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When it comes to T-Mobile CEO John Legere, you gotta admit… the guy keeps it interesting. In the carrier’s latest bout against AT&T, T-Mobile issues a satirical press release written with “tongue firmly planted in the cheek.” The completely off the wall press release features fictional quotes by AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega — as played out in the head of John Legere, no doubt — where Mr. Vega applauds T-Mobile’s Uncarrier methods, calling T-Mobile’s network faster than their own, even offering their customers $450 to try T-Mobile risk free.
It’s AT&T’s latest move that Legere attempts to flip it on them, calling AT&T their latest partner in the “Uncarrier consumer revolution.” A bit over the top, and not something we’re used to seeing from multi-billion dollar telcos, but apparently it’s working to some degree.
T-Mobile’s strange press release comes after AT&T reported their Q4 financials in which they saw 566,000 new customers. T-Mobile? 869,000. Has John Legere finally gone crazy? Crazy like a fox.
[T-Mobile]
The problem is once you experience the T-Mobile network, despite it being half the price and T-Mobile’s seriously awesome customer service, you’ll be racing back to AT&T just so your phone can actually receive a cellular signal
Is that blanket statement actually true? Or is T-Mobile a good alternative in some markets?
Its pretty damn good in Florida. As long as you stay inside metropolitan footprints you’re pretty much guaranteed to have HSPA which is faster that AT&T’s 3G network by a wide margin.
T-mobile’s LTE is just balls fast. No other way to describe it. Makes Verizon’s LTE look like dialup.
Verizon’s LTE is far superior to T-Mobile. The only reason, you probably get a faster signal is because hardly anyone uses the network. There is not much bandwidth and internet traffic to deal with as of yet. When people start coming into T-Mobile, expect the network to get slower.
After all, it’s is the #4 Network in the country. I have Verizon Wireless and I am testing T-Mobile with my Nexus 5. T-Mobile’s data network is frustrating especially in NYC and mountain areas in NJ. My data keeps dropping. That’s really bad especially if you depend on Google Maps for Navigation. As for my Verizon phone…..perfect in all areas.
Sprint isn’t that much larger. What’s their excuse?
Herp derp network.
Its Sprint. All kinds of spectrum, but no money to build more towers.
It all depends on where you live. T-Mobile’s LTE is faster than Verizon’s LTE in a lot of places here in FL.
I’m not sure why you’re getting such terrible speeds. Normally it’s Verizon that is stagnant with speeds in NY, and T-Mobile has the faster speeds. Results will vary I guess.
Hspa+ is utilized by all smartphones on tmobile and the 42mbps capable devices still maintain easily 15mbps which beats verizons consistency
The fastest speed I’ve pulled with Verizon back when their network was new wad 41mb the fastest I have pulled is 66mb on tmobile
i still find your NYC tmobile issues to be very fascinating. I, nor any of my T mobile acquaintances have any issues in NYC, we only get issues when going to parts of Connecticut or long island. (i dont go to jersey very often). I have a strong signal everywhere i go (including many subway stations) except for the basements of some large buildings.
As far as speeds, go, i don’t even have an LTE phone (nexus 4) and I experienced faster speeds than my Verizon friends (when i used to compare in 2013, things could have changed). I would consistently get between 8-15 mbps on hspa+ while they would consistently get between 5-10. Most of the time I’d get about 11/12 and most of the time they got about 6.5. When i Did the LTE hack i’ve gotten as high as 30 mbps.
Its the same reason Verizon’s LTE was “balls fast” at first. Very few had LTE-enabled phones to use it. Once customers got on board, it slowed down. The same will happen if t-mo starts getting a rush of customers.
Except that T-Mobile is upgrading their towers with better technology that far surpasses what the other guys are using. So they’re future proofing.
Really? Proof?
