Independent study by Allion USA finds Comcast’s Wireless Gateway dramatically outperforms comparable AT&T and Verizon devices.
Report: Comcast Continues to Provide Fastest In-Home Wi-Fi
The Xfinity Wireless Gateway from Comcast continues to be the industry’s fastest device, delivering speeds of more than 700 Mbps, according to an analysis released by Allion USA last week.
Conducted in Allion’s lab environment, the analysis reveals that Comcast delivers speeds that are more than 7 times greater than the speeds offered by the most current AT&T Gateway, and almost 20% faster than the most current Verizon Gateway.
"The Allion study confirms that Comcast provides the industry’s fastest in-home Wi-Fi experience, period," said Eric Schaefer, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Communications and Data for Comcast Cable. "Our customers are spending even more time on Wi-Fi, and connecting an ever-growing number of devices to their in-home Wi-Fi networks. We continually evolve our Wireless Gateways to stay a step ahead and ensure that our customers always get the most out of their Internet connections."
The analysis highlighted that both the Xfinity and Verizon Wireless Gateways were equipped with 3x3 antennas and the ability to leverage both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands, shown to contribute to increasing speeds, compared to the AT&T’s 1x1 antenna system and single band.
Ultimately, Allion concluded that "while the Verizon Gateway also supported the 11ac mode, the max throughput was not as fast" and the Xfinity Wireless Gateway was "superior in performance with both throughput and range compared to the gateways deployed by Verizon and AT&T," adding "the end result of higher throughput will most likely lead to a more pleasant network experience for the Wi-Fi users at home."
In addition to its superior home Wi-Fi service, Comcast has built a Wi-Fi network with more than 8 million hotspots and growing, and through a partnership with Liberty Global, Xfinity WiFi customers also will have access to millions of Wi-Fi hotspots in various European countries.
The Xfinity WiFi network presently includes:
Outdoor Hotspots: Comcast has placed Xfinity WiFi hotspots in public locations across the country, ranging from shopping centers and commuter stations to parks, sporting venues, beaches and boardwalks.
Business Hotspots: Most Comcast Business Internet customers are eligible to receive an Xfinity WiFi hotspot for no additional charge when they order service. This is a value-added feature that directly improves their patrons’ experience. Examples include restaurants, cafés and bakeries, retail establishments and office waiting areas.
Neighborhood Hotspots: Comcast began providing residential customers with Xfinity Wireless Gateways the ability to have a second "xfinitywifi" signal (or SSID) in their home that is separate and distinct from their private and secure home Wi-Fi signal. This second signal provides visiting Xfinity Internet customers Wi-Fi access without the need to use the homeowner’s private network password. Presently, 60% of Xfinity WiFi usage travels over neighborhood hotspots.
Most Xfinity Internet customers can access Xfinity WiFi hotspots by selecting "xfinitywifi" from the list of available networks on their laptops or mobile devices and entering their Comcast email and password. The Xfinity WiFi App, available for download on both iOS and Android devices, makes it easy to locate business and outdoor hotspots, or customers can visit the hotspot finder map online at www.xfinity.com/wifi.
As a leader in high-speed Internet, Comcast has increased speeds 13 times in 13 years. The company is investing billions of dollars in new, next-generation technologies, to create a stronger, more reliable and more secure broadband network for millions of new customers.