Does an expensive phone get better reception?

[cdmjlt369]

I just switched to straight talk. I have an LG journey, ($40 phone). Will a $100- $150 phone get better reception?Thoughts please. Thanks in advance.

 

[Mooncatt]

I just switched to straight talk. I have an LG journey, ($40 phone). Will a $100- $150 phone get better reception?Thoughts please. Thanks in advance.

This seems more of a brand issue, rather than a price range issue. Case in point, the LG flagships's I've used were mediocre in reception. I had a Razer Phone 2 that I bought brand new for $250, and its reception was much better.

 

[cdmjlt369]

This seems more of a brand issue, rather than a price range issue. Case in point, the LG flagships's I've used were mediocre in reception. I had a Razer Phone 2 that I bought brand new for $250, and its reception was much better.

Thank you for your response So a Moto or Samsung would likely be best? Would I be better off going for a newer budget phone or maybe a 2 or3 year old flagship with better specs but an older is?

 

[Javier P]

Thank you for your response So a Moto or Samsung would likely be best? Would I be better off going for a newer budget phone or maybe a 2 or3 year old flagship with better specs but an older is?

For that entry-level price I would go for a Moto device, performance and radios will be good for the price.

 

[mustang7757]

For that entry-level price I would go for a Moto device, performance and radios will be good for the price.

Agree Moto radio are pretty good

 

[Laura Knotek]

It also is carrier dependent. Which Straight Talk SIM do you have? Is your phone from Straight Talk or an unlocked phone you purchased elsewhere? What carrier was the phone originally from, or what carrier bands does it support?

Straight Talk is a MVNO that uses SIMs for various networks, so depending on what SIM you have will depend on whether or not you want a phone with the radio for T-Mobile, Sprint, AT&T, or Verizon.

 

[cdmjlt369]

It also is carrier dependent. Which Straight Talk SIM do you have? Is your phone from Straight Talk or an unlocked phone you purchased elsewhere? What carrier was the phone originally from, or what carrier bands does it support?

Straight Talk is a MVNO that uses SIMs for various networks, so depending on what SIM you have will depend on whether or not you want a phone with the radio for T-Mobile, Sprint, AT&T, or Verizon.

It is an LG using the Verizon side. The coverage map in my area shows straight talk and cricket having the same coverage. Cricket in my area have been having service issues for 6 months. All of it is straight talk.

 

[Laura Knotek]

It is an LG using the Verizon side. The coverage map in my area shows straight talk and cricket having the same coverage. Cricket in my area have been having service issues for 6 months. All of it is straight talk.

OK. Cricket is an AT&T MVNO, so if you are using a Verizon Straight Talk SIM, then you want unlocked phones that have the radios for Verizon.

 

[cdmjlt369]

OK. Cricket is an AT&T MVNO, so if you are using a Verizon Straight Talk SIM, then you want unlocked phones that have the radios for Verizon.

Any recommendations?

 

[Laura Knotek]

Any recommendations?

I agree with @Javier P and @mustang7757 regarding Moto.

 

[BergerKing]

And I'll tip in with a thumbs up for Moto for having excellent transceiver capacity.

 

[Chuck Finley69]

I just switched to straight talk. I have an LG journey, ($40 phone). Will a $100- $150 phone get better reception?Thoughts please. Thanks in advance.

Here’s the problem with America Movil and it’s USA MVNOs to answer your question. It owns Tracphone MVNO and it’s related brands like Straight Talk MVNO too. Straight Talk sells the hardware with included SIM card optimized for a specific carrier.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/TracFone_Wireless

I recently was setting up a Straight Talk account which I learned more than I ever cared too. Original phone was a Straight Talk Alcatel something from couple years ago running a SIM on Straight Talk MVNO T-MOBILE network. I pulled the SIM and put in a newer Alcatel factory unlocked device that ran ok but data coverage and reception wasn’t as good. I switched to different factory unlocked Android which had even worse data coverage and reception. Using a signal tester, AT&T or VZW was the better choice based on nearby towers. I personally use AT&T postpaid account so I requested a new programmed Straight Talk AT&T MVNO SIM and two days later popped SIM in the phone.

All was OK in my tester phone but when I moved back into the newer factory unlocked Alcatel, back to garbage. I went and bought another TCL branded Straight Talk device, and inserted that newer SIM and even worse.

I called Straight Talk customer service. The new phone model I got was optimized for VZW so my Straight Talk AT&T SIM wasn’t playing nicely. Using the Straight Talk VZW MVNO SIM included with the phone in the box and switching over fixed the problem.

You literally have to let them know which carrier (AT&T, VZW or T-Mobile) for your primary network you want first. Then let Straight Talk sell you that phone optimized for that network.

Also, Cricket is AT&T owned and MetroPCS is T-Mobile owned. Not as complicated as the Straight Talk and it’s related Tracphone system.

 

[Ry]

It depends what modem the phone has and what carrier you're connect to.