Cell phone operators: details and differences. Understand everything!

How about learning a little more about the largest cell phone operators in Brazil and what their differences are? Which is better and which offers the best cost-benefit? In today's text, you will find out all about it.

It is very common for us to spend our whole lives hearing about big brands and for many of them to stick in our minds because they have great demand or very good marketing that can do what is needed. 

This happens in all segments, such as clothing, fast food, cell phone brands and it would be no different with operators and this also happens, as in Brazil there are currently only three operators.

Until recently, we had two other major cell phone operators, Oi and Nextel, but these operators were sold and are now part of other major operators.

Nextel went to Claro and Oi was divided by region, some regions stayed with Claro, others with Vivo and the rest with TIM.

But there is always a doubt about what the differences are between the operators and even which one might be the best for a cell phone plan, right? And it turns out that they all have their advantages and disadvantages.

In all of them you will find people who like the operator and people who don't, but there are technical differences in all of them and that is what we will talk about in today's text.

We’ll tell you a little about each of them and tell you what each one stands out for so you can choose what catches your attention the most and what you need most in an operator. Let’s go!

Which operators are present in Brazil?

As we said above, we already had some operators in Brazil that are now extinct or that were moved to other operators, but there are still 3 large operators present in Brazil that you may have heard of.

Alive

The largest operator present in Brazil is Vivo, which currently has more than 100 million customers in Brazil. 

Founded in 2003, just as cell phones began to gain more popularity (although still very expensive and inaccessible to the majority of the population at the time), the operator has always been a reference in telephony and inherited the structure of Telesp and GVT, so today, in addition to being a cell phone operator, it also works with fixed internet.

In 2012, it even became the only mobile operator to offer pay TV, broadband internet and landline telephony.

Vivo has always been the largest operator in Brazil in terms of numbers, with 32% of the user share (among 4 operators), but with the purchase of a percentage of Oi in 2020, the number went from 32% to 37%, still maintaining the market leadership.

Of course

There is little difference in terms of audience between Claro and TIM, both with around 68 million active customers in Brazil, but Claro's name has gained more space after the purchase of the company NET, which was one of the largest providers of broadband internet and pay TV in the country.

Also founded in 2003, the company has always been a reference in mobile internet and has gained a lot of space in recent years and today also offers broadband, fixed telephony and pay TV.

Claro was also a pioneer in the 5G industry, which is still so new, and although it was not the first to use it, it was the first to optimize the technology in Brazil.

TIM

And since we're talking about 5G, it's important for you to know that TIM was the first operator in the country to bring 5G technology and that it managed to establish it here.

Launched at the end of 2003, the operator was also the first to work with 3G mobile internet, which is now so well known to all of us.

Coming right after Claro, with more than 68 million customers across Brazil, the operator is the only one to serve 100% in Brazil, that is, reaching 5,568 cities.

The operator also offers broadband internet and landline telephony, but does not yet offer pay TV.

What are the differences and details of these operators?

Now that you know a little more about all these operators and what each one offers, it's time to learn about some differences between them that can help you when choosing your operator.

Faster 5G

When it comes to internet speed, it's safe to say that this is a major concern for people when choosing an operator, right?

The 3 operators offer 5G, but the operator that offers the fastest in Brazil is Vivo, with download speeds reaching up to 390 Mbps, while TIM comes next with 337 Mbps and Claro in third place with 277 Mbps.

Greater coverage

When we talk about coverage, which is also a major concern for those who have a cell phone, TIM comes out ahead, however the three operators still offer little signal coverage and have a lot to improve in this regard.

While TIM leads with 11.4% of coverage, Vivo comes in second with 7.1% and Claro with 6.5% is in third place.

Best experience 

When it comes to overall experience, Claro was the one that won the OpenSignal award, taking home two of the three trophies in the category, namely games and voice.

In the gaming section, the stability of the connection is evaluated, ranging from 0 to 100, and Claro received 82.5, followed by Vivo with 80.3 and TIM with 78.8.

In the voice section, what is evaluated is the quality of calls made via WhatsApp, video calls, and regular voice calls.

Claro won the category with 82.5 out of 100, TIM came in second with 76.2 and Vivo in third place with 75.9.

Conclusion

Now you know which operators there are in Brazil and what the advantages and disadvantages of each one are.

Of course, you need to evaluate what you need and which one fits that best, but always read user reviews before making your decision.

Did you like this content? Then read it too Cell phones that fold: models, average prices and specifications!