Verizon Wireless’ LTE network is the fastest out there, according to PC Magazine’s latest research. The company tested eight 3G and 4G networks in 21 cities across the country, revealing that Verizon Wireless’ LTE is blowing away competing “4G” technologies deployed by AT&T, T-Mobile USA and Sprint.
PC Magazine found that Verizon’s LTE network was “much faster than other mobile Web options, with speeds that often exceed home Internet connections.” Regions covered in the report include cities in the Northeast, Southeast, Central, West, as well as categories for rural and nationwide service.
It was Verizon’s LTE speeds that really shined in the report. In the Central region, which included Kansas City, Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, Oklahoma City and Dallas, Verizon saw peak downlink speeds of 37.66 Mbps and average downlink of 11.94 Mbps. Those speeds beat the runner up, T-Mobile, by a lot. T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network saw average downlink speeds of 4.07 Mbps and peak downlink speeds of 15.27 Mbps.
It’s worth noting that in the Central region, Verizon took a zero score for Kansas City, which doesn’t have LTE, and still managed the fastest network for the region.
AT&T managed to best the rest of the competition in rural areas, with an average downlink speed of 1.9 Mbps on its 3G network. However, Verizon managed the best 3G success rate in rural areas, connecting 81.89 percent of the time, topping AT&T’s success rate of 68.7 percent.
Sprint’s WiMAX service saw average results compared to the rest of the competition in most regions. In the Northeast, Sprint’s 4G network saw average downlink speeds of 2.88 Mbps and 10.46 Mbps peak downlink speeds.
But the story was the same across the country, with Verizon Wireless’ LTE network outperforming the competition. “Even with one hand tied behind its back — a 20-percent penalty to its speed score for its lack of rural coverage — Verizon’s new 4G network trounced the other carriers,” wrote PC Magazine’s Sascha Segan in an article that outlined the results of the magazine’s testing.
