Anyone Considering A Switch To T-Mobile?

Jetsgo · Fri Jan 10, 2014 12:15 am

After T-Mobile's announcement yesterday at CES, I must admit I've been thinking about it the past day. I currently pay $200/month for three lines - $160 at Verizon for two iPhones on a grandfather plan which includes 700 minutes, unlimited text, unlimited data on one line, and 2 GB data on the other line - $40 at AT&T for my daughter as we run her through a trial phase on her first phone which includes unlimited talk and text and 300 MB for her postpaid non smart phone.

Switching to T-Mobile, they would provide up to $650 credit per ported line. $300 for the trade and $350 for the ETF. All three lines would have unlimited talk and text while the first two would have 2.5 GB data and the third 500 MB. Since we both like the Google Nexus 5, it would require little if any out of pocket expense and no additional monthly payment. My daughter has proved fairly cautious and competent with her phone so while her trade in would be virtually nothing, the ETF would be covered and she could get a Samsung Galaxy Light for zero down and $9 month.

All said and done, our fixed charges each month would drop from $200 to $119 and eventually $110 after the third phone is paid off. This is almost $1,000/year which is hard to ignore. I'm a bit weary of coverage around here and through the Sierra's compared to Verizon's bulletproof network, but I feel closer now than ever.

What say you? Below are a couple links for most of the details:

http://ces.cnet.com/8301-35284_1-576...ile-will-take-the-penalty-for-you/

http://www.t-mobile.com/offer/switch...iers-no-early-termination-fee.html

[Edited 2014-01-09 16:17:28]

Airstud · Fri Jan 10, 2014 12:25 am

I was with T-Mobile several years ago; they screwed up a billing thingy and when I procured a promise from them that they'd fix it, they screwed it up exponentially and suspended my service for "non-payment." It got even worse from there and after I spent 25 minutes with their customer service ninnies and thought I was finally speaking to someone who understood the situation, she said she'd be right back and she'd furthermore see about getting me "some compensation for all of this."

She came back and told me I'd have to pay a $10 "re-connect fee."

I threw the phone in the recycle bin and have been a 100% satisfied Sprint customer for about seven years now.

That's my experience with T-Mobile. YMMV.

DocLightning · Fri Jan 10, 2014 12:29 am

I've given some serious thought to T-Mobile. The big thing about them that attracts me is the fact that they will unlock their GSM phones, meaning I could take my iPhone anywhere in the world and use it with a local SIM. However, I have two concerns about T-mobile.

1) Overall network coverage
2) 4G/LTE coverage and speed.

As a physician who takes phone call, I need the most extensive and reliable network coverage I can get. I need it to work in basements and in alleys and preferably while hiking in the woods. Verizon gives me that. And, in fact, that's why I dumped AT&T.

I dislike Verizon's pricing plans and policies, the fact that you can't talk and use data at the same time, and the fact that they use a network incompatible with all others in the world except Sprint's.

But their coverage can't be beat.

If T-Mobile can offer me coverage over a similar range of places, I will change in a heartbeat. I'm interested to hear others' impressions of that with T-Mobile.

Osubuckeyes · Fri Jan 10, 2014 12:47 am

Quoting Jetsgo (Thread starter):
Since we both like the Google Nexus 5, it would require little if any out of pocket expense and no additional monthly payment. My daughter has proved fairly cautious and competent with her phone so while her trade in would be virtually nothing, the ETF would be covered and she could get a Samsung Galaxy Light for zero down and $9 month.

The Nexus 5 is a beast of a phone and it is really awesome. With TMobile's payment plan it makes it really affordable. I would say that if you are looking for good phones at a better price then TMobile is probably the way to go. If you are looking for a reliable network then I would look to Verizon or AT&T, but AT&T has much more limited coverage. If customer service is important to you probably won't get that with any company they are all pretty average.

Basically TMobile is okay if price is more important than coverage, but if you are making lots and lots of calls and web surfing etc... located outside of a Wifi area then I would stay away.

Tugger · Fri Jan 10, 2014 12:53 am

Quoting Jetsgo (Thread starter):
Anyone Considering A Switch To T-Mobile?

Yes.

Quoting Jetsgo (Thread starter):
'm a bit weary of coverage around here and through the Sierra's compared to Verizon's bulletproof network

Well T-Mob does have a lease agreement with Version for added spectrum and they just bought $300B of spectrum from Verizon:
http://www.theverge.com/2014/1/6/527...-700mhz-spectrum-in-3-billion-deal

So you should be pretty good.

Tugg

Aeri28 · Fri Jan 10, 2014 12:55 am

I had TMO for several years before 2009 and was satisfied with their customer service etc. I mean, no issues there, BUT here in Honolulu, I could not get a signal deep inside buildings, or in the bathroom at work or anywhere underground, so that was a dissapointment for me. Everytime when I was in an elevator here the service would go away and when I get outside, the service would then 'reconnect' which I found terribly annoying as it took a few minutes it seemed.

