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Moving from Verizon to Tmobile

mattwolfmatt

mattwolfmatt

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Jun 7, 2008
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Is it possible to move from Verizon to t-mobile? I'm on a family plan with 5 iPhones: 6s, 5S, 5S, 5, and 5. All are either paid in full (the 6s) or are out of contract (beyond 24 months). I mean, according to the verizon website, they are all "available for upgrade".

T-mobile says they have to be unlocked. I think they are, right? They also say they need to be GSM compatible. I read different arguments about this, too. Is there any easy way to check if they are GSM compatible?

Thank you!
 
mattwolfmatt said:
Is it possible to move from Verizon to t-mobile? I'm on a family plan with 5 iPhones: 6s, 5S, 5S, 5, and 5. All are either paid in full (the 6s) or are out of contract (beyond 24 months). I mean, according to the verizon website, they are all "available for upgrade".

T-mobile says they have to be unlocked. I think they are, right? They also say they need to be GSM compatible. I read different arguments about this, too. Is there any easy way to check if they are GSM compatible?

Thank you!
Click to expand...
the t-mobile website has a tool that supposedly tells you. you can find specs on the apple website. the phones will have to be unlocked.
 
Verizon iPhones come SIM-unlocked for GSM use, so you should be able to just get some T-Mobile SIMs and go to town. Getting the SIM cards from T-Mobile's web site sometimes has better deals (free or 99¢) than the $15/SIM they charge at most stores. You'll get them in the mail with a generic number and then you can port your number with a phone call - it's easy as long as you have all your Verizon billing info handy.

Here's Verizon's unlock info: http://www.verizon.com/about/responsibility/product/device-unlocking-policy

"We do not lock our 4G LTE devices, and no code is needed to program them for use with another carrier."​

The only other issue to think about is LTE band support. For the iPhone 6s, it will support all the T-Mobile LTE bands. For the 6 and 5s, the Verizon model is the same as the AT&T/T-Mobile model. The 5 may be the trouble spot, as the Verizon model (A1429) only supports bands 1,3,5,13,25 and the AT&T/T-Mobile version supports 2,4,5,17. T-Mobile tends to operate on bands 2 and 4, with 12 being rolled out in some areas. For that, your 5 may only get you HSPA+ "3G/4G" speeds and you might want to look at selling/trading them for something with better T-Mobile support.

You can read more about LTE bands here: http://www.apple.com/iphone/LTE/

Band 12 seems to be the "big" upgrade for T-Mobile, as it penetrates further in rural areas and buildings (it's 700MHz and branded as "Extended Range LTE"). It's not available in all areas, but does make a difference where it is - when I was with T-Mobile on an iPhone 6, saw maybe a dot of service in some basement areas at work, while a colleague with a 6s saw 4 dots. Unlike T-Mobile, the older iPhones supported AT&T's (17) and Verizon's (13) 700MHz bands, as they had been rolled out for some time. Thus, if you want to use an iPhone on T-Mobile and get the best results everywhere, something like a 6s or SE has the ability to pick up more towers than the older models. Still, my experience with T-Mobile on a 5s/6 was pretty good, especially with Wi-Fi calling as a fallback. If you're not in a market that supports band 12, it really doesn't matter: http://www.tmonews.com/700mhz-lte-map/

By the way, in terms of iPhones, anything with a SIM slot is GSM-compatible.
 
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mattwolfmatt said:
Is it possible to move from Verizon to t-mobile? I'm on a family plan with 5 iPhones: 6s, 5S, 5S, 5, and 5. All are either paid in full (the 6s) or are out of contract (beyond 24 months). I mean, according to the verizon website, they are all "available for upgrade".

T-mobile says they have to be unlocked. I think they are, right? They also say they need to be GSM compatible. I read different arguments about this, too. Is there any easy way to check if they are GSM compatible?

Thank you!
Click to expand...

All lte capable iPhones from Verizon are GSM unlocked.
It will work without a prob.
Don't let any tmobile rep tell you it won't work in order to get you to buy from them or start a payment plan for a tmobile specific iPhone.
They pulled that with one of my friends last month.
 
