Database Users

T-Mobile US service. Is it worth it coming from 9 years of Verizon?

I have the TP2 on Verizon, and I would like the HD2. My biggest concern is dropping and poor cell reception. I'm in Orange County, CA, but I do travel around the U.S. occassionally. Please be honest and let me know how people who are on T-Mobile U.S. service what you think. Do you drop calls a lot? Poor connections? Dead zones?
I've had Verizon for 9 years, so I've been spoiled with great cell service. I RARELY get dropped calls and dead zone (I'm being honest). So I'm wondering what people think about T-Mobile.

you won't be disappointed
I haven't dropped a call in chicago though i wish data was like philly lol

whiteblazer01 said:
I have the TP2 on Verizon, and I would like the HD2. My biggest concern is dropping and poor cell reception. I'm in Orange County, CA, but I do travel around the U.S. occassionally. Please be honest and let me know how people who are on T-Mobile U.S. service what you think. Do you drop calls a lot? Poor connections? Dead zones?
I've had Verizon for 9 years, so I've been spoiled with great cell service. I RARELY get dropped calls and dead zone (I'm being honest). So I'm wondering what people think about T-Mobile.
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I've never had a dropped call... but the 3g signal sucks. It doesn't get 3g signals in buildings or houses. I really regret leaving at&t, which had great 3g signals. Also, looking at the t-mobile signal map, it looks like there's a lot of places in the US that don't get t-mobile.
I would suggest, if you can afford it, get the Telstra 9193 HD2 imported from australia and use At&t. You'll get much better service, at least 3g service.

3g & signal are great for me better than my friend with an iphone at&t i had tmobile since it was voicestream & the service has always been good but i say it all depends on your area givie it a try if you are not satisfy you could always go back as soon as you dont pass the 30days

Not for the HD2. Reception on this phone blows chunks. It makes a low signal a no signal. It switches over to EDGE at the drop of a hat. Anyone that switched to T-Mobile for the HD2 can't make a good evaluation based on that device, it truly blows. T-Mobile has an good soon-to-be HSPA+ Network in Orange County but I would avoid the HD2 at all costs.

Service
I live in Idaho. I have Att, it is ok, but don't get 3g. But I'm ok with edge. I have tried Tmobile,It was great in the town 14 miles from my home. But lost signal all the time. I would say from what other people say, is it's ok in big cities, but not rural. I would pay the extra, & get telstra, on Att. Actually, I did similar thing, just put my sim in from 10.00 data plan. I don't use much data so I'm not going to pay higher plan,, My bud in Pa has telstra,on att, loves it, no tmobile probs.

Former AT&T user for about 10 years - really depends on the area. I just got a T-Mobile HD2 and while the phone is phenominal compared to the current AT&T offerings (build quality, screen, etc.) the network in St Louis is VERY spotty. As others have said the 3g is very weak - as soon as you move say into a parking garage (3g worked with AT&T) it will immediately switch to Edge. Also there seems to be a ton of dead spots even in urban areas. The 3G speeds here at most get in to the 800 range where AT&T was well over 1200 BUT the latentcy and browsing speeds on AT&T seem slower. iPhones in this area suck up tons of bandwidth.
Traveling from say St Louis across to Atlanta on major interstates - AT&T is pretty much on Edge EXCEPT in really major cities like Nashville but other than that its Edge all the way to Atlanta. Used a AT&T Tilt and 8525 for this run. DON'T believe the coverage maps - as soon as I left St Louis it was Edge through Kentucky unless I passed a very populated city and the speeds were mediocre at best.
Until a radio ROM update is released that hopefully fixes the reception problem the phone will have issues. Call quality is just "ok" with some popping, hissing etc.
I think you'll be ok if you use it in MAJOR urban areas but if you go off route or go to some of the smaller cities/towns coverage will be pretty poor.
I only paid about 75 dollars for the phone with a two year commitment so I can't really complain - the only really bad decision on Tmobile part was to spec the phone differently than the European HD2 - finding cases, screen protectors that fit the phone at the moment is pretty difficult.

Nope you are better off with the htc incredible and stay on verzion

stim141 said:
Former AT&T user for about 10 years - really depends on the area. I just got a T-Mobile HD2 and while the phone is phenominal compared to the current AT&T offerings (build quality, screen, etc.) the network in St Louis is VERY spotty. As others have said the 3g is very weak - as soon as you move say into a parking garage (3g worked with AT&T) it will immediately switch to Edge. Also there seems to be a ton of dead spots even in urban areas. The 3G speeds here at most get in to the 800 range where AT&T was well over 1200 BUT the latentcy and browsing speeds on AT&T seem slower. iPhones in this area suck up tons of bandwidth.
Traveling from say St Louis across to Atlanta on major interstates - AT&T is pretty much on Edge EXCEPT in really major cities like Nashville but other than that its Edge all the way to Atlanta. Used a AT&T Tilt and 8525 for this run. DON'T believe the coverage maps - as soon as I left St Louis it was Edge through Kentucky unless I passed a very populated city and the speeds were mediocre at best.
Until a radio ROM update is released that hopefully fixes the reception problem the phone will have issues. Call quality is just "ok" with some popping, hissing etc.
I think you'll be ok if you use it in MAJOR urban areas but if you go off route or go to some of the smaller cities/towns coverage will be pretty poor.
I only paid about 75 dollars for the phone with a two year commitment so I can't really complain - the only really bad decision on Tmobile part was to spec the phone differently than the European HD2 - finding cases, screen protectors that fit the phone at the moment is pretty difficult.
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I don't see exactly what you're getting at. It's the HD2, not the network.. the signal might be weak but the HD2 totally drops the signal. Swap out your HD2 for a Motorola CLIQ or CLIQ XT and you'll see what I'm talking about. I'm not saying it won't ever switch over to EDGE again because the network still has some EDGE-only towers sprinkled in (said to be rectified in 2010+Fiber to the sites) but it will greatly reduce the occurrence.

