Which carrier would you choose?

[K-La_Iris]

I have had my blackberry for less than a year. (Which I love) My contract with AT&T will be up in Nov. And I have been looking into switching carriers since I will be getting married in Nov. One thing that I can see in switching is that my fiance has a business phone on T-mobile, so it looks like it would be easier on us... the whole free mobile to mobile thing. I have done research on it, but would rather get feedback from ppl who actually are using the services.

I completely get that this would just be everyone's personal opinion and thats fine with me... its what I want.

So which would you choose and why? AT&T or T-mobile.

[d_fisher]

AT&T has got better coverage, but T-Mobile offers free tethering. I live in an area where both carriers have good coverage so I went for the free tethering.

[K-La_Iris]

Thats good to know.. the tethering would come in quite handy.

I basically stay put here in South Florida... if I travel its primarily to MA, NY, or CA and every now and then Puerto Rico. So I am just looking at basics, but I do travel a lot with my laptop. Tethering good!

[K-La_Iris]

Quick question... does T-mobile consider Puerto Rico International?

Maybe a duh question, being that PR is a commonwealth of the US, but a cell company here, MetroPCS, does consider PR International and you have to pay extra to be able to call there.

[olly666]

One of the main advantages of being a T-Mobile customer is their awesome customer support...it really is the best. My suggestion is you give them a call. Tell them you're a prospective customer and have them answer any questions you can't find answers to on here.

[wingrider78]

Wirelessly posted

Not only does tmo have free tethering, but their unlim data plan is cheaper than atts plan w/o tethering. At least it was when I joined with tmo.

I have traveled to NYC, central FL, St Petes, and Atlantic City and haven't had any trouble with coverage with tmo...

[K-La_Iris]

Thanx for the Reply Olly... that does sound like a great idea. Probably would do it come summer time. Gives me time to build the comparison and build a list of questions.

[K-La_Iris]

The coverage is definately important... I hate when I've been there 2 or 3 minutes just talking to myself...lol

[ndub33]

Quick question... does T-mobile consider Puerto Rico International?

Maybe a duh question, being that PR is a commonwealth of the US, but a cell company here, MetroPCS, does consider PR International and you have to pay extra to be able to call there.

Not anymore-PR became part of the domestic coverage footprint with their acquisition of Suncom.

[bbckm]

Aside from the fact that your fiance is already on T-mobile, check the following when considering plans:

1. Coverage - all the customer service, cheap prices and bells and whistles mean nothing if they don't have good coverage in your area. Since your fiance has a business phone through T-Mobile, one would assume they have relatively good overage there
2. Plans - do they offer what you want? Free tethering, Fav 5s, or any number of other options
3. Price - T-mobile really does have one of the best plans for BB. The BB Minutes & Mail plan gives you 1000 minutes (anytime) and unlimited data transfer (so surfing, e-mail, etc). I've been corrected on the boards for this before, but I have BB Min/Mail and do not get a separate charge for SMS Text or MMS

All that aside, I've been with T-mobile for 5 years now, and can't even remember my previous carrier. I like their coverage (here), their plans, their pricing and (despite recent reports from a few BBF members to the contrary) I've gotten excellent customer support from them.

[olly666]

How does your fiance like the service? Does he travel to the same places as you? You can always use the service maps on the ATT and T-Mobile websites, although I wouldn't exactly trust them with my life. You'll find diehard fans on here for both sides, so I suggest you take everything you hear with a grain of salt... Personally the only place I've ever had trouble with T-Mobile is in bumf#ck Pennsylvania, and I travel all over the U.S. a lot.

[K-La_Iris]

Not anymore-PR became part of the domestic coverage footprint with their acquisition of Suncom.

PHENOMENAL!

[K-La_Iris]

Thanks for all the replies... you all are really helping out.

I guess the only thing keeping me from switching is the fact that in our last hurricane... I believe it was Wilma... out of all our lines AT&T was the only one up and going... but the price on the T-mobile would help... especially for newlyweds. I am on a family plan now.. but my portion of the bill is pretty up there.

[olly666]

Sometimes you just gotta go with your gut. By the way, congrats! :)

[K-La_Iris]

Gut is pulling towards T-mobile...

You guys definitely gave me food for thought... great help as always!

[Dinan3]

just a little added bonus.

T-Mobile is also the only domestic carrier that has UMA. I use it all the time in my home and office. GREAT SERVICE!!!

[Dubdub]

Make sure you do the research before going with your "gut" Gut won't get you a connection or a signal when you need it.

You need to look at where you need coverage, where you live, work, travel and play. As others have said, coverage is the number one consideration. All the other stuff is secondary, since without proper coverage, you don't need or have the other stuff.

