The trickiest part of answering questions regarding which operator provides the “best” wireless service is working around the nuances of geography. One operator could provide stellar service in one market, but offer barely a bar of service in the next.
Looking to add some clarity to this confusion, RootMetrics this week released its rankings of how specific markets compare in terms of their overall service level across mobile operators. The insight taps into RootMetrics’ network testing results, ranking 125 of the most populous markets across the country in terms of reliability, network speed, data quality, call quality and text messaging quality. To help in comparing apples-to-oranges, RootMetrics also weighted its rankings based on the size of each market.
Chicago came out on top in the rankings, posting a weighted average score of 97.2, just edging out Oklahoma City (97.1) and Lansing, Mich. (97). Rockford, Ill., and Spokane, Wash., both received scores of 96.8 to round out the top five.
Rockford also garnered recognition as the smallest market included in the test, with a population of under 297,000 people, while the largest market, New York City and “tri-state area,” scored just 93.8 in the survey all the way down at No. 98.
The survey’s big losers were Hudson Valley, N.Y. (88.5); Victor Valley, Calif. (90.1); and Omaha, Neb. (91.1).
Among specific survey segments, Oklahoma City was tops in reliability, scoring 99.4, just beating out Chicago and Lansing at 99.2. The least “reliable” market was Hudson Valley, followed by Omaha and Victor Valley.
Rockford topped the list in terms of measured network speeds with an average weighted score of 90.7, followed by Augusta, Ga. (89.9), and Chicago (89.8). Hudson Valley “topped” the list of “slowest” measured markets with an average weighted score of 76.1, followed by Honolulu (77.4) and Cincinnati (77.6).
Chicago was No. 1 in terms of overall data quality with a score of 95.9, just getting the better of Augusta (95.6) and a two-way tie between San Diego and Akron, Ohio (95.5). Not being able to catch a break, Hudson Valley again pulled up the rear in this metric with a score of 85.4, with Honolulu and Cincinnati close by with scores of 88.2.
For those that still rely on voice calls, Indio, Calif., and Lansing scored highest at 99.4, just edging out Oklahoma City’s score of 99.3. Victor Valley took the lantern rouge with a score of 89.6, with Omaha (90.2) and Hudson Valley (90.6) coming in just ahead in the rankings.
Finally, the texting survey found Spokane the most reliable market with a score of 97.4, with Boise, Idaho, a close No. 2 (97.3), followed by a four-way tie for a score of 97.1 between Ann Arbor, Mich., and three Florida markets: Kissimmee, Port St. Lucie and Fort Myers. Stockton, Calif., took least reliable honors with a score of 92.8, just behind Sarasota, Fla. (93.3), and Hudson Valley (93.4).
Verizon Wireless recently came out on top in RootMetrics mid-year 2014 carrier rankings with a score of 81.6, beating out AT&T Mobility (79.5), T-Mobile US (71.5) and Sprint (69.6) among nationwide mobile operators.
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