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new to android... currently using N1 on att edge... contemplating a switch to Tmobile... latest "speed tests" by PC World show ATT as a clear leader for download speeds, plus they have better spectrum and in my exp. allow better penetration though walls. I live in seattle but travel to many major cities on east coast... anyone offer any suggestions with their exp with Tmob vs. ATT? How biased is Pcworld?
My goal is the use the N1 on ATT until they get a proper android device... couple months I hope, or do I switch now and save the trouble...any advice would be appreciated
tmobile and att both have their ups and down
but tmobile now clearly has AMAZINGLY BETTER unlimited min data and text plans for a very low low LOW price
check it out
not a tmobile rep lol
just a very long time tmo user
and tmo's 3g aint that bad
i dont notice any problems with it
thanks for the reply
yeah im aware of the potential $$ savings, however for me that is not the case...im more looking into who will provide the best speeds/least amount of hassle over the next year or so...i have few friends who work at ATT store who are managers, and I can always get anything done to my account I need to...
I understand Tmobile has "great" service, but my experience with them both online and in the stores has been horrible. The sales reps Ive spoken with at several stores have been sorely uninformed and have outright lied to my (by making up answers that are not true about many things, so probably not malicious lies but if you dont know TELL ME!). The latest episode was when a sales rep told me that they would be carrying the HTC Desire in April, and that It will have a physical keyboard and dual core processor!
in my area, as posted by pcworld, ATT completely smokes tmobile in average DL speeds (1400vs 900)... plus im able to pay $60 a month right now and have everything i need..granted i am stuck on att edge with my n1, but its not as bad as i thought...my plan was to keep the phone until att finally got one, but their whole "backflip" ordeal has left me concerned with their openness to google... I love my N1, even the trackball, and would be hard pressed to pick a desire over it... Im rambling now so Ill stop, but last point is that i would have to cancel my att contract, which at only $175 isnt that bad, considering i just last month bought a 3gs for $220 and sold it for $530...
T-Mo this summer is going to smoke AT&T as the fastest 3g network.But as far as coverage AT&T is a little better,plus is true that lower frequency is better penetrating to buildings,that's one problem i'm dealing now with T-Mo,but the price is right,so I guess at the end you have to look for the best one for your needs.
tmobile plans
just talked with a very knowledgeable Tmobile reap... apparently seattle is #11 to receive fiber upgrades, and will receive HSPA+ around may 18th... of course this is all hearsay... they will also be selling HD2s for BOGO $199 contract... amazing deal... very nice phone, they had one today I was able to play with. Perfect size for me... just waiting for a more perfect android port and ill make the switch from nexus one...
just ported my number to tmobile today...hopefully i wont be disappointed
ieon said:
just talked with a very knowledgeable Tmobile reap... apparently seattle is #11 to receive fiber upgrades, and will receive HSPA+ around may 18th... of course this is all hearsay... they will also be selling HD2s for BOGO $199 contract... amazing deal... very nice phone, they had one today I was able to play with. Perfect size for me... just waiting for a more perfect android port and ill make the switch from nexus one...
just ported my number to tmobile today...hopefully i wont be disappointed
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Did you talk to a rep online? Or was it a friend or something? I would LOVE to have some more info on St. Louis expansion further southward and any other plans in the area. I'm currently on AT&T about 10 miles outside T-Mo's 3G bubble. I have AT&T 3G since last October, but am using an ADP1, since my unlocked Roger's Dream broke. I think I am going to switch to T-Mo when I get my free Nexus, but I would love to have 3G.
Anyway, the point is where'd you get the info, and if you can find out anything about St. Louis from that rep (if its in person, if not tell me its online I'll try some more).
K thx bye
Lol just playin, but thanks. Please let me know
Here in vegas t-mo 3g speeds are better then AT&T so TMo was the clear choice for me. The fastest 3g speeds in town here though are with verizon
We tested using 4 phones:
Tmobile G1
Tmobile MyTouch 3g
Verizon Blackberry
At&T Iphone
The results were pretty staggering:
Tmobile G1 - 970kbps
Tmobile MyTouch 3g - 1023 kbps
Verizon Blackberry - 1876 kbps
At&T Iphone - 200 kbps
Funny noone mentioned sprint. You, being number for reliability and all that.
