Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

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NYVANLON
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Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby NYVANLON » Sun Jun 19, 2016 6:03 pm

Hello,
I'm moving to the Nightingale Triangle area and am wondering what the best cell phone coverage around those parts would be. Can you recommend a carrier?

Most of our family lives abroad so would be good to be able to Skype or FaceTime them without any issues. I have heard coverage is not wonderful between the commons.

Thank you!
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hal
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby hal » Mon Jun 27, 2016 7:53 am

We live in the area. Having tried a number of them over the years due to dodgy reception, the most reliable networks in our area for voice and data coverage (particularly the latter) are Vodafone and O2. They get best building penetration due to their same frequency of signal so better coverage for data indoors. EE, TMob, Orange and 3 still largely use the same or a similar higher frequency.

Northcote road still seems a bit of a black spot inside cafes and shops for most networks but Vodafone still manages (if not brilliantly -- you get EDGE data but not 4G, but you can make calls).

Vodafone also support "wifi call" so that if you're on wifi (whether at home or in a public place such as the tube), it effectively extends your Vodafone network so that you can make and receive network calls on your number as normal (so extending your network further).

For travel, which is the primary reason I moved from O2 to Vodafone, I have found them to have the cheapest overall tariffs abroad - £3 a day for EU and £5 a day for large chunks of the rest of the world (including US and Caribbean) to take and use your domestic UK allowance abroad. Customer service though is pretty poor.

EE and 3 should get much better as they've bought more spectrum over the years but haven't implemented it yet for our area as far as I know. Our nanny is on EE and can only get data on the outside edges of the house due to the building penetration thing I mentioned.

Hope that helps.
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kathryn.photographer
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby kathryn.photographer » Mon Jun 27, 2016 8:27 am

I wouldn't recommend EE, I have it and need a signal booster which connects to my wifi in order to get any signal in my flat. Even with it the calls still drop out, without it it's impossible to make calls or send texts without using wifi. It's pretty patchy when walking around the area, I have friends on O2 and Vodaphone who have much better luck. Probably should switch myself!
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balhambloke
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby balhambloke » Tue Jun 28, 2016 11:47 am

I'm in the triangle too - used to have EE which was awful and others always seem to have trouble in the house with no reception on all of the other major providers. I researched and O2 seemed like the safest bet and has been spot on for me.
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Alchemy
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby Alchemy » Tue Jun 28, 2016 12:03 pm

Not sure about your specific area, but as far as Northcote Rd is concerned Vodafone is abysmal -- no reception at all. Three is much better.

Three has also been great for me at home, where no network has any coverage at all, but Three have provided me with an excellent booster (Home Signal), which works extremely well.

They also have free roaming in many countries, and good customer service, so I'd highly recommend them.


You may want to get PAYG SIMs from all carriers, and check reception and call quality before signing for a contract.
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AMumAtSW12
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby AMumAtSW12 » Tue Jun 28, 2016 12:04 pm

We use O2 but will need to be calling people at the front of our house, closer to Balham.

We use wifi/fibre optics broadband for skype etc because we found that we just could not get good connection without the fibre optics capacity (when we had a more basic connection). We have been on fibre optics brandband for a few years now and it has been ok. We use skype and facetime a lot.

We are on Calbourne Road near the Wandsworth Common station end.
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dudette
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby dudette » Thu Jun 30, 2016 7:16 am

If you look online you can find coverage maps for each of the providers showing signal strength. When I lived up near Clapham Common I had to switch from Orange (now EE) to O2. I have to say since being on O2 I haven't had any signal problems anywhere in the area.
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dbx
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MOBILE PHONE COVERAGE BETWEEN THE COMMONS

Postby dbx » Thu Oct 06, 2016 12:14 am

Hi All,
I live between the commons just by Clapham Common West Side.
I have moved to the area 2 years ago but the previous owner had the same issue for 7 years...
Some parts of the area have virtually no coverage whatsoever.
Our house will get faint signal in the loft but not good enough for a proper phone call.
There is no 4G or even 3G.
I am on O2 and my partner is on EE. But we have also tested Vodafone and GiffGaff with the same result.

We both use wifi calling at present as other options are impossible.
I spoke to O2 numerous times, their reply was "our systems show good coverage within your postcode". After 4 consecutive complaints they have sent an engineer out (apparently) and I was told that he found no faults with the network either!

The engineers are only allowed to check coverage on the street which naturally will get some signal but as we all know the area is very patchy and many of us have no signal inside our homes due to very weak coverage.
After months of further complaints I was getting nowhere and told O2 I will leave. It made no difference. Even their signal booster (only available to business customers) is useless. I pay £60 per month for loads of minutes and data but for the past 2 years I have used 5% of my data allowance. I work from home so this is even more frustrating. They won't allow me to get out of my contract.

I spoke to someone who used to work for o2 and they told me that is is a very common problem but the network will not admit to it and they will tell you that the coverage is good according to their system and that they are not responsible for the coverage within your dwelling. They will tell you that repairs and upgrades are booked in but you will be waiting for months (or years) and there will be no change, or follow up.

