Cell Phone Providers

[slonezp]

Going to be shopping for a new provider. Got a letter from US Cellular stating certain assets have been sold to Sprint. US cellular will service my account until the deal is completed. My contract is null and void and will not transfer to sprint and neither will the phone. I'm waiting to see what special offers Sprint is going to give us but I'm not holding my breath. In the distant past, I have had AT&T and believed I switched to Verizon because AT&T didn't have a family plan back then. This is going back around 10 years ago and the only thing worse than Verizon's cell service was their customer service. Been with US Cellular and couldn't be happier...until now. Does anybody have Sprint now? We had nothing but issues with our work Nextels for years because of the towers being switched from the military towers. I'm weary to go with Sprint. Also weary with Verizon although I believe their service has improved, how's the customer service? I can get deals on Verizon's plans as well. Either thru my sisters business plan, or a 25% discount thru my work. 

Any recommendations?

 

Anybody still offer a durable flip phone? Or am I stuck getting a smartphone. The flip phones I looked at online are cheap. 

[wnybassman]

Kind of Verizon country around here, seems like the best service anyway.  There are a few small dead spots locally (one is in my own house  lol) but overall coverage is good.    Customer service so-so, but I have nothing to compare to.  Also depends where you go for service.  Some local shops are good and some I avoid if I can.     I still run a flip phone.   The last four have been Casio GZ'ones.  First was a Boulder, then a Ravine 1, then a Ravine 2.  Didn't like the features of the Ravine 2 so I sold that on Ebay and bought another Ravine 1 on Ebay.  Fairly waterproof.  I don't get awfully concerned with a bunch of raindrops, but I don't push the issue either.  I am a drywaller/carpenter so it sees its fair share of dust and abuse also.

[mtaag3]

Our entire family has AT&T and are happy with it, I'm sure it's a different AT&T than you had in the past. Friends of mine have had problems with Sprint. If it was me I wouldn't look at sprint

[flyfisher]

I had AT&T about two years ago and switched to Verizon. I haven't seen to much of a difference but I will say the data was faster on AT&T. The big thing about Verizon, at least for me, was calls and texts between Verizon phones is free.

Customer service still sucks with Verizon and I will say AT&T was much better there too but I rarely need service so it wasn't a huge factor in my consideration of which carrier.

[shootermcbob]

I have sprint. no problems with the network or coverage, but if you must place a call to customer service....well, just go fishing.

 

PM me if you are considering sprint and would like to hear my side of the story.

[shootermcbob]

I had AT&T about two years ago and switched to Verizon. I haven't seen to much of a difference but I will say the data was faster on AT&T. The big thing about Verizon, at least for me, was calls and texts between Verizon phones is free.

Customer service still sucks with Verizon and I will say AT&T was much better there too but I rarely need service so it wasn't a huge factor in my consideration of which carrier.

You are lucky. Customer service when good....like our sponsors here...is almost taken for granted. However, when a problem arises and customer service is needed and then is poor....it can be very frustrating.

[craww]

US Cell, much like Ntelos and possibly cricket have been building their network to sell it for a while. I honestly dont know much about the sprint network in the midwest, I believe there's a 3rd party website or two out there that call test the various carriers throughout the country and will give you a ballpark of whats near you. Reception can be affected by a lot of things, traffic on a given cluster of sites, building penetration of the RF, heck even leaves on the trees and solar flares.

 

Typically, CDMA technology (verizon), will getter slightly better distance from a given site, and reach out in the boonies slightly better. GSM based networks (ATT and TMOBILE where they have it) have far superior data, and offer the ability to do things online while on a call.

[Raider Nation Fisher]

In with Verizon now. I get a NICE discount from work. The service is awesome. Especially for out in the country and other remote construction sites. The data is awesome as well. Least as far as having service goes.

Now to beat Glen to the punch. TMobile is awesome as well. Their customer service is second to none. It is the by far best I have EVER dealt with. They truly are awesome. Service is good. As long as you are not in the middle of no where. Data is good. 4g in major cities. 3g most everywhere else, except remote locations. The new no contract plans are awesome too. When they roll out their 4g lte advance system later this year, they should become even better. I would go back to them in a heart beat.

[IowaHusker28]

I was a Sprint customer and have now switched to Verizon. After switching I now know what I was missing and am asking myself why we didn't switch years ago. The customer service is 10x better than that of sprint and the coverage is better also. I honestly have no complaints with Verizon while I could write a small book about sprint. 

[SirSnookalot]

I have had only Verizon and no complaints about anything.  I've bought new phones from Wirefly.com, each and every time it has worked out just fine, quite often the deals are better than directly dealing with the carrier or Best Buy, ya gotta shop around.  I don't think it will make much of  a difference with a flip phone, they're cheap or free almost everywhere. I have kept all my old flips and smartphones.

[slonezp]

I have had only Verizon and no complaints about anything.  I've bought new phones from Wirefly.com, each and every time it has worked out just fine, quite often the deals are better than directly dealing with the carrier or Best Buy, ya gotta shop around.  I don't think it will make much of  a difference with a flip phone, they're cheap or free almost everywhere. I have kept all my old flips and smartphones.

I've had a military rated (whatever that is) Motorola flip phone that is waterproof and impact proof to a certain degree. for the last 5 years or so and would rather have it for the kind of work I do

[J Francho]

I'm on Sprint.  A few minor hiccups, but it works for me.

[.ghoti.]

I've been with Verizon since 1995, maybe 1994, I'm not sure. Never seen the need to switch. Their customer service has always been there and reponded appropriately to my concerns. They have not come to my house to vacuum the carpet or do the dishes, but they have quickly resolved the very few minor issues I've had over the years.

I'm not a smart phone user, so I can't comment about data. I have friends and students who all swear by T-Mobile for what they claim is a superior data service. If I ever make the move to a smart phone, I will investigate switching to T-Mobile.

[MCS]

AT&T and were happy with the service I have had them for about 7 yrs. But when this contract is up, I think we are going to go with Virgin Mobile, 35 bucks for unlimited everything, or something like that. AT&T is just too much for all the add ons, text is 20 bucks, data 300 mb is 20 bucks etc.

[tyrius.]

Been with AT&T since '99. It was Ameritech, then Cingular, then AT&T.  If it were me, I'd talk to people around me who have both AT&T and Verizon to make sure that there are no coverage issues around you or where you typically work.  Some carriers still have localized coverage problems and it would suck to get stuck in a 2 year contract with a carrier that has coverage problems where you use the phone the most.

[Bankbeater]

I have had T-mobile since 2007 with no problems.  I have relatives with At&t, and they have over run charges all the time, but I don't know what kind of contract they have.

[whitwolf]

I'm on Sprint.  A few minor hiccups, but it works for me.

Agreed. I have been with Sprint for 10 years and quite honestly the last three have been much better than the previous seven. The customer service Is a bit spotty but I simply hang-up and recall until I get an agent that I can work with.

[Marty]

I'm a dinosaur with an old flip phone and have been with Verizon since Day 1. I haven't had occasion to use customer service much in the last few years. Coverage is great; I get a signal at every place I fish, while the guy I fish with, who has T-Mobile, has no signal in many of the places and often hears his text alert 10-15 minutes after we've left the ramp. I've considered cheaper providers but a possible drop-off in coverage keeps me hooked.

[USNADrs]

I got my first phone when I was 16(2 years ago). My first carrier was Verizon and for the 2 years I had them they were great. I switched over to Virgin Mobile last August and have not had any trouble whatsoever. Plan on going back to Verizon or trying out a new carrier once I get back from boot.