When I switched to Verizon, there are now very few places where I do not get coverage, but overall it is far more reliable to me than TMO was (4 yrs ago) coverage wise.

srbmod · Fri Jan 10, 2014 2:24 am

I switched to them last year (I was using a MVNO that piggybacked on their network but weren't going to have access to their 4G LTE network and the new phone I was buying was a 4G LTE phone.) and them having no contracts and giving you the option to buy the phone outright is a plus.

I had a few hiccups early on with them, as there were some activation and billing issues early on (as well as a lot of yelling on my part, mainly out of confusion and frustration), but since then, no issues at all. Coverage has been very good (any dead zones I get into are ones that I had with previous cell companies in the past) and I'm loving the 4G LTE speeds, which are as good as my cable modem I use at home. They've been pretty good in regards to updates to my phone, much better than their competitors, as there are folks on other carriers with similar phones that are still running versions of the OS from last Summer.

CaliAtenza · Fri Jan 10, 2014 2:26 am

Quoting DocLightning (Reply 2):

As a physician who takes phone call, I need the most extensive and reliable network coverage I can get. I need it to work in basements and in alleys and preferably while hiking in the woods. Verizon gives me that. And, in fact, that's why I dumped AT&T.

Same reason why my Father, who is also a physician, got onto Verizon after trying Cingulair/ATT. Even if there is no data service, Verizon will have cell coverage at least.

corinthians · Fri Jan 10, 2014 2:36 am

I've been a loyal Sprint customer for many years and I'm seriously considering making the switch. Sprint was great up until two years ago, but the service has gone downhill. We got LTE really late here in NYC and it's sporadic at best. Even their 3G isn't as reliable as it used to be. This girl I've been dating has T-Mobile and she swears by it. She lives pretty close to me and she came over one day and I noticed she had a lot of bars on her phone at my place with LTE and I can't even get that with Sprint. I get 3G just fine, but still, I really should have LTE in my home. Verizon and AT&T are ripoffs and they don't even offer unlimited data. Verizon might have the best coverage in NYC, but AT&T has a bad reputation.

I'm also concerned about T-Mobile's coverage, but I've heard it has improved a lot lately and as long as I can get good coverage at work and at home, I'm happy. I do know that T-Mobile doesn't have that great coverage in the NJ suburbs, and I head out there somewhat often.

So, I don't know. I like their plans, they offer unlimited data, they have the same phones as everyone else now and you can use international data now. Doesn't seem like much downside.

GAIsweetGAI · Fri Jan 10, 2014 3:23 am

I used to have T-Mobile. I really liked the relatively unlimited data and the cheap plans. But then I moved here and I didn't have any reception in my living room.

(Also annoying was the fact that the line was the one I had since high school, i.e. in my mom's name.)

ALTF4 · Fri Jan 10, 2014 4:27 am

Quoting DocLightning (Reply 2):
As a physician who takes phone call, I need the most extensive and reliable network coverage I can get. I need it to work in basements and in alleys and preferably while hiking in the woods. Verizon gives me that. And, in fact, that's why I dumped AT&T.

You probably should stick with Verizon.

I carry two phones: a T-Mobile Nexus 5 for my personal use, and a Verizon iPhone 5 for work.

In general, LTE speeds on T-Mobile are good, if not great. HSPA+ is great, as well. Speed-wise, T-Mobile is fine; besides, do you really need 43mbps instead of 39mbps?

In ATL and the suburbs, I get LTE and cell service just as good on T-Mobile as I do on Verizon. Some places Verizon drops, some places T-Mobile does, but it is about equal.

Get into the back country woods, say driving 80+ miles out from Atlanta, and T-Mobile goes to 3G or Edge only. Then to nothing, with spurts of cell/text only. Verizon? Still full LTE. And fast.

If you need reliable cell service in the boonies, stick with Verizon. If you can survive without it, T-Mobile can't be beat.

/anecdotal evidence

willzzz88 · Fri Jan 10, 2014 7:57 am

Doc Lightning,

If you upgrade to a Verizon 4G LTE phone the phone most likely has GSM capability and it is unlocked out of the box as are all Verizon 4G global phones. Verizon now has a open out of the box unlock policy on the GSM portion as its rumored to be required due to some obscure FCC law. Therefore you can have Verizon's network (CDMA, proprietary) in the US and GSM overseas.

srbmod · Fri Jan 10, 2014 11:17 am

Quoting ALTF4 (Reply 10):
Get into the back country woods, say driving 80+ miles out from Atlanta, and T-Mobile goes to 3G or Edge only. Then to nothing, with spurts of cell/text only. Verizon? Still full LTE. And fast.

