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Stick w/ AT&T or switch?

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Original poster
Mar 15, 2008
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Not sure if this is the right forum to post this in so, Mods, feel free to move it if necessary.

Contract is up. I'm eligible for an upgrade...or I can switch. I'm really kind of clueless about the LTE technology and the 3 different versions Apple is making for the various networks. Am I even phrasing this right? :(

Basically, I travel a lot, a fair amount internationally. I really like being able to buy a local SIM card and get on with my trip. Aside from this nano-SIM thing and I've been buying my devices factory unlocked, am I not going to be able to do this anymore? Do I need to examine the cities I travel to most frequently and figure out what model/US carrier I need? Or does none of this matter and I am just a confused person?

I'm currently w/ AT&T and have a grandfathered iPhone unlimited data plan. Service in Seattle & LA are pretty craptastic but GRANDFATHERED UNLIMITED DATA. Verizon seems to have much better reception there and here in NY but is the data faster? Now that the iP5 is LTE, are they all pretty close to same speeds? Obv iP5 is not out yet but generally speaking RE: LTE data speeds.

I don't like these tiered data plans on Verizon. booo. But I am considering a hotspot so I guess those data plans are good if you have multiple devices? I LOVE my MBA but have run into places where there was no WiFi.

For those who have switched or perhaps have personal experience with these questions, your advice is greatly appreciated.

Again, sorry if this is in the wrong forum. And thank you.
 
I can't answer all of your questions, but I can tell you that if you upgrade, you will not lose your AT&T unlimited data. It will change the LTE Unlimited. You will have 5gb per month before it is throttled.
 
Based on the bands on the devices, the Verizon one should work with international LTE networks and the AT&T one won't.

LTE is significantly faster than 3G ever was. VZW's LTE may be a bit slower than AT&Ts in some cases, but Verizon has a much wider coverage area (for both 3G and LTE). The differences in speed won't make a huge difference since with LTE you're generally taking at least 10mbps down

I personally would like to switch, but was holding off due to the cost of Verizon's shared data plans.
 
lorenwade said:
I can't answer all of your questions, but I can tell you that if you upgrade, you will not lose your AT&T unlimited data. It will change the LTE Unlimited. You will have 5gb per month before it is throttled.
Click to expand...

That's good to know! I assume we still can not use the iPhone as a hotspot w/ AT&T unless you switch to one of those other plans? That's really a bummer.
 
lorenwade said:
I can't answer all of your questions, but I can tell you that if you upgrade, you will not lose your AT&T unlimited data. It will change the LTE Unlimited. You will have 5gb per month before it is throttled.
Click to expand...

hold on, I have an unlimited data to, so youre telling me if I get the new iphone and they grandfather my plan I will have unlimited LTE up to 5GB until they bump me down for the remainder of the month?

source? if this is true that means I dont need to sign up for their 4G 3GB/month plan?!?!?! :eek::confused:
 
terraphantm said:
Based on the bands on the devices, the Verizon one should work with international LTE networks and the AT&T one won't.

LTE is significantly faster than 3G ever was. VZW's LTE may be a bit slower than AT&Ts in some cases, but Verizon has a much wider coverage area (for both 3G and LTE). The differences in speed won't make a huge difference since with LTE you're generally taking at least 10mbps down

I personally would like to switch, but was holding off due to the cost of Verizon's shared data plans.
Click to expand...

Ok. Thank you for explaining that about international LTE and general data speeds.

My bill is about $89/month (work discount) so the Verizon plans are pricey compared to what I pay now.
 
Follow up question: So..if I get an AT&T iP5, i probably won't get LTE speeds overseas but I can still put a nano-SIM in there from a local carrier and get HSPA+ and 3G speeds, right? I just need to know I can still use it even it isn't LTE fast.
 
Uh, what? AT&T phones won't work with international LTE? Source, please.

OP, here's what I would do. Keep your unlimited data, upgrade with AT&T, and keep your old phone (unlocked) for a world phone.

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E3BK said:
Follow up question: So..if I get an AT&T iP5, i probably won't get LTE speeds overseas but I can still put a nano-SIM in there from a local carrier and get HSPA+ and 3G speeds, right? I just need to know I can still use it even it isn't LTE fast.
Click to expand...

