T-Mobile regularly states that its data network is the fastest in the country, proudly using its “Data Strong” brand promise as often as it can. But it wasn’t until earlier this year that RootMetrics’ independent reports started catching up with what the carrier already knew. Perhaps a reason why – in the past – the company’s chiefs have mocked the RootMetrics results for being out of date and not being truly independent.

In one of its most recent reports, RootMetrics has judged T-Mobile to be the best performing network in Philadelphia, sharing top spot with Verizon Wireless.

For those unaware, RootMetrics’ RootScore rankings are calculated by comparing both network speeds and network reliability throughout specific markets. In Philadelphia, the company performed over 77,400 call, data and text tests from October 11th until October 18th at various times during the day and night. For Philadelphia, the four major carriers ranked as follows:

1 – Verizon (97.4) 
1 – T-Mobile (97.3) 
3 – AT &T (96.4) 
4 – Sprint (94.3)

As usual, T-Mobile’s strength was in speed, where it was the only network operator to score over 90 points in the speed index rankings. This was thanks to having a median download speed of 21.6Mbps and a median upload speed of 17.9Mbps. And, while it’s still revamping its network, it’s also no surprise to see Sprint in last place:

1 – T-Mobile (93.0) – average download speed: 21.6Mpbs
2 – Verizon (88.0) – average download speed: 15.2Mbps
3 – AT &T (87.4) – average download speed: 10.2Mbps
4 – Sprint (79.8) – average download speed: 7.4Mbps

In the reliability index, Verizon was top performer with a score of 99.7. AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint tied for 2nd place:

1 – Verizon (99.7) 
2 – AT &T (98.8) 
2 – T-Mobile (98.4) 
2 – Sprint (98.4) 

“This was the seventh time we’ve visited Philadelphia, and we’re seeing high network reliability scores across the board,” said Bill Moore, RootMetrics CEO. “While Verizon edged past the competition to earn distinction as the most reliable network, the competition remains close, with AT &T, T-Mobile, and Sprint all ranking second. This is great news for consumers in Philadelphia.”

T-Mobile’s performance has improved significantly in Philadelphia as it continues to roll out its wideband LTE. And we can only expect average speeds to continue on their upward curve.

Source: RootMetrics