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ecschwarz said:
Verizon iPhones come SIM-unlocked for GSM use, so you should be able to just get some T-Mobile SIMs and go to town. Getting the SIM cards from T-Mobile's web site sometimes has better deals (free or 99¢) than the $15/SIM they charge at most stores. You'll get them in the mail with a generic number and then you can port your number with a phone call - it's easy as long as you have all your Verizon billing info handy.

Here's Verizon's unlock info: http://www.verizon.com/about/responsibility/product/device-unlocking-policy

"We do not lock our 4G LTE devices, and no code is needed to program them for use with another carrier."​

The only other issue to think about is LTE band support. For the iPhone 6s, it will support all the T-Mobile LTE bands. For the 6 and 5s, the Verizon model is the same as the AT&T/T-Mobile model. The 5 may be the trouble spot, as the Verizon model (A1429) only supports bands 1,3,5,13,25 and the AT&T/T-Mobile version supports 2,4,5,17. T-Mobile tends to operate on bands 2 and 4, with 12 being rolled out in some areas. For that, your 5 may only get you HSPA+ "3G/4G" speeds and you might want to look at selling/trading them for something with better T-Mobile support.

You can read more about LTE bands here: http://www.apple.com/iphone/LTE/

Band 12 seems to be the "big" upgrade for T-Mobile, as it penetrates further in rural areas and buildings (it's 700MHz and branded as "Extended Range LTE"). It's not available in all areas, but does make a difference where it is - when I was with T-Mobile on an iPhone 6, saw maybe a dot of service in some basement areas at work, while a colleague with a 6s saw 4 dots. Unlike T-Mobile, the older iPhones supported AT&T's (17) and Verizon's (13) 700MHz bands, as they had been rolled out for some time. Thus, if you want to use an iPhone on T-Mobile and get the best results everywhere, something like a 6s or SE has the ability to pick up more towers than the older models. Still, my experience with T-Mobile on a 5s/6 was pretty good, especially with Wi-Fi calling as a fallback. If you're not in a market that supports band 12, it really doesn't matter: http://www.tmonews.com/700mhz-lte-map/

By the way, in terms of iPhones, anything with a SIM slot is GSM-compatible.
Click to expand...

Applejuiced said:
All lte capable iPhones from Verizon are GSM unlocked.
It will work without a prob.
Don't let any tmobile rep tell you it won't work in order to get you to buy from them or start a payment plan for a tmobile specific iPhone.
They pulled that with one of my friends last month.
Click to expand...

The folks in this forum seriosuly rock. You guys/gals are amazing.
 
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Consider which LTE bands each handset is using. The 6S is likely to be by far the best performer in a band 12 area. My memory doesn't go as far back as the iPhone 5, but it's not a phone that TMOBILE officially ever had, and I do believe it is even more limited in those regards.

When we tried TMO about 3 years ago with our unlocked 5 we had 4G at best, Edge, and no service rather often in and around Boston. A lot has changed in terms of network since then too, but I suspect a 5 would still have some of the same struggles it did a few years back for us.
 
HickDead said:
Moving to T-Mobile from Verizon is like going to bed with Jennifer Lawrence and waking up next to Hillary Clinton.
Click to expand...

More like thinking you're going to bed with Jennifer lawrence but realizing you're just payed too much for a man in drag that looks like Jennifer lawrence when staying with Verizon:D
Overpaying for hype, get nickeled and dimed because "its the network" :D
 
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HickDead said:
Moving to T-Mobile from Verizon is like going to bed with Jennifer Lawrence and waking up next to Hillary Clinton.
Click to expand...

Applejuiced said:
More like thinking you're going to bed with Jennifer lawrence but realizing you're just payed too much for a man in drag that looks like Jennifer lawrence when staying with Verizon:D
Overpaying for hype, get nickeled and dimed because "its the network" :D
Click to expand...

o_OI've seen this one before, can we please not watch it again? o_O
 
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