision to neglect its network when the rollout of 4G began meant that Three was left with a dysfunctional and archaic network upon completion of the merger. It has taken Three over two years to consolidate the legacy Three and O2 networks, and during that precious time, Vodafone steamed ahead with its Spring and Darwin network upgrade programmes. This short history lesson is important because it helps to explain the development of the rural networks which we have arrived with today.
Let's not draw things out, Vodafone provides the best overall 4G coverage in rural Ireland. No other provider operates quite as many 4G-capable base stations as Vodafone does, and this is the case in pretty much every rural community on this island, from Malin Head to Hook Head. This is a direct result of the company's Spring programme, which involved the transformation of Vodafone's RAN to improve the call and data experience for customers, in conjunction with partners such as Ericsson and 4site. A quick browse of ComReg's SiteViewer tool, which shows the exact location and details about every single base station in Ireland reveals that Vodafone's 4G network extends well beyond the cities and big towns, touching even the most remote of buildings in many cases. Of course, it would be easy for me to make such claims if I provided no evidence to support my narrative. But there is evidence and tons of it at that. Based on census data, Vodafone was the first Irish network to pass 90% 4G population coverage in each county, with the company covering over 96% of the Irish people today with 4G services. However, determining the breadth of a network based on population coverage is an infamously flawed method, it is geographic 4G coverage that really matters.
Crowd-sourced coverage maps from nPerf, OpenSignal and Ookla, along with drive test results from ComReg show that Vodafone's 800MHz 4G coverage is most prolific in rural areas. Vodafone's rural 4G base stations generally use 800MHz to maximise the coverage provided by each individual base station. In the south and southeast, Vodafone's lead is very noticeable in everyday usage scenarios where no other network manages to provide a reliable 4G connection in most rural areas. The primary reason for the wide-spread 4G coverage offered by Vodafone's network is the decisions the company made when rolling out its 4G network. Unlike its competitors, Vodafone focused on building out a blanket 4G network with consistent coverage in rural areas. Due to its high-frequency spectrum before the merger, Three's 4G network was limited to hotspots and pockets of coverage. In simple terms, this means that Three's customers spend more time on 3G than Vodafone's customers do, and suffer from a more sporadic 4G coverage experience.
What about Three, don't they claim to provide 97% 4G population coverage and are still engaged in the final stages of a network upgrade programme? Straight up, Three's rural 4G coverage is phenomenal in a number of locations where the company has completed upgrade work. In such locations, virtually every Three base station now provides 4G services, meaning customers can enjoy a seamless mobile experience. For example, the strength of Three's network in the Midlands is excellene exemplified, and both Vodafone and eir pail in comparison. In the county of Longford, the company claims to provide over 95% 4G population coverage.
As I explained earlier, Three has deployed 1800MHz 4G services in more rural locations than any other network because the company didn't hold any 800MHz spectrum prior to its merger with O2. From a capacity perspective, this puts Three in a great position to facilitate high demand on rural sites, but from a coverage perspective, it can spell a disaster if there are obstacles such as hills or valleys in the path of the signal, leading to dramatically poorer coverage performance from these sites compared to those operating on 800MHz or 900MHz.
You will see evidence of this from Three's own 4G coverage map, images are shown below. As you can see, Three uses a tri-sector antenna layout on the vast majority of its rural sites, and those with 1800MHz 4G implemented produce a very limited coverage footprint. In recent times, the company has implemented 800MHz 4G on upgraded sites, but this number of sites is smaller to the number of 800MHz sites that Vodafone and eir operate. Naturally, this means that Three requires a greater density of base stations to achieve the same coverage as Vodafone and eir in rural areas if we are talking about 1800MHz 4G. Unfortunately, this is not the case in most areas, and the result is limited 4G coverage available in rural areas with Three's network.
Throughout this article, I've dismissed eir's 4G network as providing a sub-par coverage experience. This is justified by the data, which is influenced directly by the number of sites which eir has upgraded to 4G. Just on a quick side note, I want to bring to your attention some of the flaws which crowd-sourced coverage data may exhibit. As you know, eir is the smallest of Ireland's three mobile providers, this means there is a smaller proportion of customers that can contribute data than with Vodafone or Three. In practice, this may result in eir's 4G coverage being underrepresented on certain crowd-sourced coverage maps due to a lack of data points. It's something to bear in mind as we move on to investigating eir's rural 4G coverage.
