Best cell/data phone and carrier combo?

alfadog

alfadog

Final Approach
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alfadog
I think the time has come for me to rejoin the 21st Century and would like y'all's help in choosing. I have had smartphones in the past but have been using a simple flip phone for the last few years.

Right now I am looking for two lines, one for myself and the other for my son. I want all the usual smartphone bells and whistles including being compatible with aviation apps. My top three phones are:

Samsung Galaxy S4 (my fav)
HTC One (son's fav)
iPhone 5

I do not have any carrier preference.

My out-of-pocket is limited to $200 per phone so I am probably locked into a contract if I want one of the above phones.

After the phone selection my highest priority is lowest total monthly bill given reasonable data (3GB/phone min) and unlimited messaging. I can accept a talk time limit.

I am also open to other (cheaper) phones if that gets me the other stuff I need/want.

Thanks in advance!
 
I've been really happy with Sprint. They don't have the fastest data service but it's unlimited and fast enough for Pandora and Netflix.

They are one of cheapest and have really good coverage too.
 
Where are you going to be using it?

Almost all in the local area? Pick a carrier that covers your area very well and offers a good price (may be T-Mo, may be nTelos, may be Verizon, etc).

Traveling domestically? ATT & Verizon offer the best coverage & data service, hands-down. Sprint's #3. TMobile still has a lot of holes and a lot of 2G (EDGE) service. I was in an area this weekend where only AT&T has acceptable service (and only my work phone is on AT&T).

Traveling internationally? AT&T and Verizon are the only two that offer the ability to buy international data at a rate that's less usurious than the others. Not cheap, mind you, but less expensive than TMo or Sprint, which are highway robbery.

Get one of the 4G/LTE phones. They're backwards compatible to 3G, but offer faster data where available.
 
I bought a used iPhone 4 for about $150 and then got Net10. Unlimited voice, data and text for $48 and some change out the door. Auto pays through my CC and uses AT&T towers. They are bare bones, no bills, no customer service, etc. I'm ok with that because in the 9 years I was with T-mobile I can count the number of times I called their customer service on one hand with spare fingers. At less than half the price I'll take bare bones any day.
 
e.pie said:
I've been really happy with Sprint. They don't have the fastest data service but it's unlimited and fast enough for Pandora and Netflix.

They are one of cheapest and have really good coverage too.
Click to expand...

I second this. I've had Sprint for more years than I can remember at this point and never had complaints. I also have the Galaxy S3 and I think it's an awesome phone so I can't see why you wouldn't be happy with the S4.
 
We have the Verizon Share Everything plan. Unlimited Talk and Text on my (Droid Razr Maxx HD) and my wife's (Samsung Galaxy S3) phones. We share 2GB of data/month. With the 'share everything' plan, you don't have to pay anything extra to be able to set your phone up as a hotspot, so my wife uses her non-cell-enabled tablet tethered to her phone sometimes. Whole shabang is ~$150/month. The 4G connection is usually faster than my network connection at work.
 
At our Business, we have 3 phones (iPhone 4, iPhone 5, Samsung S4) with AT&T on a "legacy" plan that, when I upgraded to the S4, got a "Wow, that's a killer deal" from the sales rep.

$260/mo, unlimted everything, including taxes.
 
To my knowledge, only Sprint and T-Mo have truly unlimited data. T-Mo doesn't even care if you tether. If you have strong T-Mo service where you plan to use the phone, you can get on their unlimited pre-paid plan and tether from the phone for less than just phone service would cost with most carriers.

I've had both T-Mo and Sprint, and I liked them both; but neither serves the sparrow-fart town I presently live in, so I go with VZW by way of Straight Talk. $45.00 a month for semi-unlimited everything ("semi" because there are rumors of data caps, but I haven't hit them yet).

-Rich
 
I've had, AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, Virgin, .......they are all bad.

Verizon is the best of the worst.
 
Thanks for all the replies so far...

I am in Miami and my son is in the Denver area but we visit each other fairly frequently so I need plans with nationwide coverage.

I am in a legacy ATT family plan that is cheap for limited voice minutes (500/mo) and I have 4k rollover minutes built up so staying with ATT is an option. Problem is my son is just entering the girlfriend zone (he is 14 and just broke up with his first "real" gf) and will burn through those 4k minutes pretty quickly. So a limited plan will probably not work.

