Manx Telecom’s 4G overall network speed, quality and coverage is ahead of UK providers, and UK cities, according to the latest figures.

Which? and OpenSignal published data last week which was collected from UK mobile phone users between December 1 last year, and February 28 this year. This data was then used to publish a league table of the 20 best and worst UK cities for average 4G download speeds. Of the 20 UK major cities analysed, Stoke-on-Trent has the UK’s fastest average 4G download speed at 26.6 Mbps (megabits per second). Comparing the latest figures on OpenSignal’s live app and website (Opensignal.com), Manx Telecom’s average Island-wide speed of 27.74 Mbps puts it ahead of the fastest UK city. Manx Telecom’s service is faster again in Douglas with average download speeds of 32.27 Mbps.

In addition to the consumer group study for Which?, Open Signal also published a 2017 Global Survey in January. This report collected data from users during the period November 1 2016 and January 31 2017 and listed average download speeds for 86 countries. Comparing these results with the latest OpenSignal live statistics, the average 4G download speed for Manx Telecom would put the Isle of Man in 5th place in the global rankings, and ahead of the Netherlands (6th), Denmark (7th), Japan (9th), UK (25th), Germany (29th), and USA (35th).

Looking at network quality, OpenSignal live stats also show Manx Telecom’s 4G network has a lower ‘latency’, which is a measure of the delay between requesting and receiving data. Latency is measured in milliseconds (thousandths of one second) – the lower the number, the better the service experienced by customers. When compared to the UK’s major operators EE, O2, 3 and Vodafone, the best UK operator recorded 42.17milliseconds compared to Manx Telecom’s 35milliseconds (figures correct at the time of writing).
Finally, the OpenSignal and Which? study looked at 4G population coverage. London was ranked bottom of the list with 73.6%, and Middlesbrough top with 82.7%. While the Isle of Man was not included in this element of the study, Manx Telecom recently commissioned a specialist network benchmarking survey, conducted by Equiendo in October 2016, and this confirmed the Island’s population enjoys 99% 4G coverage – well ahead of the UK table toppers in the Which?/Open Signal reports.

Stephen Kane, Head of Retail Products at Manx Telecom, says comparisons between the two sets of survey data shows the value of the company’s significant investment in 4G infrastructure. He added: “We invested ?10million to bring the first superfast 4G mobile network to the Isle of Man in 2014, and we continue to invest at a level unmatched by our local competitors. This latest UK survey shows how we benchmark against UK providers, and how our continued investment is helping to keep the Isle of Man at the forefront of global technology for both residential and business customers.”

In 2016, Manx Telecom was also the first Isle of Man provider to launch both in-bound and out-bound 4G roaming.