[dhendriksen]

I have had nearly all the carriers, and I prefer T-Mobile. Verizon got signal in more places (I actually can't think of a time it didn't have signal) but it dropped a lot of calls and had poor voice quality. AT&T and Sprint were a tie for me, and I didn't care for either. I have T-Mobile and I really like the pricing there. It is much cheaper, especially on data, and the UMA (HotSpot @<hidden> Home) is killer. $10 per month for unlimited calling when in WiFi, I use over 2,000 WiFi minutes a month at my home, my office, and the airport. I travel all over the US, but only to major markets. I have never had a coverage problem with T-Mobile. The calls are much more clear, and hardly ever drop. I have heard that out in the boonies, away from traveled areas, they dont have as big a foot print as other carriers such as Verizon. For someone who stays in cities and on highways, T-Mobile is my pick hands down. It's not even a competition, especially when I think about the customer service. I remember the BIS was down one day for like an hour, I called asking about it, and two weeks later the rep called back to follow up with me and make sure my blackberry was back to working like it should - DO YOU KNOW HOW GREAT THAT IS! With some carriers you have a hard enough time getting them to NOT HANG UP ON YOU or "disconnect" by mistake.

T-Mobile is my carrier of choice, and has been for the past 8 years!

[cmguerra77]

I have ATT and I love it. Its the only carrier I've found that gives me coverage up in Mass where I live and the customer service is great. Both my wife and I have BB with a family and data plan so our bill is high ($160 per month) but its worth it.

Are you going to be looking into getting new phones when your contract runs out? That mihgt play a bit into your selection if coverage is the same on both carriers, the cost of the phone might be the deciding factor.

BTW congrats on the engagement!

[ricpac]

If I was only in the US, I'd go for anything with an unlimited BB data plan! LOL
But yeah, coverage first and then the extra perks.

[K-La_Iris]

Thanks on the well wishes all...
I am building on my lists of questions... so far my priorities are Coverage and Pricing...

New phones aren't a biggie... if its cheap enough I could get a new phone... or just get my current one unlocked...

[plasticities]

Thanks on the well wishes all...
I am building on my lists of questions... so far my priorities are Coverage and Pricing...

New phones aren't a biggie... if its cheap enough I could get a new phone... or just get my current one unlocked...

as far as coverage goes, earlier you said you would be in CA, and from my experience (along with everyone else i know) at&t has TERRIBLE coverage here. i used to have it and my calls were constantly dropped, my plan was expensive and even then it sucked compared to anything i could get from tmobile.

i would suggest tmobile hands down.

[ma077146]

If T-Mobile was available in South Carolina, I'd be a customer in a skinny minute.

[stevetaz]

Hi:

I got my first BB, an 8830, with a corporate change from Treos and it has been great so far. I am now at the one month mark and we are with Sprint. The BB has had a better quality signal from the start compared to the Treo.

However, when my daughter needed a phone two weeks ago I wound up getting her a Curve with Tmobile. She is away at college and her coverage has been good there and at home here on the north shore of Long Island, NY, which is notoriously bad for most providers.

What attracted me first was the price of a BB plan I found. 1000 anytime minutes, unlimited data, unlimited texting, and unlimited email all for only........$59.99 a month.

With the free texting in her first two weeks she has only used under four hours of calling time.

Comparable plans with the big three were $90 to $120 per month and that was with only 900 minutes. It is called BlackBerry Minutes and Mail (http://www.t-mobile.com/shop/plans/detail.aspx?tp=tb1&id=56263805-e16b-471e-92d7-3ec0885e2004).

I am a happy camper....

SteveTaz

[nateps]

go with verizon, great reception. as far as phone, get the pearl 8130. great phone, great camera. bet you havnt seen picture quality like this before.

Picable - Photo Page: Florida Gar (http://www.picable.com/nature/animals/florida-gar.112531)

[bbckm]

What attracted me first was the price of a BB plan I found. 1000 anytime minutes, unlimited data, unlimited texting, and unlimited email all for only........$59.99 a month.

With the free texting in her first two weeks she has only used under four hours of calling time.

Comparable plans with the big three were $90 to $120 per month and that was with only 900 minutes. It is called BlackBerry Minutes and Mail (http://www.t-mobile.com/shop/plans/detail.aspx?tp=tb1&id=56263805-e16b-471e-92d7-3ec0885e2004).

I am a happy camper....

SteveTaz

Yep, BB Min/Mail is what I have, and I am very happy with it. But again, it coverage is more imporant, because a greta plan means doodly-squat if you have no signal ;-)

[thats all folks]

I had t-mobile for two weeks and left due to coverage problems, works great in most major cites, but I found when traveling out side cites ect the coverage was spotty. I currently have verizon which I've been up and down with, the coverage is pretty good, but support has been really bad. Is your finance willing to change?

[stevetaz]

Hi:

Yes, you are absolutely correct and that is why I mentioned her coverage has been good.

The one fear I don't have is that she would not let me know, loudly and often, if she wasn't able to use her precious toy!!! She is also a happy camper!!! ;-)

Thanks,
SteveTaz

Yep, BB Min/Mail is what I have, and I am very happy with it. But again, it coverage is more imporant, because a greta plan means doodly-squat if you have no signal ;-)

[Whoooooo-Kid]

at&t=rollover