Lycamobile is debatably one of the best United Kingdom mobile networks for communicating internationally. The network provider operates in more than 23 countries worldwide as a Mobile Virtual Mobile Network. In the recent past, Lyca has been expanding into monetary and travel services with Lycamoney and Lycafly. The main focus is to reveal to you what network does Lycamobile uses in the UK.
One of the MVNO’s mottos is “call the world for less,” and you will see why in this article. Well-known for its reasonable international rates, Lycamobile is an excellent option for UK people looking to call and message their relatives, friends, or loved ones in other parts of the globe. But then again, what else can you expect from this virtual operator? Is the mobile provider’s customer service any upright? Do they offer high-quality network coverage in all parts of the UK? Read on as the article digs into Lycamobile.
Be unsure if Lycamobile is the best network for you? It’s a straightforward network in many ways, though, so while there’s a lot to like about Lycamobile, it’s not for every phone, so you can easily look for what cell phone boosters actually work. The article will deeply review the network, emphasizing what’s good about it, what’s not, and what type of phone user it’s best suited for. You’ll also find a comprehensive look at Lycamobile’s 5G, 4G, and 3G coverage on this page.
What is Lycamobile, and how does it operate?
Lycamobile uses another carrier’s network to offer 5G, 4G, 3G, and 2G on their SIM plans. Lycamobile is a rudimentary mobile network at its core as they don’t provide any unique features, perks, or extras to incredible international calling rates.
Lycamobile is one of the best mobile network operators if you are looking into making affordable international calls more frequently. In addition to their excellent calling rates, the Lycamobile’s 30-day Pay As You Go bundles include international minutes, something rare in most MVNOs.
The MVNO’s SIM-only deals operate on a prepaid basis, and that way, there are no credit checks to pass. Lycamobile customers can purchase a 30-day SIM-only bundle with UK texts, minutes, and data. You may also get international minutes allowances of up to 500 minutes on specific bundles.
What network does Lycamobile use?
Like most mobile network providers in the UK, Lycamobile is a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), which implies they piggyback on major networks to offer their network coverage. Lycamobile, a UK-based network, uses the O2 network to provide extensive coverage.
For the Lycamobile network, consumers can be contented that Lycamobile is a virtual network operator since it means that they will get affordable phone plans. One of the foremost reasons the MVNO provides their customers with affordable SIM-only deals is that they don’t have to charge any extra ponds to build and maintain network infrastructure and towers. Consequently, the Lycamobile network can put all their resources on offering the best services such as incredible SIM-only deals, college student plans, and monthly plans.
For international roaming, the MVNO works best, which is good news for most phone users. Lycamobile is the leading international MVNO, and they have renewed their contract deal with O2. This renewal means that they provide affordable prices for calls to Africa, America, Asia, and other parts of the world.
Lycamobile network renewing their contract deal with O2’s network was not bad for all. O2 offers excellent network service, and Lycamobile network has received positive customer feedback about the cellular service over the past years.
Some customers complained of dropped calls, unsent text messages, and slow data connection. However, with the use of internet boosters, they can solve the problem. Please find out how does an internet booster works from our past article.
What network coverage does Lycamobile provide?
The advancement of mobile technology consists of five different data technology levels. They include 1G, 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G data technologies. These different technologies provide different types of quality. The bottommost quality is 1G, and it works its way up to the excellent data service well-known today, 5G.
Lycamobile uses O2 for network coverage, meaning that it uses the O2 mobile network towers to offer cell signals to its customers. O2 offers the best level of coverage across the United Kingdom with 99% across all network technologies. Their network coverage is as shown below.
- 2G network has 99% population coverage
- 3G also has 99% coverage
- 4G has 99% population coverage.
It’s essential to note that the phone service level customers receive will depend on where they are in the UK, among other factors like whether you’re inside or outside. Most rural areas are prone to network outages, and employing the best cell phone boosters for rural areas will help. If you’re interested in this, it’s vital using the O2 network coverage checker to look for your area.
Doe Lycamobile have a 5G network?
Before the article reveals Lycamobile’s 5G network, it is essential to know what the 5G network offer. Compared to 4G and 3Gnetworks, 5G is a next-level network, especially when paying attention to the speed differences. 5G provides speed like no other data network technology in existence. Lycamobile customers now experience the difference in speed since the operator switched to 5G and does Lycamobile support 5g.
5G offers a much more reliable connection when in crowded places, and there is no video buffering, while 4G will struggle with these issues. With 4G, Lycamobile customers need to boost cell signals at home for free or at a cost, which is not the case with 5G. If you are an online gamer, 5G network speed and quality are seamless for you.
As of January 2022, all Lycamobile plans included 5G, meaning you can receive the fastest internet speeds available to O2 network customers. O2 and Lycamobile’s 5G network is now live in more than 164 UK cities and towns. If you find out that Lycamobile 5G network is in your area, all you need is a 5G Lycamobile SIM card (given free by the MVNO) and a 5G ready smartphone.
It is essential to check the Lycamobile’s coverage map before you sign a contract with it. The article can’t stress this adequately. Poor Lycamobile network coverage will result in undependable connections and more petite than needed internet speeds.
What are Lycamobile Mobile’s 4G and 5G network speeds?
According to network testing companies’ latest speed test reports, O2, the network Lycamobile piggybacks, has the slowest 4G download speeds among the four primary UK networks. Since Lycamobile customers get similar coverage and speeds as O2 network customers do, they also receive the same experience.
When the article looks at the test results, it finds out that Lycamobile UK’s average download speeds are around 17.1Mbps and its average upload speeds are around 5.4Mbps. These speed tests are carried across the UK thus, they provide you a good speeds indicator to expect, but your actual cellular experience may differ significantly due to many reasons.
Lycamobile’s 5G network provider, O2, has an average 5G download speed of around 111Mbps and an average 5G upload speed of around 9.3Mbps. Upload speeds could be considerably better; however, over 100Mbps is more than sufficient to support multiple heavy data activities concurrently. This article recommends Lycamobile 5G for heavy streaming and online gaming, as the network will provide low latency in addition to a robust and reliable connection.
Does Lycamobile offer 4G and Wi-Fi Calling?
When writing this article, neither Wi-Fi Calling nor 4G Calling (VoLTE) is offered to Lycamobile customers. Most O2-powered MVNOs provide these two essential features, so Lycamobile UK is the weird one out in this case.
4G is a data transfer technology, but if your network and cellphone support 4G Calling or VoLTE, it can be used for voice traffic. Calls made over the technology are strikingly better, plus customers can continue enjoying 4G speeds when they are browsing the internet while on a call. In addition, it eliminates many indoor dead zones and blackspots.
Wi-Fi Calling is another network feature that allows your phone to make or receive voice calls or text messages over a Wi-Fi connection. It comes to play when your even cellular signal strength is poor or unavailable. Wi-Fi Calling can enhance your voice call quality; however, it depends on the Wi-Fi connection quality.
Does Lycamobile have exclusive free Wi-Fi hotspots for its customers?
Unluckily, Lycamobile customers don’t get to benefit from the exclusive free Wi-Fi deals.
Bottom line
Lycamobile is a UK-based mobile virtual operator, meaning that it does not own network infrastructure and towers. Instead, it piggybacks on another carrier for network coverage. The good thing about Lycamobile is that it is associated with the O2 network, so its customers will receive the same coverage as O2 customers. This is a good indicator since O2 is one of the primary renowned network providers, so customers are promised good coverage.
