With the advent of 4G, 3G sounds like an old news, but in reality many of us are still stuck with 2G, despite paying the premium pricing
for 3G access. BBC recently conducted a crowd-sourced survey of 3G hotspots in UK and came up with some disappointing factoids. Essentially, telecom industry is not delivering on its promises and consumers are getting short-changed.
According to the survey results, an average 3G users gets full-power signal for only 75 percent of the time and remaining 25 percent of the time, we are using much slower 2G connection. The problem is occurring mainly due to lack of planning during the installation stage of 3G network. Essentially, faulty planning is now leading to inefficiencies and poorer performance. Now, that very soon, 4G spectrum would be up for sale, we just hope that telecom companies would learn their lesson and would not repeat the same mistake while designing 4G network.
The survey was conducted with the aid of about 46,000 volunteers. They were given an Android app, which then transmitted the required data back to Epitiro, the firm responsible for conducting the study. The survey was started in July. Gavin John of Epitiro said, "r the first time consumers have the means to see 3G coverage precisely where they live, work and travel."
BBC study has further corroborated the conclusion drawn by Ofcom in a separate survey. Ofcom had said, "The availability of 2G, 3G or HSPA networks, and the performance delivered, vary significantly even within small geographic areas”. If you are interested in knowing the efficiency of coverage in your area, then you can find the interactive map here.