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I'm interested to know what carrier / pre-paid option you chose & how your voice service & data performance is.
I might make the jump come next year, I'm patient enough to hold out for a 32GB version (I have a feeling it'll come Q1 2013). :fingers-crossed:
I'm worried about chooing T-Mobile, I don't know anyone on T-Mobile but their HSPA+ is tempting as is getting a better data deal
However AT&T seems to be proven but the people who I knew that had AT&T have either switched to Sprint or Verizon.
Your help is appreciated.
Thanks.
Edit: This forum is too active
I use T-mobile. I've been happy with both their voice and data service for years now - I switched when the G1 came out.
If you go camping/etc you'll probably run into coverage issues. However, in the Philadelphia suburbs you're not going to have problems, beyond the rare issue in a building or whatever that everybody has. I've found the coverage map on their website to be accurate - it has a google-maps-like interface and you can see coverage down to the street level.
Definitely get an unsubsidized plan. With monthly payments if you buy a phone from them it is no more expensive than the subsidized plans anyway. However, it gives you the flexibility to go elsewhere for your gear or update on your own schedule penalty-free. Obviously paying $350 for a Nexus 4 makes a lot more sense than paying $600 for the exact same device.
Compared to Verizon or ATT you'll save buckets of cash.
I'd say go att if you plan on going to south jersey. Edge sucks.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
T-mobile for the past 6 years in Philly and surrounding areas. I really can't complain. I have the occasional issue in a particular building or someone's house but I'm paying $50/mo. Their service has gradually become better year after year. I would definitely recommend.
I'm on AT&T in the Philadelphia area, and their HSPA+ here is sloooowwww. I'm lucky if I get 2-4mbps. The coverage is great (I switched from Verizon, and AT&T is much better in the areas that I frequent) but the speed is meh. Still much better than 3G, but nothing like the speeds I've heard of from T-mobile.
T-Mobile value here. The shore and poconos are much spottier than AT&T but delco, at least, is better. I never really did any wireless speed tests to compare.
the ~$600 a year savings made it a no brainer for me.
I'm out in Montgomery County and have been on Straight Talk AT&T for a while. Just got my new sim for ST T-Mobile. All I did was call them and gave them the new SIM PIN and within an hour or so, all was done. Costs 48/month with all unlimited, throttling data after 2GBs? I don't use that much data so I'm not sure. Coverage for AT&T was fine, but data speeds were slow. T-Mobile is already giving me about double the speeds: 6741kpbs down 2211kbps up. I'm guessing it'll be faster when I'm in the city. The SIM cards only cost ~10 bucks with free overnight shipping. I'd say go with ST if you don't need over 2GBs of data and then you can try both and be totally content with your decision.
Didn't think T-Mobile would get the nod here. I do work in Center City West so I was worried about the building I'm in and around me. But I have to remember I'm ok, given I'm not tied down.
Sent from my iPod Touch 5
I've had a Sprint SERO plan for years. Service was always crappy here in the SF Bay Area, but, the price was cheap (SERO is a good deal) and there was always the promise that things would get better - the current promise being Spark.
I bought a Nexus 5 thinking it was the phone I wanted, and that I would recoup some of the Sprint subsidy I wasn't getting by getting a subsidized iPhone and then selling it on ebay.
Since the phone was unlocked and GSM capable, I thought, what the heck, I'll buy a Straight Talk prepaid AT&T SIM and try it for a month. After a week I terminated Sprint (I was out of contract.)
It was a whole new world. I could drive from San Francisco across the Bay Bridge and back without the call dropping once. I could drive from San Francisco to Marin County across the Golden Gate Bridge and up the Waldo grade without the call dropping 3 times. I could take out the phone practically anywhere and the internet would work reasonably fast, rather than having about a 50% chance of getting the webpage I wanted.
I could get the phone on the network by simply inserting the SIM card, no hassle of reading long MEID numbers to a phone agent, no scrounging around for a SIM card that was always out of stock. I had LTE service right away, rather than at some indeterminate point in the future when they would fix the towers so that they could work with my phone.
I can be on the internet and talk on the phone at the same time.
I don't mean this to be a rant, but to inspire others. If you are on Sprint and out of contract, try a prepaid AT&T SIM and see if you see the radical difference I did (this would include AT&T Gophone, AIO, Straight Talk, and others, Straight Talk being the chepaest of the bunch at $45 per month.)
