Help Me Decide Which Carrier

Discussion in 'iPhone' started by drkryn, Nov 20, 2011.

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  1. drkryn, Nov 20, 2011

    drkryn macrumors member

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    Nov 12, 2011
    #1
    Alright, I currently have Verizon. Been satisfied with my service. I do not have a smartphone currently so when I upgrade I will be stuck with the tiered data. 4G LTE just launched in Buffalo (I live about 20 minutes from there) so I can imagine that it will make its way towards my home relatively soon. 4G LTE is currently at my home away from home (a place I might be moving back to soon).

    I'm thinking about switching to AT&T because my girlfriend has it and has had no issues and because of the possibility of getting unlimited data (through the 2G method). HSPA+ is currently available at my home and home away from home so the likelihood of getting LTE is very high (whenever AT&T activates more locations).

    I know it's location dependent, which is why I'm asking for people's opinions who have the 4s in the Buffalo, NY area. The idea of having unlimited 4G whenever it lands in my area for AT&T is pretty cool. But Verizon is supposed to have a more reliable/widespread 3G network and their 4G network is developing quickly.

    I've never had a smartphone so I have no idea how much data I use. However, I would probably do a lot of web browsing, radio streaming, and possibly movie watching when I'm not in a wifi area.

    I know this is kind of long but this is kind of a big decision for me considering the length of the contract and I don't want to pay restocking fees testing out different networks.
     
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  2. wordoflife, Nov 20, 2011

    wordoflife macrumors 604

    wordoflife

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    #2
    Your post isn't very clear with what you want.
    Is it faster speeds that you want? Or a larger data bucket? Do you even want an iPhone?

    :confused:
     
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  3. saving107, Nov 20, 2011

    saving107 macrumors 603

    saving107

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    Location:
    San Jose, Ca
    #3
    At&t
     
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  4. drkryn, Nov 20, 2011

    drkryn thread starter macrumors member

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    Nov 12, 2011
    #4
    I'm getting the iPhone for certain. What I'm looking for is fast speeds and reliability. I don't know if tiered data is good for me. Like I said, I've never had a smartphone before but I can definitely see myself surfing the web a lot and watching movies/sports highlights so the idea of paying $50 or more for data does not appeal to me.

    Which is why I'm stuck. Verizon's 4g network is more advance but I could possibly get unlimited data with AT&T but don't know how far their network has come in terms of reliability, call quality, and data stability.

    Sorry if I didn't make things clearer in my original post.
     
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  5. ilifecomputer, Nov 20, 2011

    ilifecomputer macrumors 6502

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    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    #5
    I have two friends who work for Verizon and Sprint so each was able to put me on a no contract plan for a month to test it out. Before that, and now, I have an iPhone on att.

    Sprint service is non existent in my apartment. Verizon is good but only gets about 1.5Mbits in here, and Att gets around 4-ish. So for ME, att works best where I live. Great call quality too.

    With that, my advice would be to go for whatever works best where you spend the majority of your time. Those employee accounts were so cheap for me, but the tradeoff in speed wasn't worth it and so I am keeping my speedy att.

    At my besties apt, att sucks and if I lived there, I'd prob go crazy if I didn't switch to verizon.

    Keep us posted.
     
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  6. wordoflife, Nov 20, 2011

    wordoflife macrumors 604

    wordoflife

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    #6
    Well Verizon and AT&T both have tiered data. The only carrier that has unlimited data is Sprint. I'm not sure if the unlimited 3G on AT&T trick works anymore (so I'll just ignore that right now), but I think you'll be fine with a 2GB cap (it's a lot of data) regardless if you're on Verizon or AT&T. AT&T will be faster than Verizon, so that's up to you ... but they both will get the job done. Sprint has unlimited data but it's slower. Not sure how Sprint coverage is in your area, but you can just go to a nearby Sprint store and see the speeds yourself and if they fit your needs.
     
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