Hands down, eir's 4G network is more pervasive in most rural areas than Three's network is. As is the case with most things in telecoms, what you put in is what you get out. eir's customers enjoy access to a significant number of rural 4G sites, a number that dwarfs that available to Three's customers. What makes this kind of peculiar is Three's superior number of total rural sites compared to both Vodafone and eir. However, as the company's customers know, it has taken Three some time to upgrade these rural sites to 4G.
eir's rural 4G network operates on 800MHz, similar to Vodafone's network. Furthermore, eir remains engaged in a network sharing agreement with Three until 2030. The EU Commission ensured that Three agreed to the Mosaic Agreement with eir following the merger. This has resulted in eir and Three sharing over two thousand sites in Ireland today, with both companies sharing site equipment, power supply, towers, and transmission to deliver cost savings. This has worked wonders for eir's rural coverage, as Three has constructed many new sites across Ireland in the past two years, allowing eir to gain access to these sites. The company also operates some of its own rural 4G sites which are independent to those of Three.
ComReg's drive test results show that eir's 4G network fairs pretty poorly in the north-west, especially in rural areas in Donegal. Its a different story in rural areas surrounding Limerick and Athlone, where eir's 4G network performs very admirably.
Summary:
Vodafone claims its network provides the most wide-spread 4G coverage, and based on the data, I can't argue with them. If you need reliable access to a 4G network in rural areas, whether a hill overlooks your farm in Kerry or a lake sits at your doorstep in the Midlands, Vodafone should be your network of choice. The company operates more rural 4G sites than any other network, and its strategy to provide blanket 4G coverage means you will relish the excellent experience that 4G delivers on a consistent basis. Vodafone's rural 4G coverage is superior in the south, south east, and along the east coast.
Three's "Big Upgrade" programme has radically transformed the breadth of the company's rural 4G network. In areas such as the Midlands, where Three has upgraded the vast majority of legacy Three and O2 sites, the company provides exceptional rural 4G coverage. However, in rural areas in the south and south east, Three's rural 4G coverage fairs miserably due to a major lack of 4G capable sites and the use of the 1800MHz frequency.
Throughout Ireland, eir's rural 4G network proves to be comparable to that operated by Vodafone. The company has upgraded significantly more rural sites to 4G compared to Three, and that translates to vast areas of rural land having the ability to access eir's 800MHz 4G network. Rural areas in Limerick and Athlone are served particularly well be eir's 4G network.
National Summary:
Vodafone: Holding onto the Crown.
No other network delivers the same coast to coast omnipresence boasted by Vodafone's 4G network, a network which beats its rival across motorways, national roads, regional roads and rural areas throughout Ireland. In Dublin, arguably one of Vodafone's flagship cities, the network connects its customers with an unparalleled network experience. Vodafone's network has won awards as far as the eye can see, and I can say categorically that Vodafone's 4G network offers the best and most reliable coverage on the island of Ireland in 2018.
Three: A Remarkable Transformation
Hot on Vodafone's heels is Three, the network which provides the best urban and suburban 4G coverage in Ireland. Three's 4G network performs fantastically in virtually every location that the company has upgraded, including the Midlands, west and north-west. Three's 4G+ network is colossal, in proportion to Vodafone and eir, and this puts the company in an excellent position moving towards 5G. In rural areas, however, Three's 4G network fails to live up to the same calibre as Vodafone and eir, due to the existence of too many 3G-only sites. With continued upgrade work, Three will become the best 4G network in Ireland for coverage.
eir: Time for Change
For eir and its customers, this article must be a disappointing read, and it shouldn't surprise the company. eir's 4G network lacks the density boasted by Vodafone and Three in urban and suburban areas such as Dublin, leading to poorer indoor coverage. Three has bypassed eir in terms of 4G coverage availability on roads around Ireland. Furthermore, eir's 4G+ network is worryingly limited in 2018. But things aren't all doom and gloom for eir, as its customers enjoy a good rural 4G coverage experience, one that beats that offered by Three.
As a conclusion, I would like to offer thanks to a number of different people and organisations who have made this article possible. The data provided by ComReg, nPerf, Ookla, OpenSignal and RootMetrics has been at the forefront of every comparison and has guided the article through the many bumps experienced during the research phases. I would like to thank these organisations, on a personal level, for their work to benchmark mobile networks and, in turn, help consumers make informed decisions.
Furthermore, I would like to thank Peter Clarke, an expert in mobile network architecture, and whose knowledge in the field has proven invaluable to this article. I strongly advise you to check out some of his work here, and perhaps, watch his comprehensive analysis of Vodafone's network architecture in Ireland.
Finally, I feel it is only fitting that I express my admiration for Vodafone, Three and eir. Without them, the existence of such an article would be impossible. If you're an employee of one of these companies, give yourself a pat on the back. Keep connecting the disconnected in Ireland, and continue to innovate to bring the power wielded by the Internet into the hands of every Irish person, regardless of where they live.
reposted from Lukekehoe.com