T-Mobile vs AT&T - Dallas/Ft. Worth

sonicresidue

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While I am waiting for my Nexus 4 to arrive, I would like to get opinions on these two carriers in the D/FW area. I'm currently with AT&T, and aside from a few dropped calls, have not had terrible service with them. I have considered switching to T-Mobile because of their HSPA+ 42 network, plus I can save $25/month compared to AT&T. The savings are tempting, but I am not sure if T-Mobile's data speeds will be faster, although in theory they should be. I'm currently using an iPhone 3G, so I have not had any experience with HSPA+ on AT&T.

I did do a speed test on a N4 at a local T-Mo store and got between 10-15 Mbps down. Seemed fairly fast to me. But I have nothing else to compare it to, really.
 

IAmSixNine

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Im with Sprint, in Dallas, and Friday i picked up a TMO Sim card with the unlimited data and 500 minutes plan.
So far i have been impressed with their speeds, although found a few spots where i get full 4 bars of 4G, but speeds were really slow..
Been using a TMO GS2, and today i picked up a TMO HTC ONE S..
My recomendation to you is do what im doing. Open up a new account with them, take advantage of the 14 day trial and test away.
So far at work i have great signal and good speeds. At home i have 1-2 bars of service and speeds are just ok. So hopefully using a different device to test with will get me a little better results.
Im saving about 12 a month from my Sprint account by switching to TMO..
I also dont travel a lot so i dont need to worry about coverage across the country.
 

sonicresidue

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Well, I went ahead and switched, but am on the pre-paid plan. So far, data speeds are as good or better than what I got with AT&T. Signal strength is better at home, than it was with AT&T and about the same everywhere else. So far so good!
 

IAmSixNine

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For the testing i have done in the areas i go in Dallas, i would also have to agree that coverage, signal, and DL speeds are pretty darn good. Technically i was ONLY comparing my Sprint service to TMO but i wanted to make it interested so i added one of my ATT work lines to the mix. I went to a GS2 for ATT to make the testing fair. Afterall the GS2 uses HSDAP while the GS3 uses LTE.
Side by side of the TMO and ATT HSDPA network ive found that signal is about the same (again where i tend to travel in Dallas) and TMO on 75% of the time has better speeds then ATT.
But whats odd is TMO has some crazy ping times, they are either under 100 or hover around 600-800ms. Even when they are high the throughput is still good. So guess i really cant complain there.
 

tbonn41fn

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Believe me, you want to go with a big carrier. The other one is shrinking.....

Sent from my HTC VLE_U using Android Central Forums
 

sonicresidue

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As far as the ping times go, I read a theory that it is because on T-Mobile, the phone falls back to 3G when it is idle or not using data, and switches to HSPA+ when you start using data. Therefore, when you run a speed test, it takes a little while longer for the phone to negotiate an HSPA+ connection. If you run a second test IMMEDIATELY after the first while it is still on HSPA+ the ping time is MUCH shorter.
 

whymista

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I have lived in the dfw area for a while and had sprint and pretty much everywhere you go save for my house(lol) I get full signal 4g and if that cuts out I get full signal 3g. I haven't tested speeds but when I'm downloading or uploading things to the cloud I don't notice much of a difference than when I'm on wifi.

I would never pay the exorbitant rates that ATT charges no matter what, especially since wifi is so readily available.
 

tortaceo

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This is what speeds I get in the Dallas area.....

Sent from my SGH-T999
 

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IAmSixNine

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Believe me, you want to go with a big carrier. The other one is shrinking.....

Sent from my HTC VLE_U using Android Central Forums
Show me some documentation that its shrinking. Dont just say, hey its getting smaller..
Im still within my 14 day trial and as of now i am convinced i am making the right decision. I have not heard anything in regards to them taking down network capacity, tower locations. If anything they are adding 1900mhz channels for capacity and growth. Existing GSM EDGE stuff is being replaced with upgraded HSDPA stuff and in the near future LTE.. Or so i have been told.. / read..
 

whymista

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Show me some documentation that its shrinking. Dont just say, hey its getting smaller..
Im still within my 14 day trial and as of now i am convinced i am making the right decision. I have not heard anything in regards to them taking down network capacity, tower locations. If anything they are adding 1900mhz channels for capacity and growth. Existing GSM EDGE stuff is being replaced with upgraded HSDPA stuff and in the near future LTE.. Or so i have been told.. / read..

T-Mobile isn't getting smaller. If anything they are leading the larger companies in what will most likely turn into a no contract future for the big carriers. Already they have had success with it and with the way the no contract companies like boost, cricket, metro etc are doing well its not likely they will be downsizing anytime soon. ATT will be the worst hit because they have no plans in place to deal with what tmobile, and sprint have started doing which is laying groundwork for what the future landscape of how people will buy and pay for cell phones and coverage.
 

IAmSixNine

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While were on the discussion of Dallas and coverage. Any info on when Dallas TMO will get LTE?
I picked up a Nexus 4 and have held off on the 4.2.2 update to avoid loosing LTE. But if its going to be 6 months or so before Dallas sees T-Mobile add LTE then i am better off applying the 4.2.2 update.
 

Sweet Pikake

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While were on the discussion of Dallas and coverage. Any info on when Dallas TMO will get LTE?
I picked up a Nexus 4 and have held off on the 4.2.2 update to avoid loosing LTE. But if its going to be 6 months or so before Dallas sees T-Mobile add LTE then i am better off applying the 4.2.2 update.

you can always flash the 4.2.1 only, then you will end up with 4.2.2 with 4.2.1 radio. I was thinking of picking up the $30 100min 5gb from tmo and trying it in May-June when we come to Dallas, Lakewood, White Rock Lake area. i also have the Nexus 4 lying dormant

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