Sponsored Links

Smarty Congestion

whitty

Member
Just wanted to put this out there to see whether anyone else is having issues.
I am convinced that 3 is prioritising its customers over Smarty.

For me it happens multiple times but only in highly populated areas even though it sometimes shows a couple of bars 4g I can’t get a data connection in my local town centre. The same happens in other areas where there is more people like retail parks etc. it’s not my phone because exactly the same happens to my son on his phone when he’s with me.

Also my work phone is on the 3 network and side by side I can usually get a data connection with my work phone when I can’t on my personal phone.
it seems like it’s getting worse and it’s very inconvenient when you are out and about.

So I believe that Smarty is getting congested because of prioritisation by 3.

I’m seriously now considering switching to 1p mobile (need to do more research on 1p).

Really interested to hear if anyone else is having problems and even more interested if anyone has done any deeper digging.
 
Is your work phone a business line or personal?

It may not be Three vs smarty but level of priority as standard between business and personal.
 
The work phone is on a business account.
However I still get no to slow data in medium to heavily populated areas. I am 1 of 3 people that I know who experience this issue.
I’m curious to see if anyone else has the same problem on Smarty.
 
Sponsored Links
I doubt its prioritisation more like connectivity.

With the 3G closure it would be essential to give you a data connection for at least VoLTE.

Although MVNOs (including those owned by the providers) state they have access to a providers network there is a lot of aspects that can impact that:
  • The modem and Phone firmware
  • The EU capability sent and the policies then applied
    • The frequencies available
    • The frequencies allowed by the network for your SIM/Device
    • Whether CA is utilised and its particular combination
    • If 5G any 5G NSA policies applied
  • THREE owned masts, those shared or roamed
  • 3G closure and mast in transitionary status
The only way to compare as (highlighted by CarlO1460 before) is to swap SIMs between phones to determine whether it is the phone/modem and to run Net Monster or similar to see what actual network connection is being made.

Even if we can see a difference it may be difficult to determine anything. It used to simply be the network at that location but with so many aspects now being controlled in the IMS using settings from our accounts things have got a lot more complex.

There is also why the MVNOs are cheaper with functions like VoLTE, WIFI calling and 5G etc only added when they have to. There will invariably be some compromise somewhere.
 
I haven’t tried swapping the SIM cards yet but I will.
The phones that this is happening on are my iPhone 16 pro max, my sons 13 pro max and my other sons 14 pro max.
It’s happened to all of us at different times and in different places for example Alton Towers, Cardiff City centre, Worcester City centre, Gloucester City centre, Cheltenham, the list goes on.
The reason I think it’s congestion related is i have noticed it is worse on a Saturday in city centres compared to week days so that would indicate more users of the same network.
It’s got to a point where I can tell if I’m going to get a signal or not no matter where I am and it’s down to the volume of people.
I can’t believe that the 3 of us all have issues with our phones it’s too coincidental.
 
Top
Cheap BIG ISPs for 100Mbps+
Community Fibre UK ISP Logo
150Mbps
Gift: None
Virgin Media UK ISP Logo
Virgin Media £22.99
132Mbps
Gift: None
Vodafone UK ISP Logo
Vodafone £24.00 - 26.00
150Mbps
Gift: None
NOW UK ISP Logo
NOW £24.00
100Mbps
Gift: None
Plusnet UK ISP Logo
Plusnet £25.99
145Mbps
Gift: £50 Reward Card
Large Availability | View All
Cheapest ISPs for 100Mbps+
Gigaclear UK ISP Logo
Gigaclear £17.00
200Mbps
Gift: None
Community Fibre UK ISP Logo
150Mbps
Gift: None
Virgin Media UK ISP Logo
Virgin Media £22.99
132Mbps
Gift: None
Hey! Broadband UK ISP Logo
150Mbps
Gift: None
Youfibre UK ISP Logo
Youfibre £23.99
150Mbps
Gift: None
Large Availability | View All
Sponsored Links
The Top 15 Category Tags
  1. FTTP (6024)
  2. BT (3638)
  3. Politics (2720)
  4. Business (2439)
  5. Openreach (2405)
  6. Building Digital UK (2330)
  7. Mobile Broadband (2143)
  8. FTTC (2083)
  9. Statistics (1899)
  10. 4G (1813)
  11. Virgin Media (1762)
  12. Ofcom Regulation (1582)
  13. Fibre Optic (1467)
  14. Wireless Internet (1462)
  15. 5G (1404)
Sponsored

Copyright © 1999 to Present - ISPreview.co.uk - All Rights Reserved - Terms  ,  Privacy and Cookie Policy  ,  Links  ,  Website Rules