20+20 LTE
http://www.tmonews.com/2013/11/2020-lte-networks-popping-up-speed-tests-show-70mbps-downloads-near-plano-dallastx/
What does the spectrum bandwidth have to do with the technology used to deploy lte exactly? Please explain where it states t-mo is using better technology than everybody else.
http://gigaom.com/2013/03/26/t-mobiles-new-lte-network-is-fast-but-its-going-to-get-a-lot-faster/
It explains a bit on there, I can’t go through a whole archives of articles to find the one that had more specifics.
Pretty much they’re using newer hardware which allows easy upgrade to 20+20 as well as the soon to be LTE-A. I’m not sure if the other carriers are on 20+20 as they don’t tell their users, but if they are it’s way too slow as is.
Not the same case because tmobile has more than 1 phone that is lte capable. Starting with gs3 lte, gs4, some nexus 4s rooted, nexus 5, sony z1, lg g2, lg f3 and f6, iphone 5s and c, I could go on and on t-mobile has low end, mid end, high end lte devices. If you think practically no one has lte on tmobile you are sadly mistaken.
when did they make a LTE nexus 4?
They don’t and did not but the nexus 4 has dormant lte radios that have been proven to work with root and custom roms though hspa+ really is great enough
Obviously you’re a little slow to get the point I was trying to make.
I got your point just fine the only thing is that its false. Its not the same scenario in any way shape or form because most people will more than likely have upgraded to a lte device last year actually especially with the $0 down specials they had numerous yimes in the holidays
Lte devices wasn’t even my point. I was using Verizon’s lte network as a example of how fast a network can be with fewer users compared to one that is at capacity(more users). T-Mobile has fewer users right now, but will see network strain when they gain subs. Exactly what happened when Verizon’s lte network took on more subs with lte phones. Everything slowed down.
Its not like T-mobile has only 4 people using the network it may not be verizon big but it is big comparable to sprint of which for the size its almost equal and t-mobile is far superior.
T-Mobile is great in most urban areas. Super fast network, good coverage, nice penetration.
Problem is for folks that live out in the boonies, most of the time their only options are Verizon or AT&T.
“T-Mobile is great in most rural areas.”
Urban?
Er, yeah. That. xD
Boonies here. Can confirm. ZERO T-Mobile service.
Don’t live the boonies, but my coverage sucks. I am in a deadzone for pretty much all companies for some odd reason and I live in a major city.
Which is why VZW and AT&T are able to charge so much. Sprint and T-Mo need to get out there to drive prices down. Competition is also why I do NOT want Softbank to purchase T-Mo and merge it with Sprint.
I don’t know about AT&T, but I have both Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile. This is a fact,….T-Mobile’s data network is not consistent where I travel in New Jersey and New York City. It might be different for you. The best thing to do is to temporarily try the T-Mobile network.
The reason why I am trying T-Mobile is to prepare for the occasion, in the event, Verizon Wireless decides to remove the “grandfathered unlimited data plans.”
In Newark, NJ (in certain areas) I can get download speeds of 6-8 mb per sec. With Verizon Wireless, I can get 26 mb per sec. Sometimes, in that same area, my phone shows an LTE connection on T-Mobile. There I can get 10 mbs.
YOu need to try it out T-Mobile for a month. AFter all, why not? You won’t be on contract with them.
I honestly can say I’ve had an issue in NYC with TMO.
Im in NYC i haven’t had any issues with TMO.
this one.
I have T-Mobile in SLC, my coverage is just as good most of the time as my roommate’s, who has AT&T…there are a FEW places where I’ll have next to no signal and she’ll be fine, but it’s rare. And a couple months ago they updated their network and it’s been even better, and now my data goes much faster nearly everywhere and I have full bars in places where I used to only have one or two. AT&T’s coverage is not better enough to justify having them (and their stupid 2GB data limit) over T-Mobile in the city.
It’s superb through all of Southern and central California. Rivals my Verizon coverage and even gets signals in places Verizon didn’t. Surprisingly…
Obviously, it varies to some degree. Every carrier has spots where they have better coverage than their rivals. Listening to individual accounts on a message board is useless as everyone’s quick to defend their choice even though they have no idea what it would be like where you live/work/play.