Did the same but went with T-Mobile and their $30 prepaid plan (5g of 4G data but only 100 min talk) and have not looked back. Sprint was, to a degree, a failed service for me and at close to $90 a month for unlimited but unusable data and talk, life now just seems easy.
As a note, the 100 mins of talk time seem limiting and might be for some who need to talk on the road. For me, as a Google Voice user, I have the Obi box at home and call forwarding to my work phone. Additional minutes are 10 cents/min extra, so if you keep some extra dough in your T-Mo account, you won't see any cutoffs as it'll just debit your account. Either way, Sprint was just too full of promises and too slow on the implementation.
Congratz! Sprint sux's!
I guess this is an illustration of how locked phones are dangerous for the carriers - makes it too easy to shop around.
You really hit the nail on the head when you said "life now just seems easy." After being on Sprint, reliability and dependability is a welcome change. You just know it will work.
jgreemo said:
Did the same but went with T-Mobile and their $30 prepaid plan (5g of 4G data but only 100 min talk) and have not looked back. Sprint was, to a degree, a failed service for me and at close to $90 a month for unlimited but unusable data and talk, life now just seems easy.
As a note, the 100 mins of talk time seem limiting and might be for some who need to talk on the road. For me, as a Google Voice user, I have the Obi box at home and call forwarding to my work phone. Additional minutes are 10 cents/min extra, so if you keep some extra dough in your T-Mo account, you won't see any cutoffs as it'll just debit your account. Either way, Sprint was just too full of promises and too slow on the implementation.
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I just did the same, but dropped for Aio instead ($55 for unlim talk/text and 2gb at high speed before throttled). I'd been with Sprint for 10+ years, so was a little hesitant, but coverage was so bad that I dropped ASAP, even paying an ETF. Turns out, I should have been more brave months ago, as Aio has better coverage in my area than Sprint ever did. I can actually use data inside buildings, what?! I agree with the OP on this being a whole new world. Having a shiny new N5 definitely isn't hurting my opinion either.
breannesp said:
I just did the same, but dropped for Aio instead ($55 for unlim talk/text and 2gb at high speed before throttled). I'd been with Sprint for 10+ years, so was a little hesitant, but coverage was so bad that I dropped ASAP, even paying an ETF. Turns out, I should have been more brave months ago, as Aio has better coverage in my area than Sprint ever did. I can actually use data inside buildings, what?! I agree with the OP on this being a whole new world. Having a shiny new N5 definitely isn't hurting my opinion either.
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Does AIO have LTE?
Man do you guys live in 3rd world countries? J/k tell us how things are in a year from now. Its just crazy how different parts of the country are at n t sucks here almost bad as t mobile. To much interference with the gsm signals.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
I preordered the N5 a month before my Verizon contract ended and hopped on the GSM ship. Has been smooth sailing thus far!!!
Went with Aio's $55/month plan and have been LOVING IT. Verizon's ~$100/month with unlimited data just wasn't worth it after all.
I have been reassured that when Aio (who is owned by AT&T) get's absorbed by Cricket (who's parent company is now owned by AT&T) in the near future my plan will stay the same, and continue to use AT&T's nationwide LTE.
I will gauge my experience when the switch happens and decide whether to try GoPhone (another AT&T prepaid, assuming AT&T doesn't fold it in with the Cricket brand name as well) or try T-Mobile's $60 plans. That is the beauty of GSM + Nexus devices. Freedom. That plus the dev support and international compatibility. Ya, I realize some Verizon phones can accomplish that as well, but come on. Verizon = they control you and your device
When I was on Verizon (Galaxy Nexus) I was streaming a lot of music in the car using 6-8 gigs/month. Never thought I could give up my grandfathered unlimited data! When I switched to Aio I started pinning (caching) my music when I got my Nexus 5 instead of streaming it, and now I only use about 800mb/month. Couldn't believe it!
I encourage everyone to join the GSM bandwagon :good:
I bought the Nexus 5 for the same reason I am going to ride my contract out on Sprint until March(cuz I'm a cheap bastard and don't want to pay an etf) but have been weighing my options in the meantime can't wait to be off this **** network. Side note I am on a family plan with 4 family members and pay my mom $30/month for unlimited everything and I still need to switch unlimited is a joke when you can't call or connect to anything.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
You're right that GSM is just so much nicer than CDMA.
yeah..... im on sprint and regretting it. still stuck on bloody 56k quality 3g. ****.
