According to the latest speed test report recently released by OpenSignal, it appears that average connection speeds are improving across all of the Big Four carriers in America (namely Verizon Wireless, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint), despite the fact that the level of data usage has increased primarily due to the popularity of unlimited data plans (perhaps at the expense of Wi-Fi).
For those not in the know, OpenSignal harvests its information by taking full advantage of a phone app that mobile users have to download and install on their device. Based on the data is has collected, the firm offers evidence that by the start of this year, all national wireless service providers in the country were achieving average connection speeds of over 10 mbps (megabits per second). That average already takes into account the speeds experienced by consumers on legacy networks when they can not access LTE connections (more on this later).
Throughout 2017, T-Mobile was the star in OpenSignal’s speed tests, even managing to outmaneuver Verizon Wireless (the largest mobile operator in the United States), especially after the Big Red had decided to join in on the unlimited data party (the thinking was that by offering unlimited data, Verizon saw its average speeds suffer). AT&T also posted decreased average speeds after it began offering unlimited data.
By year’s end, however, industry leaders Verizon Wireless and AT&T have since bounced back. With the help of significant investments in their respective networks, the two carriers were able to improve their speeds as they started to get a better handle of the expected increase in data usage among its subscribers.
OpenSignal’s data certainly shows that Verizon Wireless’ efforts have paid off -- the Big Red’s network was found to be the second speediest network consistently among the Big Four last year. And even when its subscribers are shifting to legacy networks when they can not find a usable LTE service, Verizon’s average speeds have still held up fairly well.
For AT&T, it garnered significant points by improving its LTE availability in 2017. And despite the fact that its average LTE connection speed decreased, its average network speed actually went up as more and more of its subscribers shift from the slower 3G to LTE networks. Of course, for these consumers to be persuaded to move to LTE in the first place, carriers have to actually deliver on their promise of quality 4G connections.
To know more about OpenSignal’s latest report, head to its official blog now.