If you need reliable cell service in the boonies, stick with Verizon. If you can survive without it, T-Mobile can't be beat.

The recent deal made with Verizon to acquire unused spectrum (as mentioned in Reply 10) will address some of those issues, as Atlanta is one of the markets this deal benefits. Currently once you get west of Covington on I-20, it goes to EDGE and there's pockets of EDGE going up GA-81 between Loganville and Winder (you get north of Winder and it goes to EDGE). Going up GA-400, I lose 4G/4G LTE coverage in Dawsonville. The furthest I go up I-75 is Cartersville and still in 4G/4G LTE coverage.

jetblueguy22 · Fri Jan 10, 2014 5:10 pm

T-Mobile will work for you if you live in a Medium or Large city and spend 99.9% of your time in cities of similar or larger size. Outside of the large cities their service is crap. Both of my folks had T-Mobile for work for years and they just hated it. It was always funny being with them somewhere and them having to use my AT&T phone to make a work call. The company switched to Verizon in November and they say it is like day and night. Especially when they travel. My roommate has it and whenever we go somewhere he just gets frustrated. He has a nice Galaxy S4 that is almost always stuck on EDGE. We aren't talking about being out in the bush either. We have 4 guys in my apartment all with different providers. AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile. All LTE compatible phones. The only one who is stuck without LTE? The T-Mobile.
Pat

mham001 · Fri Jan 10, 2014 5:29 pm

I need Verizon coverage, far superior to TMobile in my world. But I won't pay Verizon prices. There are numerous resellers, I use PagePlusCellular. You can use any Verizon phone, it is on the Verizon network and prices are reasonable. No contract. TMobile seems to be giving away phones, too bad about their network.

srbmod · Fri Jan 10, 2014 7:50 pm

Quoting mham001 (Reply 14):
TMobile seems to be giving away phones, too bad about their network.

T-Mobile's network is getting better and better, as in the last year or so they've picked up a lot of spectrum. In the breakup of the AT&T/T-Mobile merger, they got some spectrum from AT&T, which they almost immediately refarmed to improve their network. When they acquired Metro PCS, they got a lot of 4G LTE spectrum and have been working quite feverishly to integrate it into the T-Mobile network and them fill in the gaps. The recent deal with Verizon helps them as well, especially in less populated areas since the frequencies in question are less likely to have interference than if they were in urban areas.

Everyone has phones that they're offering on the cheap.

DocLightning · Sat Jan 11, 2014 7:12 am

Quoting willzzz88 (Reply 11):
If you upgrade to a Verizon 4G LTE phone the phone most likely has GSM capability and it is unlocked out of the box as are all Verizon 4G global phones. Verizon now has a open out of the box unlock policy on the GSM portion as its rumored to be required due to some obscure FCC law. Therefore you can have Verizon's network (CDMA, proprietary) in the US and GSM overseas.

Do you have a source for this?

willzzz88 · Sat Jan 11, 2014 7:40 am

Doc,

http://support.verizonwireless.com/s...dRoaming/global_phone_roaming.html

See answer #11.

Since you said you had an iPhone somewhere I recommend upgrading to the latest 5S, globally capable, all 3 US carriers (Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T), LTE in the US for now...

blueflyer · Sat Jan 11, 2014 8:09 am

Quoting srbmod (Reply 15):
T-Mobile's network is getting better and better, as in the last year or so they've picked up a lot of spectrum.

I would have to disagree in our home market (DFW). I and most of my colleagues still have Galaxy S2 phones, received when they were brand new and T-Mobile's 4G network wasn't as popular as it is today, and we all notice the difference. Speed has slowed tremendously to a point of being useless at peak times in some neighborhoods. Earlier today, I was unable to download traffic data (or anything else) for over 5 minutes, and it isn't a rare occurrence sadly.

For reason I am not privy to, the powers that be have refused to deal with AT&T for years, which left us with only T-Mobile at last contract renewal since we need/prefer GSM phones and they didn't like the choice of "world phones" with Verizon or Sprint, but there are enough complaints about the slowing network that I would not be surprised to get a Galaxy S4 not from T-Mobile before the year is over.

Max Q · Sat Jan 11, 2014 8:27 am

I couldn't be happier with T Mobile, have been with them for over 10 years and never had an issue, AT&T was a nightmare in comparison., their 'customer service' was the worst I have ever experienced.

N1120A · Mon Jan 13, 2014 9:15 pm

Quoting DocLightning (Reply 2):
1) Overall network coverage

Where you live, and in all of CA, T-Mos coverage is as good as anyone

Quoting DocLightning (Reply 2):
2) 4G/LTE coverage and speed.

