Speed Test

[saptech]

Look like I'm only getting around 8mbps download speed with Tmobile. Shouldn't I be getting hspa+ or does it depend on the area? Is there something I can do to get faster speeds?

I'm normally on 3G but I did see E for a short while. I'm in the St. Louis area and the coverage map show I'm in an excellent to very strong area.

 

[Rukbat]

1) "Excellent to very strong" at 800 MHz depends on a few things - a cold front between you and the tower could make that "non-existent to terrible". I wouldn't worry about having a tree blocking your signal this time of year, but there are a few other things that could do it.

2) The bandwidth of a given channel is fixed. If dozen people are all downloading large files when you do your speed test, your speed is going down the toilet.

Do a speed test at about 4 AM on a weekday that's not around a holiday. (If you want to see what low-to-no-speed means, try making a call a couple of hours before noon on Mother's Day. The landline network people normally ignore "I can't get through" complaints until the Monday after.) Right now there are thousands of people in malls all looking up whether they should walk to the store 50 feet down to save 50 cents.

 

[saptech]

Good points. I can live with what I get, I'm an old timer so I really don't need lightning speed. Plus this is AT&T area. I may do better looking into their plans.

 

[jhawkkw]

It sounds like you actually are getting HSPA+21, it's just that your phone ui is showing it as 3G instead of HSPA. Not a big deal because HSPA is actually a 3G technology that's marketed as 4G by AT&T and T-Mobile. 8mbps is pretty normal on HSPA+21, and hspa+42 tends to boast about 18-24mbps.

 

[saptech]

I'm glad to be able to get good advice from AF. I'm still trying to learn phones & android. I just don't have the motivation like I used to.

 

[jhawkkw]

I'm glad to be able to get good advice from AF. I'm still trying to learn phones & android. I just don't have the motivation like I used to.

That's why we're here. AT&T HSPA+ is not quite as good on speed because it runs on the 850MHz band, though it offers better coverage while T-Mobile's 1700/2100 or 1900MHz HSPA+ offers better speed while offering less coverage due to the nature of how radio waves travel. Just something to keep in mind, considering my brother on Straight Talk AT&T could never get better than 5mbps on HSPA+.

 

[saptech]

Thanks again. I know paying $30 p/m will make me accept the speed.

Can I tether my data? Just a thought!

 

[jhawkkw]

Thanks again. I know paying $30 p/m will make me accept the speed.

Can I tether my data? Just a thought!

There have been mixed results from tethering on the T-Mobile $30 dollar plan. Some people report getting 100MB per month of free tethering, other report getting no tethering at all. I happen to be one that gets the 100MB. I believe there is an add-on that you can pay extra to get more tethering. It's tough to tether on T-Mobile beyond your allotment, but not impossible. But it does require doing much more than on most other carriers.

 

[Rukbat]

I'm glad to be able to get good advice from AF. I'm still trying to learn phones & android. I just don't have the motivation like I used to.

If you're as "old" a "timer" as I am, smelling the coffee in the morning (and getting rid of it all night) is about the only "motivation" left. (And the kids - that's the reason to keep breathing until morning.)

But I still want to see "what comes next". Phones in our pockets. 3D TV. (Vincent Price - House of Wax - YIKES!) Civilians on the moon next? I wish I could still be here when mankind landed on another habitable planet (and I don't mean Mars). Some of these kids might be. (Ahh, to be 18 again - or even 58 again.)

 

[saptech]

If you're 58, we are the same age.

 

[Rukbat]

If you could make me 58 again, forget my cloak, I'd lay my BODY in a mud puddle for you. 71 last birthday and let me tell you - spinal arthritis, on a bad day, makes a bad kidney stone seem like a fun day. Being virtually immune to the opiates, cocaine, etc. (they do less for me than an aspirin) doesn't make the screams all night any softer.

What makes it worth all that is on the weekends, when the house is full of the little ones, running and out. (And I include teens in "little ones".) We need a sign over the front door with our name and the word Nursery. My wife is the neighborhood Grandma, although the old gal is getting a bit crotchety as the weather takes its toll on her joints. About 2 more months and we can start enjoying the warmth again.

 

[mattsd]

At home my DL speed peaks at about 11.76Mbps. UL is 1.45Mbps. I'll be checking what I'm getting elsewhere around town. At the moment, that is faster than my cable internet connection, so I'm fairly happy with it.