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UK iPhone Users: How is your Network?

Ninja Dom

Ninja Dom

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Feb 12, 2007
646
145
Okay, I've had every model of iPhone since the original in 2007 (except the 5C) and have been on Vodafone for almost the entire time. For the 3GS in 2009/2010 I did use O2.

Now I've had enough of Vodafone, their 4G is actually pretty good (London). But they're calling quality for me is terrible. And more importantly, I don't work for them anymore so I cease to get any discounts with them.

I'm thinking of changing network next month. It's currently between Three (price) and O2 (quality).

What networks do you all use? How is the 4G? Does anybody have any experience with 4G on Three? Also what area are you using your iPhone in?
 
Apple fanboy said:
On O2 here. Signal great 4g forget it. But phone signal is the most important thing to me. At work and home I'm on WiFi.
Click to expand...

On O2 3G what kind of Internet speeds are you getting while out and about?

I'm a heavy internet user, I do around 6GB to 8GB of Internet data a month. I get nice 4G speeds so I don't really use wifi much although I have wifi at home.
 
on o2 here. based in london 4g is pretty good. Been to oxford a few times but 4g not out yet. O2 has one of the best 2g network coverages which handles your voice and apparently they're in the process of upgrading all their masts. THey even share vodafones 4g masts so it'll be the same for that.

Where i work (North WEst London), Three is non-existent. They had to close their shop on the main highstreet due to everyone cancelling contracts from suffering no signal all the time. There are parts of the country where three excel however, all a matter of trying it out.

I recommend getting a bunch of pay and go sims and trying them out for a week or so to see how you fair.
 
Last edited:
Ninja Dom said:
On O2 3G what kind of Internet speeds are you getting while out and about?

I'm a heavy internet user, I do around 6GB to 8GB of Internet data a month. I get nice 4G speeds so I don't really use wifi much although I have wifi at home.
Click to expand...

1174kb/s on 3G at home at the moment. 2494kb/s on wifi.
 
I've been on Three since the 5 was released and I've had aggro with them ever since with congestion problems where I work (City of London). They said when 4G is launched that should fix the congestion but it hasn't done so and is just as bad. It's also very bad where I live (Essex) and they have given me a Home Signal box which works great but it doesn't ultimately solve the problem. Three in my opinion is great if you're very near a mast, if your not then it's patchy at best.
I was on O2 previously and had no problem with them, I just jumped ship to get the 5 quicker but will be ending my contract with Three very soon and going back to O2 which is great where I work and where I live.
 
EE is best for 4G but generally you should choose the best network for your locality. I've been on O2 for over 10 years but the iPhone 5 has a rubbish signal, and I know it's not the network because it has previously been excellent. I can get up to 8Mbps with a strong 3G signal.
 
I'm on giffgaff (effectively O2), and whilst 4G isn't really anywhere outside of London and a few other major cities, generally 2G and 3G coverage is very good. Never been somewhere without at least a phone signal. Speeds on 3G can be up to 7Mbps, which isn't too bad. Usually it's 1.5-2Mbps.

I was on Three from 2010-11, but changed as the signal inside buildings was atrocious. Couldn't even make a call, which was obviously a deal breaker.
 
O2 3G is completely unusable nowadays in central London. No band with whatsoever, GPRS speeds, massive latency and frequent unexplained connection stalling. Avoid.
 
From another similar thread a few weeks back...


I was an O2 customer for a few years, overall good signal, but at least back then fairly low 3G speeds...

Three's prices looked very appealing, so decided to give them a go. 3G speeds with strong signal were amazing, as long as I was outdoors, in city centres. Indoors signal is very poor, and even though they gave me a signal booster, which solved the problem at home, elsewhere the signal was really rubbish!! They don't have edge/gprs to fall back to, so I t's either 3G or nothing...

So finally decided to try EE, whose prices are now much more reasonable, and have been very happy since! Overall good coverage, 3G not as fast as Three, but they already have 4g where I live, which makes up for it.

At the end of the day, even though it's a smartphone, it still has to work well as a phone, and three, at least in my area, didn't give me that...
 
I'm on three. Got to say I love them.

Last month 400gb of data used not one text or call.

Customer services is good and I get a decent signal everywhere I frequent.
 
I joined Vodafone from EE because EE wanted far too much upfront for the iPhone 5S and the tariffs were just too much for me.

I know someone who works for VF so got 30% discount on my line rental. And they are the only ones who offer iPhones on a year's agreement.

However I'll be leaving them once my tariff expires; where I've had 4G speeds have been less than adequate. Furthermore I get too many instances where the signal falls back to E, GPRS or "No Service" at all.
 