8 years with verizon, 5 lines in south florida
Switched one line specificly for HD2 to tmobile. SUx 3g signal
Most of the tiem ti shows 3g or H but the connection is weak, i get mostly 300-500 range, once ina while it may spike to 800.
Cant even compare to Verizon, i had Droid.
Thinking to go wimax for Sprint. Same phone but better data output.

I've been with them all - Verizon, Tmobile, AT&T - even dating back to 'Cellular One'. I also used to travel far more in the US than I do now and I've never been disappointed with what is now AT&T's network or service area. Tmobile had been spotty for me.
If you're looking into an HD2, I'd recommend buying a T9193 and going with AT&T. It'll cost you more for the hardware but you won't be forced into a $30+/month data plan for two years because you can go with their 'MEdia Net' unlimited plan for $20/month instead, saving $10 per month over the data plan that iPhone users are forced into. IOW, the $240 it'll save you over two years will help reduce your private purchase of the phone to about $500 or less, if you shop hard and wait for a deal.

it would really depend on your own location i've had verizon< noproblems though many years ago. then moved over to nextel< its nextel:x then moved over to at&t (found this site) at&t I would always have drop spots, not random alsways a consistant few locations other than that it was fine. I recently switched to t-mo for the hd2 on no contract as i plan on moving over to sprint once the evo comes out. so far the best service has come from verizon though at the time I only had a flip phone. I would go back but haven't liked any of the phones and that was the only reason i left. I would stick with verizon and try out the incredible. I haven't encountered any issues being in the OC myself with t-mo service but its only been about a month and I haven't traveled out of OC.

picassoianctions said:
8 years with verizon, 5 lines in south florida
Switched one line specificly for HD2 to tmobile. SUx 3g signal
Most of the tiem ti shows 3g or H but the connection is weak, i get mostly 300-500 range, once ina while it may spike to 800.
Cant even compare to Verizon, i had Droid.
Thinking to go wimax for Sprint. Same phone but better data output.
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LOL.. I really hope you do pick up a WiMAX phone. If you think you're disappointed now just wait. Also the connection has nothing to do with it, if you're getting slow speeds that's because the backend of the network is still on one T1. When HSPA+ is enabled it will blow WiMAX out of the water.
BillTheCat said:
I've been with them all - Verizon, Tmobile, AT&T - even dating back to 'Cellular One'. I also used to travel far more in the US than I do now and I've never been disappointed with what is now AT&T's network or service area. Tmobile had been spotty for me.
If you're looking into an HD2, I'd recommend buying a T9193 and going with AT&T. It'll cost you more for the hardware but you won't be forced into a $30+/month data plan for two years because you can go with their 'MEdia Net' unlimited plan for $20/month instead, saving $10 per month over the data plan that iPhone users are forced into. IOW, the $240 it'll save you over two years will help reduce your private purchase of the phone to about $500 or less, if you shop hard and wait for a deal.
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When did you have T-Mobile?

whiteblazer01 said:
I have the TP2 on Verizon, and I would like the HD2. My biggest concern is dropping and poor cell reception. I'm in Orange County, CA, but I do travel around the U.S. occassionally. Please be honest and let me know how people who are on T-Mobile U.S. service what you think. Do you drop calls a lot? Poor connections? Dead zones?
I've had Verizon for 9 years, so I've been spoiled with great cell service. I RARELY get dropped calls and dead zone (I'm being honest). So I'm wondering what people think about T-Mobile.
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I have T-Mobile as my personal phone (Proud owner of The HD2) and have AT&T phone as my business phone (company gave it to me to use it)... So, here is the comparison:
Where I live the reception is very strong for both T-Mobile and AT&T - when you check their maps... T-Mobile has not failed me in last 5 years. I recall only one outage I have experienced and that was due to bad weather where I simply was not able to make phone calls to certain people. So my rating for T-Mobile is and stays 5 stars hands down...
Now AT&T - it appears to have faster 3G - like it is a big deal since I do not use it at all - but anyway, having faster 3G that's where everything stops. Call Reception is terrible, dropped calls all over the place, you get into the building you loose reception easily, etc. Therefore, can easily rate AT&T with lousy 2 stars - which they get only based on faster 3G.
Bottom line T-Mobile is definitely better in service where I live which is Chicagoland Northern burbs - but comparing it to Verizon? Well, I never had Verizon as I am not fan of CDMA networks - more like GSM person (habbit I brought from Europe I guess lol)... I heard Verizon is good with coverage; not that great in Basements - but having HD2 in mind - I do not think you will regret it...
PS test it out and see how it works - you can get that done and see for your area if it's working or not... good luck!

T mobile vs. Verizon 3G

My samsung vibrant on t mobile
Vs
My wife's samsung fascinate on the nations largest 3G network.
Both pics were taken around the same time and right next to each other, I took the pc of mine from my wife's fascinate, and the pic of hers on my vibrant.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

only see one pic.

