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Pros of Sticking With ATT Long Term

M

metsjetsfan

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Feb 2, 2011
1,410
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Just want to get some thoughts on the pros of sticking with ATT long term with the new iphone coming out - was thinking of the following:

  • Assuming LTE in new iphone and that it will have HSPA+ which i know is not 15-21 MBPS but still a solid 3-5 with decent coverage. So better fallback speeds. ATT LTE is only a fraction of VZ LTE coverage obv
  • Pricing seems to be better, slightly but I know if you have FIOS it maybe the same with the discount.
  • Already have an ipad with VZ LTE so this will also help diversify.
  • ATT LTE network seems to be faster not sure yet if this is due to # of users or not.
  • Possible Shared Data plans coming out.


Are there any others? the cons are way too depressing to think of and i know there are many. and yes i do spend most of my time in an ATT LTE coverage area.
 
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Go with the carrier that has the best coverage for your location and also the best price for the products you need.

For me, its a toss up, ATT or VZW. Given that I get a better FAN discount with ATT, I'll stick with them
 
I don't like LTE speed comparisons.

AT&T covers 39 cities, roughly 74 million Americans.

Verizon covers 258 cities, more than 200 million Americans.

Yes, AT&T might have a faster network in some areas right now, but not until there is even spread can you make an accurate comparison. The speed difference between when I got the first Verizon LTE device back in March of 2011 and today is vastly different.

Just some food for thought for your decision.
 
Is it safe to say that the fallback speed for ATT LTE is better than that for VZ LTE? I know in about 18 months this maybe moot but just as of now.
 
metsjetsfan said:
Is it safe to say that the fallback speed for ATT LTE is better than that for VZ LTE? I know in about 18 months this maybe moot but just as of now.
Click to expand...

I can't help you too much with that. I've only ever experienced LTE from Verizon. My LTE experience has been for the most part flawless. From March 2011-December 2011 the LTE network would go down for a few hours about once a month, but ever since it has been smooth sailing. Verizon's network is literally everywhere so I've never had a problem with coverage.
 
emacna1 said:
I can't help you too much with that. I've only ever experienced LTE from Verizon. My LTE experience has been for the most part flawless. From March 2011-December 2011 the LTE network would go down for a few hours about once a month, but ever since it has been smooth sailing. Verizon's network is literally everywhere so I've never had a problem with coverage.
Click to expand...
Down here in south FL, Verizon LTE is still spotty, speeds all over the place. 1 sec you could be at 30_ down, and the next no better than hspa+.

But yeh I would just go with whomever has the best coverage in your area. I've been with AT&T for years and no complaints, even traveling all over the place. I do love hspa+ though, you get no LTE drain and like mentioned the fall back speeds to hspa+ blow away the others 3G service
 
emacna1 said:
I don't like LTE speed comparisons.

AT&T covers 39 cities, roughly 74 million Americans.

Verizon covers 258 cities, more than 200 million Americans.

Yes, AT&T might have a faster network in some areas right now, but not until there is even spread can you make an accurate comparison. The speed difference between when I got the first Verizon LTE device back in March of 2011 and today is vastly different.

Just some food for thought for your decision.
Click to expand...

And like the user above said its all about who got best coverage at your location.
What difference does it make to me if Verizon covers more millions of Americans in other locations and more cities but there's no LTE at all where I live.
I dont travel for a living and most of the time Im in my home coverage area.
So those number comparisons you posted above are pointless unless you travel on the regural or if you're a Verizon fanboy.
Either or:)
 
Applejuiced said:
And like the user above said its all about who got best coverage at your location.
What difference does it make to me if Verizon covers more millions of Americans in other locations and more cities but there's no LTE at all where I live.
I dont travel for a living and most of the time Im in my home coverage area.
So those number comparisons you posted above are pointless unless you travel on the regural or if you're a Verizon fanboy.
Either or:)
Click to expand...

Is there such a thing as carrier fanboy-ism? (honest question)

Also, where do you live that there is AT&T LTE coverage, but not VZW LTE coverage (honest question again)?

I know AT&T has LTE in Puerto Rico and Verizon doesn't, but where else?
 
emacna1 said:
Is there such a thing as carrier fanboy-ism? (honest question)

Also, where do you live that there is AT&T LTE coverage, but not VZW LTE coverage (honest question again)?
Click to expand...

You'd be surprised but there's tons of carrier hardcore fanboys in this forum:D Doesnt make sense but there's many die hards. lol:)
Where I live there is no LTE coverage at all either VZ or AT&T at the moment.
There is fast AT&T HSPA+ that gets me around 8-9mbps downloads.
 
Applejuiced said:
You'd be surprised but there's tons of carrier hardcore fanboys in this forum:D Doesnt make sense but there's many die hards. lol:)
Where I live there is no LTE coverage at all either VZ or AT&T at the moment.
There is fast AT&T HSPA+ that gets me around 8-9mbps downloads.
Click to expand...

I've only ever had Verizon, but I wouldn't consider myself a fan boy. Right now changing carriers would be cost inefficient to me. I have no problem with my Verizon service so I don't have any plans to change. I can easily see myself with a different carrier down the road though, who knows.

Anyways, like the original guy said and you reiterated, it is definitely a lot about who has the best coverage in your area.
 
I used to have VZ, it has the better coverage in my area, but switched to AT&T when they came out with the iPhone. My wife and I only use about 300-400 minutes a month, so we're really not on the phone too much. Most of the usage is in areas where the phone coverage is fine. At home is a different story, where we have no coverage, but AT&T hooked us up with a couple MicroCells and we have had 5 bars ever since. With VZ, we'd get 1-2 bars at home.

Other big thing for us is price. AT&T has a cheaper family plan for low minutes and I get a better FAN discount with AT&T. I could see switching to VZ if they could match the price I'm getting right now, but I don't see them going lower just for me.
 
I wouldn't call it fanboyism. I would call it people trying to defend their choice. There may be the occasional fanboy but most people are just trying to defend the 2 year contract they have that is costing them thousands of dollars more than likely.
 
The most bang for the buck.
Wife has Verizon and good service where she spends the most time.

I have Hspa+ speeds good coverage and a better discount on my at&t plan.

We both are still happy with our choices.
 
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