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Verizon vs. ATT (vs. Sprint) - Which carrier will be best for iphone 4S?

7

73CortinaV8

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Sep 4, 2006
475
211
Palo Alto, CA
In my area verizon generally has more reliable coverage, but which carrier's network would be the best with the 4S's new HSDPA capabilities?

Which carrier will have the greatest speeds?
 
Theoretically AT&T would be fastest...14.4mbit HSDPA is faster than Verizon or Sprint's EV-DO.

Though any HSPA+ phone such as the Galaxy S II or Infuse 4G / Thrill 4G and LTE phones like the Droid Bionic will smoke it.
 
Can you talk and surf the web at the same time on Spring like you can on AT&T? You can't on Verizon. I'm wondering if Sprint is the same deal.
 
Q. Is there simultaneous talk and data on Verizon or Sprint?

Q. Is there visual voicemail on Verizon or Sprint?

Q. Does the 14.4 mbps theoretical network mentioned in the keynote also pertain to Verizon and/or Sprint?
 
bigpatky said:
Q. Is there simultaneous talk and data on Verizon or Sprint?

Q. Is there visual voicemail on Verizon or Sprint?

Q. Does the 14.4 mbps theoretical network mentioned in the keynote also pertain to Verizon and/or Sprint?
Click to expand...

1. No.
2. Yes
3. Hopefully.
 
bigpatky said:
Seems like I have to decide if those features outweigh the last two years of experiencing poor reception on ATT.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry you don't have a the greatest. But the question asks, which will be best regarding HSPA technology and the fast downloads.

AT&T is the only answer because only they have the required technology and infrastructure to support it. Verizon and Sprint do not. The question was not, is reception poor?

Also, I have had great service with AT&T over the past 5 years...
 
If Sprint's current plans right now follow over to the iPhone 4S's...then Sprint, definitely. Best network for the price. Seriously good plans.
 
Sprint for price, and unlimited data.....AT&T for speed.....Verizon for reliability. Your pick haha.
 
bigpatky said:
Q. Is there simultaneous talk and data on Verizon or Sprint?

Q. Is there visual voicemail on Verizon or Sprint?

Q. Does the 14.4 mbps theoretical network mentioned in the keynote also pertain to Verizon and/or Sprint?
Click to expand...

No
Yes
No (it is HSPA+ which neither Sprint nor Verizon use)

I would say Sprint has the best plans (only to offer unlimited) but honestly its still overkill and costs more than what I pay with ATT. I pay $69 a month for 450 Minutes (of which I MAYBE use 100), 1000 texts (I recently downgraded from 1500 and it will only work for me because of the upcoming iMessage) and 2GB data which is honestly plenty for almost anyone (I use data all the time and never come close to 2 GB). Throw in my employee discount and it is cheaper to be on AT&T. Oh and that whole voice + data thing comes in handy pretty often.
 
I only get 3 bars of signal on my AT&T iPhone 4 in Downtown San Diego, California. And so I'm frustrated and not happy. So with iPhone 4s, does this mean my signal will get better just because of the iPhone 4s hardware? I have unlimited data on AT&T, if I upgrade to iPhone 4s, will I be able to keep my unlimited data?

Being able to do voice and data simultaneously is great and I thought with iPhone 4s, we'll be able to do that on Verizon and/or Sprint? I use this feature a lot so this is definitely a good point on whether I should stay with AT&T or switch. Any help or suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks. https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1239243/
 
You can keep unlimited data. If there comes out an iphone needing a 4G data plan, then bets are off.
CDMA carriers are unable to do simultaneous voice/data. There's really no getting around that.
edtorious said:
I have unlimited data on AT&T, if I upgrade to iPhone 4s, will I be able to keep my unlimited data?

Being able to do voice and data simultaneously is great and I thought with iPhone 4s, we'll be able to do that on Verizon and/or Sprint?
Click to expand...
 
HSPDA is not the same as HSPA+

iPhone 4s is HSPDA, not HSPA +

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Speed_Packet_Access

----------

Also, my ping on Verizon averages around 220. AT&T ping averages around 400.


So, theoretically if you are pulling 7 Mbps on AT&T and I am pulling 2 Mbps on Verizon the web pages are going to open and be done about the same time.

It's all about the ping.
 
edtorious said:
I only get 3 bars of signal on my AT&T iPhone 4 in Downtown San Diego, California. And so I'm frustrated and not happy. So with iPhone 4s, does this mean my signal will get better just because of the iPhone 4s hardware? I have unlimited data on AT&T, if I upgrade to iPhone 4s, will I be able to keep my unlimited data?

Being able to do voice and data simultaneously is great and I thought with iPhone 4s, we'll be able to do that on Verizon and/or Sprint? I use this feature a lot so this is definitely a good point on whether I should stay with AT&T or switch. Any help or suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks. https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1239243/
Click to expand...

Interesting you can have different people with different comments about an area. My cousin lives in San Diego and says his iPhone 4 on AT&T works great, no complaints.

Even though you get 3 bars you can still make voice calls and access data.

I can hit 2.5-3 Mpbs with 3 bars.
 
The only network where there is simultaneous voice and data is ATT with the iPhone... CDMA networks are the limitation, not the phone itself. For that reason alone I go with AT&T.
 
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