UK: doing it wrong...
Wow, this UK LTE launch is looking more and more like a damp squib! I'm a Brit living in Singapore and I've been following the 4G spectrum auction / EE monopoly shambles back home with some interest.
Singtel launched their LTE service here in May. I swapped network and bought a new SIM free phone outright (HTC OneXL) pretty much on launch day, and I must say I think it's bloody awesome. However:
- 4G here is a free value-add
- The lowest package comes with 2GB data and over-usage is charged at SG $5/GB (£2.50)
- Coverage is about 80% (excluding underground lines) and increasing
- The 3G networks here are so congested that you often wait several minutes for any data to begin transferring
- Speeds are actually considerably faster than 3G and up there with theoretical maximums*
Even so, I've still come to treat LTE more like a boost of nitrous oxide to be used when required rather than an always-on, simply because the battery usage is mental.
Get an app that provides a quick shortcut to phone info (the same as dialling *#*#4636#*#*) and only switch on LTE when you need it. For example I'll switch it on at the start of my commute, refresh the BBC and Guardian apps, then switch back to WCDMA with plenty of news to read.
* http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/4149/screenshot2012103123083.png - that's from inside my 8th floor apartment out in the suburbs, 6 months since the network launched -- that's what a 4G network should look like ;)