T-Mobile FTW!
I live in the Bay Area and I have done several speed test all over with both an iPhone 3GS and Nexus One. For the most part AT&T gets around 1400-2400 kbps down and about 200-300 kbps up with a 1000-3000ms ping. T-Mobile gets about 1000-1500 kbps down and 300-600 kbps up with a 60-100ms ping. In most cases AT&T does get slightly faster speeds and has more 3G coverage but is not as reliable. Sometimes the data connection disappears or takes forever to start loading. Once both phone do start loading there isn't much difference loading web sites. As far as downloading files AT&T is slightly faster but doesn't seem to have the bandwidth that T-Mobile when downloading multiple files at the same time. I used to be a long time customer of AT&T but got fed up paying $100/month for data/texting/voice and getting unreliable data service where I work (Financial District - San Francisco). Personally I would recommend that anyone who is on the fence to go with T-Mobile. They don't have perfect service but for the price its a much better value than AT&T. I haven't had any problems or issues besides a few select areas with poor 3G reception since I have switched to T-Mobile.
Cities tested:
Concord/Walnut Creek Area: Both worked really well. AT&T what quite a bit faster in speed tests but loading regular web sites was about the same.
Marin: AT&T = Good - Some areas get dropped calls and no 3G | T-Mobile works good as well. Some areas get poor reception for 3G and Edge | Speeds are about the same... AT&T is slightly faster. (Lots of testing)
Pleasonton: Both worked really well. (Limited testing)
San Francisco: AT&T = Horrible... didn't work at all in my building with full 3G | T-Mobile works great... works perfect in the same place AT&T didn't | Speeds are about the same... when AT&T works.
Vallejo: About the same as Marin.
Hope this helps,
- Victor
neoelectrex said:
Funny noone mentioned sprint. You, being number for reliability and all that.
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The reason is that OP has a GSM device and Sprint is CDMA...
T-Mobile because AT&T network is lame. They actually told their iFail users to don't use internet as much because of their weak ass network and they are locking down their android phones so T-Mobile wins of course.
Sigh
Ok Ok I know location plays a huge part in this but let me say this, AT&T is 100% trash compared to Tmobile (based on New Jersey), They pay millions to say they cover 97% of US and they have the fastest 3G in the US. When? 8 Years AGO? I did a test with my friends iphone 3GS (new Jersey) with an app called SPEEDTEST, also did the same test (SAME PLACE MY HOUSE NJ) with the same exact APP SPEED TEST on my nexus one,
Results
Iphone3GS AT&T = 99kbits/sec (test was done 2 times each.) Similar results he was pinging about 4000-5000
Nexus one Tmobile = 1,740Kbits/sec (test was done 2 times each.) Similar results I was pinging about 88=97
I then tested my 2G (same place + same app) = 210kbits/s
This means my 2g was faster than his so called 3G, funny thing is, his iphone 3GS doesnt even say when its on Edge or 3G, My nexus one says when its on Edge (2G), 3G Or HSPDA (which I'm on all day HSPDA full bars in NJ). DO NOT FORGET HOW TRAFFIC IMPACTS A NETWORK, it's horrible. You are paying more, you have worse call quality (both network and phone) considering the 2 microphones of the N1 and clarity of Tmobile. So you pay more? Do less, both apple and AT&T limit you, and you have the nerve to compare? Apple is ditching AT&T for few reasons, 1 of them being 30% dropped calls in major cities, and allowing android phones (better phones) than Iphone on their exclusive network.
My point? Why the hell would you pay more and get less? Not only get less, but slower, and sloppier? The comparison boggles my mind, Maybe Tmobile doens't cover as much, this is a fact as well, but man check their coverage map and see if its available in your area, because it's way better in every possible way.
My plan is 500 minutes with everything else unlimited (mobile to mobile, text, data, weekends, nights) Most the people I speak with have tmobile, so I never even go past 200 minutes ever. This costs me 65.34 a month after taxes and I use my nexus one every hour of the day literally. if you want the pictures to my tests, I'm glad to show my proof, email me at [email protected] or go to my youtube page and see my nexus one vids. I'll be uploading some videos when my friend returns to my house, yes speeds vary even by the day or hour due to traffic, but I'm normally getting over 1mbit/s all day long, he gets very bad lag in his network, he pays 120 a month which is about twice what I pay and his calling/data/all around sucks. Why argue? why bother? I've asked my friends with nexus one in jersey city to test his network and it's almost as fast as mine, so i'm not in luck here, tmobile simply rocks after their network upgrade december 2009, don't forget they'll be doing another upgrade for intense speeds before 2010 ends.
