Los Angeles coverage/ Verizon comparison.

[kool kat2]

I am most likely going to switch if I see a cost benefit and wanted some input from someone living in the LA and surrounding areas. If someone has recently switched from Verizon I'd like to hear about your experience.

What is data service like inside buildings?

How are 4g speeds? (In real use, like using YouTube and Netflix or streaming music)

Do tablets tend to receive better signal strength? (Something I noticed on Verizon tablets)

For those coming from an lte Verizon phone, how bad did it feel? lol. I use my phone for light browsing a LOT and wanted a feel for how the experience changes, especially from a heavy data user.

 

[LoyalServant]

I know your asking about LA specifically, but I can tell you that in my area Verizon LTE is crap.
I get 10-12 down here at home and closer to downtown I have seen 20+ on H+

I used to get 5-7 on Verizon LTE here.
In the beginning when the only phone they had was the Thunderbolt and I was probably one of the first people to have one I was getting 15 on average.
T-Mobile has better voice coverage here than Verizon does which is why I switched.
Got tired of dropped calls and paying a premium for it.

HTH.

 

[kool kat2]

I know your asking about LA specifically, but I can tell you that in my area Verizon LTE is crap.
I get 10-12 down here at home and closer to downtown I have seen 20+ on H+

I used to get 5-7 on Verizon LTE here.
In the beginning when the only phone they had was the Thunderbolt and I was probably one of the first people to have one I was getting 15 on average.
T-Mobile has better voice coverage here than Verizon does which is why I switched.
Got tired of dropped calls and paying a premium for it.

HTH.

How is your data as far as being able to watch videos and just navigating through the internet? Can you watch an HD YouTube video and not have to wait for it to load or regain a connection? I know it depends on the area but any input is helpful. Also, on Verizon I've noticed that Samsung phones aren't the best from experience. Is it the same in the GSM world?

 

[Crashdamage]

If you've been satisfied with VZ's crap LTE, you won't be disappointed with T-Mobile's HSPA+ speed - assuming of course, good coverage. T-Mobile is often faster than VZ. And when T-Mobile does go LTE, they will have a LTE network with newer, better technology than any other carriers.

 

[LoyalServant]

How is your data as far as being able to watch videos and just navigating through the internet? Can you watch an HD YouTube video and not have to wait for it to load or regain a connection? I know it depends on the area but any input is helpful. Also, on Verizon I've noticed that Samsung phones aren't the best from experience. Is it the same in the GSM world?

Navigation seems fine to me.
Videos, and I am assuming YouTube here is not a fair comparison for any carrier because of the way it works.
That said, I have seen one load faster than the other in various combinations.
It depends on where it has to fetch that video from and that is not on the carrier's network as far as I can tell.

Regarding Samsung and GSM devices... I have a Galaxy Nexus.
I would say that the radio in that device is on par with the HTC One S that I am using as my daily driver at the moment.
The phone that has a slightly worse radio than both of those that I still have is the Nexus One.... but we already knew that years ago

If I had to declare a winner in my area with regards to in building coverage I would say T-Mobile.

I can go on about why in my area one is actually superior to the other but that would take too long

I used to work in the wireless/wireline industries.... I know more than the carriers want people to know about how they pick and deploy a BTS and how many politicians hold their hands out for donations when a carrier wants to turn up a site and the NIMBYs are crying.
They use a management company to do it these days as to not reveal WHO wants the tower and it's often more than one provider that will co-locate on a new structure anyway.

Remember to make sure that it makes financial sense for you too whomever you choose.

The reason I dumped Verizon is because I can count on one hand the times I have gone out of the reach of another carrier.
Paying Verizon $50 more a month is not worth the "peace of mind" that I can make a call in a cornfield that I may end up in once every 20 years.

 

[kool kat2]

Thanks guys. I think the decision has been made. I just have to take care of my etfs

 

[Petrah]

I know you've made your decision, but thought I would share this article for anyone else who peruses this thread.

Fastest Mobile Networks | PCMag.com

In my case the article was fairly accurate (YMMV of course). I got the same readings with Carrier Coverage and the maps from OpenSignalsMaps (both use info from user submitted data).

 

[LoyalServant]

I may catch a beating from someone out there for this but I have to say one thing about T-Mobile.

Compared to 3 years ago and considering this merger failure and the mass exodus of customers that it caused they are definitely on the way back down the right path IMHO.

They are getting very aggressive with network rollouts.
Just today I saw 2 new cell sites appear in my list and an area that was EDGE only that I avoided on my daily commute is now rocking H+

Now they are actually promoting their infrastructure:
T-Mobile Posts YouTube Video For Future Advertisement Spot Highlighting Tower Numbers | | TmoNewsTmoNews

Then they have managed to leverage Verizon to gain more AWS spectrum for LTE-A
I really think this is the carrier to watch over the next few years or even in the short term.
They do have a large network footprint to upgrade so I hope they stay the course and keep killing EDGE BTS and upgrading them to H+

They just need to shed the bad customer service reputation now.. and I hate to say this but there really is some truth to that.
It's not the domestic call center personnel - it's the foreign agents that are absolutely terrible to deal with.

 

[kool kat2]

So I ended up getting a monthly 4g plan. 30/month for unlimited text, 100 min, and 5g of data. Less than half of my bill. I think I made the right choice. Once again, thanks for the input.

 

[LoyalServant]

So I ended up getting a monthly 4g plan. 30/month for unlimited text, 100 min, and 5g of data. Less than half of my bill. I think I made the right choice. Once again, thanks for the input.

How has coverage been thus far?

 

[kool kat2]

How has coverage been thus far?

I'm still waiting for my sum cards to get here. I'll come back with the results once I've activated my phones.



Another question for those who may know. If I have a monthly 4g plan, does it matter if my T-Mobile phone is 4g? I would like to start out with some crappy phones and get better ones down the line.

 

[LoyalServant]

Another question for those who may know. If I have a monthly 4g plan, does it matter if my T-Mobile phone is 4g? I would like to start out with some crappy phones and get better ones down the line.

Any phone that can do H on the AWS bands should be fine.
It does not have to do H+

 

[kool kat2]

So far so good. Its only been 3 days but I'm getting signal nearly everywhere I go. The only place I was having issues was at the beach but I go there once in a blue moon anyway. 4g is acceptable. Its no LTE but I knew that coming in. It works better than expected though.

 

[asr10 user]

Im using it with an S3 in the San Fernando Valley area. Ive hit about 20mb down, but average around 2-5mb. How is it in your location?

 

[GalaxyNexus]

VZW LTE sucks in some places and rocks in others. I only get 3 down on LTE in some places, but it may just be my Nexus. You guys probably don't care, but I figured I say so anyway.