My wife's fascinate
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

Cool Did you say where you live?

i was pulling down 6Mbps the other night
suck it, verizon

this is the reason i ditched verizon. most places i was hitting .6-.8 mbps and i almost hit 5mbps with tmo on my vibrant.

Verizon's service was a lot slower at times, but I REALLY miss having 3g literally EVERYWHERE
T-Mobile 3G isn't even in every major city here in Northwest Arkansas....let alone the rural areas

Tmobile has the fastest 3g around hands down. I have tried sprint and att. Both are slower, noticeably slower and the thing is t-mobile hasn't even started 4g or lte lol
Sent from my Samsung Vibrant

Tmo does have hspa+ though which can have an impact on data speeds depending on where you live
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

Tmo will beat everyone on speed but man good luck on finding it. Sprint was slower but everywhere

T-Mobile is the fastest 3G carrier in the US right now IF you live in a HSPA+ area.

The real question is why does your wife have the outrageously high priced verizon while you sport the more economical t-mobile? Business issued?
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

There are two main reasons Tmo typcially tops in speed:
Tmo has the fastest hardware right now. This will change, of course, seeing as both ATT and Verizon are working on their 4G networks and Tmo has no plans to go to 4G for the next two years. It is worth noting ATT and Verizon will have LTE not WiMax.
Tmo has a lot less customers so there is less demand on their towers. Less demand means faster speeds for those that do have Tmo.

T-Mobile is increasing 3G coverage a bunch recently. They just gave Puerto Rico 3G coverage and I've been hearing of other places getting 3G recently.
Verizon 3G is much slower here, you can hit 1.9Mbps but you're usually under 1Mbps like T-Mobile 3G before HSPA+. 3G coverage isn't all that either, EV-DO drops out sometimes at my house but I can't complain.
3G is also slightly on JI2 now that the -dBm reading is more accurate within the Android system. The Vibrant grabs onto a 3G signal much better than ANY phone I've had on T-Mobile. (G1, CLIQ, myTouch, TM506, TouchPro2, Nuron).
This is what I typically see with T-Mobile. Data speed is much better than all 3 of the carriers combined here for me. Still needs work in some areas though! Not going to lie.. but overall, it's better.
You would be lucky to get 500Kbps with AT&T or Verizon during peak hours. The Sprint EV-DO network is taking a huge hit due to the new smartphones on their network. It went from being underutilized to being over used.

As a former verizon/sprint/att/and uk versions f#ckee, ive never been more happy with a carriers service/price.
Tmo Hpsa ftw ..see sig

98classic said:
Tmo will beat everyone on speed but man good luck on finding it. Sprint was slower but everywhere
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Sad but true. I'm TM all the way, but F#$#, I hate how it's so limited still to a small area. Granted they are still expanding...Anyway, here's my pictures below...
I wouldn't quite knock Verizon...they'll kill TM on coverage on the mainland...but in some areas TM kicks @$$ over all....
Here's the true coverage ranking, hate it or love it, it's real:
1. Verizon
2. AT$T
3. Sprint
4. T-Mobile
Don't get me wrong, I get sick speeds...super fast...but only in certain areas...
My speed test pic is below...

Sprint coverage is way below T-Mobile coverage. 3G yes but I'd like to keep my calls.

heygrl said:
Sprint coverage is way below T-Mobile coverage. 3G yes but I'd like to keep my calls.
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As a trucker having gone through all 48 states with both carriers this is just not true
Well maybe in WU tmo might have slight better coverage

98classic said:
As a trucker having gone through all 48 states with both carriers this is just not true
Well maybe in WU tmo might have slight better coverage
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Roaming on Verizon in most of those states no?
When you lose the signal in a big city you can't just roam the rest of the time because the phone will try to pick up the weakest bit of Sprint signal. Sprint drops out often here. Deadzones in stores where T-Mobile manages a good usable signal? Check. Signal drop outs when driving down the road? Check. Lesser amount of coverage overall? Check. Dropped calls when signal fades and roaming switches over? Check.

heygrl said:
Roaming on Verizon in most of those states no?
When you lose the signal in a big city you can't just roam the rest of the time because the phone will try to pick up the weakest bit of Sprint signal. Sprint drops out often here. Deadzones in stores where T-Mobile manages a good usable signal? Check. Signal drop outs when driving down the road? Check. Lesser amount of coverage overall? Check. Dropped calls when signal fades and roaming switches over? Check.
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Lol must be the vibrant that sucks then cuz in a 1000 mile stretch of road I might get 3g 3 times for a few minutes, and speed is the worse while moving,. Just last night in portland, stopped, in the driver seat I had 3g, if I moved back to the sleeper 3 feet away it dropped to edge. Might be the phone that only gets 3g in wide open spaces like a satellite