I just wanted to put a feeler out there. Hopefully those who may have switched from Verizon might chime in and give me some helpful advice.
I've been with Verizon since the GS3 came out and I've had it with that company. They have excellent service, and I have signal just about anywhere I go, but there are a lot of things about them that bother me, and I'm ready to jump ship. This all started when I had a Note 4 in hand at the VZW store the other day, and after speaking to the ASSociate there, I'm ready to leave. I'm on the EDGE plan (kinda like JUMP), and was an early adopter to that, so I had the 50% pay off to get a new phone after 11 mo. First thing I don't like is the cost. With a 21% discount, I was paying $121/mo for the Note 3 with 5GB data, 450min, and 1000 text messages (I never used up the minutes or texts). I didn't think that was too outrageous since I was paying off that N3 every month, and I was OK with it because I'm a complete nerd and like to have a new phone every year. However, they now want you to pay off 75% of the phone over 18 months. What is that bs? If I'm paying 75% of an $800 phone, I might as well just sell it on eBay. Another issue is the bootloader, of course. Verizon locks down their phones hardcore. Even rooting them is a chore on VZW, and I'm tired of it. I'm not even a huge "power-user". I just like to have my Titanium Backup and freedom of controlling my system apps. T-Mobile obviously doesn't have any of these issues, but everyone I talk to says the service isn't that great, especially in rural areas. I take a lot of trips to remote locations, and fear that I will not have signal at any of them. For a person who always has their phone on them and is an extension of themselves, this could be a deal-breaker.
Any advice? I'm seriously considering it, and TMo is sending me an iPhone 5s to test this week, but I'm still afraid of the commitment.
I just traded in my Verizon Note 3 and switched to tmobile. I am loving it so far. I actually get better reception that Verizon here in my part of Pittsburgh. I recently upgraded to the unlimited 4g plan and decided I am going to ditch Comcast too. I will get a Chromecast and/or MHL cable to hook my note up to my tv and occasionally for youtube ans netflix, wifi Hotspot when I am using the computer.
Sent from my SM-N910T using XDA Free mobile app
i made the switch from verizon to t-mobile on friday. i'm giving up verizon's unlimited data plan because they won't let me upgrade unless i pay full price or give up the unlimited. i chose to go with t-mobile's $80 unlimited everything plan w/ 5gb of hotspot. my situation is a little different than yours, though. i was already a t-mobile customer (back when they were voicestream until 2010), so i already know what i'm getting myself into in terms of quality (plus, my parents, brother, and sister-in-law are on t-mobile). i live in chicago also, so that makes a difference. i've never had an issue with t-mobile's service. the only reason i had originally switched the first time is because when the smartphone race began, t-mobile had some of the worst selections.
again, i live in chicago, so your results might vary, but i did a ookla speedtest on my brother's note 4 (on t-mobile) and my galaxy s4 (on verizon) and his numbers beat my numbers consistently (which genuinely surprised me).
Do the T-mobile test drive first available here http://explore.t-mobile.com/test-drive-free-trial?cmpid=WTR_PB_N62kxn2C&002=2202007&004=13691619257&005=47088372328&006=45480286217&007=Search&008=&025=c&026=&gclid=Cj0KEQjwt7KiBRD9lOePpe_BhrgBEiQAHaS_116jcCU3lPFxN-073akQkOmUEMwL_jAlA8fhsqPxLb4aAuDY8P8HAQ. They will send you a phone to try out for a week. I wanted to switch, but found out that they actually have no service at my home and half of the areas on my way to work, even though on their website it says there is full 2g service in all these places. Their coverage map is extremely misleading. Just read all the customer dissatisfaction with coverage via this link. http://support.t-mobile.com/community/coverage/content?filterID=contentstatus%5Bpublished%5D~objecttype~objecttype%5Bthread%5D
Cicatrize said:
I just wanted to put a feeler out there. Hopefully those who may have switched from Verizon might chime in and give me some helpful advice.
