WebProNews

Tag: Ookla

  • Ookla, Maker of Speedtest, Acquires RootMetrics

    Ookla, Maker of Speedtest, Acquires RootMetrics

    Ookla, the make of the popular Speedtest app and service, has acquired RootMetrics.

    RootMetrics and Ookla are on two different ends of the network performance monitoring spectrum. While Ookla uses crowdsourced data, thanks to its popular app, RootMetrics relies on more traditional, controlled driving and walking tests of wireless provider coverage.

    Ookla has acquired RootMetrics, combining the two companies and bringing their respective network analysis paradigms under one roof.

    “Ookla plus RootMetrics fully enables the network assessment trifecta of crowd measurement, controlled testing and consumer perception—with a sustainable business model that should thrive through the privacy revolution,” says Ookla CEO and co-founder Doug Suttles.

    “Becoming part of Ookla completes the vision that Doug and I shared when we first met years ago,” says RootMetrics CEO Kevin Hasley. “With our combined experience and expertise we can better help our customers overcome challenges, optimize their networks and create opportunities. I am very excited to see our joint future unfold.”

    The combination of the two companies will hopefully help provide more transparency in network analysis. It’s no secret that T-Mobile touts Ookla’s network measurements, while Verizon prefers RootMetrics. The combined companies should help provide a more standardized method of testing wireless carrier performance.

  • Starlink Speeds Giving Traditional Broadband a Run For Their Money

    Starlink Speeds Giving Traditional Broadband a Run For Their Money

    Starlink may be the new kid on the block in the broadband industry, but it’s already giving traditional companies a run for their money.

    Starlink is the satellite internet service being deployed by Elon Musk’s other company, SpaceX. Unlike traditional satellite services, such as HughesNet and Viasat, Starlink’s satellites are in low-Earth orbit. This gives the service speeds and latency much closer to traditional broadband.

    According to the latest Ookla Speedtest data, Starlink is closing in on fixed broadband and, in some cases, has surpassed its speeds. In the US, the service is providing median speeds of 97.23 Mbps down, 13.89 Mbps up and 45 ms latency. In contrast, fixed broadband provides median speeds of 115.22 Mbps down, 17.18 Mbps up and 14 ms latency. In contrast, HughesNet and Viasat’s median speeds were under 20 Mbps down, under 3.5 Mbps up and had latency of 724 and 630 ms respectively.

    Ookla Satellite Internet Comparison – Credit Ookla

    Interestingly, Starlink faired even better in the international market. In fact, in Canada, New Zealand, Germany, France and the UK, Starlink beat traditional broadband in at least download speeds, and often in upload as well.

    This data shows Starlink is rapidly improving to be a viable alternative to traditional broadband — an especially impressive feat since the service is still in beta. With numbers like this, Starlink is quickly shaping up to be one of the best options at closing the “digital divide.”

  • T-Mobile Once Again Has Fastest, Most Available 5G

    T-Mobile Once Again Has Fastest, Most Available 5G

    Ookla has released its latest report and T-Mobile has once again come out on top in the 5G race.

    Ookla is the maker of the popular Speedtest.net. As a result, the company is in a unique position to offer insights into the state of the US wireless industry, based on real-world data.

    T-Mobile had the fastest wireless speeds, with a median speed of 54.13 Mbps, while AT&T took second place with 47.96 Mbps, and Verizon third with 40.02. When looking solely at 5G speeds, however, T-Mobile pulled even further ahead. The company’s median 5G speed was 99.84 Mbps. Verizon came in second with 78.33 Mbps and AT&T came in third with 75.61.

    T-Mobile also had the best 5G availability at 69%. AT&T was a distant second at 38.4% and Verizon brought up the rear with 35.3%

    “T-Mobile customers are the clear winners coming out of these network reports, with unmatched 5G coverage and 5G speeds that keep getting faster,” said Neville Ray, President of Technology at T-Mobile. “Our differentiated 5G strategy of first building a foundation of coverage and then adding a deep layer of speed with Ultra Capacity 5G focuses on what matters most for customers – coverage and speed. This is how you build a 5G network the right way and this is why T-Mobile is the leader in 5G.”

  • Ookla Releases Latest Wireless Report, T-Mobile Comes Out on Top

    Ookla Releases Latest Wireless Report, T-Mobile Comes Out on Top

    Ookla, the maker of the popular Speedtest app, has released its latest report and T-Mobile has come out as the big winner in wireless.