Love the phone; T-Mobile not so much

I am in love with this Nexus-S, my fav Android phone by far, and in the past I have owned; MyTouch 3G...Nexus-One...EVO 4G...
I really like the compact size and lightweight feel to it, but still feels like a solid device to me, and it is super thin for a powerful smart phone, plus of course the S AMOLED screen is drool worthy. And battery life is way better than the EVO. And to top it off, being a Google developer phone, comes with no carrier bloatware, or manufacturer UI's, and is a "pure" Android phone with the latest OS.
But...T-Mobile is a deal breaker for me, compared to Sprint for connection. In Chicago it is pretty good, just sucks once inside houses or buildings. I own a Millwork supply business for custom home builders, and I am in and out of new homes a lot, and it seems to drop signal once I go inside a new construction building. Same with my own home, I have my Office in Basement, and it is like 90% loss of signal down there. I can never make or receive calls down there, but texting is good. Where as my EVO on Sprint, worked pretty good in the Basement, not perfect, but much better than the Nexus-S, and going to job sites, my EVO never dropped calls. And Navigation on the Nexus-S, I have had a few slight issues, just having hard time locating me, that has only happened three times so far, had to restart phone each time. But my EVO the 6 months I owned it, I can remember maybe once it not locating me. Again I blame this on T-Mobile not the Nexus.
But T-Mobile monthly is approx $30 cheaper per month which is nice. But then what good is saving thirty bucks, if I drop signal indoors, and somewhat spotty navigation service. Not sure what to do...I bought the Nexus-S on launch day Dec 17th, at Best Buy Mobile, paid cash full retail for the phone, not sure what my return options are ?

Is your nexus on 3g mode? Have you tried to put it in edge to see if it helps?

JasjarMan said:
Is your nexus on 3g mode? Have you tried to put it in edge to see if it helps?
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Tried that this morning, more for battery saving. But then went to make a call, and it screwed up. It was calling my client, but no ringing tone, and I clicked end call, and it just hung there, so I had to restart and tried again in 3G and it worked fine.
I was driving near O'Hare airport at the time, and that area is know to kill cell signals.

ya T-mo has horrible building penetration but other than that, i love em, great customer service, great speeds, and they are always improving

slowz3r said:
ya T-mo has horrible building penetration but other than that, i love em, great customer service, great speeds, and they are always improving
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That is my only beef with this phone. "horrible building penetration", too bad that can't be upgraded by T-Mobile. Other than that I LOVE this phone.

Zorachus said:
That is my only beef with this phone. "horrible building penetration", too bad that can't be upgraded by T-Mobile. Other than that I LOVE this phone.
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the building penetration has nothing to do with the phone its the frequency that T-mo uses the higher the frequency the worse the building penetration.
Kinda sucks but T-mo is coming out with one of those Cellphone base station signal thingies (forgot what they are really called) so that may help you out

I'm with the OP; best damned phone I've owned in terms of appearance, feel, performance right out of the box...but T-Mo just doesn't deliver in some areas I need it to. When it delivers, it's the best out there, but too many places that indoors it kills the service. When I've got full 3G service it's at least 25% faster than AT&T, and 3-5 times faster than Sprint.
One office building I work out of is T shaped. If you're on the left side of the T, great signal, but go anywhere on the right side of the T and you're in a total dead zone. AT&T's not much better in that building, but in most places of town (Los Angeles SF, SG, SC Valley areas), it's better than T-Mo. Verizon works well there.
To the OP, if you're willing to shell out the dough, about $300, you can buy a cellular signal booster, I did when I got a Nexus One, it allowed me to actually get a T-Mo signal inside my house; I'd recommend one for your basement office if you can run the antenna coax line to outdoors. Voice and EDGE only, though, there's only one brand that claims to do T-Mo AWS/3G right now, and their device is $450.
EDIT: I think this is the model I got for the extender: http://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Exte...W5WI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1294073803&sr=8-1

Zorachus said:
I am in love with this Nexus-S, my fav Android phone by far, and in the past I have owned; MyTouch 3G...Nexus-One...EVO 4G...
I really like the compact size and lightweight feel to it, but still feels like a solid device to me, and it is super thin for a powerful smart phone, plus of course the S AMOLED screen is drool worthy. And battery life is way better than the EVO. And to top it off, being a Google developer phone, comes with no carrier bloatware, or manufacturer UI's, and is a "pure" Android phone with the latest OS.
But...T-Mobile is a deal breaker for me, compared to Sprint for connection. In Chicago it is pretty good, just sucks once inside houses or buildings. I own a Millwork supply business for custom home builders, and I am in and out of new homes a lot, and it seems to drop signal once I go inside a new construction building. Same with my own home, I have my Office in Basement, and it is like 90% loss of signal down there. I can never make or receive calls down there, but texting is good. Where as my EVO on Sprint, worked pretty good in the Basement, not perfect, but much better than the Nexus-S, and going to job sites, my EVO never dropped calls. And Navigation on the Nexus-S, I have had a few slight issues, just having hard time locating me, that has only happened three times so far, had to restart phone each time. But my EVO the 6 months I owned it, I can remember maybe once it not locating me. Again I blame this on T-Mobile not the Nexus.
But T-Mobile monthly is approx $30 cheaper per month which is nice. But then what good is saving thirty bucks, if I drop signal indoors, and somewhat spotty navigation service. Not sure what to do...I bought the Nexus-S on launch day Dec 17th, at Best Buy Mobile, paid cash full retail for the phone, not sure what my return options are ?
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Do what I'm doing. Month to month in at&t no data... buy a clear 4g wimax ispot...hack it to work on any device. Only $25 a month works great. I couldn't stand edge but know how crappy tmobile is
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

distortedloop said:
EDIT: I think this is the model I got for the extender: http://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Exte...W5WI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1294073803&sr=8-1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the link, reading the user reviews, makes this sound like exactly what I need for my home Office. But still won't help when out at job sites, and losing signal inside.
So now I need to decide, keep the Nexus-S which I LOVE, but have iffy service inside, or just go back to the EVO with near perfect indoor service ?

