Best Network in London?

yesyoucanbecheap

I'm on the market for an iPhone 5 contract.

Originally I got a contract with Vodafone but coverage in Central London was completely shocking. Completely shocking. So have cancelled the contract.

From people's experiences, which are the best networks for this area? Don't want to get burned twice.

Thanks

bengalknights

Would have though O2 and Vodafone were the best but what you can try is payg sims from them all to test reception

yesyoucanbecheap

It's a good idea.

Does anyone have experience of tmobile reception in central London?

Im_just_careful

T Mobile 2G coverage I've generally found fine in London. 3G is surprisingly patchy. If you want the best data coverage "3" seems best to me. However I wouldn't have a contract with "3".

macman

It's patchy, because Central London has a lot of big buildings to get in the way of the signal. And putting up masts there cost the networks far more than in the suburbs or out of town.

yesyoucanbecheap

Im_just_careful wrote: »

T Mobile 2G coverage I've generally found fine in London. 3G is surprisingly patchy. If you want the best data coverage "3" seems best to me. However I wouldn't have a contract with "3".

This is just crazy to me. How can none of the network operators provide good quality signal in Central London of all places?

Just crazy...

smartphone

It really depends on what type of coverage you require...if you're looking at an iPhone then I assume you want 3G (or maybe even 4G) to get use of the apps. I've found the O2 and Voda to be fine if you are indoors a lot or on some tube lines as you can pick up their 2G coverage, however their 3G coverage is nowhere near as good as 3's. TMob is generally considered to be decent in London but does have black spots. As previously suggested, the best way to find out is get some PAYG sims and try them out.

smartphone

Should also have said, the reason 3G is so poor on a lot of networks is due to firstly the difficulty the frequency has in penetrating buildings, and secondly the increased number of transmitters required. 4G will undoubtedly improve things.

jemcart

I like Orange best. I get coverage around most of London - and of course Orange Wednesdays!

sniggings

Orange has the use of the T-mobile network too so might be worth checking out.

neil40

EE 4G would be good for central London but pricey!