Apparently there are only few masts in the area (one on Honeywell Road and another by Clapham South Station are the closest to my home) and those as well as many others are in need of upgrading to allow for better signal strength. It doesn't always mean higher masts but simply more powerful equipment. But if some masts should be elevated by 5m in order to perform better and cover more homes, then we should not complain as it will benefit us all. The commons cannot have masts for safety reasons (people would climb them). They can only be installed on commercial and structurally suitable buildings.

I am told that the only way to get something done is to complain to the network collectively. They will not take action for a handful of customers but they will be forced to follow through if there are number of complaints, especially if we fuel this with some social media exposure.

So perhaps we could all start by making those calls to networks to log the complaints in? And in few weeks time we will see if any of the networks is taking this seriously. Every complaint is logged into their system by postcode and although the network won't give out that information, if they see a pattern after several complaints are made, they will have to act on it.
Hopefully we can get some traction on this.

Let me know your thoughts

D x
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MGMidget
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby MGMidget » Thu Oct 06, 2016 10:01 am

I think one of the problems is that there is opposition to proposals to install mobile phone masts in this area which usually need planning permission. Many people don't want them on their doorstep. I've seen quite strong opposition to some proposals for mobile phone masts. I used to be a Vodafone customer and I know they made some attempts to put in phone masts locally which received strong opposition. I'm now with Three who seem to have better coverage between the commons.
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LastMumStanding
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby LastMumStanding » Mon Oct 10, 2016 7:05 am

If it's is signal connectivity from home that you are mostly concerned about all the major networks sell a wifi-based signal booster - best £50 we ever spent. We are with avodafone and never have any problem now we have the booster - even from the basement.
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Clare Lupton
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby Clare Lupton » Mon Oct 10, 2016 8:07 am

I might be able to help you with that - and in getting a booster for £2 a month. If you're interested in finding out more PM me. Clare
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lydia249
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby lydia249 » Mon Oct 10, 2016 9:55 am

I live on Nightingale lane - I'm with Three and rarely have issues. Would highly recommend for their Feel at Home service alone, you can use your normal allowance when abroad in specific countries. Good customer service and reasonably quick to sort any issues out.
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dbx
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby dbx » Thu Dec 06, 2018 2:56 pm

Update on the network coverage! :) It took a year of back and forth with O2 but they are now the only network that gives the cellular signal coverage between BROOMWOOD WROUGHTON AND THURLEIGH. I believe that KYRLE, BROXASH and MANCHURIA have been amongst those most affected by the lack of coverage in this particular area. All other networks offer wifi calling but that is not always as reliable as one would hope. My partner is on EE and very often I get straight to his voicemail when calling after which he gets a notification that someone tried to reach him. Not good enough. I work from home therefore a reliable signal and 3G (or 4G if you're lucky) coverage is crucial. O2 has upgraded its mast giving a little boost to a signal that was non existent before. I get two bars now inside the house, which I admit is poor, but at least the calls always come through. Still long time to go before we have full coverage and 4G but at least we are making some (small) progress. PS. the best way to move this along is to take a minute and make a complaint to your network. The more of those complaints are logged in by different customers, the more traction case this gets. Good luck! x
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boonkoh
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby boonkoh » Sun Dec 09, 2018 5:35 pm

I'm on Badminton Road and inside the house, here are the networks in terms of strength I see:
1) Vodafone
2) O2
3) EE
4) Three (non-existent unless by the window)

Many of the networks now support Wifi calling (also your phone has to support), where if your phone is also connected to your home wifi network, even if the 4G/3G signal is weak, it uses your wifi to give better call clarity.

Best thing to do is just go online, onto the networks themselves, or on Amazon/eBay/Argos, and order a bunch of free PAYG sim cards. And then pop them into your phone, and see the signal (no need to top up to see signal connection).
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SouthLondonDaddy
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Re: Mobile Phone Carrier Nightingale Triangle

Postby SouthLondonDaddy » Mon Dec 10, 2018 10:44 am

Reviving a two-year old thread? I don't live exactly in the triangle, but I noticed, pretty much throughout London, that:

 outdoors, the signal of EE and Vodafone is roughly the same
indoors, Vodafone is much better. That's why I remain with Vodafone even though Three would be cheaper. I think it's because Vodafone uses a different frequency that penetrates buildings better.
Three is very much hit and miss
Don't know about O2. Wifi calling woudn't work with my phone so I'm not interested


I agree with the others that you should buy a bunch of pay as you go sims and test for yourself. 

Two more factors to bear in mind:

wifi calling: not every unlocked phone works with wifi calling. You should check with the network, especially if you didn't buy your phone from them. Typically wifi calling doesn't work with pay as you go, so you'd need to splash out on a 30-day sim if you want to test that. And I'd recommend you test it before committing to a 12-month contract.

femtocells, ie the signal boosters that connect to your wifi. If wifi calling works properly, you don't need this. Vodafone charges for them. Other networks sometimes give them out for free if you live in an area with a poor signal - you should ask. I had an EE signal booster in the past, and the problem was that sometimes the phone would prefer to connect to a poor 4G signal rather than to the stronger 3G signal of the booster. 
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