Faster O2 Connections But Not 4G, Yet
O2 has released news that they are rolling out a faster 3G connection which will speed up all smartphone users’ connections but it’s not quite the 4G speeds that we were expecting. Until the auctions for the 4G spectrum get underway, O2 has decided to capture a little more of the market by offering faster connections to those who cannot wait for 4G and are disappointed in the current 3G speeds. This is great news as it shows the UK is well-underway to getting on-par with speeds in Europe and the USA.
However, rural areas are still struggling with 3G connections but those that have a decent speed in and around cities will be able to have a theoretical 42Mbps. This will, as always, depend on the drain and strain of those using the connections and at peak times but it’s certainly an upgrade from the current speeds that cripple people trying to browse the Internet or download files, movies and apps at any great speed.
This incremental speed increase is not what we expected but it’s certainly welcomed. The DC-HSPA will be doubled for certain areas and it will be a dual-cell high speed packet access that people will be able to get hold of. Although 42Mbps is being quoted the actual speeds will most likely be lower but any increase is good at this present moment in time. As always, the big cities in the UK will see the O2 network speeds increased, so that will include London, Liverpool, Birmingham, Leicester and Nottingham.
As we are seeing more and more smartphones being released that can handle 4G and have the hardware to support faster Internet speeds pressure is certainly on the networks, but also the Government and Ofcom to stop dragging their feet by allowing the 3G network to be upgraded as soon as possible to 4G. The infrastructure is there but the cost is still being negotiated and that is what is slowing proceedings down. It must be noted that the speed increases will depend on where you are using the phone in the country, and therefore it cannot guarantee constant speeds of higher than you’re used to at all times.
Current networks are battling to follow O2 and Three is the latest that will roll out DC-HSPA by the summer which will see maximum speeds of up to 28.8Mbps. This still isn’t the 100Mbps we want to see in the UK but it’s definitely on the right track. The networks are obviously trying to profit off any enhancement that is available to them and so they should! Again Three will only speed up the connection rates in certain large cities so don’t expect to see an increase if you live in the valleys or dales, unfortunately.
As the Nokia Lumia 900 and other smartphones are taking huge leaps forward in technology it seems that networks are now the ones that are behind the times so the race is on to get faster Internet to the UK. If you want to compare mobile phone contracts and get a new, faster and better smartphone then head to Mobile Phone Checker today.