I'm on Three here in Scotland and it's the best network - I've tried them all. Was on VF for years but it's terrible now. O2 awful here as well. Was in London a few weeks back and got 40MB download speed on 4G.
 
I'm on Three and have been for a few years, the network itself is great, excellent quality, rarely find a place with no signal (proper out in the sticks places usually, unsure if anyone would have signal though), speeds are good, contract is good (unlimited 4G Data with Unlimited Tethering).

HOWEVER. Customer Service is AWFUL. Not a deal breaker for more, but once a year I have the hassle of dealing with them.
 
I was on GiffGaff for a while, purely due to price. It was terrible - even when I had a signal, calls failed more often than not. There was some speculation on their forums (which is all the customer service they have) that it was because it was a 2nd tier service, and when O2 was busy they got priority (moments, anyone?)

In frustration I went to 3, who were actually cheaper, had a better signal, and I haven't yet dropped a call. 4g is rolling out in Aberdeen, though the download speeds are not much faster then 3G (the most I've seen is 8mb), the upload speeds are faster - often equalling the download speed. In London I saw 25mb down, 10 up. I get a 3 bar 3G signal in my house - 6mb down 1 up, which is twice as fast as my home broadband, and for £15.90 a month for unlimited everything including tethering and roaming in 16 countries, including the whole of Scandinavia, USA, and France, it's cheaper too. Out in the sticks where there is no 3 or 4g, there is no data whatsoever, which is a pain, but I can make calls most of the time. Their customer service is truly terrible - all the worst clichés about Indian call centres apply. On the plus side, I've hardly had to use it.

My work iPhone 4 is on Vodafone, who used to be the only network I would recommend, but not anymore. Could the signal actually be getting worse, or has it just stood still while the world moved on? I get no signal in my house, and even when I have a 5 bar signal calls are dropped all the time. I see GPRS more often than 3G, and there's no 4g yet. When I compare with my own iPhone 5s on 3, 3 has a stronger signal 9 times out of 10, and even with a weaker signal doesn't drop calls.

We're moving to EE some time this year, mostly because of problems with network reliability, which I take to mean all the dropped calls. It remains to be seen how good they are.
 
Been with Orange and their 3G signal was virtually non existent wherever I was in the UK. When it was available it wasn't strong enough to get though some buildings.

I'm on 02 and get a 3G signal pretty much everywhere and it gets through pretty much all buildings. My family, and a friend of mine has 4g with them and they get 4g nearly everywhere they go (North Tyneside).
 
roop27 said:
I recommend getting a bunch of pay and go sims and trying them out for a week or so to see how you fair.
Click to expand...

@OP-This is the ONLY way to get an answer to your query.

No one can make recommendation, unless they live/work/socialise where you do.

We all live in different parts of the country, so me telling you how great 3 is for me is useless, unless you move in the same areas.

I find 3 to be great, although the lack of a 2G network can be irritating, as it's either 3/4G or nothing.

They also have a weaker voice network (due to the frequencies they use), so you're more likely to go into a building and walk out with a "New Voicemail" message.

Other then that, I pay £15 for 2000 minutes, 5000 3 to 3 minutes. 5000 texts, unlimited data and unlimited tethering, so I can forgive the shortcomings.

That tariff is a SIM Only one (it's also £20 now) and if the unlimited tethering is important to you, I'd suggesting signing up quick, as word has it that will be replaced with a 2 or 4 gig tethering allowance (out of your unlimited data).
 
I'm on EE, was on Three until last year but left due to signal issues when at home. Found them to be pretty good so far, get 3G almost everywhere and the 4G in town/city centre's is fantastic - usually at least 20MB/s down.

Haven't had any issues with voice call quality, only minor annoyance I have is that nearby to my University the 3G is just completely non functional, can't even send iMessage. This was the same on Three though so not quite sure what's wrong there.

Currently on a 12 month sim only plan - £16 p/month (unlimited calls/texts and 1 GB 4G internet).
 
I left O2 last month due to dire 3G speeds, sure I had 3G coverage everywhere but 1mb was the best I was getting.

I got a 5C on EE and have to say I am not impressed. Sure 4G is good and I am getting 25mb download but basic things like making a phone call or sending an SMS are issues, 2-3 bars signal and you go to make a call the phone sits trying to call then the call fails, same with sending an SMS, you hit send and it fails, its only when I have full signal I have no issues. I also seem to miss every call I receive due to this, you then get the missed call SMS. So have to say not impressed with EE :(
 
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