After preorder of AT&T iP5, decided I want to try VZW...

[thehopscotch]

I preordered the iPhone 5 from Apple.com for an AT&T phone. Initially I was debating jumping ship for Verizon, but then my mom told me I should rethink it because she's heard "so many complaints from her friends." I decided I'd keep my unlimited data plan and hope AT&T added LTE soon.

Today I started doing a little more research and thinking through it all and am now considering jumping ship again. Biggest pro for me: LTE here for Verizon and AT&T only has HSPA+. Also, AT&T has gotten worse and worse. At the actual AT&T store you can't even get service to make a phone call (not in the store or within a mile radius of the store) and definitely don't attempt to get on the internet, because that's impossible! That's a joke if I've ever seen it!

I'm not too worried about leaving the unlimited plan (I use less than 1GB every month since I have wifi at home and work). My company offers discounts at both companies. The Verizon plan will likely be a little more pricey because of the mobile share, but I like the option of having LTE, mobile hotspot, etc.

Enough rambling...on to my question....

I ordered the iP5 at the early upgrade price of $549 (for 32GB) and clearly that extends the contract for another 2 yrs on top of the duration of my current contract.

If I buy a Verizon iP5 now and start a contract with them, can I return the AT&T iP5 when I receive it (at $549) and go back to the duration left on my original contract? That way I can just pay the ETF at AT&T which will be less than the $250 early upgrade and after I do that, switch my number over to the new Verizon iPhone (which will have a new number when I order it...then switch to my current number after I return the other device)?

Just want to make sure that is possible before I jump through hoops!

 

[CyBeRino]

Today I started doing a little more research and thinking through it all and am now considering jumping ship again. Biggest pro for me: LTE here for Verizon and AT&T only has HSPA+.

Why do you care? In practice you won't really notice a difference anyway, and once you receive a call on you'll be dropped back to 3G anyway and on Verizon you'd be dataless for the duration of the call.

HSPA+ already supports 28Mbps downstream, which is already faster than the phone can actually render stuff at and it's not like you're going to do big downloads on the thing.

Also, AT&T has gotten worse and worse. At the actual AT&T store you can't even get service to make a phone call (not in the store or within a mile radius of the store) and definitely don't attempt to get on the internet, because that's impossible! That's a joke if I've ever seen it!

If that is true then that is pretty stupid indeed. Often these kinds of stores (if they are really company-owned stores and not some franchise thing) will have a picocell in their store to make damn sure anyone in the store has the best signal possible.

 

[illutionz]

I preordered the iPhone 5 from Apple.com for an AT&T phone. Initially I was debating jumping ship for Verizon, but then my mom told me I should rethink it because she's heard "so many complaints from her friends." I decided I'd keep my unlimited data plan and hope AT&T added LTE soon.

Today I started doing a little more research and thinking through it all and am now considering jumping ship again. Biggest pro for me: LTE here for Verizon and AT&T only has HSPA+. Also, AT&T has gotten worse and worse. At the actual AT&T store you can't even get service to make a phone call (not in the store or within a mile radius of the store) and definitely don't attempt to get on the internet, because that's impossible! That's a joke if I've ever seen it!

I'm not too worried about leaving the unlimited plan (I use less than 1GB every month since I have wifi at home and work). My company offers discounts at both companies. The Verizon plan will likely be a little more pricey because of the mobile share, but I like the option of having LTE, mobile hotspot, etc.

Enough rambling...on to my question....

I ordered the iP5 at the early upgrade price of $549 (for 32GB) and clearly that extends the contract for another 2 yrs on top of the duration of my current contract.

If I buy a Verizon iP5 now and start a contract with them, can I return the AT&T iP5 when I receive it (at $549) and go back to the duration left on my original contract? That way I can just pay the ETF at AT&T which will be less than the $250 early upgrade and after I do that, switch my number over to the new Verizon iPhone (which will have a new number when I order it...then switch to my current number after I return the other device)?

Just want to make sure that is possible before I jump through hoops!

