Epitiro has completed the world’s first independent speed, latency and voice quality-of-experience analysis on a commercially available LTE network.

Tests undertaken on TeliaSonera Finland’s recently established 4G LTE network recorded peak broadband download speeds of 48Mbps (36.1Mbps mean). Mean latency was just 23ms.

Epitiro simultaneously tested TeliaSonera’s legacy 3G network; LTE delivered mean download speeds nine times faster (3G=4.1Mbps) and its latency was five times faster (3G=117ms).

Analysis of IP calls to the UK, made using voice over LTE (VoLTE), found the quality to be ‘excellent’ on average; measured according to ITU-T PESQ MOS analysis algorithms, with only 1 call in 298 being of inferior quality.
Epitiro, an industry leader in fixed and mobile broadband analysis, carried out the research over a five-day period in March 2011, collecting 20,000 LTE data points. Finnish mobile telecoms consultancy Genre Mobile Ltd assisted in the project with installation of measurement probes and in-country project management.

As of November 2010, 127 operators* worldwide had committed to rolling out LTE networks, additionally, Ofcom will hold the British 4G licence auction in 2012.

To understand the actual performance of the service as delivered to LTE subscribers, Epitiro’s ‘consumer experience’ test probes automatically connect to the internet and mimic typical consumer behaviour, delivering around-the-clock testing of broadband performance and VoLTE call quality.

“Based on our observations, this LTE rollout is directly comparable to high-speed fixed line services,” said Jon Curley, CTO, Epitiro. “Further, the low latency times measured indicate the Finnish LTE service is capable of handling the most demanding of web-based applications including VoIP, video streaming and even HD IPTV.

“Beyond speed, the low latency and stability potential of LTE means mobile network operators can route voice calls over IP to give exceptional voice quality, rather than use the legacy circuit switched network.”
The full report “LTE ‘Real World’ Performance, Broadband and Voice over LTE (VoLTE) Quality Analysis: TeliaSonera, Turku, Finland” is available here:  www.epitiro.com/assets/files/secure/

Future research
Still in its infancy, the LTE subscriber base in Finland is limited, especially in comparison to subscribers on TeliaSonera’s 3G network, meaning the 4G LTE service is not yet subject to contention from simultaneous peaks in demand, as the 3G network is.

Furthermore, the network’s relatively small coverage area has meant in-motion testing is not yet possible and performance on trains or in cars is not yet understood.

Epitiro will continue to test commercially available LTE networks throughout 2011.
Consumers can monitor their 3G, 4G and fixed line broadband performance daily by downloading the ‘isposure’ test application at www.isposure.com