I am with the OP on this one too.
Best Android phone on the market but T-mobile's coverage inside buildings is sub par.
I understand that the 1700/2100mhz spectrum has harder time penetrating buildings but it should not be THAT bad...
I come from Europe where most of the networks only use 2100Mhz and i don't recall seeing such a penetration issue.
It has to be T-Mobile's lack of towers which results in such poor indoor coverage.
at&t is also 90% 1900Mhz in the SF Bay Area and they have no problem with indoor reception, at least not as bad as T-Mobile.
That's my only main issue with the phone.
I ordered a signal booster from JDteck.com (which are the only ones who are providing a 1700/2100Mhz boosters). I'll report back how it works.

clubtech said:
AT&T is also 90% 1900Mhz in the SF Bay Area and they have no problem with indoor reception, at least not as bad as T-Mobile.
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As of 2009, AT&T moved most of their 3G spec to the 850mhz band, so indoor reception should be EVEN better, or at least battery life should have improved a bit. I remember this was a big issue back in the iPhone days. I'm pretty sure they're entirely on 850mhz.
slowz3r said:
Kinda sucks but T-mo is coming out with one of those Cellphone base station signal thingies (forgot what they are really called) so that may help you out
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Click to collapse
Whatever happened to that TMo [email protected] thing a few years ago? I remember they did a pilot program and then expanded. It was pretty popular. Too bad they stopped that.
Looks like this is now an error page: http://www.t-mobile.com/promotions/hotspotathomelearnmore.aspx

clubtech said:
It has to be T-Mobile's lack of towers which results in such poor indoor coverage.
at&t is also 90% 1900Mhz in the SF Bay Area and they have no problem with indoor reception, at least not as bad as T-Mobile.
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Agreed on T-Mo needs more towers, if they weren't so far spread apart, we'd get better penetration in more areas.
Not sure about the AT&T in San Francisco part, though. I've listened to Leo LaPorte, Patrick Norton, Kevin Rose and all that ilk ***** and moan about AT&T poor signal/reception on the iPhone in San Francisco for a couple of years until AT&T started rolling out the 850mhz on the 3G side. New York City the same thing - poor AT&T penetration on the 1900mhz side in and amongst all the tall buildings.
clubtech said:
That's my only main issue with the phone.
I ordered a signal booster from JDteck.com (which are the only ones who are providing a 1700/2100Mhz boosters). I'll report back how it works.
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I'll be very interested in your report back on that. This is the one I referenced, but not by name, in my earlier post. It didn't seem worth the $200 extra premium to get the AWS service repeated, since in my home I have WiFi anyways, but when I bought the unit I do have, this JDteck one wasn't available.

allen099 said:
As of 2009, AT&T moved most of their 3G spec to the 850mhz band, so indoor reception should be EVEN better, or at least battery life should have improved a bit. I remember this was a big issue back in the iPhone days. I'm pretty sure they're entirely on 850mhz.
Whatever happened to that TMo [email protected] thing a few years ago? I remember they did a pilot program and then expanded. It was pretty popular. Too bad they stopped that.
Looks like this is now an error page: http://www.t-mobile.com/promotions/hotspotathomelearnmore.aspx
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Not sure what happened to that I used to have it as well.
but really i say wait till after CES, rumor is T-Mo will announce their router

I'm with T-mobile for their tremendous pricing plan advantage over Att (I'm also in SoCal and T-mobile has tremendous coverage here)
T-mobile: $10 - $20 per month for 5gb of data
Att: $25 per month for 2gb of data

ap3604 said:
I'm with T-mobile for their tremendous pricing plan advantage over Att (I'm also in SoCal and T-mobile has tremendous coverage here)
T-mobile: $10 - $20 per month for 5gb of data
Att: $25 per month for 2gb of data
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Click to collapse
even more savings with em+ 60 bucks 500 minutes, texting and web

ap3604 said:
I'm with T-mobile for their tremendous pricing plan advantage over Att (I'm also in SoCal and T-mobile has tremendous coverage here)
T-mobile: $10 - $20 per month for 5gb of data
Att: $25 per month for 2gb of data
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Click to collapse
What part of SoCal are you in? I'm in the San Fernando Valley and Santa Clarita Valley most of my time. In the North part of both valleys T-Mo data is EDGE only in large areas, and even voice has a hard time getting into buildings. It's really a bummer when I have to spend time up in Santa Clarita.
My house is actually in a little dead/poor coverage area spot even on T-Mo's maps...it's right on the edge of three different towers that don't quite fully overlap their coverage circles. I can get a signal outdoors, but inside not very good without my cellular extender.
I've still got my grandfathered iPhone SIM for one of my Androids (i9000), $30 for true "unlimited" data, no caps or throttles on that one. Someone told me they're using the unlimted data for non-smartphones on their Galaxy S with AT&T because AT&T can't recognize the IMEI and that it's a smartphone. I think that data is $10/month.
PS. SimplyMobile sounds intriguing. Read some good reports of it in another thread. Uses T-Mo's voice and data service, everything unlimited (voice, text, data (3g)) for $60/mo.