Just remember that AT&T can use both voice and data at the same time whereas Verizon could not.

That said, if you want to move to Verizon, I would return the phone FIRST and make sure your AT&T contract is back to where it is before it got 2 years tacked on to it... that way you will pay less ETF.

In addition to that, once you are done with the phone return, if you want to keep your number, you can just go to Verizon and ask them to port your number. This will effectively ends your AT&T contract and your last bill will have the ETF there.

 

[scaredpoet]

To actually answer the question...

I ordered the iP5 at the early upgrade price of $549 (for 32GB) and clearly that extends the contract for another 2 yrs on top of the duration of my current contract.

If I buy a Verizon iP5 now and start a contract with them, can I return the AT&T iP5 when I receive it (at $549) and go back to the duration left on my original contract?

Yes you can. Just be sure you do it within the return period. Also, it may take up to two weeks after the return for AT&T to register in their system that you returned the phone and aren't under a new contract. Make sure you don't cancel your account before the new contract is removed from your account.

Keep copies of all your documentation on the purchase AND the return.

You might also want to check your order status. If it hasn't been prepped for shipment, you might be able to cancel it, and avoid the whole return rigamarole.

Lastly, check coverage thoroughly with Verizon before you port your number over and commit to this. Actually use the phone, and be sure you're okay with the limitations of the device on Verizon like, the continued lack of simultaneous data and voice, even using LTE. If it all checks out, THEN return your AT&T phone (if you couldn't/didn't cancel the order) and port over once the contract is switched back to your old terms.

 

[Mlrollin91]

I ordered the iP5 at the early upgrade price of $549 (for 32GB) and clearly that extends the contract for another 2 yrs on top of the duration of my current contract.

It actually starts your two year contract over, its not tacked on to the current remaining time. That is partly why you are paying an addition $250, to end the current two year contract and start a new one.

AT&T didn't recover all the loss of your previous phone in the one year, so they are charing $250 to fully regain their lose and sign you onto a new contract, ending the old one.


Personally I would stick with AT&T and keep your unlimited data. On Verizon you have to get one of the new plans, and if you aren't using a lot of minutes its really a waste of money. In addition, Verizon's 3G is crap, while AT&T's 3G & HSPA+ is a good fallback network compared to LTE.

Though Verizon has better voice quality because of CDMA, if you are not talking as much as browsing, I believe AT&T is better suit.

 

[wordoflife]

ATT HSPA+ is already fast enough.

You might be going through all that hassle, spending more money just for slightly faster speed tests, but same real life speeds

If anything go to a Verizon store and see of its worth ot

 

[thehopscotch]

Thanks for the feedback. One of the reasons I thought I might get both is to physically try both in real life situations before the return window and see how they both work around town.

I've never had a need for voice and data at the same time, so that isn't a big deal to me...but it is nice to know with Verizon there is 3G in more areas...though the AT&T fallback of HSPA+ (rather than 3G) is tempting for them too. I'll still be thinking through it over the next few days and am not jumping to any conclusions immediately.

I was googling earlier and came across this site and found it very interesting (not sure if it has ever been shared here or not): http://www.cellreception.com/coverage/al/huntsville/date/page1.html

Based on these reviews, Verizon ranks number 1 for my area...followed by Sprint, T-Mobile, and Nextel (all of which I had assumed were far worse than AT&T), and AT&T is in last place...interesting stuff.

 

[Mlrollin91]

Just so you know, as soon as you leave AT&T your unlimited is gone, even if you decide to go back 10 minutes later.

 

[Eallan]

Why do you care? In practice you won't really notice a difference anyway, and once you receive a call on you'll be dropped back to 3G anyway and on Verizon you'd be dataless for the duration of the call.

HSPA+ already supports 28Mbps downstream, which is already faster than the phone can actually render stuff at and it's not like you're going to do big downloads on the thing.



If that is true then that is pretty stupid indeed. Often these kinds of stores (if they are really company-owned stores and not some franchise thing) will have a picocell in their store to make damn sure anyone in the store has the best signal possible.