T-Mo's LTE is very fast, and that is doubly true when you consider how fast the network is when you are not on LTE. VZW has been slowing people to 3G CDMA speeds in most major metros and ATT's issues are well documented in SF, NY and L.A. Meanwhile, you get LTE in the cities and HSPA+ 42 in other places

corinthians · Tue Jan 14, 2014 3:33 pm

I made the switch. I'm loving it so far! I get LTE everywhere! Including my apartment, where I never got it before with Sprint. The speeds are incredible. I ended up getting the Note 3 and it's awesome. Battery life is really good so far and I'm actually loving the big screen. I thought it would be a bit awkward, but I'm thinking it would be difficult to go back to a smaller screen after this.

Now...I'm curious how the girl I'm dating can get the same plan I'm on for $30 when I pay $70?! I have the unlimited everything plan.

TLG · Wed Jan 15, 2014 1:34 am

Quoting Jetsgo (Thread starter):
I'm a bit weary of coverage around here and through the Sierra's compared to Verizon's bulletproof network, but I feel closer now than ever.

You could get a month's service on a prepaid T-Mobile account and check it out. A phone might cost you a bit though. A cheap feature phone would tell you whether or not you have signal, but you'd need a smartphone for accurate assessment of data coverage. Walmart has T-Mobile smartphones for as low as $50.

Quoting DocLightning (Reply 2):
The big thing about them that attracts me is the fact that they will unlock their GSM phones, meaning I could take my iPhone anywhere in the world and use it with a local SIM.

I know you and willzzz88 went over this already, but he's correct. Any Verizon LTE device takes a SIM card because LTE is GSM, and the phone is SIM unlocked. Trust me, I know from personal experience. They're unlocked because of an agreement Verizon was forced to make with the FCC. Another advantage (to users) of the agreement is that Verizon cannot throttle you if you're on LTE. However, they can throttle you on 3G. You can put any SIM card in your Verizon LTE phone and it will work. Depending on the device you won't get LTE though with a SIM card from another carrier. I had a Verizon iPhone 5 and I used it on AT&T. It worked fine, although I had 3G data but not LTE.

corinthians · Wed Jan 15, 2014 2:18 am

Quoting TLG (Reply 22):
I know you and willzzz88 went over this already, but he's correct. Any Verizon LTE device takes a SIM card because LTE is GSM, and the phone is SIM unlocked. Trust me, I know from personal experience. They're unlocked because of an agreement Verizon was forced to make with the FCC. Another advantage (to users) of the agreement is that Verizon cannot throttle you if you're on LTE. However, they can throttle you on 3G. You can put any SIM card in your Verizon LTE phone and it will work. Depending on the device you won't get LTE though with a SIM card from another carrier. I had a Verizon iPhone 5 and I used it on AT&T. It worked fine, although I had 3G data but not LTE.

This might not be true anymore. The courts struck down the net neutrality law today and some experts were saying that carriers might twist this to limit what you can see or how much you can use on their bandwidth. So, this deal with the FCC might be null and void now.

ALTF4 · Wed Jan 15, 2014 4:27 pm

Quoting TLG (Reply 22):
know you and willzzz88 went over this already, but he's correct. Any Verizon LTE device takes a SIM card because LTE is GSM, and the phone is SIM unlocked. Trust me, I know from personal experience. They're unlocked because of an agreement Verizon was forced to make with the FCC. Another advantage (to users) of the agreement is that Verizon cannot throttle you if you're on LTE. However, they can throttle you on 3G. You can put any SIM card in your Verizon LTE phone and it will work. Depending on the device you won't get LTE though with a SIM card from another carrier. I had a Verizon iPhone 5 and I used it on AT&T. It worked fine, although I had 3G data but not LTE.

LTE is for data - not for voice. Verizon uses CDMA for voice. Are you 100% sure that those phones that are CDMA voice and LTE data will work on GSM voice on other networks? Keep in mind very few carriers are doing VoLTE right now.

randyh3253 · Wed Jan 15, 2014 9:05 pm

What is being said about T-Mobile isn't entirely true. I live in rural upstate, SC. The town I live in has 500 people and not a single traffic light. I made the switch to T-Mobile last July when the unveiled JUMP. In my small town in the middle of nowhere SC, I have full bars of 4G service. Granted I have to drive 25-30 min away to get LTE but their 4G is very fast too.

TLG · Thu Jan 16, 2014 4:49 am

Quoting ALTF4 (Reply 24):
LTE is for data - not for voice. Verizon uses CDMA for voice. Are you 100% sure that those phones that are CDMA voice and LTE data will work on GSM voice on other networks? Keep in mind very few carriers are doing VoLTE right now.

Yes I am 100% sure it will work. I've done it myself, as well as lots of other people. Read some forums such as xda-developers or androidcentral. Google it. Trust me, it'll work!

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