In 2019, mobile networks in Italy have seen an important change compared to the past and after the merger between two of the four major mobile internet operators, namely Wind and three, we have the entry into the field of the new operator Iliad, which with its tariffs Bassi is making huge competition to other incumbents (over 3 million users in a year and a half). The latest analysis shows TIM as the market leader among operators, the one with the fastest internet connection and that takes better in Italy. 3 Italy and Wind, which continue to market the services separately, remained measured as two different operators even though the companies merged.
The following is a summary of the report published a few months ago by the Opensignal website, which has made numerous tests in the seven major Italian cities on mobile networks and on the 5 main operators, finding which of them offers the fastest internet connection on mobile phones, tablets and portable keys or modems .
To begin with, the availability of the LTE / 4G signal covers almost 86% of Vodafone connections and more than 83% for TIM, while Iliad, Tre and Wind, on 4G, are further behind.
The fastest mobile internet operator is TIM, which detaches Vodafone slightly, leaving the others behind. In analyzing the network in Milan, Naples, Rome and Turin, TIM has shown that it has improved considerably compared to the past, so much so as to share the speed and availability bonuses with Vodafone.
To make a summary of the Opensignal 2019 report, we see that:
- Availability of 4G, victory for Vodafone, with TIM immediately behind and then Iliad, Tre and Wind detached.
The separation between TIM and Vodafone with the other operators in terms of availability is much less clear in large cities, where all operators have increased LTE coverage.
three had an improvement
- For 4G download speeds there is a TIM victory that surpasses Vodafone in 2019, with an average speed of 25 Mbps.
- The fastest operator in 3G data transfer is always TIM with 7.3 Mbps, followed closely by Tre and then the others.
- In the global count, the fastest mobile internet operator is TIM, then Vodafone and then Iliad, Tre and Wind come in fourth.
- The latency in 4G, or ping time that measures the response time of the network, is lower for TIM, followed by Vodafone, then Tre, then Wind and the last one here is Iliad who loses this challenge.
- The latency for 3G connections, on the other hand, is low for Vodafone and TIM, very high for Iliad.
I must say that the difference in speed that TIM and also Vodafone have more than Tre, which was the fastest operator in 4G and 3G, is very surprising. Vodafone and TIM beat Iliad, Wind and 3 in each measurement covered in the 2019 report, but these differences could also change in a short time considering that after the merger, Wind and Tre will be able to expand the mobile network and greatly improve both coverage and the speed of the internet.
To check and verify the 3G and 4G speed comparison data between the 5 major mobile internet operators we can measure the speed of the internet connection from our mobile phone and compare the measurements taken with other operators using a test app for the cellular data network such as nPerf .
As regards availability, however, it is possible to check the mobile network coverage for the 4 main Italian operators on their respective websites:
- TIM 3G 4G coverage, scrolling down, you can zoom in on the Italian map or search for the name of a city or town.
- Vodafone coverage, scrolling down the page and pressing the coverage button to find out if the area in which you live or move is covered by the 3G, 4G or even 4G + network.
- Wind coverage, very little detailed to tell the truth.
- Cover Three, updated and precise in the zoom of the Italian map.
All this talk about the quality of the connection must then be combined with the price talk, because, for example, if it is true that TIM has improved its services, it is also true that it has the least advantageous offers.
I therefore refer to the updated article on SIM offers only mobile internet for tablets and sticks .
