If only they'd shore up their more rural coverage (i.e. not top 200 markets) I could go back to T-Mobile and save a bundle. :( WiFi calling is great, but I can't use Maps when I'm on GPRS, which is what you have all through the Midwest if you're not in a top 200 market.
There's a really excellent post on reddit somewhere that breaks down why it's so difficult for tmobile to expand in the midwest. It boils down to that even in a reasonably sized midwest city, the cost of setting up new towers and the marketing costs needed to convince enough people to switch are incredibly high. The potential return is so low it would take decades to make the investment back.
I believe it, but it's not much of an answer. Tough luck, essentially. T-mobile is totally non-existent in Montana (where I'm from) so I have to sit this round out and hope Verizon or AT&T respond in a way that helps me.
In all fairness, aren't people pretty much non-existent in Montana? Kidding of course, you guys are kicking the crap out of Wyoming ;). Even in a lot of large metro markets T-Mobile's coverage isn't nearly as strong as AT&T or Verizon. But at least in a bunch of those markets it's a question of "is it worth X extra dollars/month to get better coverage on one of the big 2?". I'm lucky to be in one of the markets, and for me the answer is no. I love the $30/month prepaid plan with unlimited text/data and 100 minutes. But I also have a work phone with unlimited minutes on AT&T, so I'm more tolerant of poor/non-existent signals farther away from town than most would be.
You know you rural folks may end up with the short end of the stick eventually, you may see the plans start to be priced more closely in line with the cost of operating in each state due to the competition we're seeing.
That question was asked or covered at some point in the event. He said that no one will buy T-Mo for spectrum (only) because their brand is now too valuable.
Forget unlimited in UK, Virgin Media and T-Mobile brand of EE both throttle speeds a LOT once you use 1 gigabyte I read, and thats only 3G HSPA+ coverage. For LTE/4G you need EE - 30days 1GB of usage £28 with unlimited talk/text. Just need 20mhz coverage now.
the "jump" program would be great really great if they let you get that with a pre-paid line. they are supposed to be two different programs anyways right?
With all of their changes, they are the carrier to beat *UNLESS* you live in T-Mo Edge coverage areas. They have the network, the business, the pricing, everything. Now just build that HSPA+ or LTE coverage out and we will talk.
And looking at your last speedtest result, it's absurd how far cellular networks have come since LTE deployments began. Obviously you need to have a good signal, but it's still a little astonishing that the data speeds on your cell phone can dwarf most people's home broadband connections (in large US metro areas).
2) Talk about their coverage outside of major cities. My father lives just outside the Dallas metroplex, has T-mobile, and is dropped down to 3G and even 2G all the time. I'd hardly call his location "rural".
Of course with the bandwidth they recently bought from Verizon they should be able to provide better service farther out from major cites. And, credit given where it is due, they are changing the pay model of the industry for the better.
Uncarrier is cool and these speeds are probably available in a few locations. You are in Chicago with the LTE blazing speeds, you move out one mile out of that spot and will be sitting on Edge. Its all about coverage.
Perfectly happy since switching from Verizon to T-mobile. Only wish they had this program 3 months ago. would have saved me about $320 in carrying two phones on Verizon for 2 months longer than I wanted. As an aside. Running speedtest right now on my Nexus 5 on T-mobile can't complete. Always failing at some point with a message of "Network communication issues".
After being a Tmobile customer from 8th grade all the way through College I feel confident in saying that their service/phones are terrible.
I always had problems with them whether it was crappy phones to dropped calls and terrible reception/service both indoors and out. I lost service in my own home for hours at a time and went to school in Shreveport which, according to the Tmobile rep, was one of their best "reception areas". It was not.
The only thing Tmobile has going for them is their competitive pricing but I'd rather pay more for a better quality service. You get what you pay for.
I really like what T-Mobile is doing. But I hate Samsung and that's most of their phones. Also, since they don't subsidize the phones they need good smartphones for 200 or less; which they didn't have last I checked. Like the LG Optimus Pro (or elite or whatever), the MotoG and the MotoX. (MotoX is only 300 on Republic Wireless). I may actually make the switch if they flesh out their offerings. If they had the LG G2 I'd even suck it up and buy that; last I checked they did not. But that's the only phone over 300 I'd be willing to spend over 300 on.
Why not pick up an unlocked version of the phone you want? I picked up a Moto G (US carrier edition) and took it to a T-Mobile store for activation. The only eyebrow raised was when I told them what I had paid for it (the employee handling the activation kept asking me 'Only $200?!'). Literally the only thing you lose when buying unlocked vs T-Mobile is Wi-Fi calling and device financing. On the other hand, I get my phone updates direct from Motorola don't have to worry about whether/when T-Mobile will get around to 'blessing' an update.
