iPhone: EDGE vs. Wi-Fi test results

Guess what? EDGE sucks.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze / CNET)

After two days of timing and comparing the iPhone's download speed between AT&T's EDGE network and Wi-Fi, our CNET Lab has just released its official results.

EDGE averaged a download time of 15.69 minutes for a 9.4MB file, while Wi-Fi required a mere 1.18 minutes. In the end, our test results indicate that the iPhone's Wi-Fi connection is about 13 times faster than using EDGE.

Tests were run at different points throughout the day to account for changes in network bandwidth, and the iPhone was reformatted after each download to ensure that Safari's browser cache wouldn't skew results. Still, there are a lot of network-dependent variables for both EDGE and Wi-Fi that can affect download speed. We did our best to be thorough, but your results may vary.

Anyone had a surprisingly good experience using EDGE?

[bigmc6000]

Not sure about big files but...

I get a good 25 - 30 KBps on EDGE. Of course I've had times when it's really sluggish but I was sitting in the movie theatre last week waiting for Transformers (had to wait 45 mins since all the other ones sold out) and I was actually quite surprised at how quickly You Tube videos buffered up. I don't think I waited more than 5 or 10 seconds before they started playing...

[rubingr]

Surpizingly happy with Edge

So far I have seen consistently good download speeds withe Edge. Not that it is
great, but even streaming music from my laptop to my iphone has been fast
enough to never trip. Of course i would love faster speeds, but so far I can
accept the limitations.

[brianld]

Seems obvious

Is it just me, or is this the most obvious "conclusion" possible? How is it blog-worthy (I won't elevate it by calling it news-worthy) to deduce that wi-fi is faster than EDGE?

[texasags]

Big news..

In other news, a new study shows that the sun is hot.

Also, Motor Trend just released a test showing that a Ferrari 599GTB is more expensive than a hamburger.

WOW! What a waste of time. Why not also test EDGE vs. 3G and WiFi vs. 3G. It would be interesting to see the real world differences there as well.

[antnyc.com]

Can anyone say built in obsolescence?

[iMacUser]

Surprisingly Good EDGE Result

According to iphonenetworktest.com, my EDGE connection is typically
150kbps. This is nearly 6 times faster than dialup for my area (crappy phone
lines usually limited dialup to 28.8Kbps), but YMMV. Since 3G is unavailable
where I live anyway (but WiFi is plentiful), EDGE is an excellent back-up
connection that doesn't give me any of the battery life problems that some
3G-enabled phone users experience. I'd like to have long battery life and 3G,
but if given a choice, I'll take long battery life everyday and twice on Sunday.

I was also shocked that WiFi "edged" out EDGE by a margin of about ten, as I
recall. <sarcasm>Just like C/Net, I was expecting EDGE to trounce
WiFi.</sarcasm>

[itsastckup]

Since when Is a good experience on EDGE possible??

EDGE sux. Enough said about that.

The new version of the iphone will have the higher speed internet. Regardless of that, I still wouldn't get an iphone with its half rate voice codecs.

[iMacUser]

When Is EDGE Experience Good? Here's When...

You can get EDGE in most of the nation. Where can you get 3G or EVDO? Most
of the nation? Not even close! EVDO is very limited, and 3G even more so.
Anyone who travels better not rely on 3G or EVDO. Also, which network has
the best reliability, EDGE, 3G, or EVDO? Oops! EDGE wins again! Any business
travelers out there? Better not rely on 3G or EVDO!

EDGE has the two best abilities... availability and reliability. Does it really
matter that you have a high-speed connection if your browsing experience is
crappy BabyNet? I'd rather wait a little longer than deal with WAP/CRAP.

Many people seem to think speed is the only factor that matters. This is a
load of WAP. While speed is nice, it's not the most important factor. Your
phone can download garbage much quicker than my iPhone can download the
real deal. So what?

[Cherif Sabry]

edge is not there

can't find edge ... someone was playing with my iphone
and it is not there anymore
if i go to install .. i get this message:
Package download failed : can't find host

[theneteffect]

There is a huge difference using Edge, but for browsing sites when I have to use Edge, I use a service called Iphoneiquity. This compresses any website, formats it for the Iphone, letting me choose whether to display images or not. I also get a unique link so that I can bookmark the compressed site and access it in the future. I keep all these type of links under a folder called Edge on my Iphone.

[Gary Mazza]

Edge is terrible, definitely not worth the price of admission from any provider, T-mobile or ATT.
I could drive to just about any Crystals, Panera Bread or Star Bucks and logon before while edge would still be trying to download the home screen. What a rip.