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Bearxor

macrumors 6502a
Jun 7, 2007
774
503
No, **** T-Mobile. I switched to TMo in May. I live in Charlotte. There are areas of this city where my phone just displays SOS. I’ve taken two trips for work since switching. In both locations I had no service whereas people on AT&T and Verizon are fine.

On July 6th I qualify to switch back to Verizon and get the $500 service credit and you better believe that ***** in my calendar with like three reminders.
 

kylelerner

macrumors regular
Jun 24, 2013
167
916
Marina del Rey, CA
T-Mobile, the best carrier, (I was previously Sprint) - Speed Test run in my house in Marina del Rey, CA (near Venice Beach), next to a massive window, in Los Angeles:

1655852008613.png
 

btrach144

macrumors demi-god
Aug 28, 2015
2,866
6,977
Indiana
Had AT&T since iPhone launch in 2007. Switched in 2018 because we had a $400 phone bill for over charges and that’s BS and consumer price gouging. I’ve got a family to take care of.

So in 2018 we switched to T-Mobile. Loved it but we also lived in Seattle, where their HQ is so of course it was a great market with no dead spots.

Moved to the Midwest in 2020 and dead spots everywhere. Even waited for their Sprint coverage to come online and we had a dead spot at home. We live in a 375 home subdivision, not some field. Horrible coverage from T-Mobile.

So we switched to Verizon. We pay 80% more each month but I have had service in 100% of the places I go in last 2 years.
 

bushman4

macrumors 601
Mar 22, 2011
4,026
3,427
T Mobile is king of 5G Verizon and Att slow to roll out their C spectrum which has better speeds
Only problem with all 3 is that 5G gives you less battery life. So there is a trade-off no matter which carrier you choose
 
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SFjohn

macrumors 68020
Sep 8, 2016
2,095
4,349
T-Mobile is great for us. We live almost exactly in the middle of SF & get 2 phones & 2 watches for $90 a month, unlimited everything (as I’m over 55). Coverage is great, speed is too. No issues with service centers. Easy to expand plan for overseas trips or more hotspot data if needed. It’s not 100% perfect, but no carrier is.
 

nutmac

macrumors 603
Mar 30, 2004
6,057
7,320
I have no doubt that T-Mobile's 5G network is second to none (in the US). But both AT&T and Verizon boost superior 4G network. Most people would rather have a slower network almost everywhere.
 

PinkyMacGodess

Suspended
Mar 7, 2007
10,271
6,226
Midwest America.
I asked around, and did my own research, and chose Verizon. *shrug* T-Mobile didn't have some of the features as I remember. Basically if you have a cell phone, you are going to be screwed, so you have to choose how much you want to be screwed. Sad, but true. I now have hot spot capability, and have used it twice. Too funny...
 

Brandon42

macrumors regular
Jul 24, 2019
186
565
I signed up for T-Mobile 5G Home Internet after seeing the MR article on the test drive last month. The service had enough issues that I had to cancel. It gave me a chance to experience T Mobile customer service and it has been beyond horrible. Constantly getting transferred to someone else and have to explain myself again.
 

HobeSoundDarryl

macrumors G5
What plan is this? The cheapest I'm seeing is $5 monthly for 0.5GB or $60 annually.

Prepaid plans. You can sign up for it right on the iPad but I don’t think you can find it anywhere on the T-Mobile website… nor does their CS team seem to know about it.
 

sarcosis

macrumors 6502a
Apr 25, 2006
591
8
These United States
I’ve tried T-Mobile 3 times with various devices where I live and it’s always the worse coverage wise of the 3. ATT is ok, but I’ve been with Verizon or a prepaid Verizon MVNO for quite a while. Coverage is just so much better around me and it’s not even close.
 

AppleFan1998

macrumors regular
Nov 4, 2010
205
189
USA
T Mobile and AtT are both spotty in my area, they should really have two scores, one for the metropolitan score and one for the whole US. I live in crowded LA, isn’t large population area the priority?
 

LogicalApex

macrumors 65816
Nov 13, 2015
1,283
1,959
PA, USA
All things being equal, sure T-Mobile came out on top. They sure aren’t leading in my neck of the woods. Not for lack of advertising, though. They’ve suckered a few co-workers into believing their “coverage” hype, but the reality is that the best network for any individual is the one that provides the best coverage for the customers usage. Sometimes there is more than one provider that can do this, usually in metro areas, but frequently there isn’t in rural communities. Do your research.
Cell coverage is very situational as you noted.

I am a happy T-Mobile customer who just moved from Philly to upstate NY. Great 5G for me in Philly. When house shopping T-Mobile had zero coverage in the neighborhood I was moving to. I was planning a carrier swap. Sucks, ugh you need coverage. By time I moved in though. 5 bars of 5G with over 600mbps down so I am glad they are continuing to expand coverage.

I’d suggest trying their free test drive since we are iPhones here. Then you can dual sim with your curre carrier and T-Mobile and see where they stand for you individually.


Long term. I think T-Mobile and Verizon will be the two top carriers. AT&T will continue to turn into the weaker third carrier. Occupying where T-Mobile used to in the 4G days.
 
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JosephAW

macrumors 603
May 14, 2012
5,960
7,914
Still just as slow as cdma sprint. :rolleyes:

Also, try to reset your statistics, you can’t. :(
 

HorstBockman

macrumors regular
Apr 8, 2022
244
521
If you’re considering switching to T-mobile, activate lines yourself online for free and avoid their stores. Clerks at a local T-Mobile store said it was the same price online as in the store and charged me $35 each, as well as telling me I needed a SIM card for my Apple Watch. All baloney. And when confronted about the fraud, the manager said a refund couldn’t be given. (Credit card dispute filed, but what a pain.) Also note you’ll be limited to arbitration over any disputes—unable to sue—if you don’t opt out of their terms within 30 days.
 
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jav6454

macrumors Core
Nov 14, 2007
22,303
6,257
1 Geostationary Tower Plaza
Where in the SF Bay? I've had T-Mobile and Sprint before that. Has been waaaaay better than AT&T in general in all over the Bay.
I live in the east bay and drive all over CA, nothing but compliments.
I used to work in SF and the 5G is so fast, plus TMobile got towers that could get through the brick office buildings.
Also love my grandfathered Sprint plan. Includes unlimited phone date and 60GB of tethering per month.
I've been to the Bay Area for around 4months due to business. Stayed within (85% time) the SF isthmus and service was good.

AT&T here.
 

mrmister

Suspended
Dec 19, 2008
655
774
By their own chart T-Mobile as 33% more data failures than AT&T.

That's...not a little.

By far my biggest cellular issue is when for no reason a cell provider just refuses to work, and I have to toggle airplane or cellular to get it to reacquire a new lease.

So this stat of their basic reliability is way more compelling to me than whether is is faster when it does work.

I need it to work EVERY TIME.
 

T5BRICK

macrumors G3
Aug 3, 2006
8,313
2,387
Oregon
That last category at the bottom, “Failed Data Connections”, pretty much explains my experience with T-Mobile. AT&T works fine, Verizon is better. I don’t care about speeds beyond “fast enough” which for me is ~20MBPs.
 
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