OT: Cell phone provider alternates?

[stephenmarklay]

I have been waiting for the iPhone 6 and now that its here I am wondering if I should do an alternate service. I am on the very good but very expensive verizon plan now.

My daughter is begging for a cell phone and my wife is on her side so that makes three phones. We do use them a fair amount too.

Any experiences like Ting etc?

[Ken Robb]

I think there is enough variation in service from one area to another by each of the providers that you really need to concentrate on information from customers in your area to see whose coverage would be best. If there is more than one company with acceptable coverage for you then you can investigate services/costs.

In a few nationwide studies I have seen Verizon often has the best coverage. I use them but when my wife had Verizon and I had T-Mobile there were areas when we traveled where I had reception and she did not.

[vqdriver]

agree. also keep in mind that data speeds are just as important as cellular call coverage. especially with iphones, there's a lot of data usage going on and if the data connections are not strong, you'll burn a lot of battery life while it's doing its thing in the background. it doesn't seem like it but it's there. for an illustration, put an iphone into airplane mode and try to open your most commonly used apps. almost nothing works without connecting to its own server. a lot of games even aren't stand alone anymore.

[staggerwing]

T-mobile simple plan should be right around $100/month with 1GB of 4g data/month/phone. It is not a 3GB pool that shares across all phones on the plan. Can add another 1.5GB data/month, by phone, at $10/month.

It works for us, and I've found them quite straightforward to deal with. However, check coverage and ask friends and co-workers within your region about the plan you are interested in. It may not be a good fit for you.

Verizon has better coverage around here, but I'm not willing to pay almost double for it.

[rilz]

Here in California, T-Mobile is definitely the cheapest, and it has good coverage too. If you were just looking at alternative options and didn't want an iPhone per se, check out these providers: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2375644,00.asp

[stephenmarklay]

Thanks you guys. Rilz I will read the article you linked.

[exapkib]

My family members who live in Colorado use Republic wireless and love it--affordable, flexible plans and good coverage in most areas.

Can't speak specifically to CA, but worth checking into for inexpensive mobile phone service.