clubtech said:
I am with the OP on this one too.
Best Android phone on the market but T-mobile's coverage inside buildings is sub par.
I understand that the 1700/2100mhz spectrum has harder time penetrating buildings but it should not be THAT bad...
I come from Europe where most of the networks only use 2100Mhz and i don't recall seeing such a penetration issue.
It has to be T-Mobile's lack of towers which results in such poor indoor coverage.
at&t is also 90% 1900Mhz in the SF Bay Area and they have no problem with indoor reception, at least not as bad as T-Mobile.
That's my only main issue with the phone.
I ordered a signal booster from JDteck.com (which are the only ones who are providing a 1700/2100Mhz boosters). I'll report back how it works.
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Click to collapse
you have to realize that tmobile's 3g network is still very young, so all the gaps are not filled in which is required for higher frequency networks. since towers need to be spaced closer together for bands such as 1900mhz and higher, i'm sure tmobile only laid out the bare minimum during their initial 3g roll out just to get SOMETHING out there. over time they may fill in the gaps.
and we all know how stellar the coverage is in UK even using the 2100mha band. however its the same story, less physical geography to cover, in addition to better government regulations over there "forcing" one technology standard and set of common frequencies. that makes it much better for ubiquious coverage in general.

distortedloop said:
What part of SoCal are you in? I'm in the San Fernando Valley and Santa Clarita Valley most of my time. In the North part of both valleys T-Mo data is EDGE only in large areas, and even voice has a hard time getting into buildings. It's really a bummer when I have to spend time up in Santa Clarita.
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Click to collapse
Sorry to hear about your lack of coverage distortedloop
I'm in Orange County area and get great coverage around 3 mbps download on my Nexus One.
distortedloop said:
I've still got my grandfathered iPhone SIM for one of my Androids (i9000), $30 for true "unlimited" data, no caps or throttles on that one. Someone told me they're using the unlimted data for non-smartphones on their Galaxy S with AT&T because AT&T can't recognize the IMEI and that it's a smartphone. I think that data is $10/month.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I looked into that too (since the Vibrant has Att's 1900 3g band built in and Att won't recognize the IMEI) but I believe the $10 data is only available on a family plan and only if they have the unlimited messaging already on their plan, an extra $20 per month.
So say you do this family plan trick the savings are kind of washed out compared to T-mobile:
$70 per month for 700 minutes
$25 per month for 2gb of data for iPhone
$20 per month for unlimited messaging
$10 per month for "dumbphone" data
___________________________________
$125 per month. Yuck!
I'd rather just stick with T-mobile even more plus contract free:
$30 per month 500 min
$10 per month for data

distortedloop said:
PS. SimplyMobile sounds intriguing. Read some good reports of it in another thread. Uses T-Mo's voice and data service, everything unlimited (voice, text, data (3g)) for $60/mo.
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Click to collapse
I was wondering about simple mobile and how it worked with the NS..anyone have it?

alnova1 said:
I was wondering about simple mobile and how it worked with the NS..anyone have it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The guy who started this thread has it.
I've seen some posts where they're saying that "unlimited data" on Simple Mobile actually means 1GB cap. I'd check that out before switching.

Sprint's Gnex vs Nexus 4

Currently im on Tmobile and i get no signal at my house (NONE, zero, nada, cero). Im restricted to using outdated and slow ICS roms for my HTC sensation because i depend on wifi calling to make calls at home. So its time to GTFO :/ this carrier.
My choices are restricted to the following: (no verizon here)
Sprint, which gets 60%-75% signal here (out of full bars) anywhere in my house gets 3g and LTE.
ATT gets 70-80% with 4g signal and about 50% signal with LTE.
it does really matter the speeds because ill be using wifi, the point is i can atleast receive and make calls at the house.
Ignoring plan options because in ATT its 85 a month with the plan i want and with sprint its 80 (excluding taxes on both).
If i go to Sprint i will be able to get the ol' Gnex with less desirable specs for me but on a slightly cheaper plan and i will be able to use LTE but the biggest deal breaker is waiting for sprint to release the updates.
I was wondering how Sprint GNEX users feel about the slower updates or if theyre happy with their phone.
I can get Nexus 4 with slower speeds but instantly released updates on a slightly more expensive plan.
wanted your input before making this decision! thanks XDA Id really want a nexus because of the pure google experience and the faster updates.
Also: someone told me to just go to sprint and get a Optimus G if i wanted LTE that bad and a strong phone.
Ive never used LTE so im not spoiled but i want to get out Tmobile's slow network (here in PR)

I currently have a gnex on Sprint. I switch my PRL due to the exstreamly slow speeds and the fact I got no data at work. I have gotten a termination letter last week for excessive roaming. I will tell you I will never be under a contract again. I am going to ST with the n4 and yes I am giving up the hope that one day we will have LTE in the area but for now I need reliable data and T-Mobile has good coverage here. Sprint has the best prices out of the big 4 but there service was bad for me.
As for for the gnex... I love that phone but it is handicapped on Verizon and Sprint due to there delay in updates.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda app-developers app

those of you on tmobile

Want to switch to T-Mobile from VZW at end of my Verizon billing cycle around Nov4 (anywhere before that maybe like 2-3 days)
How is signal treating you guys without band12?
I will be joining my friends plan he has 2 lines for 100 unlimited everything so my line will be +40
I understand on 5.1.1 there is no wifi calling on Moto X but that might change in 6.0 and maybe with 6.0 they will add band12?
One place I travel to frequently has very bad tmo signal inside the building nothing has changed since year ago when I tested tmobile otherwise everywhere I go signal is always great (while I tested)

