My understanding is if you travel a lot and you end up in obscure locations, Verizon is the best because they have the strongest signal and the widest coverage. But, other than that, T-Mobile has the lowest prices and the best customer service.
What is your opinion?
These days the data service is equally important.
Generally speaking, Verizon covers more territory than any other US cellular provider. If you travel west of the Mississippi, this can mean the difference between having voice and date service and having nothing. OTOH if you spend most or all of your time within a metropolitan service area, this might not matter to you. If that is the case, then shopping for the best price does indeed make sense.
Many years ago, when digital voice service was in its infancy, I discovered that Sprint PCS (as it was called then) just happened to serve every part of the Chicago metro area where I lived and worked. Back then it was not uncommon for even the top mobile providers to have large coverage gaps, even in their most dense service areas. Many of my peers complained that Sprint service was "awful" (and other words that I can't post here) where they went, but the fact was that it was just fine where I went, so I stuck with Sprint and was quite happy with them, until they failed to make the transition to 4G some 10 years ago.
My point is that at that time and place, Sprint service was ideal for me, but not for others. If you have the time and means to try and compare the 4 major services in the locations where you go, you may also find one service that's ideal for you. However what's ideal for you may not be ideal for anyone else. IJS
I agree Daemon. T-Mobile works for me. I don't travel a lot. And when I do, I always have a signal. But I can imagine if I did travel a lot to obscure locations, I would want a stronger signal.
Lucy says Metro PCS has unlimited data. That sound terrific. I wish T-Mobile had that.
Imo, Metro PCS because you don't have to sign a contract with them and they have unlimited data plans. Plus, their phones are more affordable. You can't beat that.
You dodge a question like a character dodges a punch on Mortal Kombat.-IceJJFish
Last time I checked Lucy no one has contracts anymore (except maybe Verizon). But unlimited data is terrific. I wish T-Mobile had that.
REPLY #1 (SEE BELOW FOR REPLY #2)
Yeah, it's great when it works, but when it doesn't you don't have much choice but change. I could tell stories all day. If you ever have to travel a lot, the only real answer is to have at least a second phone on a different carrier.
You should read the fine print on those "unlimited" deals. Most, especially resellers like MetroPCS (which is owned by T-Mobile BTW) throttle the data bandwidth for the rest of the month if you exceed your data cap. Unlike the full service plans, you usually can't just pay to get the tap back open either. That can be a real drag if you actually use the Internet a lot. Beware!
I can usually get by on 1GB of data a month, which is pretty cheap on a regular (ie. one that's not for people with bad credit) plan. I just have to make the effort to hook up to Wi-Fi wherever possible. I even used my data plan for a couple of months when I was having trouble getting wired Internet service. 15GB/mo. for $100 from Verizon wasn't much more than a comparable cable modem deal. And because I held out when Comcast were dicks, I'm only paying them half the rate for the remaining 10 months. Data is a commodity these days; it pays to shop around for the best deal.
That is what T-Mobile has. I think it is 1GB for free, 3GBs for $10/month, 5GBs for $20/month and unlimited data for $30/month, on top of whatever your monthly premium is.
The only thing I don't like about the T-Mobile data plans (other than you have to pay for data) is if you go up in data, you cannot go back down. You are stuck paying for more data.
At T-Mobile, if you go over your allotted data, they don't charge you anymore and they don't cut you off. They just slow you down.
I pretty much stay right at 3GBs. But I would love to have more. I just don't want to pay for it.
My sister keeps telling me I ought to use WiFi. I actually had WiFi in my home but I had it changed to wired because my neighbors were jumping on it and slowing me down. I had a laptop at the time and my friend and business partner had one two. We both used it. But he moved back to Detroit and I stopped using the laptop. And I didn't want to bother with a password. So I just had I changed back to wired for my PC.
The main reason I started with T-Mobile was they were the closest to my home. But I have been happy with the cost and customer service. So I have stayed.
I'm an Ethernet diehard myself. Even when I was designing industrial Wi-Fi systems for clients, I never connected one to my home network because I knew how insecure it was. Since then things have improved somewhat. Now that I have a substantial number of devices that have no Ethernet capability, I've reconsidered. I still don't store data or do my banking for example using wireless devices mainly because they're too easy to steal and eavesdrop on.
You shouldn't have any problems with your neighbors if you use strong encryption and long, random keys. Turning off SSID broadcasts and MAC blocking can help too. While I can well afford to use more wireless data, IME the performance indoors can be inconsistent. After being spoiled by quick cable modem service, it's hard to give that up!
REPLY #2 (SEE ABOVE FOR REPLY #1)
I need to clarify Lucy, T-Mobile has unlimited data plans. You just have to pay for them. I am assuming (maybe incorrectly) that you are saying Metro PCS has free unlimited data plans.