Basically, it looks like if I want the top phones then I need to go with one of the big four and pay $150 - $180/mo for two lines and be locked into contracts. I would like to pay a bit less.

I am thinking now of going with Boost for $55/phone and dropping down a bit on the phone. I can get an LG Venice that seems to have the features I want for $150 and no contract. Boost goes down $5/mo for on-time payment also to $40/mo. I think it uses Sprint towers.

Any experience with Boost or the Venice? Other ideas?
 
RJM62 said:
To my knowledge, only Sprint and T-Mo have truly unlimited data. T-Mo doesn't even care if you tether. If you have strong T-Mo service where you plan to use the phone, you can get on their unlimited pre-paid plan and tether from the phone for less than just phone service would cost with most carriers.

I've had both T-Mo and Sprint, and I liked them both; but neither serves the sparrow-fart town I presently live in, so I go with VZW by way of Straight Talk. $45.00 a month for semi-unlimited everything ("semi" because there are rumors of data caps, but I haven't hit them yet).

-Rich
Click to expand...

Looks to me like Straight Talk resells more than VZW's service; how can you be certain, when signing up, that you will get VZW service? Reason I ask is, friend needs Verizon, as coverage is very bad on other networks where he lives.

Also, suggested best deal on what smart phone to get? Cheap?

Is tethering absolutely verboten with them?
 
Any of the MVNO's (mobile virtual network operator), though I can only speak for Straight Talk. It operates on ATT/T-Mobile, which uses GSM phones as opposed to CDMA (aviation is not alone in ridiculous acronyms) phones like Sprint or Verizon. There are also MVNO's that operate on this type of network too.

I bought an unlocked GSM HTC phone on ebay for $160, and my service is $46/mo, unlimited everything. Customer service is horrible, but it's not worth it for me to pay double to have a big name carrier with the same hardware and network. I can't see any good reason to do so.
 
SCCutler said:
Looks to me like Straight Talk resells more than VZW's service; how can you be certain, when signing up, that you will get VZW service? Reason I ask is, friend needs Verizon, as coverage is very bad on other networks where he lives.

Also, suggested best deal on what smart phone to get? Cheap?

Is tethering absolutely verboten with them?
Click to expand...

On StraightTalk's website they stress T-Mobile compatible equipment.
 
Straight talk is great. If you are apprehensive, sign up for 1 month to give it a test drive before going all in.
 
alfadog said:
On StraightTalk's website they stress T-Mobile compatible equipment.
Click to expand...

It is apparent that they can work with T-Mo, AT&T and Verizon network; but if you buy a phone from them, it looks like you cannot tell which network the phone will be on. I got through to support person (who has a strong accent but a good spirit), and he simply tells me, "buy the phone and then you can find out," or something like that. A fountain of useful intel, he is not.
 
After having pretty good service with Sprint for three years, I opted for prepaid. I bought NIB Samsung Galaxy S3 minis(not sold in the states) for me and my wife on Ebay. T Mobile's Family Mobile unlimited talk/text/data plan is great. No mysterious dropped calls like with Sprint, no contract and my bill for 30 days of moderate use was $42.00. With Sprint, I paid $125.00 monthly. Needless to say, I'm pleased.
 
All in, t-mobile will be the cheapest of the big names. Bring your own phone, buy on amazon, unlocked or not. For voice, I have a teen daughter and I have no fear that the voice function will wear out. Way more likely to use Facebook, SMS, Skype, whatsapp, etc before making a call.
 
SCCutler said:
Looks to me like Straight Talk resells more than VZW's service; how can you be certain, when signing up, that you will get VZW service? Reason I ask is, friend needs Verizon, as coverage is very bad on other networks where he lives.

Also, suggested best deal on what smart phone to get? Cheap?

Is tethering absolutely verboten with them?
Click to expand...

The packaging for the phone will have a code on it somewhere, in a tiny rectangle or oval, usually off in a corner barely visible. The code for Verizon will be "CDMA-V."

Smart phones... I don't think any of Straight Talk's smart phones are more than $100.00 - $175.00, except for the iPhone. The BlackBerry is Curve 9310 for ST is $129.99, if your friend likes BBerries. They also have a bunch of not-quite-the-latest Androids starting at a hundred bucks, give or take.