Signing off Gslick, email me for pictures of the tests.
Youtube chan with my rooted nexus one = www.youtube.com/user/exclusivegslick might as well sub if you like the phone and/or android.
i am in columbus area and here tmobile 3G is bad, i dont get 3G at all in my house.
i have a iphone 3gs and it gets 3G coverage everywhere.
as soon as i get off the highway 3g bars with tmobile starts going down.
the funny thing is that even in tmobile store i get EDGE with tmobile phones and the att 3gs gets 3G
and no i donot work with att.
my advice check 3G coverage to whatever city you travel the most.
i would go with mediocre 3G speed but better coverage, instead of blazing fast 3G with no coverage
This all depends on where you live and what type of service quality you are looking for.... I've heard ATT and T-Mobile trashed on forums for various reasons.
I live in Austin, Texas, USA... I can't speak for data service as I'm using a T-Mobile frequency G1 on ATT network - so, I'm restricted to Edge data service.
However, my wife has several friends who are on T-mobile and they constantly drop calls. Which DOES NOT happen to us on ATT. Also, ATT has MUCH better reception in the rural areas where I work than T-Mobile (which is VERY spotty in the rural areas).
So, my wife and I refuse to leave ATT for now. Despite my near clinical depression over not being able to upgrade my G1!
Data may or may not be better for T-mobile in the urban area here - I don't know.
I would check with your friends and family who travel the same areas that you do - who also have service with both carriers and have decent phones.
The claims from store reps will almost always be biased - however, if you have a friend who is a store rep who will give you an honest opinion - I would ask them what kind of complaints they hear "in store" regarding the other carriers.
Don't just take someone else's word from a post on this forum if that person DOES NOT live in your area - as they could have a completely different experience and the carriers' infrastructure could be very different.
jongie123 said:
T-Mo this summer is going to smoke AT&T as the fastest 3g network.But as far as coverage AT&T is a little better,plus is true that lower frequency is better penetrating to buildings,that's one problem i'm dealing now with T-Mo,but the price is right,so I guess at the end you have to look for the best one for your needs.
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Click to collapse
AT&T coverage is not a little better than T-MO, it's a lot better, for both data and voice.
I have no idea what make anyone think T-MO America, who is in dire financial straits right now, has the money to keep up with AT&T's massive mobile network build-out. The truth is, they can't. AT&T has steadily been improving backhaul and connection speeds, is getting ready for 4G deployment and has that capacity in place in many places already.
AT&T's network has been improving faster than anyone else's, and that's why they currently have the fastest 3G speeds on the nation's #2 3G network for coverage. But they are far from done, and any competitor who thinks they're sitting still to be leapfrogged had better be prepared to spend a boatload of money to build, because AT&T is. T-MO just does not have the resources (revenue) to keep up.
Gslick said:
Ok Ok I know location plays a huge part in this but let me say this, AT&T is 100% trash compared to Tmobile (based on New Jersey), They pay millions to say they cover 97% of US and they have the fastest 3G in the US. When? 8 Years AGO?
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Click to collapse
You're talking out your butthole, pure and simple. Your narrow view of the network is a paradigm child of your limited experience with it. It's nothing more than crap folklore.
Wow, I live in Lewiston, ID. There isn't much around here and I have hit 3.5mb down and 1mb up with my Hero. For some reason lately I can't hit Liberty Lake with Speedtest. Is a couple hours away up by Spokane WA. For some reason it thinks I am 45mi away from Wichita, KS. Still hit almost 2.97mb down and 1.07mb up with a 348 ping.
some ppl. here are getting biased here.
for me i live in columbus and i bought the HD2 was waiting for it for months if not longer, but was sooooooo disappointed when i got it really bad 3G, next to nothing.
call quality soooooo bad, many ppl. are saying that its the HD2 thats at fault.
but i dont know, i have a 3GS in the house and that gets 3G even in tmobile store where the HD2 didnt
so i will think twice before taking tmobile in the future, asleast FOR AS LONG AS I LIVE IN COLUMBUS.
thats my personal experience, i cannot speak for other US cities or locations.