I've been with Verizon since the GS3 came out and I've had it with that company. They have excellent service, and I have signal just about anywhere I go, but there are a lot of things about them that bother me, and I'm ready to jump ship. This all started when I had a Note 4 in hand at the VZW store the other day, and after speaking to the ASSociate there, I'm ready to leave. I'm on the EDGE plan (kinda like JUMP), and was an early adopter to that, so I had the 50% pay off to get a new phone after 11 mo. First thing I don't like is the cost. With a 21% discount, I was paying $121/mo for the Note 3 with 5GB data, 450min, and 1000 text messages (I never used up the minutes or texts). I didn't think that was too outrageous since I was paying off that N3 every month, and I was OK with it because I'm a complete nerd and like to have a new phone every year. However, they now want you to pay off 75% of the phone over 18 months. What is that bs? If I'm paying 75% of an $800 phone, I might as well just sell it on eBay. Another issue is the bootloader, of course. Verizon locks down their phones hardcore. Even rooting them is a chore on VZW, and I'm tired of it. I'm not even a huge "power-user". I just like to have my Titanium Backup and freedom of controlling my system apps. T-Mobile obviously doesn't have any of these issues, but everyone I talk to says the service isn't that great, especially in rural areas. I take a lot of trips to remote locations, and fear that I will not have signal at any of them. For a person who always has their phone on them and is an extension of themselves, this could be a deal-breaker.
Any advice? I'm seriously considering it, and TMo is sending me an iPhone 5s to test this week, but I'm still afraid of the commitment.
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I made the switch yesterday . Screw Verizon I had the note 3 and was out of contract . So I just switched over got the note 4 and so far so good . I stay in Caldwell Idaho .
NWNJ said:
Do the T-mobile test drive first available here http://explore.t-mobile.com/test-drive-free-trial?cmpid=WTR_PB_N62kxn2C&002=2202007&004=13691619257&005=47088372328&006=45480286217&007=Search&008=&025=c&026=&gclid=Cj0KEQjwt7KiBRD9lOePpe_BhrgBEiQAHaS_116jcCU3lPFxN-073akQkOmUEMwL_jAlA8fhsqPxLb4aAuDY8P8HAQ. They will send you a phone to try out for a week. I wanted to switch, but found out that they actually have no service at my home and half of the areas on my way to work, even though on their website it says there is full 2g service in all these places. Their coverage map is extremely misleading. Just read all the customer dissatisfaction with coverage via this link. http://support.t-mobile.com/community/coverage/content?filterID=contentstatus%5Bpublished%5D~objecttype~objecttype%5Bthread%5D
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I think my anger with Verizon caused me to leave that part out of my long post, lol. I did that, and they're sending me an iPhone 5s to test, which will be here on Tuesday. I'm excited to try it out, but the consensus around my office with T-Mobile customers is that it's not very good service. Time will tell, I guess.
How is T-Mobile's customer service? I was a T-Mo customer about 10 years ago and it was excellent back then.
JUST DO IT. VERIZON SUCKS. COMPLETELY OVER RATES THEM SELVES.
I've had better coverage data speeds and call quality in the last week with my note 4 then the last 8 years with Verizon. Not to mention Tmobiles not a bunch of ****ing blood suckers.
I switched from att to tmobile two weeks. I'm in northern new jersey and I'm not looking back. I originally got the note 3 but decided I wanted to make sure I had the latest phone so I got the note 4 before the return period was up. I ported over two lines and a tablet. I'm saving about $50 per month on tmobile. The service has been great so far. The speeds have been excellent and coverage at my job and house is five bars. The fact that their phones have unlocked bootloaders is of course a plus. I'd say if coverage is good then make the switch.
Taking Notes on my Note 4
Well these are interesting responses.
As far as my work goes, nothing seems to penetrate that building except AT&T, which would be nice, but they have the same issues that Verizon has. It's interesting, because I thought TMo piggy backed off of AT&T towers for roaming...
Depends on the service in your area. I live in NYC so I've notice hardly any difference in service and faster speeds with T-mobile. However if you travel a lot I would say Verizon is better because that map does not lie, you really do have service everywhere with them.
idelgado782 said:
I switched from att to tmobile two weeks. I'm in northern new jersey and I'm not looking back. I originally got the note 3 but decided I wanted to make sure I had the latest phone so I got the note 4 before the return period was up. I ported over two lines and a tablet. I'm saving about $50 per month on tmobile. The service has been great so far. The speeds have been excellent and coverage at my job and house is five bars. The fact that their phones have unlocked bootloaders is of course a plus. I'd say if coverage is good then make the switch.
Taking Notes on my Note 4
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Ditto. I switched from Verizon this past Thursday and not looking back. I love the freedom with bootloaders. I was with TMob 8 years ago and the service to be honest was horrible. But now TMob has greatly improved. I haven't dropped calls and data speeds are fast.
Cicatrize said:
Well these are interesting responses.
