Contract is up in April. Switch to AT&T or wait for LTE?

[pilot1226]

Hi,

Currently on a contract with Sprint with unlimited data & texts and a family plan sharing 1500 minutes... Free mobile to any mobile and nights & weekends.

I'm on a Blackberry Curve now which is very dated, but I'm torn between two options I have, hoping some other forum trolls could share some insight:

1. Sprint allows me to upgrade in February of this year. My bill will increase by $10 per line for "smartphone" data which will make my bill around $145 per month for 2 lines on their everything data family plan. I could upgrade to the 4 or 4s at this time if I want to, or I could keep my BB and go month-to-month without a contract, waiting for the iPhone 5 to support LTE. I'm aware that Sprint's data speeds are a big problem right now, so I'm hoping that LTE support in the new iPhone will help take care of this issue.

2. I could switch to AT&T (I will not consider Verizon) in April when the contract is up to the 4S and take advantage of HSPA+, but I won't have an unlimited data plan. I will most definitely be okay with a 2GB data plan.

Do we think it's likely that LTE support will be launched in the iPhone 5 this year, and when do we rumor that this will be?

Thanks!

 

[skasol]

How would we know that? Best bet would be to keep your bb and wait a few months to see if anything comes up.

 

[vincenz]

Rumors say LTE will be in the next iPhone, but rumors are rumors.

I say wait the extra (expected) 2-3 months. The worst thing would be to want LTE, but not able to get it because you're stuck in another 2-year contract.

 

[einmusiker]

Hi,

Currently on a contract with Sprint with unlimited data & texts and a family plan sharing 1500 minutes... Free mobile to any mobile and nights & weekends.

I'm on a Blackberry Curve now which is very dated, but I'm torn between two options I have, hoping some other forum trolls could share some insight:

1. Sprint allows me to upgrade in February of this year. My bill will increase by $10 per line for "smartphone" data which will make my bill around $145 per month for 2 lines on their everything data family plan. I could upgrade to the 4 or 4s at this time if I want to, or I could keep my BB and go month-to-month without a contract, waiting for the iPhone 5 to support LTE. I'm aware that Sprint's data speeds are a big problem right now, so I'm hoping that LTE support in the new iPhone will help take care of this issue.

2. I could switch to AT&T (I will not consider Verizon) in April when the contract is up to the 4S and take advantage of HSPA+, but I won't have an unlimited data plan. I will most definitely be okay with a 2GB data plan.

Do we think it's likely that LTE support will be launched in the iPhone 5 this year, and when do we rumor that this will be?

Thanks!

you will be unhappy if you switch to att without unlimited

 

[pilot1226]

I suppose, yeah. AT&T's coverage of LTE doesn't currently include NYC and surrounding areas in Northern NJ, but I imagine this HAS to change if they want to stay competitive in such a big market.

I believe Sprint and Verizon are in the middle of deploying LTE in this area already (Sprint is changing from WiMax since Clearwire's going to go defunct it sounds like according to their customer service reps...)

I hope LTE's the silver bullet we're hoping for regarding the low data speeds on Sprint.

I agree, I don't want to get locked in for 2 years on another contract (though, really, it's 22 months before an eligible upgrade on Sprint), especially *IF* LTE might be available in the next release which is within 12 months away.

I suppose I can just limp on by with my Blackberry for another few months, hopefully the release will be closer to a summer release rather than another fall release.

Thanks for the insight.

Regarding the 2GB Data Plan: I barely use more than 100 MB monthly right now on Sprint's unlimited data. Part of that is because I don't stream video or audio, part of that is because the data's so slow I don't even try to use my data for hardcore uses. I really don't believe I'll be near my 2GB limit.

I won't consider Verizon at all because I've had Verizon in the past and they are extremely expensive. I can deal with a dropped call every once and a while (I've had about 5 dropped calls total since I started Sprint Service in April of 2010), and Verizon doesn't offer a free mobile-to-any carrier mobile minute plan like both AT&T and Sprint do. In the end, it'll either be AT&T or Sprint for me, assuming everyone keeps their plans the way they are.

Who knows, every time I turn around, Sprint is trying to tack some type of premium surcharge or fee to our account... Most notably lately, when/if I upgrade from my current BB, I have to pay a $10 charge per line, per month for "premium" smartphone data.

So, if I hold off on upgrading and decide to stay with Sprint, I could be looking at an 8 month wait without a contract if they had an October release (since I can upgrade in February...)

 

[haddman]

Buy an unlocked 4S and switch to AT&T. When the 5 comes out, and who knows when that might be, you can get most of your money back selling the unlocked 4S since its unlocked. Just take good care of it and it will hold great resell value. Earliest we might see a iP5 would be summer, but probably not until next fall again. Who knows. Another option is buy you a used iP4 or 4S off contract. Even a iP4 would be a huge upgrade over a crapberry.