AT&T to Verizon switchers

[aristobrat]

HSPA+ is a gimmick. AT&T's 3g network is theoretically faster than verizon's 3g + is faster in speed tests, But is slower in most real life tests compared to Verizon. It has slower pings + the service is horrible on AT&T (Here in NYC at least).

I just switched from AT&T to VZW and I don't live in a spectrum-squished space like you folks in NYC.

AT&T's HSPA (not HSPA+) network here regularly sees throughput between 1mbps-2mpbs. From my two days on Verizon, I have yet to see anything over 400kbps.

Web surfing seems to go a little faster on Verizon. I guess that's attributed to the lower latency.

However, anything that involves moving a decent amount of data (i.e. downloading apps or music from the App/iTunes Stores) are ridiculously slow on Verizon here. Words with Friends took almost 2 full minutes to download over VZW 3G last night. Working with Verizon's tech support, they told me that 1.2mpbs was about the fastest their 3G network goes, and that's if nobody is using it, and the speeds I was seeing (200-400kbps) were about average.

I never had a major problem with AT&T's coverage here. I'd rate it at 90%. Verizon seems like 95%. Not a huge jump for me, and definitely not a situation like you folks that lose AT&T completely all the time, like in NYC. I've got to figure out if the extra 5% coverage I get from VZW is going to be worth dealing with their slow 3G network speeds. At least I get 13 more days to see if it's worth the switch, for me.

 

[Shanpdx]

i have two lines on ATT family play pay about $130, still a year left on the contract, and got two iPhone 4 16GBs.

is it a good idea to switch it over to Verzion?

The main reason is to get the GSM portion of the phone Unlocked for overseas travel.

any advice appreciated, btw, I live in downtown Portland, Oregon.

 

[DarKeneD]

Ported my number from At&t, everything went smooth and was complete in 15 minutes.

Thing I notice is I have 2 bars minimum everywhere I go. Whereas some areas I would get the "Searching.." with At&t on my 3GS. Speed feels a lot faster but that may be due to the hardware. So far, no regrets and I'm glad to be back on Verizon.

I'm located in Irvine (Orange County) if that matters.

 

[Michael CM1]

I'm looking to do the switch. I am worried about the speed issue, but most of the time I'm either at home, work, or somewhere else with WiFi. My issue is DROPPED CALLS. I didn't really notice it too much when I lived closer to Atlanta. Now I'm about 35 miles farther out and OH MY GOD. I'm lucky to get three bars at home standing outside. I had two calls drop Saturday night. If a call doesn't drop, the quality goes out like losing an AM radio station going under a bridge.

Here's a scenario I'm trying to work out. I've got three lines on a family plan with AT&T with my parents on there. My dad just got an iPhone 4 in the summer, so he's tied in for a couple of years. My mom is using my old 3GS and is more than a year out of contract. I've got until next June on my contract.

What I want to do is basically swap the phone numbers attached to my mom's line and mine, then I could jump to Verizon with ease. But I don't know whether I can do the number swapping. I don't think literally changing my mom's line to a new number would be a huge issue since she doesn't really get calls from a bazillion people. I'm just worried about using my number because it's my only phone and I have had the number for six or so years.

So if anyone has pulled that trick off, I'd love advice on the cheapest way. AT&T charges $35 for a number change, so I'm imagining they might do it for $70. I'd like to not pay them another dime for this shoddy coverage, but cheapest way out and all.