Please don't listen to him. You will definitely notice a difference with LTE versus hspa.

 

[BBQXXX]

I don't see why so many people love AT&T. Of course I understand coverage may differ depending on location. But everywhere I have ever been AT&T is horrible. Verizon is the only carrier with LTE where I live and I went with them due to this.

I had Verizon before my iPhone and loved it. To all the people who say can't browse and talk. If I ever need to do this it's at home. Where there is wifi, thus meaning I still can. Everyone acts like they use this feature daily while walking down the street. If you really do, I'm sure you can wait the 2 min for the call to be over. Funny thing is the same people who say they rarely talk on the phone are the ones bringing up they couldn't surf and talk...

 

[thehopscotch]

Chatted with a friend that works at Verizon and he mentioned their 14 day worry free guarantee. He's going to grab me an iPhone on 9/21 so I can pick it up that day...use it simultaneously (obvs with a different number) with my AT&T 4s iphone and I can compare call quality, dropped calls, and overall performance for those two weeks before my AT&T phone arrives.

I totally agree on the data+voice thing...I've never used it before...and I've had an iPhone since the 3G. I've never seen a use for it personally. I have wifi at home and work (where I spend 90% of my time), so like PP mentioned, if I need it, I'll have it through wifi. I'm also not concerned about losing unlimited data. While it sounds appealing in theory, I use <1GB (usually more like 200-300mb) a month...so realistically I've never needed it (and that's with being on HSPA+ speeds for the past year).

What is appealing is the hotspot (which I know I can get by switching to a mobile share plan with AT&T too) but more importantly from what I've read that Verizon will agree to unlock your phone for use when traveling (while AT&T doesn't). That's a huge perk for me!

I'm going to go ahead and keep my AT&T order intact and going to grab the Verizon phone on 9/21. It will give me plenty of time to test it out "worry-free" while I wait for the AT&T iPhone to arrive on 10/5. At that point, if I love Verizon, I'll stick with them, return the AT&T phone and pay the ETF. If I hate Verizon, I'll return that phone...and keep the AT&T one. Easy peasy!

Thanks for all the feedback!

 

[ixodes]

what I've read that Verizon will agree to unlock your phone for use when traveling (while AT&T doesn't).

All my AT&T Androids & iPhones were unlocked by them for my international use at no charge.

 

[thehopscotch]

All my AT&T Androids & iPhones were unlocked by them for my international use at no charge.

AT&T only does that if you are out of contract, though...at least that's what their website and the request form specify...or if you buy a phone at the full/unsubsidized price.

 

[rnizlek]

I had Verizon before my iPhone and loved it. To all the people who say can't browse and talk. If I ever need to do this it's at home. Where there is wifi, thus meaning I still can. Everyone acts like they use this feature daily while walking down the street. If you really do, I'm sure you can wait the 2 min for the call to be over. Funny thing is the same people who say they rarely talk on the phone are the ones bringing up they couldn't surf and talk...

Actually, the only time I use this is when I'm not at home. If I'm at home, I mostly just jump on my computer. I usually use this when I'm out somewhere, and someone else is trying to find where I am and I'm giving them directions - I have them on the phone and am looking at a map to determine where they are and how they get to me. Another time I use it is to do remote support - looking up an issue while I have someone on the phone. Again, if I was at home I'd just be doing it on my computer, but when I get a call when I am out if need to be able to use both voice and data.

However, I agree that not everyone has these needs. No one carrier is right for everyone, it depends on the area, the person's needs, etc. For instance, in my area AT&T has better service, although Verizon has solid coverage also. Verizon has LTE but AT&T does not (though I have access to VZW LTE through a MiFi if I need it). There is no one answer for everyone or any universally best carrier.

 

[ixodes]

AT&T only does that if you are out of contract, though...at least that's what their website and the request form specify...or if you buy a phone at the full/unsubsidized price.

I was merely mentioning what my arrangement is with AT&T.