Sidekick 4G Speed Test,Not much difference in T-Mobile’s “4G”

Last time I did some speed tests on a phone there was a bit of an argument over the fact that the targeted city was across the country. So you know what I did? Exactly what I should have been doing the whole time with Speed Test, a service that notes in their Q and A section that their GPS system isn’t perfect, I drove around the city getting different tests. Not only did I do this on the G2x, but I did an extended test for the Sidekick 4G, the phone that I last got Speed Tests on. What you’re going to find is that there’s not much difference in T-Mobile’s “4G” service anywhere you go around Minneapolis and Saint Paul Minnesota.

The speeds you’re seeing here is Mbps in several different locations at different times around the cities here in Minnesota. The fastest this G2x unit ever got, and this was on what the phone was calling 4G speeds, was 4.44 Mpbs. On average though, it’s looking like a lot closer to 1 Mpbs. Way at the bottom there’s a Wifi result and there’s a couple of zeros in there – don’t mind those.

Next take a look at a few more results on the Sidekick – see those insanely quick speeds? Don’t mind those, that’s me at my stupidest, testing the phone on Wifi. This is the kind of brain fart yours truly is capable of having. What you SHOULD look at is the rest of the scores where 1.5 Mpbs is the average. This again is on T-Mobile’s 4G network here in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. Speed!

Those speeds are so poor. I live in Poland in very small city where I got HSDPA (3G) network and my average measured speed are 3.5 mbps download and 700 kbps upload.

I live in MN and I think the results are on the money! I've had a G2 since launch and it's rare...RARE that I see speeds over 2 mbps. I look at the online coverage maps and I am definately in their "4G" are. I call Tmo's technical support and they agree I'm in the 4G area but have no answers for me. They said they'd send someone out to my area to do some testing. When they were finished they said it looks like my neighborhood is not in the 4G area but their coverage maps clearly show that I'm in their or at least should be. It's very frustrating, especially when I read how users in other cities are hitting 5 mbps and up. Sorry for the vent but I'm sitting here like YES, YES...somebody on these Android sites is posting speedtests from MN and they seeing what I'm seeing everyday! The bad thing is, he's testing from a G2X and Sidekick 4G. Future doesn't look too bright huh...hahaha. Will the HTC Sense or G-Slate be any different?

So what exactly is your point? I get a consistent 5 to 6mb on my Vibrant in Atlanta and a tad bit less on my Defy. Prior to the Vibrant I had an Evo and Sprints map showed my residence inside their best 4G coverage and I averaged just over 3mb. The Droid X I had averaged 2.5mb. Bottom line - Tmobile is great where I live!

T-Mobile's 4g coverage map shows Minneapolis and St.Paul to be well inside their hottest spots for coverage - doesn't seem to add up.