Help me with cell carrier decision please

[kimj88]

I currently am with verizon and have been like forever. However, last time I had to replace my phone, they had done away with their unlimited data plan and I had to go with a limited one for basically the same price, which was annoying but oh well. I am considering switching to TMobile or Sprint, or other, and wanted to get your take on who you have and what you think about your carrier. Even if I had to pay the same price per month to someone other than Verizon, if I got unlimited data, it would be worth it.

 

[packofjedis]

We had unlimited data through Sprint. We just switched to Verizon because Sprint in our area is terrible. We had more dropped calls and slow data speeds than we do now with Verizon. My mom has Sprint (in a different state) and is having the same problems. She can only make phones calls if she goes outside her house and even then it's iffy.

Sprint was a little cheaper than Verizon but we were paying for a service that never worked. They've been "upgrading" our area for probably 3 years and it seems to get worse instead of better. The day they sent us the text message that said the upgrades in our area were almost done was the day we couldn't text each other and couldn't make any calls.

I think all the carriers have people supporting them and people who have had bad experiences. But I'd ask locally and see who is having problems where you live.

 

[scrapquitler]

We had unlimited data through Sprint. We just switched to Verizon because Sprint in our area is terrible. We had more dropped calls and slow data speeds than we do now with Verizon. My mom has Sprint (in a different state) and is having the same problems. She can only make phones calls if she goes outside her house and even then it's iffy.

Sprint was a little cheaper than Verizon but we were paying for a service that never worked. They've been "upgrading" our area for probably 3 years and it seems to get worse instead of better. The day they sent us the text message that said the upgrades in our area were almost done was the day we couldn't text each other and couldn't make any calls.

I think all the carriers have people supporting them and people who have had bad experiences. But I'd ask locally and see who is having problems where you live.

I agree with this. For me, #1 priority is coverage. I spend a lot of time in a fairly rural area, and given the choices of cell provider, there were only two options worth considering because they were the two (Verizon and AT&T) that had decent coverage in that area. TMobile and Sprint are virtually non-existent there, and services like tracphone and straight talk only work on a limited basis and with certain models of phones.

 

[tvguy]

Talk to people in your area to find out which carriers work and which don't in your area.
Verizon charges more because they have more coverage and they can charge more. If you can get by with a cheaper carrier that has coverage in your area, go for it.

We go through this every 2 years at work. Corporate loves Sprint because their prices are thousands a month less. Crews hate it because you go into the mountains and there are miles with no service. Verizon has the best coverage in our area.

 

[Mrs. Bradbury]

Our family is trying to figure this out as well, and have used Verizon forever. Straight Talk uses Verizon's towers, and I think I read that you can bring your own phone and port your old phone number if you want. I have been researching so many different scenarios, it's hard to keep them straight!

Three of the 4 of us still have unlimited data. My son, the one without unlimited data, is going to try it for a month. If we notice a difference he'll just go back to Verizon. If it goes well, we'll just peel away from Verizon one by one.

I was even told by the 2nd level of Verizon CS (I called to see if there was anything they could do to keep our business) that if it were me, she would go with Straight Talk, too.

 

[vegasnative]

I just learned about Republic Wireless. We also just prior to me learning about them, upgraded phones and had to re sign our contract with Verizon. I'm kind of disappointed because I probably would have switched to Republic Wireless. They use Sprint and will also ping off of Verizon where sprint is not available. They use the cell phone via WIfi. The rates are much cheaper and seems like a good way to go.

 

[CalDisneyMomof2]

For those concerned about unlimited data, do you not have WiFi at your home or do you not turn it on everywhere you go? I use my phone A LOT and my husband and I never go over 3 GB'S combined. We just make sure to turn it on everywhere we go

 

[kimj88]

For those concerned about unlimited data, do you not have WiFi at your home or do you not turn it on everywhere you go? I use my phone A LOT and my husband and I never go over 3 GB'S combined. We just make sure to turn it on everywhere we go

One thing I want to do is be able to run my swagbucks tv to earn the points while I am not home on Wifi, for example while I am in line at school waiting to pick up DS. I have 2 GB now with Verizon, and one time I accidentally had it running for maybe 15 minutes and it maxed my data out for the month!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

For those concerned about unlimited data, do you not have WiFi at your home or do you not turn it on everywhere you go? I use my phone A LOT and my husband and I never go over 3 GB'S combined. We just make sure to turn it on everywhere we go

You must live in an area with a lot of free wi-fi, which is pretty unusual. I have unlimited data with AT&T, so I don't worry about it, but I know many people (mainly teen-aged relatives who live on their phones), who regularly go over their data limit because there is no wi-fi available.

 

[scrapquitler]

For those concerned about unlimited data, do you not have WiFi at your home or do you not turn it on everywhere you go? I use my phone A LOT and my husband and I never go over 3 GB'S combined. We just make sure to turn it on everywhere we go

We use a lot of data because we spend a lot of time at our vacation home in a rural area. High speed internet is not even an option at that house, so no, there isn't WiFi...if we want internet at that house, our only option is dial up.

And even when I am at home in the suburban area of CT, there isn't a ton of free wifi everywhere. Even when I'm at work (where we have a lot of free time and I can use my cellphone during those times), we don't have access to wifi, and our work computers only go to two specific work related websites. During a third shift where I have about 6 hours of just needing to be an awake person onsite (and wanting to surf the net), I use a lot of data.