Bias against T-Mobile?

[runtmms]

I just switched from Sprint to T-Mobile (actually Solavei, an T-Mobile MVNO.) I made the switch based on coverage maps, wanting affordable data, and liking the flexibility of having an unlocked GSM phone.

I've spot checked the T-Mobile coverage map all around where I live, and many areas I travel to. In my opinion the T-Mobile coverage map looks great. So far that's matched my limited experience.

When I read the forums, or even talk to people in my area there seems to be a strong bias that T-Mobile has bad coverage. I just don't get it. Did it used to be bad and it improved a bunch? Are the coverage maps wrong? Is it because they haven't supported the iPhone in the past (or fully yet?) Or is it because I'm coming from Sprint and they're worse?

I understand if you're in a more rural area that doesn't have coverage - but that can't account for the frequency I see or hear the T-Mobile coverage concerns. And all carriers have some places they don't cover...

I'd love some answers.

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[tube517]

I had Tmobile briefly in 2004 and coverage wasn't that good. I just switched from Sprint/Boost and now the coverage is great and data is very good in my city. Sprint/Boost are slower than dial up speeds in my neighborhood. YMMV.

 

[PWC Realtor]

T-mobile (and ATT) had a bad wrap years ago because they both exclusively used EDGE for data which was even slower than EVDO used by Sprint and Verizon.


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[Citizen Coyote]

I think a lot of it comes from the fact that T-Mobile's coverage is spotty outside of urban areas. If you're in a city most of the time it's great. Outside the city, however, it can really vary and may not be available at all. I know from driving around Texas during the holidays that my coverage ranged from excellent to non-existent. Say what you will about Sprint, but I could get signal of some sort (either native or roaming) in all sorts of crazy places. Sometimes it would even work!

Edit: Also, people love to complain about providers whom they feel have done them wrong in the past. An old roommate of mine left Sprint back in 2000 due to a billing dispute, and to this day still swears they're the world's worst cellular company despite not having had service with them for 12 years. This is after him putting up with AT&T's crap when their network was over-saturated with iPhone users.

 

[Sam9696]

I actually haven't had any problems with t-mobile and I just recently within the past year switched from Sprint to t-mobile. While it does depend on where you're at in my area I have much better coverage than I had with Sprint and much better data speeds too. Years ago t-mobile wasn't that good but they've made lots of changes and overall I'm much more satisfied with my service now from t-mobile than my previous service with Sprint.

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[IAmSixNine]

Wonder how many of the complainers also had unlocked devices that were missing the 1700mhz band that houses the primary TMO channels. Only recently has TMO started to use 1900mhz stuff to enhance coverage and loading as well as compliment other carriers phones on their networks.

 

[runtmms]

Thanks for all the responses.

Wonder how many of the complainers also had unlocked devices that were missing the 1700mhz band that houses the primary TMO channels. Only recently has TMO started to use 1900mhz stuff to enhance coverage and loading as well as compliment other carriers phones on their networks.

I've wondered about the band compatibility issue as well...

I travel into the Colorado mountains with my Solavei service for the first time this weekend. According to the coverage maps all should be just fine. I'm looking forward to seeing if that's true.

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[Ry]

We recently discussed almost the same thing (about perception) with Sprint. The same thing can probably said about T-Mobile. There were enough dissatisfied customers to build up a perception and perception has stuck.

 

[PWC Realtor]

We recently discussed almost the same thing (about perception) with Sprint. The same thing can probably said about T-Mobile. There were enough dissatisfied customers to build up a perception and perception has stuck.

True but at least Sprint used to be a decent value in the big scheme of things. T-MOBILE has only become a good value for money in the past 2 or 3 years.

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[Jon_Doh]

Just do some extensive driving, you'll have your answer about T-Mobile coverage.

 

[chunkcohen]

I switched from Sprint to T-Mobile a few months ago and so far, I've been mostly happy.

But as others have stated before, anyone considering T-Mobile would be wise to study the coverage maps (including the high-speed data maps) carefully to make sure it's a good switch. I was out in rural Texas (a bit south of DFW) working on a indie film a couple months ago and when I was in town near the hotel, I got a pretty decent HSPA+ signal. But venturing even five miles outside of town, the signal would become very spotty, generally ranging from EDGE to no signal at all (not even for voice).

Thankfully, that was a pretty rare scenario for me, because I rarely find myself outside of Phoenix metro, where T-Mobile coverage is mostly excellent. Ditto for Los Angeles County (I find myself there from time to time as well). But see the pattern here? These are urban areas. If you find yourself travelling a lot on the road, you'd probably be very annoyed with T-Mobile's coverage. One of the few things I do miss about being on Sprint is that even where there wasn't actual Sprint coverage, it was easy enough to at least make a phone call out in the boonies because of their more extensive roaming agreements. Essentially, I traded coverage for faster data and a much cheaper bill (I'm on prepaid). It was a good tradeoff for me, but it may not be for others...

 

[Sam9696]

I do agree, like I said I'm 100% happy with my service from t- mobile (more happy than sprint) but it depends on where you live like any carrier.

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