As far as my work goes, nothing seems to penetrate that building except AT&T, which would be nice, but they have the same issues that Verizon has. It's interesting, because I thought TMo piggy backed off of AT&T towers for roaming...
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As far as penetrating buildings goes, earlier this year tmobile just bought the rights to new frequencies that have a lower wave length and will penetrate buildings considerably... they haven't made the activation on this frequency everywhere yet, but the Note 4 is one of the first phones(if not the first?) to have the ability to receive this frequency built in, so as soon as it goes live in your given area, you'll get the benefits! This is a hardware thing too, so it's not like they can just update other phones n they'll have it too, only new phones built to receive it
p()()pypants said:
As far as penetrating buildings goes, earlier this year tmobile just bought the rights to new frequencies that have a lower wave length and will penetrate buildings considerably... they haven't made the activation on this frequency everywhere yet, but the Note 4 is one of the first phones(if not the first?) to have the ability to receive this frequency built in, so as soon as it goes live in your given area, you'll get the benefits! This is a hardware thing too, so it's not like they can just update other phones n they'll have it too, only new phones built to receive it
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That's interesting. I didn't know that. Did they give an eta when they expect to turn on those frequencies?
Taking Notes
p()()pypants said:
As far as penetrating buildings goes, earlier this year tmobile just bought the rights to new frequencies that have a lower wave length and will penetrate buildings considerably... they haven't made the activation on this frequency everywhere yet, but the Note 4 is one of the first phones(if not the first?) to have the ability to receive this frequency built in, so as soon as it goes live in your given area, you'll get the benefits! This is a hardware thing too, so it's not like they can just update other phones n they'll have it too, only new phones built to receive it
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Are you referring to the 700MHz spectrum they're rolling out? Link here: https://sites.google.com/site/cellularbinder/t-mobile-700a-spectrum
If that's the case, I'm in Southwest Michigan, and it looks like they need to clear up some stuff before that happens in my area (if I'm reading that correctly)?
EDIT: Also, is not the 700MHz for LTE band 12 only? I would love to have LTE inside of work, but less necessary than just a regular GSM phone signal.
Verizon sucks...PERIOD
the ONLY reason to even consider them is if you need coverage in the most obscure areas of the US; if not, kick those scumbags to the curb..
If you have decent coverage in your area, then no one can beat T-mobile for coverage, price, customer service, and everything else.
Do the test drive, go to all the areas you are concerned about, and if you get coverage, then switch
wase4711 said:
Verizon sucks...PERIOD
the ONLY reason to even consider them is if you need coverage in the most obscure areas of the US; if not, kick those scumbags to the curb..
If you have decent coverage in your area, then no one can beat T-mobile for coverage, price, customer service, and everything else.
Do the test drive, go to all the areas you are concerned about, and if you get coverage, then switch
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My fiancee and I are both geocachers and use an app to post our finds immediately, so we do actually need coverage in obscure areas. We often have trouble even with Verizon, but that trouble is 1-2 bars of 3G. I'm hoping that doesn't translate into zero signal with T-Mobile. You are right, though. The plan is to do the test drive and see how it goes. With an unlocked bootloader and an eventual SIM unlock, I could always switch to AT&T if it ends up not working out very well. I have none of those freedoms with Verizon.
yeah, as much as I dislike "the deathstar", I hate verizon more, so given the choice of 2 evils, ATT would be your way out..
but, here again, go nuts on the 7 day tmobile test drive and see how good/bad they are in your area..
I use AT&T go phone prepaid with my tmo gn4. $60mo unl talk and text and 3gb LTE. I can add additional lte at $10 per gb. Just have to pay full price for my devices. I LOVE my set up. I travel, so tmo isn't an option for me. Hope you find a set up. Also, vz just released their prepaid plan mostly the same at $65mo with LTE service, and they're getting the gn4 developer edition with bootloader unlocked. Again, just have to pay full price.
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I have both so I know. I'd go with TM any day. Don't think about it. Just do it. Depending on your usage, if you don't talk much, the $30 pre paid plan is unbeatable. 5gb of data.
Well I've had this iPhone for an hour now. Hate the phone, but one thing I've seen already is the LTE speed is DOUBLE what I get from Verizon. It gets around 40mbps down and 10mbps up in my house, which is ridiculous. I can't even get that on Verizon outside with full bars.
