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BMW 5-Series (G30) Forum iDrive, Audio, Bluetooth, Phone, Cameras, Electronics + Coding WiFi Hotspot speed in the US

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      05-16-2017, 12:55 PM   #1
BarlasaM
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WiFi Hotspot speed in the US

Any one tested the WiFi hotspot speed in the G30. AT&T provides the service.
Fastest I have seen on mine is 4.14 Down and 3.93 UP. I have the unlimited data plan, and according AT&T first 20GB are on LTE speeds. My AT&T Phone gets
36.85 Down and about 6.16 Up. I have spend a few hours talking to AT&T and BMW Connected to figure this out, but no one has any idea about whats going on.
If any one has any experience with is please share.
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      05-16-2017, 02:04 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BarlasaM View Post
Any one tested the WiFi hotspot speed in the G30. AT&T provides the service.
Fastest I have seen on mine is 4.14 Down and 3.93 UP. I have the unlimited data plan, and according AT&T first 20GB are on LTE speeds. My AT&T Phone gets
36.85 Down and about 6.16 Up. I have spend a few hours talking to AT&T and BMW Connected to figure this out, but no one has any idea about whats going on.
If any one has any experience with is please share.
I'll test as soon as I get mine, as I plan on having it activated, and I am also an existing AT&T customer in well-covered LTE market. My off-hand guess is that the vehicle hotspot services may be intentionally throttled.
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      05-16-2017, 02:23 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by daveschroeder View Post
I'll test as soon as I get mine, as I plan on having it activated, and I am also an existing AT&T customer in well-covered LTE market. My off-hand guess is that the vehicle hotspot services may be intentionally throttled.
That's what I thought. So I called AT&T to verify, but they told me that my first 20GB should be on full LTE speed similar to what I am getting on my phone.
Please do check when you get yours. I have the unlimited vehicle data plan for $20.
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      05-16-2017, 02:25 PM   #4
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Given what I have seen across the industry, and given the reduced pricing structure for vehicle hotspots, I wouldn't be surprised if the vehicle plans are intentionally throttled as part of how the manage the overall network and costs. Or, it could be that you stumbled onto something actually being wrong, or a deficiency in this hardware, etc.
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      05-16-2017, 02:50 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by daveschroeder View Post
Given what I have seen across the industry, and given the reduced pricing structure for vehicle hotspots, I wouldn't be surprised if the vehicle plans are intentionally throttled as part of how the manage the overall network and costs. Or, it could be that you stumbled onto something actually being wrong, or a deficiency in this hardware, etc.
Can't wait to find out...
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      05-19-2017, 02:51 AM   #6
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What are you using to test speed?
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      05-19-2017, 09:28 AM   #7
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What are you using to test speed?
The typical speed test tools, like speedtest.net and also similar programs provided by TWC and ATT.
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      05-19-2017, 01:03 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by BarlasaM View Post
The typical speed test tools, like speedtest.net and also similar programs provided by TWC and ATT.
Unlike the link I posted, the ones you reference give false positive readings due to speedboost.
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      05-19-2017, 01:11 PM   #9
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Originally Posted by Almaretto View Post
Unlike the link I posted, the ones you reference give false positive readings due to speedboost.
While the effect of the so-called "SpeedBoost", which is a Rogers-specific feature that may be similar to what is offered by other ISPs, if anything that would artificially inflate, not decrease, the measured performance. It is also a "feature" of the ISP's network, not the testing tool, and isn't akin something that is offered by AT&T on its networks. It's also a legitimate thing, for what it's worth, and isn't intended as a way to inflate speed tests: if you pay for X/Y up/down, they're not limiting you to less than X/Y; they're giving you more than X/Y when their network allows for it. Yes, it's something of a gimmick, etc., but it's really just network management.
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      05-19-2017, 01:12 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by daveschroeder View Post
While the effect of the so-called "SpeedBoost", which is a Rogers-specific feature that may be similar to what is offered by other ISPs, if anything that would artificially inflate, not decrease, the measured performance. It is also a "feature" of the ISP's network, not the testing tool, and isn't akin something that is offered by AT&T on its networks. It's also a legitimate thing, for what it's worth, and isn't intended as a way to inflate speed tests: if you pay for X/Y up/down, they're not limiting you to less than X/Y; they're giving you more than X/Y when their network allows for it. Yes, it's something of a gimmick, etc., but it's really just network management.
keyword = artificial
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      05-19-2017, 01:20 PM   #11
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Originally Posted by Almaretto View Post
keyword = artificial
I'm using the term loosely — it's actual in that that's what you're getting at that moment during the test, just not necessarily persistently and indefinitely. What you're "supposed" to be able to count on with conventional home broadband connectivity is the service tier you're paying for.