You would only be able to replace the sim while traveling if you buy an unlocked phone.
 
greytmom said:
Uh, what? AT&T phones won't work with international LTE? Source, please.

OP, here's what I would do. Keep your unlimited data, upgrade with AT&T, and keep your old phone (unlocked) for a world phone.

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You would only be able to replace the sim while traveling if you buy an unlocked phone.
Click to expand...

Since there's three iPhone 5s: CDMA, European GSM, and North American GSM, I'm assuming that means LTE off shores for either phone is a no go.
 
greytmom said:
Uh, what? AT&T phones won't work with international LTE? Source, please.

OP, here's what I would do. Keep your unlimited data, upgrade with AT&T, and keep your old phone (unlocked) for a world phone.
Click to expand...

I've considered this but it's really a pain. I had to do this for a while which is why I started buying unlocked phones.

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greytmom said:
[/COLOR]

You would only be able to replace the sim while traveling if you buy an unlocked phone.
Click to expand...

See above and original post :)
 
lorenwade said:
Since there's three iPhone 5s: CDMA, European GSM, and North American GSM, I'm assuming that means LTE off shores for either phone is a no go.
Click to expand...

What a bummer. But I guess I just want to be sure the HSPA+ and 3G speeds still work on either the AT&T device. I can live with that.
 
E3BK said:
I've considered this but it's really a pain. I had to do this for a while which is why I started buying unlocked phones.

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See above and original post :)
Click to expand...

Why is it a pain to have a spare phone for a world phone? That's exactly what I'm doing. Buying the 5, passing the 4S along to my daughter, and keeping her unlocked 4.

When I'm overseas, pop in a local sim, and boom, good to go. Unless you are saying you want to pay international rates. Not me, I'd rather go to a tiny bit of extra trouble than pay an arm and a leg.
 
greytmom said:
Uh, what? AT&T phones won't work with international LTE? Source, please.

OP, here's what I would do. Keep your unlimited data, upgrade with AT&T, and keep your old phone (unlocked) for a world phone.
Click to expand...


The AT&T version supports LTE bands 4 and 17. The international version supports bands 1, 3, and 5. The CDMA version supports 1, 3, 5, 13, and 25. So the AT&T version definitely won't support international LTE. The Verizon version may support it if there are no artificial software restrictions.
 
greytmom said:
Why is it a pain to have a spare phone for a world phone? That's exactly what I'm doing. Buying the 5, passing the 4S along to my daughter, and keeping her unlocked 4.

When I'm overseas, pop in a local sim, and boom, good to go. Unless you are saying you want to pay international rates. Not me, I'd rather go to a tiny bit of extra trouble than pay an arm and a leg.
Click to expand...

That's like saying just use a different computer than the one you have for work. Sure it'll do the job but it doesn't have all the stuff I need/use already on it with the way I like it set up.

Also, I generally sell my previous version and apply that to the cost of the new phone.
 
E3BK said:
That's like saying just use a different computer than the one you have for work. Sure it'll do the job but it doesn't have all the stuff I need/use already on it with the way I like it set up.

Also, I generally sell my previous version and apply that to the cost of the new phone.
Click to expand...

Do you really need LTE when you're traveling? If not then just get the AT&T version so you can enjoy LTE at home and use HSPA+ overseas...

Remember, if you switch to Verizon and happened to be in non LTE area, you will use EVDO which means you can't make a phonecall+use data at the same time. I'm on the same boat as you and considering to move to VZW but this is a dealbreaker for me.
 
illutionz said:
Do you really need LTE when you're traveling? If not then just get the AT&T version so you can enjoy LTE at home and use HSPA+ overseas...

Remember, if you switch to Verizon and happened to be in non LTE area, you will use EVDO which means you can't make a phonecall+use data at the same time. I'm on the same boat as you and considering to move to VZW but this is a dealbreaker for me.
Click to expand...

No, LTE when traveling isn't a MUST for me. That's why I just wanted to make sure I would still at least be able to get 3G/HSPA+ speed. I was on another thread here (see post #21 & 25) and you should still be able to get those speeds w/ a GSM carrier that has the nano-SIM. So I'm going to stick w/ AT&T and my unlimited data plan. Just gotta wait for the unlocked version to be released!
 
how many changed their mind and now are not switching due to data and voice limitations on verizon?
 
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