UberMario said:
T-Mobile because AT&T network is lame. They actually told their iFail users to don't use internet as much because of their weak ass network and they are locking down their android phones so T-Mobile wins of course.
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Click to collapse
That's a complete load of crap. It's an outright lie. Maybe you didn't start it, but it's still a lie.
geronemo said:
some ppl. here are getting biased here.
for me i live in columbus and i bought the HD2 was waiting for it for months if not longer, but was sooooooo disappointed when i got it really bad 3G, next to nothing.
call quality soooooo bad, many ppl. are saying that its the HD2 thats at fault.
but i dont know, i have a 3GS in the house and that gets 3G even in tmobile store where the HD2 didnt
so i will think twice before taking tmobile in the future, asleast FOR AS LONG AS I LIVE IN COLUMBUS.
thats my personal experience, i cannot speak for other US cities or locations.
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Click to collapse
Columbus, OHIO- right? I live in the upper left corner of Ohio (Williams County) and want to get a nexus one. However, everyone I know has Verizon. I am sick of waiting so I am going to get one now. According to tmobile's and att's websites, att has the better coverage. I was also considering the palm pre plus ($50 bucks for two!), but I want the sexy nexus one.
I'm currently on Verizon, 4 lines together with my family.
I'm hitting some bad times financially so my parents are paying for it, I'm trying to save some money for them though, so I was considering switching to TMobile or Sprint.
I need some real time advice on their services and data coverage.
3G and "4G" speeds, what the signal is like, etc.
I know about their phones so I'm worrying about that later.
I've heard bad things about both carriers' speeds and signals but I'm sure that depends on where you live, hence I need real discussion from different people.
I live in central NC if that helps.
I'm not too keen on AT&T but if anyone has anything to add about them, go ahead, I'll consider it.
I would change to Sprint, the best coverage prices and the network is decent.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
If you do go with sprint if u have an AOL email that's an additional 10%, off ur Bill
Sent from my PG86100 using XDA Premium App
You almost literally have to get someone with the service to come to your house to test. Verizon is a total dead zone at my house, but is decent a couple miles away.
Sprint has a 30 day money back guarantee so you might try them first.
bleach168 said:
You almost literally have to get someone with the service to come to your house to test. Verizon is a total dead zone at my house, but is decent a couple miles away.
Sprint has a 30 day money back guarantee so you might try them first.
Click to expand...
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How do I go about just randomly trying them?
I feel your pain but with my job traveling Verizon is really the only choice for me.
I Am Marino said:
How do I go about just randomly trying them?
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Click to collapse
Are any of your friends on T-Mobile or Sprint?
im on t-mobile its cheap and i get good signal at my house but if i go a few miles out of this area i lose coverage when i leave the town and i dont have any 3g/4g coverage in my area t-mobile is spotty about 3g/4g i dont get any 3g coverage unless i travel 30 minutes west of here to get any 3g signal depending on where u live i would check coverage maps if ur area has 3g/4g go ahead with t-mobile
Whoa man!
Periods. Use them.
I know what you mean..but it comes down to $40 for me per month for my family on Verizon...I personally was on ATT for 18 months..really bad service in all ways you can think of..now they are buying tmobile..be prepared for you r bills to go up as well with this merger...when/if it happens..Sprint has only 1 carrier and that is ClearWire with its 4g backbone support..so far their testing 4g speeds have been really badnot to mention here in California my wife ALWAYS made sure our bill with Sprint was where it was supposed to be..meaning we got bills for $600..then down to $0 due to their irresponsibility (2009) ..not much of a price between tmo/sprint when compared to Verizon..personally..its not worth nickel n diming as I did for my family for 18 months and we hated it..and didnt pay off at all..good luck with your choice..try to consider MetroPCS or BoostMobile (cheap pre pay)
(if you choose not to stay)
ST
If I had to choose between staying with Verizon and switching to AT&T ... for the price, I would definitely choose Verizon.
I would consider Sprint, but not T-Mobile since I've had more than one bad experience with them and also because they are being absorbed my AT&T.
