Slow data speeds on Verizon

[Alex Wetzel]

Even though I have a strong connection, I'm getting unusually slow download/upload speeds.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Raptor007]

Welcome to Verizon's overly saturated market. Where I live Verizon's coverage is great but their backhaul sucks and so doe their data speeds. Maybe 3-5MB if I am lucky, compare that to AT&T and I get more like 20-30MB on LTE. Now conversely in southern markets Verizon is supposed to have less users and their speeds are much faster but AT&T has more customers so theirs is slower.

I was also in an area in Upstate NY outside of a small/medium city and I could get 45M Down on Verizon, yeah there was no one on their network there.

Verizon hypes their LTE coverage but what good is supposed coverage if you don't build out your backhaul so you can handle the capacity, and honestly with AT&T I don't care if its LTE, 4G (HSDPA/HSDPA+) the speeds are great and LTE is a GSM technology so its all the same in the end.

 

[anon67808]

I don't trust that Speedtest app. I can test mine and use a server in Phoenix (where I live) or Tucson and get like 10Mbps down in LTE but then I change server to one in San Diego or LA or even Vegas and bam, 35Mbps.

Have you tried to switch the server at all. Just curious.

 

[skatergirl]

Verizon definitely has some over saturated markets and slow speeds.

 

[Rukbat]

I don't trust that Speedtest app. I can test mine and use a server in Phoenix (where I live) or Tucson and get like 10Mbps down in LTE but then I change server to one in San Diego or LA or even Vegas and bam, 35Mbps.

Traceroute both servers. You might find that it's 25 nodes to the "local" one, but only 3 nodes to the distant one. The number of nodes, the amount of traffic and the bandwidth of the pipe determine the speed. (I get faster downloads from Microsoft's west coast servers to North Carolina than I get from servers 30 miles from me. Even Mega - in New Zealand - has a faster path to me than some servers in the state.)

Ookla is about as accurate as a speed test server can be - remember, the speed of the pipe you're testing your speed on varies constantly. No path on the internet runs at a constant speed. (Unless you're the last person left on the planet - then you'll get fantastic speeds to a Commodore 64 in Timbuktu, because that's the only traffic on the entire internet.)

Do some speed tests at about noon EST on Christmas day if you want to see how the path that was really fast one day can crawl slower than a dead snail the next.

Verizon definitely has some over saturated markets and slow speeds.

Ever since Verizon went to "as many signals as you can stuff into a cell face", their speed has gone down the tubes. Originally, when they switched from AMPS to CDMA, it was a limit of 8 per face. Now if it's only 80 you're lucky.

 

[Alex Wetzel]

I don't trust that Speedtest app. I can test mine and use a server in Phoenix (where I live) or Tucson and get like 10Mbps down in LTE but then I change server to one in San Diego or LA or even Vegas and bam, 35Mbps.

Have you tried to switch the server at all. Just curious.

Yes. And I got similar results.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Alex Wetzel]

Now it seems to have improved a ton. Guess it depends on the time of day and your signal strength.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[anon67808]

Traceroute both servers. You might find that it's 25 nodes to the "local" one, but only 3 nodes to the distant one. The number of nodes, the amount of traffic and the bandwidth of the pipe determine the speed. (I get faster downloads from Microsoft's west coast servers to North Carolina than I get from servers 30 miles from me. Even Mega - in New Zealand - has a faster path to me than some servers in the state.)

Wasn't aware of that. That's crazy.

 

[dpham00]

Are you having any slow downs browsing the Web or email or whatever? If not then don't worry.



Sent from my Verizon Samsung Galaxy Note 4

 

[Alex Wetzel]

Are you having any slow downs browsing the Web or email or whatever? If not then don't worry.



Sent from my Verizon Samsung Galaxy Note 4

Not really. It's usually when I'm at school where my connection is slow (my school has a network blocker that slows down everyone's connection) other than that, my speeds are fine.

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