T-Mobile's new 'Next-Gen Network Map' offers a more accurate look at the carrier's coverage

If you’ve ever signed up for service with a different wireless carrier in the past, there’s a good chance that you’ve checked out the carrier’s network coverage map for your area. The problem is, wireless carriers usually produce network maps based on predictive coverage estimations, not real-time customer experiences. That’s why T-Mobile has just announced its new “Next-Gen Network Map” that uses customer-verified coverage instead of estimates.

The new network map incorporates more than 200 million customer usage data points from actual T-Mobile customers, as well as additional customer data from third-party sources such as Inrix. Just like the old map, the new one shows all levels of coverage in specific locations including 4G LTE, 4G, 3G and 2G. The carrier has also added a Verified Coverage icon, showing where the majority of data is provided by actual T-Mobile customers reporting their network experience.

Additionally, T-Mobile explains that the map will be updated twice every month, unlike data on other carriers’ maps that’s basically outdated by the time it’s printed and published. The map will also provide speed test data from third-party applications that shows the average download speeds customers have achieved in the last 90 days.

If you’re interested in checking out the new coverage map, it’s now live on T-Mobile’s site.