Telekom, Vodafone or O2 - who is ahead in terms of network quality? To find out how network coverage in Germany is doing, measurement technicians once again traveled all over the country for CHIP. As part of the major network test, the team from partner NET CHECK covered more than 11,000 kilometers on foot, by car and by train and took measurements. One of the three networks tested provided a special surprise.
The good news when looking at the network test results: The areas where reception is inadequate have continued to shrink. At the same time, all three network providers tested were able to improve further compared to the previous year. Despite the stricter evaluation criteria this year, Telekom came out on top with a strong score of 1.2, ahead of Vodafone (1.4) and O2 (1.7).
When it came to the question of network quality on trains, Telekom was also particularly impressive: although the quality on Deutsche Bahn's long-distance trains still leaves something to be desired, Telekom surprised with a very good rating (1.5) for the first time. Vodafone (2.2) and O2 (2.9) have to take a back seat.
Urban-rural divide still hurts
Although network expansion is developing positively across the board, there are still enormous differences in terms of network quality in urban and rural areas. This can be seen, for example, in the rate of dropped calls or the failure of data downloads in parallel with calls. The CHIP network test also shows that urban centers benefit particularly from the advantages of 5G expansion.
The urban-rural divide is particularly evident when the network is not very good. Our experts determined the speed at which the worst ten percent of all downloads start. For Deutsche Telekom, this threshold is 122 Mbit/s in cities, while in rural areas, ten percent of all downloads were slower than 37 Mbit/s - that's less than a third. The situation looks particularly critical for the provider O2, as this value is only 6.6 Mbit/s in rural areas.
"These figures make it clear once again that the network infrastructure in rural areas urgently needs to be improved in order to guarantee the possibility of mobile communication in all regions," says Wolfgang Pauler, Head of the CHIP Test Center.
Increasing willingness to innovate when it comes to 5G
Progress in 5G expansion has made a decisive contribution to the significant improvement in network quality. Back in the summer, the Federal Network Agency reported impressive coverage of 89% by at least one network operator. A milestone for the establishment of 5G in the German mobile communications sector. A look at the Vodafone figures shows that 5G is suitable for the mass market: 43 percent of smartphones in the Vodafone network already support 5G.
It is encouraging that the network operators have started to take the next steps. For example, the introduction of 5G Standalone (5G SA), which enables independent data connections without relying on LTE, is now imminent.
The industry is showing a great willingness to innovate here. O2 and Vodafone have already partially completed the switch to 5G standalone. Deutsche Telekom, which has not yet done so for private customers, could soon follow suit. This is because they could use it to offer new services, such as direct calls via 5G or services tailored to their needs.“
High data quality and results that are close to the user experience
In order to determine the quality of mobile networks, CHIP and NET CHECK go to great lengths every year and place particular emphasis on high data quality. The measurement data had to pass a comprehensive quality check in order to be included in the evaluation: All data samples were assessed and those that did not meet the high quality standards and demands for accuracy were sorted out. The data experts at NET CHECK developed special AI and machine learning methods to enable reliable data checks for these enormous volumes of data. The test concept is created by CHIP and NET CHECK and adapted to market developments and current customer behavior every year in order to reflect the actual user experience as realistically as possible.
Eva Schuler
BurdaForward Communications
During my studies I discovered my enthusiasm for communication. Here, at BurdaForward, I have now been given the opportunity to live it out. When not in the office, you can usually find me somewhere in the mountains for mountaineering and skiing or on the Isar.
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Networks are becoming more powerful, but customers on long-distance trains are getting poorer coverage than last year. That's according to the CHIP Network Test 2021. This year, the CHIP technology and digital experts were once again on the road with their partner NET CHECK. More than 12,500 kilometers were covered on foot, by car and on the train in order to take a close look at the quality of the German network operators with extensive measurements.