I decided to do some random speed tests. On 3G. With Telenor. And some Mobilink too.
Tl;Dr: Telenor isn't as bad as it was (they've improved quite a bit), but they haven't reached Mobilink's 3G speeds. Mobilink 4G needs improving big time, Telenor's 4G signals don't reach everywhere - but it's consistent in speeds.
So here's the thing - I said I couldn't get good speeds in my bank, right? I managed to hit 6.5Mbps in the office building (I had to go to the stair case and go somewhere in the middle). Distortions on 3G are everywhere, and I think this could be the reason why 3G speeds sick in general.
That said, here are the speed tests. I usually managed to get a minimum of 2Mbps on average (it's an average!) And started doing random speed tests in Blue Area, F8/4, maybe one random test around zero point, Faizabad (quite a few) and Murree Road (just before entering Rawal Road).
What I noted about 4G was that while speeds don't accelerate slowly (as in it's like 0 to 60mph in 0.5 seconds, while the rest tend to ramp up slowly), the 4G signals aren't very strong. And I'm talking about outdoor signals. Also, they don't cover Islamabad Highway very well either.
In the following shot, the tests at the bottom were taken near Faizabad, while entering Murree Road.
The one test that showed a slow result was around the 6th road flyover (before climbing the flyover), but on the top, and while descending, the speeds improved.
I then decided to put back my Mobilink SIM. And entered Rawal Road. It's not a pretty sight...
There was a time when speeds peaked to 6Mbps - most likely it was the trees and concrete buildings interfering with the speeds, but I didn't get the 6Mbps speed again. It was mostly hovering on the lower side. So, yes, Mobilink suffers as well from the distortions.
Below, more Mobilink tests. The top three were taken on 4G.
When I entered Gulrez phase 2, Telenor was giving me 1.2Mbps whilst Mobilink was closer to 2Mbps.
Now - what does this show on face value? That Telenor isn't too bad, but it's not great either. It's alright for audio streaming, but HD video? I don't think so. But on the same places, Mobilink suffers as well, so whether one is better than the other is moot (since both aren't great - on 3G).
Mobilink has a LOT of work carved out for itself for 4G in a number of places - either there's a lot of congestion in those areas, or Warid's infrastructure isn't up to the mark in those places. Zong has its moments as well (Bahria Town phases 1-5) but in most places, Zong performs better than Warid/Mobilink.
Telenor has decent 4G (right now, at least), but they need to fix the coverage before doing anything else. Their 3G speeds seem to have improved (by how much exactly, it's up for debate), but you can see that it's not too bad. It's definitely usable (last time I used it, it wasn't) but not fast. Mobilink has its weak spots, but they seem to perform better (due to the spectrum).
I should also note that for some speed tests, it started off slow, but ramped up in the end (the graph went upwards), but since the test finishes before it reaches the peak, you can't see the full picture.
Also, Telenor has MUCH better 3G signals than 2G or 4G. Why? I don't know. Everyone else has it the other way round. On three bars (out of 4), I was able to pull in 2Mbps (see the tests around F8/4). Mobilink generally has better speeds (good for downloading stuff, but virtually no difference while browsing stuff) but not so great signals.
Voice calls on both networks are acceptable/good.
Also, Telenor gives free conference calling and has an app which you can use to monitor your billing (sorry, just had to mention it), but their postpaid packages are NOT economical. Mobilink: I went to their office today to talk about other things, but I was told that they're trying to improve their billing lag from 5 or 6 hours to two, and that they're trying to fix the rupee value on the *1111# short code. I don't know if the lady was trying to retain me as a postpaid customer or not, but I'll believe it when I see it.
So where does this leave me?
I tested Zong again to check if the voice issue was fixed. It's not. I don't know how to complain to them when I'm not their subscriber (I'm using my mum's number to test, and I don't want her to be bombarded with Zong's tech support calls) so if anybody else in Islamabad/Rawalpindi uses Zong, please complain to them and tell them their voice is perfectly fine in Lahore, and this issue persists in Islamabad only.
So where does this leave me? In the cold. I don't know what to do. I'm not porting to Zong for voice calls, nope!
I hope this helps somebody out there, wondering how well Telenor is. I should also add that I did manage to hit speeds north of 5Mbps (sometimes even 8Mbps), but those aren't in the screenshots - and the main issue with these speeds is that there is a lot of disturbance from concrete and greenery, which affect different operators differently. Also, I'm sure Telenor has the backhaul bandwidth, but because their spectrum isn't as much as Mobilink's or Zong's, they won't be able to service the same speeds to the users. But the speeds are alright, if you're in a low distortion zone.
Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk
Edit: I should also add, in case I wasn't clear, that Telenor won't be able to catch up to Mobilink's 3G speeds, but it isn't bad... Not as bad as it was.