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Guys been with sprint 15 years I have a note 3 which I am able to do voice and data simultaneously. I am trying to update but non of the phones aprint offers are abke to do that. So i am lookjng around. What are the experience on team mobil? What to look for what sucks whats good thanks
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A lot depends on location and where you may travel. I live in KC (home of Sprint) and had Sprint for 4 years before I switched to T-Mobile earlier this year. In KC where Sprint advertises they are the #1 carrier my T-Mobile service blows them out of the water. For data I would get 5 to 7 mbps down on Sprint and on T-Mobile I get 12-20+ . However I went to a wedding in the middle of no-where Iowa and did not have service most of the time. I have also been to Omaha for business and can have great service at one spot and then a few blocks away no service. My son also had problems when he was there and was going to go in to a T-Mobile store, but there were none in Omaha. So to be location is the biggest issue.
I am on a 4 line 10gb per month per line plan, the 10gb is LTE then it goes to 2x data (not that I have gone over 10gb in a month). Three of the lines have the data stash built up to 20GB so we will always have LTE. My son who streams all the time on his phone this month is at 28GB used on the network, but only 9GB used on plan because of Binge On, he also had 9GB in his data stash (since YouTube was added to Binge On). He does not have cable in his apartment and they have a wifi cap on their internet plan so he does not connect to Wifi even at home. This has worked great for him. He is in a smaller college town in Missouri and has very good coverage there as well.
I am paying less for T-Mobile than Sprint and with the Jump On Demand, have had the Note 5, S7 Edge and now the Note 7 since I started in January. I could not be happier and unless they drop Jump on Demand or their coverage get worse (both unlikely) I would not switch to another carrier if they even beat T-Mobiles price by a few dollars.
He previously stated location matters.
I have had all phone carriers and tested many many devices of the years. There are 2 absolute truths about the cellular industry.
1. The Hardware you use can affect the level of service
2. The service you select has strong areas and weak ones.
To give an example. I am in Sacramento, CA on T-Mobile. I just Jumped to the Note 7 because the iPhone 6S Plus I was on kept dropping data and calls in the states capital. Knowing that equipment and switches in the towers can "not get along very well" I decided to try the Note 7 in the exact same areas. I have had 100% LTE coverage with very fast data in all areas but on T-Mobile still.
So the trick is finding the right Phone and the Right service. I personally like T-Mobile the best right now after trying all carriers. They have great data and voice coverage for me in my area and places I have been and they offer many more benefits and respect me more as a customer than Big Red or Baby Blue. I did not have the best experience on Sprint in my area regardless of the device.
The cost and benefits are what continue to make me a happy T-Mobile customer. I do think Android devices are superior in connectivity and customization but iPhone hands down has a more seamless out of the box user experience. I would not give my note 7 up for one again though.
Thanks,
Sprint sucks. Couldn't pay me to use Sprint. Go for T-Mobile. Do it.
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What's team mobil?
Sprint has the same coverage as Verizon if you squint
Ha Ha
I've had T-Mobile for 12 years now and would never go to another. As stated above location does matter, at my house I have 4-5 Mbps and just 3 miles to the North I get around 50 Mbps. At home I'm on wifi most of the time but data is usually enough to use as a hotspot when the internet is down.
I live in central Florida, and we just moved our family plan from Sprint to T-Mobile, after 13 years. After 1 week so far on T-Mobile, i don't regret it 1 bit! What good is unlimited data on Sprint, if it's unusable? Time will tell I guess, but so far, I'm happy!
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I love T-Mobile, they really shake up whole phone industry and 60mbps lte at my home plus wifi calling (which nobody else had until just couple yrs ago) does help, but even oh so vain VZ has dead spots (been there), so maybe get 1 month prepaid SIM card and see how it works in your area to be sure? But probably local T-mo shop would be the best place to ask. Best thing about T-mo: no contract (thank you T-mo for bringing it in) except for phone payments , if you buy it on instalments, so if you not happy, pay off the phone, sell it and be on your marry way
Thanks for all the comments. Do you have voice and data simultaneously with out using wifi?
Yes all GSM network are voice and data at the same time after Edge(2G).
Been with all 4 major carriers since the 90's (work reasons) and we dropped Sprint roughly 5 years ago. We helped them build a tower on the property and they tried to can us and make up pay the ETF for excessive roaming... How do you figure that one when everyone they canned and lost our numbers when we are less than 1/10 a mile from their tower we can see out the window.
