UPDATE: Verizon has balked at some of OpenSignal's findings, noting that its data is not consistent with the data the company "see from our customers on our network." Karen Schulz, business continuity manager at Verizon Wireless, noted that some third-party surveys have also ranked Verizon ahead than other carriers such as RootMetrics, J.D. Power, and Nielsen.
ORIGINAL STORY: In case you missed them, news stories have not been kind to Verizon lately. Fresh information has now added to the carrier's trouble as reports revealed that it has just lost its only advantage over T-Mobile: speed.
Best Data Service Provider
According to OpenSignal through its latest State of Mobile Network's USA report, T-Mobile is already tied with Verizon in terms of 4G download speeds and overall data download rate.
For 4G LTE data, Verizon and T-Mobile averaged 16.9 Mbps and 16.7 Mbps, respectively. That sliver of point advantage is not exactly something to crow about because it is practically negligible. Things further turned sour for Verizon after both carriers now post the same 14.6 Mbps average for overall download speed.
T-Mobile also took the cake when it came to 3G download speed and 3G latency. Overall, the carrier has gone toe to toe with Verizon in terms of awards earned: four to the Big Red's four. Verizon still edged T-Mobile in the areas of 4G latency and 4G availability.
If you are wondering about AT&T and Sprint, they were left holding the bag with no OpenSignal award earned whatsoever.
OpenSignal's report is based on a scientific study that measured the data offered by the four major U.S. telecoms. A total of 169,683 iOS and Android devices have been monitored. These yielded a massive 4.6 million data points, which were then examined to gain insights on various areas of performance.
Verizon vs. T-Mobile
Its findings have critical implications for Verizon and T-Mobile, which have been at each other's throats in the past several days. Essentially, they resolve some key talking points that Verizon have been using in its spat with the self-proclaimed uncarrier for the distinction of the best data provider.
For example, bristling with the latest T-Mobile attack on the quality of its products, Verizon smugly claimed at Twitter that its subscribers enjoy devastating speed and massive capacity.
"The word for the day is 'logic' ... No matter how you spin it, our six-year lead in providing 4G LTE is a huge advantage to consumers, and strengthening our network with LTE-Advanced in 450 cities pulled Verizon further ahead," a Verizon representative also admonished T-Mobile via CNET. "You remain a discount network by investing in cute ads rather than improving your spotty network."
Well, it seems that the carrier could no longer rely on these taunts in its spat with T-Mobile unless, of course, it rolls out its 5G technology, which is not expected to happen anytime soon.
It is important to note that aside from speed, T-Mobile is already soundly trouncing Verizon on customer satisfaction. Recent surveys have revealed that Verizon has more unhappy customers while T-Mobile's approval rating has been soaring. Subscribers of the former have been smarting over the decision to replace its unlimited data plan with a 200 GB data cap.
