How is your coverage in Southern California (LA/OC/IE)?

Bbeelzebub

Well-known member
Jun 28, 2011
265
23
0
Visit site
Longtime Verizon Wireless customer here. I know a few people on Sprint locally and they seem to love it. My brother used to live in San Diego and sometimes I would text him and he'd get the message days later. He finally switched to Verizon. (Considering I'm LA/OC based, I don't care what the service is like in SD) It's happened a few times with a friend as well. It seems rare though. My friends assure me that is a rare occurrence.

So, how are your speeds? Get a lot of dropped calls? I notice Verizon's 3G network has gotten slower lately (while Sprints has gotten faster) and instead of switching to a mediocre phone to lock in unlimited for two more years, I'm thinking of going over to Sprint and picking up 3 Evo 4G LTEs once they get released.

Are you a satisfied customer?
 

ibleedbloo

Well-known member
Feb 28, 2012
108
9
0
Visit site
I'm in Riverside but travel all over IE and into OC and SD and never get dropped calls on my OG EVO. My data speeds at home are below standard as they average about .7mb download. I see 1.3mb download at many locations including UCR and the local mall. I never turn on 4g but know there are some active sites in the IE. As for texting I have never experienced issues.

I recommend sprint to all my friends as long as they are comfortable with the slower data speeds...hopefully we'll see LTE soon.

Sent from my PC36100 using Android Central Forums
 
  • Like
Reactions: Bbeelzebub

Bbeelzebub

Well-known member
Jun 28, 2011
265
23
0
Visit site
Thanks for the 411! Looks like you get better 3G speeds than I do with Verizon (I'm in Chino Hills).

You probably already know, but All of San Bernardino and Riverside County is set for the second round of deployment along with the OC. From the looks of the map, they haven't gotten much in LA done. I'm wondering if I'll be able to pick up a signal from their towers in Pomona when those are done. It might soften the wait if I switch.
 

mbj8448

Member
May 17, 2011
19
2
0
Visit site
I am the first to admit that I am a Sprint fanboy. I have been with them for 8 years and I love the company. I have had as many as 30 lines with them, including tablets and MiFi hotspots and old Nextel phones. To control business expenses, I have frequently done price comparisons to Verizon, ATT, and T-Mobile. Sprint has ALWAYS come out as the best deal. (Although TMo with their new plans for bringing your own phone looks competitive.)

All this is why it pains me to say that I am considering a switch to ATT or TMo. The primary reason is in anticipation of Google's new Nexus plans (Fingers Crossed: http://www.androidcentral.com/multiple-nexus-devices-could-change-android-forever), which is why I would not switch to Verizon. But the secondary reason is because of data speeds.

Coincidentally, I am also in Chino Hills (71/Pine). I tried to run some Speedtests for you but gave up soon because the network wouldn't even connect (bad sign). But here are some results from my SGS2 Epic 4GTouch on 3G:
Ping-1064 Down-.12mb Up-.11mb
Ping-803 Down-.11mb Up-.10mb
Ping-892 Down-.12mb Up-.13mb
Ping-164 Down-.16mb Up-.05mb
And here are some from my iPhone 4S:
Ping-1410 Down-.06mb Up-.00mb
Ping-859 Down-.01mb Up-.00mb
Ping-1040 Down-.06mb Up-.00mb

I am severely tempted by the EVO LTE and promises of LTE in the IE. Having been with Sprint since before data speeds were even a thing, I think I generally don't know what I am missing. But I see the speeds that others are getting on other networks and I know the frustration of no or slow data speeds on Sprint. I honestly think that the reason Phil is taking so long to publish his EVO LTE review is because he loves the phone and wants to recommend it but just cannot bring himself to recommend a phone on Sprint's network.

Data is almost the entirety of what I do with my phone. I don't do a lot of calling on it but rarely have dropped calls when I do. I don't SMS a lot because I do all of my texting through Google Voice which uses data. But I have rarely had trouble with SMS on Sprint's network.

Since Sprint recently ended their loyalty rewards program (I used to be able to upgrade every phone on my account every 12 months, now it is 22 months like all the other carriers), I have even less incentive to stay with them, except I really do like them as a company. In the end, I am pretty sure I will get the EVO LTE based on the awesomeness of that phone and the promise of future LTE. But in 6 months, if Google does announce their rumored Nexus plan, I will pay the ETF and switch my primary line to ATT or TMo but leave all my other lines with Sprint. I just don't want to be stuck in the Dark Ages of data speed any longer on the device I use the most.

So if call quality, SMS, and your budget are your top concerns, I could not recommend Sprint highly enough. They are wonderful. But if your top priority is data speed (as mine is increasingly becoming), it pains me to say that I would stay away from Sprint, unless you are very confident that LTE is coming to us in the IE. Best of luck!
 

KoukiFC3S

Well-known member
Oct 9, 2009
1,724
123
0
Visit site
I've had 5 sprint lines for about 5 years.

The service is great. I get service everywhere and haven't experienced many dropped calls. Texting also works great. Don't recall many problems with delayed messages.

I've also had a single Verizon line as my main phone for 2 years. Verizon's LTE network is amazing, but their phone selection sucks.

Since Verizon isn't getting the One X, I decided to go back to sprint for my main line and just got my EVO LTE.
The 3G on Sprint is slow, but it's pretty comparable to Verizon's 3G.
 

SierraJulietSierra

Active member
Jan 21, 2011
31
9
0
Visit site
I work in Chino Hills by Sleepy Hallow and I get great 3G service on my 3D Evo. Only on chino hills parkway will service drop to 1 or two bars but that's for only a few secs.