T-Mobile if they have the coverage they are the best bang for your buck. Sorry, but I can not for the life of me paying 40% less than Verizon, but only gettinf 20% of the coverage in places of travel.
Take T-Mobile Jump on Demand if you switch. If they don't have the coverage you need they'll unlock your phone and let you switch carriers(you still have to pay payments for your phone).
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Tidbits said:
Yes all GSM network are voice and data at the same time after Edge(2G).
Been with all 4 major carriers since the 90's (work reasons) and we dropped Sprint roughly 5 years ago. We helped them build a tower on the property and they tried to can us and make up pay the ETF for excessive roaming... How do you figure that one when everyone they canned and lost our numbers when we are less than 1/10 a mile from their tower we can see out the window.
T-Mobile if they have the coverage they are the best bang for your buck. Sorry, but I can not for the life of me paying 40% less than Verizon, but only gettinf 20% of the coverage in places of travel.
Take T-Mobile Jump on Demand if you switch. If they don't have the coverage you need they'll unlock your phone and let you switch carriers(you still have to pay payments for your phone).
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You must be going to pretty far away places, because before I switched I had VZ and my friend had T-mo. We travelled together along east coast, from NY to Fla and we were dead even as far as coverage, except Everglades, where T-mo had some spotty signal and VZ didn't, that was the day I switched and never looked back. This was few yrs ago, but if anything things are better now. VZ usually has better coverage in less populated areas, but not as much as you make it and in most higher population areas like whole east coast, they're pretty much even. Of course if you dont have signal and you need it, you dont care, if it was the only place in whole US, but my wife called me on t-mo sim card over wifi from China, for free. Try that on VZ .
That's high populated places... outside that Verizon and AT&T win hands down. Also there have been numerous times in populated places like San Francisco where T-Mobile has little to no coverage in many parts. My job requires me to be in on multiple places in a single city. If the coverage was like how you think it is Verizon wouldn't be our main provider. Yes they have gotten better but not as good as the media or you experienced.
Sent from my SM-N930T using Tapatalk
Anyone use Google fI? If so what do or don't you like about it?
Service is basically t-mobile, but I am still having wifi calling issues. I don't have service where I am and it seems the age old issue of the phone doing everything it can to use the mobile network is still in effect. Basically if I'm at home and I am on wifi calling and I get even the slightest glimpse of service the phone will swtich to t-mobile towers and then immediately drop the call when the tower signal goes away.
For this reason, I use it as a backup second sim only. Ironically it happens to have great service where my AT&T drops off(except for my house, of course)
I've used it for many years and like it. It works amazingly well in other countries too.
My only complaint is that until a month ago, I didn't have any towers near me and therefore had zero service. People visiting me on other providers had service.
At the beginning, wifi calling worked well for me, but I agree with jmele11968, the last couple of years that feature seemed to never really work.
cjkimmel said:
I've used it for many years and like it. It works amazingly well in other countries too.
My only complaint is that until a month ago, I didn't have any towers near me and therefore had zero service. People visiting me on other providers had service.
At the beginning, wifi calling worked well for me, but I agree with jmele11968, the last couple of years that feature seemed to never really work.
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Have you tried toggling the network setting to prefer wifi calling? On my pixel 5a, it is Settings -> Network & internet -> Mobile network -> (Advanced) -> Wi-Fi calling and it defaulted to "Call over mobile network" but has an option "Call over Wi-Fi" that inverts the priority. Does this get hidden with Google Fi? I'm using Mint, an MVNO on T-Mobile.
I've been on fi for about 2.5 years but when I first joined I had to contact them about wifi calling and there was something they could toggle in their system to make wifi calling preferred, I can't remember the exact details but my wifi calling has worked great ever since.
I have had it about 3 weeks and have no problems. I'll let you know if I do.
I've been using Fi for about 3 years now. Almost all using a Moto G7. I chose Google Fi because it fit our family budget extremely well. I did not have support issues that others often complain about. Yes I've had issues, but support handled all of them, and I just needed to be able to explain the issue clearly and be patient.
I was ok accepting occasional connection issues knowing I was using a budget phone on a budget service provider.
Recently purchased the Pixel 5a using the subscription plan, again to stay on budget. Mostly because I am traveling more and wanted to be able to use 5G networks available at cities I'm visiting. It has only been about 2 weeks, but I am happy that I got the Pixel 5a with 5G. I have not yet experienced a connection issue. In fact what I find is that it is very clear when the other person has the issue and not me.
