Smart retains fastest download speed in Q1; Globe still most consistent — Ookla 

PEOPLE are seen using their mobile phones along Claro M. Recto Avenue in Divisoria, Manila, Dec. 27, 2022. Mobile phone users are now required to register their subscriber identity module cards. — PHILIPPINE STAR/ EDD GUMBAN

SMART Communications, Inc., the wireless arm of PLDT Inc., delivered the fastest median download speed of 33.39 megabits per second (Mbps) in the first quarter (Q1) of 2023, up from 24.07 Mbps a year earlier, according to global network testing firm Ookla. 

Ayala-led Globe Telecom, Inc. was the second mobile internet provider with the fastest median download speed at 22.29 Mbps, followed by DITO Telecommunity Corp. at 18.63 Mbps, according to Ookla’s report for the first quarter. 

Globe maintained the highest consistency in the first quarter with 83.4%, up from 79.4% the previous year. 

Consistency is measured by the percentage of results showing at least a 5 Mbps minimum download speed and 1 Mbps minimum upload speed, according to Ookla.

“The higher a provider’s consistency, the more likely a consumer will enjoy acceptable internet performance and quality,” Ookla noted. 

Smart scored 81.5% for consistency in the given period, while third telco player DITO had 75.1%. 

Ookla found “no statistical winner” for the fastest phones in the country during the given period. 

For major mobile phone brands in the country, devices from Apple topped the list with 47.99 Mbps median download speed for the quarter. 

It was followed by devices from Samsung (31.48 Mbps) and Xiaomi (28.59 Mbps). 

Ookla released 48 new market analyses for the first quarter on Tuesday, with insights from its Speedtest Intelligence platform.

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