Recently switched to T-Mobile from AT&T.... And I have to say it sucks.
Yeah, they have great LTE at your house so they can count you as covered, but don't you dare ever go anywhere. It's not even like you have to go on minor roads to lose coverage. Drive from Boston to New York. You'll be lucky to have GPRS most of the way. And if you want to keep up a call? Forget it.
How about this T-Mobile: You can count a person as covered when you cover their home and all the roads from their town to the next town. Otherwise you're not a "mobile" network. I can get FiOS if I want to be connected at home. It needs to work ON THE ROAD. That's THE WHOLE POINT.
my roomate's step-sister makes $77 every hour on the internet. She has been unemployed for 9 months but last month her income was $20438 just working on the internet for a few hours. go to this web-sit.................
T-mobile USA is probably like three in the UK, Speed very good if you can get it not so good where there is no service (three has no 2g network, it does fall back to EE but it's roaming so it can take 1-2mins for it to switch over )
This is more due to the amount of customers in the area as T-mobile usa have very little compared to At&t and V so speeds on avg will be faster on T-mobile (plus there use of bands on 4g that most phones do not support)
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DeerSteak - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
If only they'd shore up their more rural coverage (i.e. not top 200 markets) I could go back to T-Mobile and save a bundle. :( WiFi calling is great, but I can't use Maps when I'm on GPRS, which is what you have all through the Midwest if you're not in a top 200 market.flashbacck - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
There's a really excellent post on reddit somewhere that breaks down why it's so difficult for tmobile to expand in the midwest. It boils down to that even in a reasonably sized midwest city, the cost of setting up new towers and the marketing costs needed to convince enough people to switch are incredibly high. The potential return is so low it would take decades to make the investment back.evonitzer - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
I believe it, but it's not much of an answer. Tough luck, essentially. T-mobile is totally non-existent in Montana (where I'm from) so I have to sit this round out and hope Verizon or AT&T respond in a way that helps me.Mountainjoy - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
Well if Legere is right ATT and Verizon will have to adapt to pick up some of T-Mobile's policy changes, which would then help you.Bob Todd - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
In all fairness, aren't people pretty much non-existent in Montana? Kidding of course, you guys are kicking the crap out of Wyoming ;). Even in a lot of large metro markets T-Mobile's coverage isn't nearly as strong as AT&T or Verizon. But at least in a bunch of those markets it's a question of "is it worth X extra dollars/month to get better coverage on one of the big 2?". I'm lucky to be in one of the markets, and for me the answer is no. I love the $30/month prepaid plan with unlimited text/data and 100 minutes. But I also have a work phone with unlimited minutes on AT&T, so I'm more tolerant of poor/non-existent signals farther away from town than most would be.djscrew - Thursday, January 9, 2014 - link
You know you rural folks may end up with the short end of the stick eventually, you may see the plans start to be priced more closely in line with the cost of operating in each state due to the competition we're seeing.Bob Todd - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
Hoping the Nexus 5 (2014) adds Band 12 LTE...Mayuyu - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
Are there any phones compatible with band 12?voodoobunny - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
T-Mobile's site is almost unresponsive right now. Maybe a sign that people are stampeding to them?Guspaz - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
How did nobody ask them about Sprint trying to buy them out?Rocket321 - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
That question was asked or covered at some point in the event. He said that no one will buy T-Mo for spectrum (only) because their brand is now too valuable.Ian Cutress - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
My dilemma. 30 day SIM only plans in the UK, unlimited calls, data, text:T-Mobile, £28/mo
Virgin Media, who uses T-Mobile's network, £15/mo
huh?
rederick - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
Forget unlimited in UK, Virgin Media and T-Mobile brand of EE both throttle speeds a LOT once you use 1 gigabyte I read, and thats only 3G HSPA+ coverage. For LTE/4G you need EE - 30days 1GB of usage £28 with unlimited talk/text. Just need 20mhz coverage now.seecoolguy - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
the "jump" program would be great really great if they let you get that with a pre-paid line. they are supposed to be two different programs anyways right?Rocket321 - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
With all of their changes, they are the carrier to beat *UNLESS* you live in T-Mo Edge coverage areas. They have the network, the business, the pricing, everything. Now just build that HSPA+ or LTE coverage out and we will talk.Bob Todd - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
And looking at your last speedtest result, it's absurd how far cellular networks have come since LTE deployments began. Obviously you need to have a good signal, but it's still a little astonishing that the data speeds on your cell phone can dwarf most people's home broadband connections (in large US metro areas).Mountainjoy - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
Yeah I love the shot at ATT Uverse, 24mbps land line is not high speed internet, that band is not broad, its a twizzler!kyuu - Thursday, January 9, 2014 - link
I'd take a good 24 mbps wired connection over a 100 mbps wireless connection any day. There's more to an internet connection than bandwidth.Sabresiberian - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
They need to do 2 things to impress me:1) Use Testmy.net instead of Speedtest.net.
