What now?
With three of the four biggest UK networks beginning to catch up to EE's significant head start with 4G, the market has become increasingly competitive.
The union of BT and EE, for example, means it will focus on triple-play and quad-play offerings, while others will join them by targeting newly popular devices such as smartwatches and the Internet of Things (IoT).
The main problem facing the technology is that speeds and coverage cannot compete with the user growth, and the amount of people signing up to use 4G has dramatically impacted the quality of service they then receive.
Networks needs to address this, as well as being more honest about what they are offering to customers in the first place.
Speaking about this discrepancy, Dewnarain said: "The theoretical and perceived speeds are always going to be vastly different.
"As a result, even if EE says it's network can achieve theoretical speeds of 150 Mbps with LTE-Advanced technology, in practice, it's not unusual that customers may only experience speeds of 20-30Mbps at best.
"The actual speed experienced depends on the load on the network (how many people are using a tower at the same time); your position within the cell (whether you are closer to the tower or nearer the edge of the cell); the terrain (reflection, refraction from objects in an urban environment) and interference."
Another big question is how long we'll have to wait for 5G to appear, and whether it will take as long to upgrade 4G as it did 3G.
The rise of the IoT certainly suggests that things will need to progress, and fast.
With businesses becoming increasingly reliant on 4G when out of the office - working remotely and while travelling - speed, availability and reliability are becoming more and more important.
Mobile networks in the UK will have to meet that demand if they are to remain in the race.
-
Cleo attack victim list grows as Hertz confirms customer data stolenNews Hertz has confirmed it suffered a data breach as a result of the Cleo zero-day vulnerability in late 2024, with the car rental giant warning that customer data was stolen.
-
Lateral moves in tech: Why leaders should support employee mobilityIn-depth Encouraging staff to switch roles can have long-term benefits for skills in the tech sector
-
Equinix acquires BT's Irish data centers in €59 million dealNews As BT moves to an asset-light business model, Equinix looks to expand
-
BT just extended the PSTN switch-off deadline — here’s what you need to knowNews BT described the move as a “revision”, citing a series of improvements to the wider PSTN switch-off programme
-
BT misses key Huawei kit removal deadline, but the telco is “almost over the line”News BT is still reliant on non-compliant Huawei equipment for 2G and 3G services
-
BT partners with HPE to deliver new global managed LAN service
News The latest collaboration combines BT’s connectivity expertise with HPE Aruba Networking’s latest LAN solutions
-
Making the switchWhitepaper Realise the benefits of IP technology ahead of the digital ‘switch-on’
-
BT and OneWeb succeed in "game changer" satellite connection trialNews Smaller businesses in rural areas could benefit from improvements to backhaul services using satellites, with speeds increasing by an order of magnitude
-
BT, Nokia crack four carrier aggregation on a 5G network in first for EuropeNews The breakthrough marks the first successful use of such technology on a live network, and could lead to dramatic network improvements
-
EE rolls out 4G across Glasgow's underground networkNews The network is currently restricted to EE customers but is likely to expand in the near future