Only complaint I have is the camera/video over heating issue. Which is why I'm searching xda now.
I used to have google fi but switched to tmobile because their store reps basically admitted to me that any of the sub providers that use their network get backburner priority so worse speeds even though signal strength is the same. I am on their budget non-magenta plan for 2 lines just under 100 a month unlimited
I switched to it from Verizon for one month, hated it and went back to Verizon. I travel as a truck driver and too many dead spots. T-mobile and Google Fi is a terrible choice for a truck driver.
I got 3 months free trial when I bought the 5a. Service is fine for most for most of the time. It states that there is a 22GB limit on data which is only downside to staying after trial. Was wondering if that is enforced strictly?
dkryder said:
I got 3 months free trial when I bought the 5a. Service is fine for most for most of the time. It states that there is a 22GB limit on data which is only downside to staying after trial. Was wondering if that is enforced strictly?
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Simply unlimited is $60 a month with no additional data charges but data speeds slow after 22 GB. Same with the Unlimited Plus plan except it's $70 a month. I don't know how the trial works but if your limited at 22 GB then I would think but not positive that the same would apply. No extra data charges, just your speed will slow way down.
dkryder said:
I got 3 months free trial when I bought the 5a. Service is fine for most for most of the time. It states that there is a 22GB limit on data which is only downside to staying after trial. Was wondering if that is enforced strictly?
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I think the free trial is the equivalent of the $70 plan. See the Fi website for details. After 22GB speeds slow to 256k. You can retain full speed for $10 GB (only pay for amount used. Use 100MB only pay $1).
Just use WiFi as much as possible.
Testing it out as well for three months. Service has been great in major areas I've been to thus far. Where I live now, which is closer to a rural area, it's currently running a low ball 5G. I'm going to be traveling over the next few weeks to various states, so I'll really get to see how things run coverage-wise.
jcmm11 said:
I think the free trial is the equivalent of the $70 plan. See the Fi website for details. After 22GB speeds slow to 256k. You can retain full speed for $10 GB (only pay for amount used. Use 100MB only pay $1).
Just use WiFi as much as possible.
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would be great if there was wifi, however i'm very rural but blessed with very good cellular from at&t, t-mobile, verizon. i'm doing the Fi trial which is good. i've been on straight talk at&t 4G which is good. i get at least 60GB of data from ST before they **** with speeds for 50 bucks a month. but at&t doesn't have 5G here yet. i can try straight talk t-mobile for 50 bucks and see if that does 5G, it should since Fi is t-mobile. so my Fi 5G clocks about avg 190Mb and the 4GLTE i get is avg 90Mb so it's quite a difference. but if straight talk t-mobile at 50 bucks for 60GB data at least then Fi doesn't really compare with 22GB for 70 bucks.
dkryder said:
would be great if there was wifi, however i'm very rural but blessed with very good cellular from at&t, t-mobile, verizon. i'm doing the Fi trial which is good. i've been on straight talk at&t 4G which is good. i get at least 60GB of data from ST before they **** with speeds for 50 bucks a month. but at&t doesn't have 5G here yet. i can try straight talk t-mobile for 50 bucks and see if that does 5G, it should since Fi is t-mobile. so my Fi 5G clocks about avg 190Mb and the 4GLTE i get is avg 90Mb so it's quite a difference. but if straight talk t-mobile at 50 bucks for 60GB data at least then Fi doesn't really compare with 22GB for 70 bucks.
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Does AT&T even have true 5G yet? They're still doing that 5Ge mess here.
GrandAdmiral said:
Does AT&T even have true 5G yet? They're still doing that 5Ge mess here.
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I don't know. All I get is 4G LTE. I'm gonna switch to T-Mobile on one of my 2 straight talk lines end of the month and see what that gets me for 50 bucks.
I know I'm a little late to this but I tried the 3 month trial when I got my 5a and it worked for about 4 hours then I could no longer get the eSim to work. I would always come up and say 'Google Fi not fully setup'. I spent hours with Fi support (really it's lack of support) trying to resolve it; I asked them to send me a physical sim...I wanted to use it mainly to try out it's built in international coverage (I went on a Caribbean vacation to Anguilla a couple of weeks ago) but alas...they refused to send me a physical card and I canceled the trial so they wouldn't charge me. Horrible experience with Fi and I would never endorse them and told them as much on my exit. I'm sure other people love it, but with the experience I had with support, I'd never endorse it.