2) Talk about their coverage outside of major cities. My father lives just outside the Dallas metroplex, has T-mobile, and is dropped down to 3G and even 2G all the time. I'd hardly call his location "rural".
Of course with the bandwidth they recently bought from Verizon they should be able to provide better service farther out from major cites. And, credit given where it is due, they are changing the pay model of the industry for the better.
cipsaz - Wednesday, January 8, 2014 - link
Uncarrier is cool and these speeds are probably available in a few locations. You are in Chicago with the LTE blazing speeds, you move out one mile out of that spot and will be sitting on Edge. Its all about coverage.facemute - Thursday, January 9, 2014 - link
God bless Brian Klug, Anandtech, John Legere, T-Mobile, speedtest.net, and, of course, Ookla:http://d24w6bsrhbeh9d.cloudfront.net/photo/7108125...
tipoo - Thursday, January 9, 2014 - link
They should bring back Carly Foulkes :Pmike8675309 - Thursday, January 9, 2014 - link
Perfectly happy since switching from Verizon to T-mobile. Only wish they had this program 3 months ago. would have saved me about $320 in carrying two phones on Verizon for 2 months longer than I wanted. As an aside. Running speedtest right now on my Nexus 5 on T-mobile can't complete. Always failing at some point with a message of "Network communication issues".RyneSmith - Thursday, January 9, 2014 - link
After being a Tmobile customer from 8th grade all the way through College I feel confident in saying that their service/phones are terrible.I always had problems with them whether it was crappy phones to dropped calls and terrible reception/service both indoors and out. I lost service in my own home for hours at a time and went to school in Shreveport which, according to the Tmobile rep, was one of their best "reception areas". It was not.
The only thing Tmobile has going for them is their competitive pricing but I'd rather pay more for a better quality service. You get what you pay for.
Hrel - Friday, January 10, 2014 - link
I really like what T-Mobile is doing. But I hate Samsung and that's most of their phones. Also, since they don't subsidize the phones they need good smartphones for 200 or less; which they didn't have last I checked. Like the LG Optimus Pro (or elite or whatever), the MotoG and the MotoX. (MotoX is only 300 on Republic Wireless). I may actually make the switch if they flesh out their offerings. If they had the LG G2 I'd even suck it up and buy that; last I checked they did not. But that's the only phone over 300 I'd be willing to spend over 300 on.techieman - Saturday, January 11, 2014 - link
Why not pick up an unlocked version of the phone you want? I picked up a Moto G (US carrier edition) and took it to a T-Mobile store for activation. The only eyebrow raised was when I told them what I had paid for it (the employee handling the activation kept asking me 'Only $200?!'). Literally the only thing you lose when buying unlocked vs T-Mobile is Wi-Fi calling and device financing. On the other hand, I get my phone updates direct from Motorola don't have to worry about whether/when T-Mobile will get around to 'blessing' an update.akash333 - Friday, January 10, 2014 - link
http://ams.protecturl.info/ivan256 - Sunday, January 12, 2014 - link
Recently switched to T-Mobile from AT&T.... And I have to say it sucks.Yeah, they have great LTE at your house so they can count you as covered, but don't you dare ever go anywhere. It's not even like you have to go on minor roads to lose coverage. Drive from Boston to New York. You'll be lucky to have GPRS most of the way. And if you want to keep up a call? Forget it.
How about this T-Mobile: You can count a person as covered when you cover their home and all the roads from their town to the next town. Otherwise you're not a "mobile" network. I can get FiOS if I want to be connected at home. It needs to work ON THE ROAD. That's THE WHOLE POINT.
maryrsmith - Sunday, January 12, 2014 - link
my roomate's step-sister makes $77 every hour on the internet. She has been unemployed for 9 months but last month her income was $20438 just working on the internet for a few hours. go to this web-sit.................phdchristmas - Sunday, January 19, 2014 - link
I switched to t-mobile last year, service is not bad for its price point for signal strength and features. All i gotta ask is Whats with the pink?leexgx - Saturday, March 15, 2014 - link
T-mobile USA is probably like three in the UK, Speed very good if you can get it not so good where there is no service (three has no 2g network, it does fall back to EE but it's roaming so it can take 1-2mins for it to switch over )This is more due to the amount of customers in the area as T-mobile usa have very little compared to At&t and V so speeds on avg will be faster on T-mobile (plus there use of bands on 4g that most phones do not support)