Mobile network analyst firm Streetwave has used data gathered from across Northumberland (England) and Ceredigion (Wales) to examine the recent switch-off of 3G mobile services in those areas by Three UK, which resulted in median (average) mobile broadband download speeds rising by 22%, but “Essential Coverage” declined by 8%.
In case anybody has forgotten, Three UK is due to fully complete the process of switching off their old 3G network by the end of 2024 (here). Mobile operators have generally been compensating for the 3G switch-off in some areas by introducing upgrades to newer 4G and 5G services. The removal of 3G also freed up some radio spectrum that can be re-farmed for use by those modern services, which could boost network performance.
However, so far none of the mobile network operators have released any solid evidence to show the practical and statistical impacts of the 3G switch-off, which is what makes the latest data from Streetwave so useful when checking against their claims. Not to mention that the company’s approach to such testing goes a lot deeper and is more accurate than most other studies.
Streetwave has been using bin (lorries) collections to map mobile coverage and performance in both areas, in collaboration with the local authorities. In this setup, bin collection vehicles are installed with four off-the-shelf smartphones using software from Streetwave on top, which run continuous tests of signal coverage and network performance (once every 20 metres in rural areas and 5m in urban areas) as the vehicles go about their routes.
The latest work was commissioned following concerns raised by residents regarding potential disruptions to mobile networks after the 3G switch-off. The results reveal that, during the data collection period, the percentage of connections made via 3G on Three UK’s network in Northumberland and Ceredigion have fallen from an average of 6% to 1%.
However, the data also shows that as Three’s 3G connections fell, median throughput speeds improved, yet ‘Essential Coverage’ declined. Streetwave defines Essential Coverage as being reflective of locations where the network provides users with connectivity of above 1Mbps download speeds, 0.5Mbps upload, and below 100ms (milliseconds) of latency (i.e. covering or allowing only the most basic of use cases / needs).
The Results
The median download speeds experienced by users rose by 19% in Ceredigion and 25% in Northumberland. Likewise, the median upload speeds experienced by users also rose by 19% in Ceredigion, but there was no change to median upload speeds in Northumberland. But ‘Essential Coverage’ for Three’s network has fallen across both councils in the period of study – falling by 5% in Ceredigion and 8% in Northumberland between July and October.
Streetwave noted that they also conducted a similar survey with Norfolk County Council to assess the impact of Three’s 3G switch-off in Norwich. However, no 3G connections were made by Streetwave’s data collection equipment in either July or October 2024, which meant they couldn’t create a comparison for that region. In any case, the switch-off is still in progress in other areas and Streetwave plan to continue monitoring related developments.
The company previously posted a similar study covering Vodafone’s 3G switch-off, albeit only in Northumberland, which revealed that the operator was providing ‘Essential Coverage‘ across 92% of locations in Northumberland (up by 3%) and their average mobile (data) download and upload speeds were also faster by approximately 10% after the switch off (here).
However, it’s worth noting that we don’t yet know what kind of baseline of change these areas typically experience over a longer period of time, which makes it difficult to be certain that all of these differences can be directly attributed to the 3G switch-off. Various other impacts, such as tourism (networks often boost capacity around busy periods) and general network upgrades, will also be playing a role.