I'm guessing that you're on the East Coast, in the NY area (based on the screenshot of your Speedtest results). I'm also there, and I recently switched from Verizon to Ting (which runs on the T-Mobile network).
What can I say? Verizon is king when it comes to coverage, signal strength, and network speed. Absolutely unbeatable anywhere along the Northeast Corridor (Boston to Washington DC). If you are highly mobile for work in remote areas (e.g. upstate New York), then you'll want to stick with Verizon purely for coverage reasons.
T-Mobile coverage and signal strength is going to be lower than Verizon in most areas, but will still retain acceptable signal strength in most areas that aren't rural. Network speeds on LTE are acceptable (around 8Mbps - 12Mbps downstream, and 1.0Mbps upstream).
If you spend most of the time on your smartphone near WiFi, you'll be fine switching to TMobile to save yourself some money.

kent1146 said:
I'm guessing that you're on the East Coast, in the NY area (based on the screenshot of your Speedtest results). I'm also there, and I recently switched from Verizon to Ting (which runs on the T-Mobile network).
What can I say? Verizon is king when it comes to coverage, signal strength, and network speed. Absolutely unbeatable anywhere along the Northeast Corridor (Boston to Washington DC). If you are highly mobile for work in remote areas (e.g. upstate New York), then you'll want to stick with Verizon purely for coverage reasons.
T-Mobile coverage and signal strength is going to be lower than Verizon in most areas, but will still retain acceptable signal strength in most areas that aren't rural. Network speeds on LTE are acceptable (around 8Mbps - 12Mbps downstream, and 1.0Mbps upstream).
If you spend most of the time on your smartphone near WiFi, you'll be fine switching to TMobile to save yourself some money.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am mostly in the city though and on Verizon I am out of contract but I am just sick of this company (Wireless part) right now around 45$ 30GB to share+2GB free for 3 months vs T-Mobile same price everything unlimited.

What does your usage look like (minutes, text, data GB) per month, as a typical month of usage on VZW?

kent1146 said:
What does your usage look like (minutes, text, data GB) per month, as a typical month of usage on VZW?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Last month was a round 5k texts 5.6GB and around 500 min just for my line.
I like to watch soccer games on my phone and always have to watch it in lowest quality instead of HD and listen to spotify everyday at highes quality as well.
So many reasons to want tmobile lol

Wow. That's a whole lot of usage.
So yeah, go with T-Mobile's unlimited plan. You'll be better off with that.

kent1146 said:
Wow. That's a whole lot of usage.
So yeah, go with T-Mobile's unlimited plan. You'll be better off with that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea man that's what the plan is. The one place I spend a lot of time has weak service otherwise everywhere I am is great signal so I am silently hoping that either 6.0 or moto releases new radio fast with band12 support so I can dump Verizon forever and ever lol
By the way were you receiving calls from winback team from Verizon? just wondering I don't have contract anymore so it wouldn't matter and they would not be able to offer me anything anyway but for people who were on contract they would cancel your contract if you came back and all that sort of stuff

I moved from Verizon to T-Mobile a few years back with no issues. I would double check if the location your referring to has any type of WiFi close by. Keep in mind Motorola has really good antennas so if you tested it a year ago on a different phone (Samsung or Nexus 5) it might hold a signal better. At one point I had a Nexus 5 and MotoX 2013 and one of the main reasons I kept the MotoX was due to significantly better signals in the same place.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA Free mobile app

SymbioticGenius said:
I moved from Verizon to T-Mobile a few years back with no issues. I would double check if the location your referring to has any type of WiFi close by. Keep in mind Motorola has really good antennas so if you tested it a year ago on a different phone (Samsung or Nexus 5) it might hold a signal better. At one point I had a Nexus 5 and MotoX 2013 and one of the main reasons I kept the MotoX was due to significantly better signals in the same place.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tested few weeks ago AS well but on droid turbo not moto x, and yeah they have time Warner and soon fios so fast internet is not an issue. Are you able to use Wi-Fi calling AS IF now ?
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

I've never had to use WiFi for anything lol
Nexus 6 has had it for a while, I remember testing it, didn't care for it, haven't had a need to use it yet. It's not available yet for the MotoX but it's expected (not sure if confirmed) to be activated with marshmallow. I will state that marshmallow has a new toggle for it so I wouldn't be surprised if every phone has it at some point.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA Free mobile app

SymbioticGenius said:
I've never had to use WiFi for anything lol
Nexus 6 has had it for a while, I remember testing it, didn't care for it, haven't had a need to use it yet. It's not available yet for the MotoX but it's expected (not sure if confirmed) to be activated with marshmallow. I will state that marshmallow has a new toggle for it so I wouldn't be surprised if every phone has it at some point.
Sent from my Nexus 6 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea there is only one place with bad signal where i spent a lot of time but band12 is in this area just not yet with moto hopefully soak test will add it.
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

