Best phone service for the road?

Discussion in 'Questions From New Drivers' started by cjr323, Oct 17, 2012.

  1. jeff611

    jeff611 Bobtail Member

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    Aug 3, 2011
    Delawhere
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    I have AT&T and the unlimited plan with a smart phone.The coverage has been good as far as I'm concerned, but on 460 and 29 in VA tend to lose signal for a bit.

    Very few signal problems up into Maine, but as someone said, if your phone isn't unlocked,watch the network or you get a phone call saying you're close to going over your data limit on your unlimited plan..... huh? Fine print on something like 140 MB of "out of network" data. They didn't end up charging for any oon overage, but did say that if it became a habit, they might start to throttle or restrict data on that phone.

    Of course a discussion about the meaning of the word "unlimited" followed, but was really pointless. No real complaints other than that though.
     
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  3. whitelinequeen

    whitelinequeen Light Load Member

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    Jun 30, 2012
    SW Washington
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    With regard to roaming, I am on my 2nd smartphone, the first on T-Mobile, now on Sprint. Both the phones had a setting ing the networks area that allowed you to choose whether you wanted the phone to look only for your own carrier's signal or automatically roam. When my current phone, an HTC 3D, (which can operate on 3g and4g,) switches to roaming, gives an audible signal. BTW, both Sprint and Verizon are CDMA (rather than GSM like T-Mobile & AT&T). When I roam on Sprint, it is usually to Verizon, which means I can take advantage of Verizon's coverage, without paying their higher prices.

    Don't get me wrong. Excessive roaming can bite you in the wallet, but roaming long enough to makes quick call or ck email or the latest sports score isn't a problem.

    I have my bases covered with a T-Mobile hotspot. With this, I can text through my tablet, so if I don't have Sprint coverage, I can still stay connected if i have T-Mobile. I live on the west coast, so I can't say if this will be satisfactory in the Midwest, East, etc.

    BTW, I found the T-Mobile 4g to be comparable to broadband access for browsing, & video streams okay too.
     
  4. Numb

    Numb Crusty Curmudgeon

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    Charlotte, N.Carolina
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    my 2 cents. Verizon. have had it for yrs and I have the most coverage. I'm talking about basic dumb phone.
     
  5. romexjockey

    romexjockey Bobtail Member

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    Feb 4, 2011
    South Berwick, Maine
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    I travel the east coast extensively. Obviously, Verizon has the best coverage but you pay the price for that coverage. I searched for a "Pay as You Go" carrier that would get me the coverage in the areas that I traveled and after some exhaustive searching I will say that the absolute best carrier other than Verizon is Net-10. There are places that with the 2 other carriers I tried that I would have 1 bar or at best 2 bars in some spots and 0 Bars in a lot of spots such as Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee. Once I switched to Net-10, after doing a lengthy internet search about different plans and companies, I no longer am in that situation. I have 5 bars almost constantly. Everywhere I go. It is absolutely, without question the best carrier if you eliminate Verizon. I had Verizon but was tired of their rates. I didn't want to pay the rates that my wife and I were paying. That is what put me into my search mode. I am thrilled with the plan that I have, the coverage that I have and the quality of the phone. Best thing about Net-10 was that it was a "Pay as you go" carrier so if I found that the coverage, plan , etc, etc did not work for me, there was no charge for changing to another carrier as I continued my search. It took me a couple of months trying different plans and carriers, but I am completely happy with the choice that I made. Hopefully, you will find that it works out for you as well. Good luck with your search. Maybe I have saved you a lot of trial and error. Good Luck!
     
  6. cjr323

    cjr323 Light Load Member

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    Sep 10, 2012
    Fayetteville, NC
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    Thanks for the input. I will keep them in mind for sure. I will see how bad my T mobile is and if I can ride out the last year of my contract, if not I will look into net 10.
     
  7. snowwy

    snowwy Road Train Member

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    sprint AND verizon.

    in spite of what others say. they both have there good and bad. NEITHER has the better or most coverage.

    verizon has a TON of areas where there's no signal. sprint as a TON OF OTHER areas.

    sprint is unlimited. and i have a cheap verizon mifi plan. i can mobile hotspot either way. and if i have too. i can use a internet app for phone calls using the verizon mifi.

    in other words. i get the best of both worlds for less then staying with verizon alone. and i'm gauranteed coverage through most of the country.

    one or the other only covers about 75% of the country.
     
  8. PackRatTDI

    PackRatTDI Licensed to Ill

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    El Chuco, Tejas
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    I have Tmobile and I rarely am located where I don't get a signal at all. They have been upgrading because I.am getting 3G and HSDPA connections where I used to only get GPRS and EDGE. Where Tmobile needs work is between Monahans, TX and El Paso, TX. The roaming network we use there is just awful. You'll have 4 bars and the phone is useless. Sometimes the network just shuts down completely. May have something to do with the fact that Verizon owns that network which was inherited from Alltel. The best networks we roam off are Plateau Wireless in the Texas panhandle area, iWireless in Iowa (we get 3-4g on this network as they use the same frequency as Tmobile) and a network in Western Kansas and Eastern Colorado whose name escapes me.

    Tmobile has its faults but I'd never get what I have now at Verizon and pay what I pay.
     
  9. cjr323

    cjr323 Light Load Member

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    Sep 10, 2012
    Fayetteville, NC
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    Thanks. I guess the only way I will know is to get out there and test it out myself since from what I gather it all depends where you use it.
     
  10. PackRatTDI

    PackRatTDI Licensed to Ill

    14,765
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    Jul 15, 2006
    El Chuco, Tejas
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    Basically that's it. Just have to see.

    I was at a warehouse in Arkansas that shipped Crystal Geyser water and we were way in the hills and the only guy who had a signal had an Alltel phone. Everyone else had no signal.

    I said I guess Norman, AR is in that 3% that ATT doesn't cover, lol!
     
  11. Taildragon

    Taildragon Heavy Load Member

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    Jun 22, 2012
    Indiana
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    I was at a place that ships the really fancy bottled water in glass bottles, over near Hot Springs, and had AT&T with no reception as well.
     
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