Mobile coverage investigation with my new smartphone.

[CambridgeWorks]

Mods, I hope this is allowed?Mastdata app I used to check actual coverage with Vodafone predicted coverage. Part of a journey today recorded. In around 40 minutes of recording battery dropped from 89% to 83%
See map attached with signal strengths along the way.
Cellmapper gives me the actual locations of masts, in this case Vodafone.

Rob

[CambridgeWorks]

Here is the map screenshot hopefully...
Rob

[CambridgeWorks]

Here is the map screenshot hopefully...
Nope, cannot attach!
Rob

[Mike Watterson]

It's inaccurate because you don't know cell loading.

It's actually a huge amount of work to measure mobile phone coverage compared to a regular broadcast transmitter.

[Mike Watterson]

Actually it's harder to quantify than WiFi coverage, which is not as simple as it might seem to measure.

One method is to have accurate 3D map data and simply calculate the best case coverage for only one connection in a sector, assuming no interference from other clients or sectors on the same channel.

A mast usually has multiple sectors to increase capacity. Some taller masts may also have local and distant sectors.

A different band on the same mast is a different sector, even if pointing the same way.

Masts also can vary in the number and size of channels in a band.

It's really very very complicated to actually measure.

[CambridgeWorks]

My reason for this investigation is that around 3/4 mile from home is a large supermarket, plus post office. Often frequented. Consistently get "emergency calls only" message on 3 different phones, despite being supposedly good coverage predictions.
Around here, it is pretty flat. I guess less than a metre between highest and lowest points, with just 2 storey houses in between.
Rob

[Mike Watterson]

Capacity on mobile is easily exhausted and then there is no mobile data at all and only emergency calls, maybe still SMS.

You don't be offered emergency calls if there is no coverage.

[CambridgeWorks]

"You don't be offered emergency calls if there is no coverage".

Never knew that. Thought the emergency number was always accessible by any phone on any network provided it was in range. As well as those with no SIM fitted.
Indeed, my "old" phone, just replaced by this one still shows "emergency calls only" despite it's SIM now being fitted in this phone.
Rob
Edit:
Found out no SIM means no calls possible, even if it states emergency calls only.
However, all networks will allow use of any other network's mobile if it cannot receive signal on it's home network. Since 2009 it seems.

[Mike Watterson]

In range = in coverage!

[Mark Hennessy]

CW is correct - emergency calls can be taken by any network, not just your own, so yes, you could be out of coverage, but still able to make an emergency call if you're in the coverage area of another network.

Perhaps that's not the case in your location, but I thought it was?