Tethering is strictly verboten, and it's also rumored that there's a 2GB / month soft data limit, which they'll non-renew you for if exceeded more than once or twice. It's also been rumored that they'll non-renew you for watching Netflix, etc. I have experienced none of those problems, but I've done none of those things.

Customer service... basically sucky, but I only needed it once, when the phone failed to reset after a refill. Bobby from Bangalore talked me through the fix, and I wrote it down for future reference.

All in all, if you keep the data use under control, I think ST is hard to beat. $45.00/month is about one-third which VZW would charge me for the same deal with them, so I'm pretty satisfied.

-Rich
 
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I had an HTC for a while and had nothing but trouble with it. Went thru 3 of them before I just changed back to a plain voice/text phone. I went to a netbook with built in Verizon access for internet. I have had good luck with Verizon's coverage all over the place .. including the drive down to Miami.
I don't know how they stack up on price.


RT

alfadog said:
I think the time has come for me to rejoin the 21st Century and would like y'all's help in choosing. I have had smartphones in the past but have been using a simple flip phone for the last few years.

Right now I am looking for two lines, one for myself and the other for my son. I want all the usual smartphone bells and whistles including being compatible with aviation apps. My top three phones are:

Samsung Galaxy S4 (my fav)
HTC One (son's fav)
iPhone 5

I do not have any carrier preference.

My out-of-pocket is limited to $200 per phone so I am probably locked into a contract if I want one of the above phones.

After the phone selection my highest priority is lowest total monthly bill given reasonable data (3GB/phone min) and unlimited messaging. I can accept a talk time limit.

I am also open to other (cheaper) phones if that gets me the other stuff I need/want.

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
 
SCCutler said:
It is apparent that they can work with T-Mo, AT&T and Verizon network; but if you buy a phone from them, it looks like you cannot tell which network the phone will be on. I got through to support person (who has a strong accent but a good spirit), and he simply tells me, "buy the phone and then you can find out," or something like that. A fountain of useful intel, he is not.
Click to expand...

Yeah, their CSRs and support techs are... well, let's just say most of them aren't MIT almuni.

-Rich
 
Look for this code to get a Verizon phone for Straight Talk.

-Rich
 

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Also don't forget TMo is the only carrier that does VoIP calling natively on some devices. Basically to fix their massive coverage problems. If your device is on WiFi you can receive a call.

The only guy at work who has TMo gets cell phone calls. The rest of us get dropped calls unless we stand near a window or go outside. On any carrier. The building has metal in the glass.
 
Anyone have experience with Boost? They have a similar setup and pricing to ST but a nicer selection of phones, IMO.
 
alfadog said:
Anyone have experience with Boost? They have a similar setup and pricing to ST but a nicer selection of phones, IMO.
Click to expand...

Boost is owned by Sprint. I had them for myself for a while, and also for my goddaughters when they were living with us.

Boost is very good if you have a Sprint signal, but there's no roaming at all (not even voice and text). Data seems to be truly unlimited (the kids used to watch whole movies on Netflix, and Boost never complained), but tethering is not allowed (or at least wasn't when I had them). The price "shrinkage" is nice. They also have a very decent selection of phones.

I had Boost for several years when I lived in Queens, and the main reason I changed was because Sprint didn't have service when I moved. I switched to T-Mo, with whom I was very happy; but then I moved again, and neither Sprint nor T-Mo have service where I live now.

Long story short, I was very happy with Boost, and I wouldn't have switched if they had service where I moved to; and I was very happy with T-Mo, and I wouldn't have switched if they had service where I moved to. Now I have VZW over Straight Talk, and I am happy with them. It was a matter of whose coverage was better in any given place.

Data wise, Boost and T-Mo Prepaid both seem truly unlimited, but T-Mo lets you tether. ST is rumored to have a hidden data cap, but I've never hit it; and tethering is forbidden.

Customer service wise: T-Mo is very good, Boost is tolerable, and Straight Talk is ... less than wonderful. But truly, I could count all the times in my life that I've had to call a cell phone provider on the fingers of one hand, so that's kind of a non-issue for me.

I will say this: Ever since I went prepaid, the one thing I'm pretty sure I'll never do is go back to a contract plan. The service is the same, the prices are lower and predictable with no surprises, and you can hop off any time you want with no penalties. Unless you have a whole bunch of phones on some sort of time and data sharing plan, you're almost certain to save money by going prepaid.

