2 ms·

I lived and worked in/around Central when I was in HK a couple years ago. HKCSL 3G data was unusably slow (I don't think cell towers handle extreme density well

by acchow 13y ago

I lived and worked in/around Central when I was in HK a couple years ago. HKCSL 3G data was unusably slow (I don't think cell towers handle extreme density well). I switched to Three and it was slightly better but still horrendous compared to T-mobile in SF or Rogers in Toronto. I paid 50HKD/month for "50mbps" cable internet (some special deal at the time). What a joke. I got 50mbps torrenting and about 0.5mbps from anywhere outside Hong Kong.

jnsaff2 13y ago
This makes sense. The OP's "It's a cell phone carrier's dream; one tower can potentially reach nearly a million people." is the exact opposite of true. Frequencies used for mobile communication are limited and with that the total bandwidth of a cell site is limited. This is the main reason new G's are coming out, 3G is packing many more bits per Hz then 2G was, and 4G is doing yet more. New frequency bands are released for mobile communications to further alleviate the problem. Network planners have to install more and more cells in dense urban areas and be careful not creating too much noise on the frequency as they have to reuse frequencies and codes. In a place like HK skyscrapers are creating lots of problems with signal shadows and reflections. Major office buildings sometimes have (unintentionally) selective glass that keeps outside mobile comms frequencies out and have indoor antennas that have strong and clean signals, but this is hardly the case for residential buildings.
nnash 13y ago
It's much better now compared to your experience. I get "unlimited" LTE for around $40 USD/Mo more than half as much as I was paying AT&T. Quite fast and reliable even in the MTR which blew me away after having lived in NYC for a short while. Even the prepaid carriers like OneTwoFree are a quite good.

2 ms·

I lived and worked in/around Central when I was in HK a couple years ago. HKCSL 3G data was unusably slow (I don't think cell towers handle extreme density well

by acchow 13y ago

jnsaff2 13y ago
This makes sense. The OP's "It's a cell phone carrier's dream; one tower can potentially reach nearly a million people." is the exact opposite of true. Frequencies used for mobile communication are limited and with that the total bandwidth of a cell site is limited. This is the main reason new G's are coming out, 3G is packing many more bits per Hz then 2G was, and 4G is doing yet more. New frequency bands are released for mobile communications to further alleviate the problem. Network planners have to install more and more cells in dense urban areas and be careful not creating too much noise on the frequency as they have to reuse frequencies and codes. In a place like HK skyscrapers are creating lots of problems with signal shadows and reflections. Major office buildings sometimes have (unintentionally) selective glass that keeps outside mobile comms frequencies out and have indoor antennas that have strong and clean signals, but this is hardly the case for residential buildings.
nnash 13y ago
It's much better now compared to your experience. I get "unlimited" LTE for around $40 USD/Mo more than half as much as I was paying AT&T. Quite fast and reliable even in the MTR which blew me away after having lived in NYC for a short while. Even the prepaid carriers like OneTwoFree are a quite good.