Study: AT&T's network tops at Disney World while Sprint and T-Mobile lag

AT&T (NYSE: T) and Verizon (NYSE: VZ) offer the best mobile coverage at Walt Disney World outside Orlando, Fla., according to a study by Global Wireless Solutions, while the Kingdom is a little less magical for customers of Sprint (NYSE: S) and T-Mobile (NYSE:TMUS).

The network-testing firm conducted more than 25,000 "task tests" throughout the park on the networks of the major operators, visiting each of six regions. The tests were run on the company's own diagnostic app using Galaxy S6 smartphones.

GWS said AT&T operates the top-performing network throughout the park, while Verizon's performance was "a close second." The nation's two largest networks were ranked first or second in each of the six regions in Disney World.

T-Mobile's network, meanwhile, ranked third in five of six regions and showed the worst performance in one area. Sprint's network performed lowest for overall connectivity, reliability and data speeds in all but one region.

Each of the tier-one networks was able to complete 100 percent of basic tasks like sending texts or posting status updates, and AT&T's network was the top performer for data-heavy tasks such as browsing the web and downloading images or songs. It also proved superior for streaming video.

GWS's findings roughly echoed a study by RootMetrics earlier this year. RootMetrics found that Verizon owned the top-performing network nationwide during the first half of 2015, edging out AT&T. Sprint placed third and maintained its lead over T-Mobile in overall performance.

"With so many customers on the ground looking to do anything from tweeting an update to sharing a photo or video of their experiences via social media, it's integral that the mobile operators have a robust network in place," said GWS CEO Paul Carter in a prepared statement. "Our carefully controlled tests examined a variety of metrics, including upload and download speeds, task attempts and completions, to determine just how successful these mobile networks are when it comes to uploading a selfie or watching a video."

GWS also noted that the mobile networks outperformed Disney's Wi-Fi service.

For more:
- see this GWS performance map

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