    Thanks to its Speedtest app, Ookla is in a unique position to compile reports based on organic user data, rather than rigid, pre-defined studies. The company gives each provider a “Speed Score,” which is based on the provider’s upload and download speeds. Because download speed has a far greater impact on a user’s experience, 90% of the score is attributed to download speed, with the remaining 10% attributed to upload.

    Its latest report covers Q1 2021, and T-Mobile has come out on top in almost every category.

    Overall Speed

    In terms of overall speed, T-Mobile scored first place with a score of 50.21. AT&T came in second with 48.38 and Verizon came in third with 41.25.

    Consistency

    Ookla’s Consistency test measures providers’ ability to deliver consistent speeds. T-Mobile came in first, providing download speeds of at least 5 Mbps and upload speeds of at least 1 Mbps 84.8% of the time. AT&T came in second at 83.5% and Verizon came in third at 81.6% of the time.

    5G Speed

    When looking exclusively at 5G speed, T-Mobile was again the clear winner, with an average download speed of 82.35 Mbps. AT&T was again second with 76.60 Mbps, and Verizon came in third at 67.24 Mbps.

    5G Time Spent (5G Availability)

    Ookla’s Time Spent test measures how much time phones are connected to 5G, giving a look into a provider’s 5G coverage and availability. T-Mobile came in first with 65.4%. Verizon came in second with 36.2% and AT&T was third with 31.0%.

    Latency

    Latency tests were the only tests were T-Mobile didn’t score first place. AT&T and Verizon tied at 32 ms, while T-Mobile had 33 ms.

    T-Mobile touted the results as validation of its 5G strategy, one that has helped it become the company to beat in the 5G race.

    “Ookla’s report is just the latest to prove T-Mobile is America’s leader in 5G, with real customer data showing T-Mobile delivers the fastest 5G speeds and a 5G signal more often,” said Neville Ray, President of Technology at T-Mobile. “While the other networks play catch up, T-Mobile 5G will keep layering on even more capacity and speed to the nation’s largest 5G network.”

  • T-Mobile Winning 5G Coverage War—By a Wide Margin

    T-Mobile Winning 5G Coverage War—By a Wide Margin

    Ookla has released a report on the status of 5G in the US, and it shows T-Mobile leading by a wide margin when it comes to coverage.

    According to the report, and similar to a report by Opensignal, Verizon had the fastest 5G speeds, coming in at roughly 10 times the speed of the next carrier. In terms of coverage, however, T-Mobile enjoys an equally impressive lead.

    Ookla looked at two different ways of calculating how many 5G sites each carrier had. The first looked at the Ookla 5G Map, as of July 8, and found there were 5,165 commercial 5G deployments. T-Mobile accounted for 5,008, AT&T 355 and Verizon a mere 39.

    In the second method, Ookla looked at cities where multiple devices running the company’s Speedtest app identified the presence of 5G. Using that method, T-Mobile led with 6,199 deployments, AT&T had 1,571 and Verizon a mere 196. As Ookla points out, some of those deployments may not be commercially available.

    T-Mobile recently shut down Sprint’s 5G to repurpose the spectrum for its own network. It appears buying Sprint and gaining the additional spectrum is already paying off, giving T-Mobile a commanding lead in the 5G race.

  • T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T Experiencing Outages

    T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T Experiencing Outages

    All three of the nation’s largest wireless carriers are experiencing technical difficulties Monday, with customers reporting outages across services.

    T-Mobile’s Neville Ray took to Twitter to acknowledge the issues, while at the same time recommending alternate, data-based services that are not impacted.

    Teams continue to work as quickly as possible to fix the voice & messaging problems some are seeing.

    Data services are now available & some calls are completing. Alternate services like WhatsApp, Signal, iMessage, Facetime etc. are available. Thanks for your patience.

    — Neville (@NevilleRay) June 15, 2020

    Neither Verizon nor AT&T have issued a similar statement. However, a look at Ookla’s Downdectector service shows a spike in complaints for both companies coinciding with T-Mobile’s issues. In the case of Verizon, 79% reported an issue with their mobile phone, 16% with mobile internet and 3% with landline internet service. In the case of AT&T, 79% reported an issue with the internet, 11% with their phone and 8% reported no network reception.

    The fact that all three carriers started experiencing major problems around the same time would seem to indicate an issue with a shared network backbone, although no further details were available at time of writing.