I personally did it for these reasons. 1. I won't be getting the LTE iPhone this fall. 2. I don't think there's LTE in this area where I live. 3. Verizon has better coverage for overall traveling. 4. Verizon has more LTE coverage than AT&T 5. Hotspot so I can tether to my iPhone if I ever need to. 6. The "hopefully" future ability to put my AT&T SIM in my Verizon iPad and have HSPA+ speeds on my iPad But I do wish Verizon offered 3GB plans instead... but eh. What about you?
free tethering. and after getting throttled the last 4 months on my iP4S i don't really feel like giving any more money to ATT
but the bad thing about unlimited is that once I go over, I can't use my phone for pretty much anything...
I have a small AT&T 4GLTE Elevate HotSpot that I always have on me. So, I don't really worry about coverage.
Two reasons: 1. Free hotspot use (even though I don't think I'll use it that much, it is nice to have). 2. 1GB data for $20. This plan is so much better than the low end AT&T plan of 250MB for $15. I know that the $30 plan is better with AT&T (3GB vs 2 GB), but based on my usage the 1GB Verizon plan is the sweet spot for me.
For me, the wi-fi hotspot was the main factor. A secondary factor is that AT&T's 3G network is overloaded in Midtown Manhattan (I get signal but data slows to a crawl or doesn't go through at all) and I figure that Verizon might perform better. I was tempted to give AT&T a shot and see how their LTE network holds up during the week, but I'll likely go with the unlocked LTE iPhone when it comes out and will find out then. Finally, the $20 1GB plan is nice for those months when I don't expect to use much data.
I have AT&T for my iPhone and a Verizon MiFi device. I got the Verizon iPad so I can switch my Sim Card (after I cut it down) between the iPad and MiFi whenever I want. This way I have a 5GB plan for both my MiFi and iPad. I have had the Sim Card in the iPad since I got it on Friday and it works awesome. Plus Verizon LTE is better data coverage when travelling.
6. The "hopefully" future ability to put my AT&T SIM in my Verizon iPad and have HSPA+ speeds on my iPad You already can. It did it the first day, Friday. You just have to change your carrier APN settings. Look at this last paragraph of this article
The better entry level plan price and better coverage in rural areas. Their EV-DO network is slow but its better than no coverage when traveling. I really think the $20 for 1GB plan is going to be the most popular plan by far (which makes me really sad, so little data for the price, but its still the most appealing option).
Outside of the KC metro area Verizon has much better coverage. In town both have good coverage for 3G, VZW has much better LTE coverage. So common sense made the choice of now have two devices with different carriers. Much better chance of always having data coverage when I am out on a day trip. I just hope Verizon matches the 3G for $30 but with LTE But looks like I maybe going for the 5gig plan anyhow. Verizon has been very fast so far, eating up data.
1) More extensive LTE network 2) Verizon is more reliable in NYC (even though NYC appears to get good LTE service here occationally) 3) Hotspot 4) I don't need to talk and use data at the same time on an iPad (I use this feature a lot with my AT&T iPhone)
Mostly for the reasons listed in the OP. I actually live in an area with LTE coverage from both carriers, but the decision was hard. What tipped me over was the free tethering and way more coverage in other cities in my state (NC) from Verizon. Perhaps more importantly, I have more faith in the speed and completeness of Verizon's LTE build out over the next year. What I find most interesting about this decision is that I will be in a similar tight spot when the LTE iPhone comes out. This would be a hard decision, but I have grandfathered iPhone data from AT&T, so I will most likely stick with them despite verizons deployment being better. To me unlimited iPhone data on LTE is really what is most important.
I have an AT&T phone with the 5 gig tethering plan. I got the Verizon iPad. Why? Well I primarily use my phone to tether but always have Verizon as a backup to flip on if needed (while traveling for instance). I saw zero reason to have two AT&T devices. It didn't give me choice. If AT&T service sucks on my phone and I turned on the iPad AT&T service, it would still suck. Best of both worlds.
Hate AT&T and only on their iPhone because I am on a family plan as an add on. So any other option I will take it. 1gb plan for $20. It really IS the sweet spot for now. F-you AT&T and your 250mb for 3/4 that price. Faster LTE on Verizon. Free hotspot! You should never be charged extra to use what you already paid for, especially if your device includes the ability for free by default but your provider decides to cripple the device for their gain.
Verizon LTE is faster than AT&T LTE in Chicago. I can use the data how I want, such as WiFi Hotspot/tether without restrictions.
I travel quite a bit and AT&T sucks in most urban areas. I'm thinking about dumping AT&T altogether when next iPhone comes out. Plus the tethering option is nice.
I have an LTE phone with AT&T, their speeds in Los Angeles are slower than Verizon. So I decided to diversify and get Verizon, the speed is better, hotspot is nice to have, and I'm not stuck with one vendor.