If you are paying for 60/5, your tests should consistently show 60/5. If they at times show, e.g., 80/5 because of "SpeedBoost" or some similar "feature", you're really getting 80/5 at that moment — but it's not doing something like falsely showing your paid speed tier (60/5), when you're really getting less. That's all I'm saying.

That aside, speedtest.net, AT&T's tool, and others are not going to incorrectly underreport as a result of this, and they're not going to overreport because AT&T doesn't do this with their network, and AT&T also doesn't guarantee any particular bandwidth with LTE — but one would expect similar LTE data performance in a good service area from LTE-enabled devices, unless AT&T is further "managing" (throttling) their in-car offerings, for example, which would be my first suspicion.
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      05-19-2017, 01:27 PM   #12
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AT&T does throttle their service and I find an extended download test is a more reliable benchmark.
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      05-19-2017, 01:28 PM   #13
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Originally Posted by Almaretto View Post
AT&T does throttle their service and I find an extended download test is a more reliable benchmark.
Oh, I'm quite sure they do, and certainly agree that the more extended the test, the more reliable.
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      05-19-2017, 01:30 PM   #14
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Oh, I'm quite sure they do, and certainly agree that the more extended the test, the more reliable.
Than we agree.
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      05-19-2017, 01:32 PM   #15
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Than we agree.
Indeed — I was just saying that none of these other issues were causing his performance to be underreported. :-)
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      05-19-2017, 01:47 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by daveschroeder View Post
Indeed — I was just saying that none of these other issues were causing his performance to be underreported. :-)
I concur that provider speedtests are more likely to over, rather than under, report. But, I also just find them unreliable, in general.

Ultimately, all that matters is whether or not end-user is having a bunch of buffering issues (ie whether connection is 120 or 20 Mbps, there is no problem if they can stream and load pages fine). If the ladder, it is time to troubleshoot with elevated carrier support.
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      05-19-2017, 05:01 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by daveschroeder View Post
Indeed — I was just saying that none of these other issues were causing his performance to be underreported. :-)
Well I used the same test method (the speed test app and ATT speed test tools) on 2 other devices connected to the AT&T network, besides the car. They are both show mid 30s to 40s DL speed and the car barely makes it to 3.
and I thought the same as you that AT&T was throttling the speed, but according to them up until the first 20GB they don't and the car should be getting similar speeds as the other 2 devices. So now fingers are pointed to BMW Connected Services.
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      05-19-2017, 06:25 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BarlasaM View Post
Well I used the same test method (the speed test app and ATT speed test tools) on 2 other devices connected to the AT&T network, besides the car. They are both show mid 30s to 40s DL speed and the car barely makes it to 3.
and I thought the same as you that AT&T was throttling the speed, but according to them up until the first 20GB they don't and the car should be getting similar speeds as the other 2 devices. So now fingers are pointed to BMW Connected Services.
I'll test and run this to ground as soon as I get my car, because I'm genuinely interested. Getting to port on 26 May so should be here first week of June.
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      06-09-2017, 05:04 PM   #19
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Progress report?
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      06-09-2017, 06:42 PM   #20
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Progress report?
I am picking up my car on Monday, activating all the comms stuff, and will test ASAP.
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      06-13-2017, 02:14 PM   #21
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As promised here are my test results. The first of each is an AT&T iPhone 6, and the second of each is the in-car hotspot tested via Wi-Fi from the same device and app. I was surprised that even though the hotspot service is provided by AT&T and AT&T's network, it appears to be utilizing different logical infrastructure, which could explain some of the performance differences (which may be intentional for this service, or simply because of how AT&T chooses to manage the network for in-car hotspots).
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      06-15-2017, 12:39 PM   #22
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Quote:
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As promised here are my test results. The first of each is an AT&T iPhone 6, and the second of each is the in-car hotspot tested via Wi-Fi from the same device and app. I was surprised that even though the hotspot service is provided by AT&T and AT&T's network, it appears to be utilizing different logical infrastructure, which could explain some of the performance differences (which may be intentional for this service, or simply because of how AT&T chooses to manage the network for in-car hotspots).
Thank You sir. In car Hotspot speed looks pretty decent. I'll have to double check mine again. Thank You again.
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