I have a friend who has Sprint and my girlfriend has T Mobile
but I feel like I need more testing though.
jiggy79 said:
I would change to Sprint, the best coverage prices and the network is decent.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
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+1
been with sprint since 1998. Good coverage, good service and competitive pricing.
Thinking about jumping ship. I am sick and tired of paying all this money and them treating us like this.
i had t-mobile back in the day and they absolutely sucked. but that was like years ago. i was wondering if there are any t-mobile, sprint, att customers who would recommend their service as a viable alternative to Big Red.
Sprint LTE is hitting central nj this year maybe even next month.
I'm in central jersey, on t-mobile.. like it a lot
connection is pretty much always good, and data speed is great
georgei11 said:
I'm in central jersey, on t-mobile.. like it a lot
connection is pretty much always good, and data speed is great
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda premium
Jackson is a service black hole, as you probably already know. The town basically banned towers from being constructed, it's a nightmare. Surprisingly, T-Mobile has decent service in Jackson, my AT&T service is fine, Sprint's was a bit iffy there. My experiences have been along County Line Road, where I have family.
Outside of Jackson, I'd highly recommend AT&T. Sprint's 3G data varies wildly, anywhere from 2mb/s down in Brick, to maybe 200k in Holmdel. Since AT&T upgraded our area, I'm getting about 5mb down during the day, a high of 7-8mb down at night.
For the record, if you don't care about LTE, Straight Talk works GREAT around us. Same speed as AT&T's normal service, for $45/month.
So here is my situation...right now i have a galaxy nexus on sprint and i renewed in May so i'm stuck with them until may 2014 however i'm tired of their data "speeds" and i might so screw it and make the expensive switch lol. i love the phone but getting only 0.01 MB at my house is unexpectable and not being able to use my "unlimitied" data either is just a waste of money for see that i pay every month...so anyways i'm deciding on what to do. should i go to ATT or T-moblie. I looked at T-Mobile's plans and they are better than ATT IMO but i need to know where my nexus phone would work best at. If anyone lives in southern california area and more like riverside, pomona, corona, chino cities can you let me know please? thanks for the help in advance
Ran across quite a few reviews on google claiming it works great on tmo in southern cali. However the speeds people get seem to differ quite a bit
T mobile has a reputation of bad coverage, but you researched and found good results so I wouldn't worry. However they still do not have LTE like AT&T does.
You can't use your sprint nexus on tmo or att so you would probably get a new phone, and at&t has a beast selection of devices right now.
Sent from my DROID2 using xda premium
I've been with verizon since 2000 and never really had an choice to change since they always had the best service in my area. I've never liked at&t and the rep for tmobile has been its known for prepaid and shotty service. Thing is now, I see more and more people moving over to tmobile and are loving it. Its cheaper per month than verizon and service in my area in NJ is pretty much the same as verizons. Plus there are some features like the wifi calling, the hspa+ coverage, lte. that make it pretty attractive. But the kicker on whats making me consider the change is the phone selection. Verizon seems to always be lagging behind and I'm tired of having to wait for new phones to hit verizon and for updates to be released. Has anyone else thought about a move?
topaz330 said:
I've been with verizon since 2000 and never really had an choice to change since they always had the best service in my area. I've never liked at&t and the rep for tmobile has been its known for prepaid and shotty service. Thing is now, I see more and more people moving over to tmobile and are loving it. Its cheaper per month than verizon and service in my area in NJ is pretty much the same as verizons. Plus there are some features like the wifi calling, the hspa+ coverage, lte. that make it pretty attractive. But the kicker on whats making me consider the change is the phone selection. Verizon seems to always be lagging behind and I'm tired of having to wait for new phones to hit verizon and for updates to be released. Has anyone else thought about a move?
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Click to collapse
I'm probably going to switch to their pre-paid service when my contract is up. I want a Nexus.... Verizon doesn't seem to be getting another any time soon.
I would definitely go with Tmobile for better phone selection & price, but the service in my area is below average. Hopefully LTE rolls out to my area then I'll jump ships.