You can see if Band 12 is in a particular area with this: http://www.spectrumgateway.com/t-mobile-700a-spectrum . Combined with T-Mobile official coverage map, you should be able to get a good idea of the T-Mobile coverage of an area.
It looks like T-Mobile is using Band 12 to fill out national coverage gaps. That's a good thing IMO, if Band 12 has reach/penetration like they say it does. (I live where there is no Band 12 yet, so I haven't tested it.) There are maps floating around (see tmonews.com for example) of the national coverage that T-Mobile plans by end of the year, this planned coverage looks like a blanket similar to Verizon, I think much of this will be the added Band 12 areas. Based on T-Mobile track record, I believe they will get there, if not by end of year then not long after that.
I bought the MXPE counting on Motorola to update it with Band 12 /VoLTE support in the near future, with the idea that it will support it by the time Band 12 is deployed where I need it. The LTE Discovery app is a good tool to see what LTE Band (or other) the phone is using in a particular area, too.
There are still gaps in the T-Mobile national coverage where Verizon has decent coverage while T-Mobile does not. I traveled through one a few days ago, in a rural area about 15 miles from my house. Verizon phone had decent signal, but T-Mobile phones (MXPE and iPhone 6s) had no signal. Since iPhone 6s has robust wireless support including Band 12 /VoLTE, the fact that it had no signal there means there was no T-Mobile signal.
So you just have to look at the maps and see if T-Mobile has coverage where you want coverage. That and actual testing. (If I was on Verizon considering T-Mobile, I would probably buy a month of prepaid T-Mobile or MetroPCS service, pop the T-Mobile SIM in the XT1575, and just try it. "One proper test is worth a thousand expert opinions".)
One thing adding even more wrinkles to all this is the increasing number of LTE roaming arrangements between the tier 1 carriers...

Tinkerer_ said:
You can see if Band 12 is in a particular area with this: http://www.spectrumgateway.com/t-mobile-700a-spectrum . Combined with T-Mobile official coverage map, you should be able to get a good idea of the T-Mobile coverage of an area.
It looks like T-Mobile is using Band 12 to fill out national coverage gaps. That's a good thing IMO, if Band 12 has reach/penetration like they say it does. (I live where there is no Band 12 yet, so I haven't tested it.) There are maps floating around (see tmonews.com for example) of the national coverage that T-Mobile plans by end of the year, this planned coverage looks like a blanket similar to Verizon, I think much of this will be the added Band 12 areas. Based on T-Mobile track record, I believe they will get there, if not by end of year then not long after that.
I bought the MXPE counting on Motorola to update it with Band 12 /VoLTE support in the near future, with the idea that it will support it by the time Band 12 is deployed where I need it. The LTE Discovery app is a good tool to see what LTE Band (or other) the phone is using in a particular area, too.
There are still gaps in the T-Mobile national coverage where Verizon has decent coverage while T-Mobile does not. I traveled through one a few days ago, in a rural area about 15 miles from my house. Verizon phone had decent signal, but T-Mobile phones (MXPE and iPhone 6s) had no signal. Since iPhone 6s has robust wireless support including Band 12 /VoLTE, the fact that it had no signal there means there was no T-Mobile signal.
So you just have to look at the maps and see if T-Mobile has coverage where you want coverage. That and actual testing. (If I was on Verizon considering T-Mobile, I would probably buy a month of prepaid T-Mobile or MetroPCS service, pop the T-Mobile SIM in the XT1575, and just try it. "One proper test is worth a thousand expert opinions".)
One thing adding even more wrinkles to all this is the increasing number of LTE roaming arrangements between the tier 1 carriers...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I actually have a friend who works at tmo he even typed the address and showed me all types of signal available to me and band12 was all over it. I hope that soak test brings b12.
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

T-Mobile for data hogs like me is great. Unlimited data for $30, I used around 10GB a month alone. But that is the only reason I use T-Mobile. Coverage pretty much sucks. If I am in the Bay Area CA its fine great signal. As soon as I leave the area I'm lucky if I get 3G speeds let alone a signal. Indoors is even worse. Went to the movies the other day, phone was dead inside no signal at all. My friend who is on At&t got a full 4 bars of LTE. T-Mobile is great for data and coverage in the cities, you leave those cities and you'll be lucky to even get a signal...

falcon26 said:
T-Mobile for data hogs like me is great. Unlimited data for $30, I used around 10GB a month alone. But that is the only reason I use T-Mobile. Coverage pretty much sucks. If I am in the Bay Area CA its fine great signal. As soon as I leave the area I'm lucky if I get 3G speeds let alone a signal. Indoors is even worse. Went to the movies the other day, phone was dead inside no signal at all. My friend who is on At&t got a full 4 bars of LTE. T-Mobile is great for data and coverage in the cities, you leave those cities and you'll be lucky to even get a signal...
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Click to collapse
I mainly spend time in the city Brookyln & Queens so I don't think it should be an issue but one place where I spend a lot of time otherwise everywhere else it's pretty good when I tested it.

Cell Spot
If there is one place you work or live with poor coverage, T-Mobile also has a couple of options that are basically either a range extended or an internal "tower" so you can use your phone inside where you don't get coverage.
https://support.t-mobile.com/community/coverage/personal-cellspot/4g-lte-signal-booster

Ugh. In principle, I'm not a fan of that at all.
T-Mobilr is basically telling cuatomers to buy hardware, install it themselves, possibly connect it to their home internet networks (and use your bandwidth), for potentially multiple people that don't live in your household.
All of this, because T-Mobile didn't invest in building out network infrastructure like Verizon did.
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

ExDis said:
If there is one place you work or live with poor coverage, T-Mobile also has a couple of options that are basically either a range extended or an internal "tower" so you can use your phone inside where you don't get coverage.
https://support.t-mobile.com/community/coverage/personal-cellspot/4g-lte-signal-booster
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea I am still staying with VZW for now. But there are 2 places that I spend time that have weak service one has no cable internet so that won't do any good even verizon there has weak service 3G and 1 weak bar of lte.

So I am testing tmobile in some place I mainly spend 2 time in 2 places , 1 there is edge and weak LTE -116 around that,I just can't do anthing for the phone to pick up band12 signal. I am running true-pure-x MM
always band4 or HSPA/+ or EDGE.