Verizon's test cars upgraded to benchmark real-life 4G performance against the competition

Company Tests Voice, Data Networks of All Wireless Companies in Quality Comparison

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., and SAN DIEGO, Oct. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Verizon Wireless is the first wireless company in the world to broadly deploy a large-scale 4G LTE network, which is the fastest and most reliable 4G network in the U.S. From CTIA Enterprise and Applications™ 2011, Verizon Wireless announced today that the company's fleet of test vehicles is being equipped with 4G testing and monitoring equipment to encompass all of the major operating networks in the U.S. today. Verizon Wireless test men and women, the largest single team of systems performance engineers deployed by a U.S. wireless service company, will utilize the 4G testing equipment to monitor the company's 4G LTE network as well as the high-speed data networks of competitors that use LTE and other technologies.

"Verizon Wireless has a firm commitment to the quality and performance that has made our wireless network the most respected in the United States," said David Small, vice president and chief technical officer of Verizon Wireless. "The addition of 4G testing equipment enables our nationwide fleet of test men and women to test our 1X, 3G and 4G networks as we continue to strive to deliver the superior wireless experience our customers expect from Verizon Wireless."

Using testing equipment from Ascom, a global technology company, Verizon Wireless test men and women are performing mobile data tests on the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network as it continues to roll out across the country. The collected data will be used to measure network performance, benchmark against competitors, and assist Verizon Wireless network engineers who are responsible for maintaining and planning improvements and expansions of the company's network.  The fleet includes about 100 test vehicles.

Verizon Wireless' claims of the fastest and most reliable 4G network and the largest and most reliable 3G network are based on third-party survey results as well as network test results gathered by the company's test men and women. Verizon Wireless is conducting 4G data tests in more than 140 cities where the company's 4G LTE network, the largest 4G LTE network in the nation, is currently available. Verizon Wireless will expand its 4G LTE network testing program into new markets as they launch. 1X voice and 3G data testing continue in all markets.  

About Verizon Wireless' Quality Testing Program

As consumers' wireless usage has evolved, so has Verizon Wireless' testing. When the company launched in 2000, Verizon Wireless test men and women measured fundamental information about voice call performance. Today, as more wireless consumers use smartphones and wirelessly access data services, Verizon Wireless also tests to determine whether a data session connected, how quickly the connection was made, whether it stayed connected, and how quickly data was transmitted during the connection.

Annually, Verizon Wireless test men and test women travel more than 1 million miles and conduct more than 3.5 million voice call attempts and more than 19 million data tests on the Verizon Wireless network and the wireless networks of competitors in different markets across the United States. Test results are analyzed to assist the company in directing its multi-billion dollar network capital expenditure program, including placement of new cellular sites and expansion of existing network capabilities in growing communities. Verizon Wireless has invested more than $65 billion in its network since the company was formed.