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I have to jump ship Verizon breaking my bank bad got to pay a fortune to keep service . I gotta switch back to my iPhone I know -_- and go to T-Mobile prepaid because they have the 1900 MHz support in my area
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If you go to a T-Mobile store they might be able to help you pay for your ETF fee, at least that's what they did for me. I would have to pay Verizon 150, but the rep just credited my T-Mobile account 100$ when I switched. He told me that this is something every store has a budget for. It's definitely worth a shot just asking the rep. It's saved me quite a bit of money so far (even if coverage isn't perfect)
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
I had T-Mobile and really liked 'em. They were NOT cheaper, I'm able to get on VZW's Old Fart Plan and it was just $5/mo more than the T-Mo plan I had.
CS is about equal with both except for T-Mo's prepaid which gets you people who speak no intelligible English, with postpaid you get good CS.
Coverage, very close to zero with T-Mo, everywhere I went. Only spotty coverage in the largest cities, VZW has 3g or better everywhere I travelled.
A phone that can't make a call until you find a Starbucks with free WiFi isn't useful to me.
Have your car break down on California 371 in the middle of the Cahuilla Indian Reservation? You're 50 miles from ANY T-Mo signal and you've got 2 - 3 bars with Verizon.
I really liked T-Mo but it wasn't usable for me.
for those that had coverage issues how long ago did you have tmobile? I heard coverage recently got better and that they are aggressively expanding to more towers across the country.
I don't like Verizon's pricing, phone selection, and the hassle required to unlock their phones for international use.
That being said, I switched from t mobile to Verizon in 07 for one reason: coverage. I use to live in Philadelphia in an 5 floor apartment with a T-Mobile store like three blocks away. No coverage in my apartment unless I kept the phone by the window.
Now I live and work in north nj and Verizon is the only reliable wireless carrier (by word of mouth). Not sure how much has changed in six years but I would leave Verizon if anyone had coverage close to the theirs
topaz330 said:
for those that had coverage issues how long ago did you have tmobile? I heard coverage recently got better and that they are aggressively expanding to more towers across the country.
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Click to collapse
I tried 2 weeks ago, just to test their service and see how it was since I haven't been with them for 1 year and a half and its still sucky. They do have 4G (HSPA+) in my area now but I get 1 bar of it and when it dont get a strong signal it'll go to Edge. I hear a nearby area "might" get LTE in late June so that means my area "might" get it late 2013. I'm just waiting to see what happens...my contract is up in November for Verizon
My buddy has tmo and hates the service. He doesn't get service with his phone and winds up using his Verizon work phone 90 percent of the time to make calls.
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I had Verizon before I switched to T-Mobile. T-Mobile is cheaper, has just as good of support and a good selection of phones. However, Verizon does have better service so if you travel frequently expect some dead zones.
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I used to have T-mo and I loved it! The reception in my area was incredible. I moved to verizon and it's still in the same category in satisfaction. T-mo is a lot cheaper than verizon, so I would give it a try. You're not going to regret it. Sim cards are the best.
I recently jumped from Verizon to T-Mobile and pretty much all comments thus far are justified.
topaz330 said:
for those that had coverage issues how long ago did you have tmobile? I heard coverage recently got better and that they are aggressively expanding to more towers across the country.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They've added -some- sites in recent times, but the "re-farm" you seem to have heard about is primarily a massive equipment refresh for about 85% of the existing WCDMA sites. Unlike Sprint's Network Vision or AT&T's "add an LTE panel to an 8 year old WCDMA site" rollout, T-Mobile is doing a -complete- equipment refresh on said sites using either Nokia Siemens Networks Flexi Base Station solutions or Ericsson's Antenna Integrated Radio setups. For the sites that get the new equipment, coverage could see a 10-15% improvement in coverage and in-building penetration due to each of the NSN/Ericsson setups having the radio at tower-top.
T-Mobile will do you well if you are a city-rat. The lack of rural expansion pre-AT&T failed merger was due to the cost of infrastructure and backhaul when the only spectrum you have is high-frequency (PCS/AWS). Even in areas of excellent coverage, there's still a few limitations: Deep inside buildings, attenuation -will- eat the signal. Terrain is another big one that affects all carriers... if you happen to be in a place where terrain blocks your line of sight, you're not gonna get a good signal. Now, the equipment refresh is to facilitate LTE, as both setups are capable of LTE-A out of the box. T-Mobile had to sit on their hands for 18mo and not do any proactive system/coverage upgrades due to the AT&T merger debacle, but it was a good thing as now that they have the money and spectrum from both the merger fallout and MetroPCS plus new equipment, they're good to go. So, depending on where you live, work, and play, T-Mobile could potentially be great...
