LTE quality/reliability with EE

[oldbilbo]

Hello. I'm seeking advice from those who know more ( 'I know nothing, Meester Fawlty. I from Barcelona!' )
I'm not yet subscribed to EE 4G LTE WiFi broadband but have received a service from Three this past 3 years. It has deteriorated and is now unusable. I have 'line of sight' at 960m. and 3~4bars of signal. Connection drops repeatedly even during sending/receiving simple text e.g. the 2FA Passcode for here.

EE uses the same mast, no. 34112 at BA2 7FE.  I'm elevated at BA2 7HZ
'Cellmapper' suggests I may receive Cell 2/8732674/PCI410  and Cell14/8732686/PCI212

Can any bright spark advise whether I'm likely to receive a RELIABLE service and faster than <5Mbps down/0.15Mbps up?
Can any similar bright spark suggest a mobo app I could use, in the same place as an LTE router ( highest window, central on bracket, directly facing mast across valley )...?

The 'cellmapper' map shows blck/red/beige' dots which I presume are locations of reports. Decode the coloured dots....?

Thanks

[bristolian]

Data speeds are dictated by the amount of capacity available, divided by the amount of users.

3UK have a single 15Mhz B3 carrier on Conkwell Wood, EE have 40Mhz of B3 capacity, a B1 carrier I can't currently identify, and a 5Mhz B20 layer.

Speed tests on an EE phone will give a good indication of data service in that location. Not sure what you mean by "connection drops"

[oldbilbo]

Thank you, 'bristolian'.

Re the 'amount of capacity available' may I understand that EE can provide 40/15 the capacity of 3UK in the B3 band, at that mast/my location? Subject to other factors such as SINR, Fourier lensing, relative traffic congestion.... and precipitation? I'm trying to avoid 'jumping out of the frying pan into the fire'....

As for 'connection drops', my Firefox browser frequently flags up messages such as 'Not connected. Connecting in 3s....Try now' and 'Message could not be sent. Check your network and try again.'   This occurs even during sending of simple text emails and less-simple emails with ordinary .jpg/.png graphics. The internet connection disconnects.

Speedtest has been showing speeds of 1.5-4.2Mbps down and 0.12-0.18Mbps up. On occasion, NO 'up' figure could be established by speedtest, even with changes of nearby server.

[bristolian]

Data speeds are never guaranteed, but EE have more spectrum on that specific site than 3UK and thus better performance can be expected.

The dots you see on CM are spot-measurements of RF quality which are broadly played out in onscreen bars. Coverage & capacity are two separate measurements.

I'd recommend testing EE service using a PAYG SIM, that provides a real-world test of coverage & speed where you need it.

[oldbilbo]

Thank you again, Bristolian. You've clarified what I suspected.
Now I need to find an App that will indicate signal quality/usability at this location....

[bristolian]

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@oldbilbo wrote:

Now I need to find an App that will indicate signal quality/usability at this location....

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Depending what outcome you're seeking, either Cellmapper itself or "using a phone in the location" aka a real-world test.

[Matt_124]

If you are considering using a Pay As You Go EE SIM for testing, bear in mind that PAYG SIMs from EE are speed capped at 25 Mbps. Essentially if you're hitting that cap consistently in testing, it should go beyond it if/when you decide to go for a Pay Monthly plan.

Also PAYG does not support 5G, but as you've mentioned 4G this may not be a concern for you anyways, just something worth pointing out.

[oldbilbo]

Thanks, Matt_124

Truth be told, if I were getting ~25Mbps from Three, my current provider, I wouldn't have the urgent need to find better.  It takes upwards of half-an-hour to establish an internet connection, about as long to load a page like Gmail or BBC, then the damn thing 'drops out/disconnects when I'm trying to drill down to an account-page or open a news story.

I spent an hour today trying things with a Lloyds Internet Banking tech support guy, and his/our conclusion was the 'internet signal'. I do know a little about RF propagation and antennae theory, so I'm looking for a service that is A: simply reliable and B: usable for ordinary 'common or garden' purposes.

That's why I'm looking at EE 4G.

It's NBG.

[oldbilbo]

I urgently need to acquire a reliable 4G wifi broadband signal at BA2 7HZ. The sole mast which gives 'line of sight' over 960m, due to hills/valleys, is at BA2FE ( EE coded: eNB ID 34112 and Three coded: eNB ID 5672 )

Cellmapper.net chartlets of the area show coloured dots along the nearby roads signifying measured LTE signal quality.

Can anyone please advise what smartphone app or other device could give me such measurements of signal quality...?

[bristolian]

What are you seeking to achieve by remote tests, that will not be better served by a real-world test using a PAYG SIM?

I've previously answered some of your other points.