Both times that I've had to switch carriers for coverage reasons, I just called the providers first to deactivate the phones (which otherwise takes several billing cycles if you just stop paying the bill) and sold them on Craig's List for about half of what I paid for them new. The phone is also deactivated if you port the number away from it, at which time you're free to sell the phone.

On the down side, the only prepaid carriers (to my knowledge) who allow roaming at all are T-Mo and AT&T. If you have one carrier and are on the other's tower, you'll at least have talk and text. None of the other prepaid carriers, to my knowledge, let you roam at all. That's not important to me because I kind of like being unavailable and rather cherish all the dead zones up here. But if you're someone who thinks he's important enough that he needs to be connected all the time, the lack of roaming on most prepaid plans can be a downside.

-Rich
 
... since [going] prepaid ... I'll never do is go back to a contract plan. The service is the same, the prices are lower and predictable with no surprises, and you can hop off any time you want with no penalties.
Click to expand...
Amen to that!

My wife and I are on a prepaid Pure Talk family plan. We don't use the phones a lot, so our total (both of us) out of pocket per month is usually $15. Pure also has a couple of unlimited talk/text plans in the low $40s per month, one with 1gb of data and one without. http://www.puretalkusa.com/

Pure uses the AT&T network. We have used the phones all over the US with no problems. Since it's GSM you can also buy a SIM card in almost any country you visit and use your phone as a local number.

Buy a phone on CraigsList and you are good to go. To pay a high monthly fee will quickly wipe out any "savings" from the low initial cost of a subscription-required phone. IMO it makes no sense.
 
alfadog said:
Anyone have experience with Boost? They have a similar setup and pricing to ST but a nicer selection of phones, IMO.
Click to expand...

We have Boost for both of our girls. It works just fine for them and there are no caps, or believe me, I'd have heard about it by now.

Sprint service is slower than AT&T (my work phone), but it works in many more areas than TMobile. But when Tmobile works, it's better overall.

I love the shrinkage, it's 40 bucks a month now for their phones. Easy peasy. Customer service sucks, but realistically, who has good customer service anymore? they all suck at that.
 
retailguy said:
We have Boost for both of our girls. It works just fine for them and there are no caps, or believe me, I'd have heard about it by now.

Sprint service is slower than AT&T (my work phone), but it works in many more areas than TMobile. But when Tmobile works, it's better overall.

I love the shrinkage, it's 40 bucks a month now for their phones. Easy peasy. Customer service sucks, but realistically, who has good customer service anymore? they all suck at that.
Click to expand...

That was the tradeoff I've found as well between T-Mo and Sprint when I was trying to decide between the two. I chose slower in more places, especially with the mediocre coverage we have in the mountains from any of the carriers.

From my understanding Sprint can roam on Verizon's network as well if there aren't any Sprint towers. That's just rumor though I don't have any proof of it.
 
e.pie said:
From my understanding Sprint can roam on Verizon's network as well if there aren't any Sprint towers. That's just rumor though I don't have any proof of it.
Click to expand...

It's true. Only in some places, and Sprint pays VZ for the privilege. Their base stations are compatible ever since CDMA 2000.
 
denverpilot said:
It's true. Only in some places, and Sprint pays VZ for the privilege. Their base stations are compatible ever since CDMA 2000.
Click to expand...

Yes, on contract plans. The prepaid versions, variants, and MVNOs of Sprint and VZW won't roam.

-Rich
 
I'm former T-Mobile. The cell service was great. The customer service was so incredibly wretched that nothing could make me switch back to them.

I'm now on Sprint, and the cell service sucks in my area. I regularly have 3G/4G, but the connection is slow, or doesn't work, or constantly cuts out. Every day around 5:00pm my phone fails to ring when the SO calls me; goes straight to my voice mail. On the other hand, the customer service seems passable and the website and clarity of the bill are much more sane.
 
I have Tmobil, $117 per month for 2 lines, unlimited everything. I was surprised when I called them a month or so ago and got a person that I was able to understand perfectly. I asked where they were, they said in California. I was also told members with over 10 years of service went to this call center. I told them that we get the best and screw the newbies, she said no, just a new customer service for valued customers.
 
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