but...
bbqsfire said:
My buddy has tmo and hates the service. He doesn't get service with his phone and winds up using his Verizon work phone 90 percent of the time to make calls.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium
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MiG8GT said:
I had Verizon before I switched to T-Mobile. T-Mobile is cheaper, has just as good of support and a good selection of phones. However, Verizon does have better service so if you travel frequently expect some dead zones.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app
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Unfortunately, when all you have is high-frequency spectrum to use and a network that hasn't seen significant expansion since 2009, this is going to happen. As with all carriers, one man's perfect signal might have a crap signal from another carrier in the exact same spot. Happened to me: with Verizon, could pull 30mbit LTE from bed, but at work I could kill an entire charge with light use because the phone had crap signal on all 3 services (1x EVDO and LTE(whose average speedtest at the desk was 2-3mbit down)). Meanwhile, terrain eats T-Mobile's WCDMA signal at my house(edge only), but I pull 3x the speeds on T-Mobile because of a near perfect signal than I could with Verizon at work.
If you have a friend with T-Mobile, treat'em to lunch and ask them to take a ride around town with ya to see how the service is where you go. Another option is to borrow someone's unused, unlocked T-Mobile phone and grab a sim, sign up for the $30 100min/unlim data&text online and carry that around with you for a bit.
For someone like me who -rarely- leaves metro areas when I travel, T-Mobile is great. For you, it could be different, just take the "ZOMG SPOTTY COVERAGE TMO SUCKS" with a grain of salt, and understand that no carrier is perfect everywhere, even if those comments for that individual are justified.
Forgot to add: T-Mobile won't see any WCDMA expansion for the foreseeable future since their current focus is on the equipment refresh on existing sites. The next round of expansion will come after the 600MHz auction next year.
Shoot me an IM/PM if you have any more questions.
Opposite for me, since Tmo coverage is awful for even making calls in a lot of areas where I live. I agree that they are easier to deal with, but lack of coverage in a lot of areas in Kentucky and Ohio nix them for me.
rushless said:
Opposite for me, since Tmo coverage is awful for even making calls in a lot of areas where I live. I agree that they are easier to deal with, but lack of coverage in a lot of areas in Kentucky and Ohio nix them for me.
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yes, I have Vzw, for two reasons, one they have good coverage nearly everywhere in the us and two data speeds are good. important if you need t use Google Navigator.
topaz330 said:
for those that had coverage issues how long ago did you have tmobile? I heard coverage recently got better and that they are aggressively expanding to more towers across the country.
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I have a T-Mobile S3 and Verizon Z10 for work, Verizon Bionic and TB for personal.
I get better coverage and internet speed on my Verizon devices than my T-Mobile.
I'm in Chester County, PA.
coverage
You could always do a bit of research for your expected area to see what the coverage is like across the various carriers.
www dot opensignal dot com
As if the captchas and relogins aren't enough, I can't friggin post links either.
I've started to take a hard look at T-Mobile and seriously thinking of switching when my contract end on Verizon. I live in southern NH and work in MA. There are T-Mobile 4G towers close to my house and work, but my commute would be mostly 2G.
Comparably, Verizon is mostly 4G in the area, a strong 4G signal at work, but at home I rarely get a 4G signal and half the time the phone will drop because of poor signal strength. There are 3G spots and some bare areas on my commute.
My step-son has T-Mobile and he get a strong 4G signal at our house. He also says he mostly has phone service in the area(drop spots) and data is mostly 2G. When you get closer to the highways or bigger tows / cities there is better service.
Verizon
T-Mobile is awesome, if you live in a coverage area, work in a coverage area, and/or go to school in a coverage area. Also, if you DO NOT EVER plan on traveling, or, at least, taking your phone with you when you go.... Their coverage is horrible compared to Verizon, but their prices are nicer, the packages are more appealing, and prepaid is way better. Really, it's just all up to you, and what you want.
I never had any problems while traveling with t mobile service I have gone from one end of the country to another with mine when I had them before and I'm looking to switch back only switched because I wanted to give Verizon a try not liking them way to pricey and crappy phone selection
Sent from my SCH-I535