You have to stick with the carrier coverage maps, reports of consumer groups, and people who actually live/work/play where you do and have similar usage patterns.
From a very general perspective, all four pretty much have the urban and suburban areas covered, with Sprint still a bit behind on LTE coverage in larger areas. It may actually be on in those places, but not made official because there are still towers being worked on.
In rural and remote areas, Verizon and AT&T tend to have more coverage. Most are good along major interstates, but as you get away Verizon and AT&T simply have more. They are larger companies that have histories of aggressive acquisitions, so this makes sense. Again, there will always be exceptions where TMobile or Sprint have coverage where the big two don’t, but this is about generalities.
At the other end of the spectrum, Sprint & Tmobile are lower priced and are less stingy with data.
In the end, nothing’s going to beat personal research. You need to know where you want and need coverage and when/where you can do without. Someone who is heavily into something like hunting or fishing will have different needs from a confirmed urbanite, who thinks the suburbs are the boondocks.
What are you willing to pay to have all the coverage you want? Are you willing to sacrifice coverage for cost? Do you even need to with your requirements?
Exactly! Well said ! Logic Over Bias.
“You have to stick with the carrier coverage maps, reports of consumer groups, and people who actually live/work/play where you do and have similar usage patterns.”
And go by reports of people in your area before you trust coverage maps. T-Mobile’s coverage map shows my house in a “Very Strong” 4G coverage area. In reality I was lucky to get voice signal, and data was pretty much non-existent.
I switched from Verizon to T-Mo in December. Here in the Chicago ‘burbs, I’ve been getting better signal with T-Mo than I did with Verizon. At my office I was lucky to get any signal at all with Verizon, with T-Mo I get weakish LTE or strong HSPA+. At home and out-and-about I generally get stronger LTE signals than I did with Verizon, and slightly faster speeds.
Then of course there’s the advantages of not having Verizon blocking/delaying Android updates, not having Verizon blocking Google Wallet, being able to use the N5, and much, much lower prices.
Rush back to AT&T? I left them back in the dust years ago. Couldn’t get signal at work.. In downtown Houston! OR my house in a rural suburban area on the outskirts, had to step outside anytime I wanted to make a phone call. Am with T-mo now and rarely ever have signal problems, it works great at home and at work where AT&T, sprint and verizon fail. I can’t explain why that is but in the building I work in all signals but T-mo die upon entry lol.
Mark that is because LTE speeds are awsome in the Houston area (Harris County). I noticed that everyone (well not everyone) is right about T-mobile, as most complaints about them are regional and based on experience in those areas. That, to me is the problem. More towers are needed in the rural areas outside of major cities. I am fine with Tmobile in the Houston area (which is large) but I do travel and find myself dropping calls in more rural areas. If coverage is good your area than I believe you are getting excellent speeds and great service, but that should be determined before making the switch.
I dunno about rushing back to AT&T, but after a couple of years of wishing and hoping T-Mobile would improve their data coverage, I finally switched to Verizon a couple of months ago. T-Mobile has the best prices, and absolutely the best customer service by a big margin, but in my area their data coverage just sucked and it simply wasn’t improving. At my house their coverage actually has degraded over the last few years to the point where voice calls are sketchy and data is essentially non-existent.
If T-Mobile’s coverage in your area is good enough, I highly recommend them. Even if they aren’t quite as good as the alternatives I’d still go with them. Only when it’s bad enough to get frustrating would I recommend any other carrier. Their customer service is that good.
OR…
i’ll run to straight talk and pay a fraction of the price of ATT for the same service on the same network.
Please. Though T-Mobile doesn’t have the coverage that AT&T, those that do live in an area with T-Mobile are more than happy. Myself included.
I would like to know how T Mobile is leveraging the acquisition of MetroPCS and how it’s going to make our network better?
Well I have been on metro for a while CDMA then gsm then after the merged spectrum well I just jumped on the T-Mobile choo choo its great for metro just look at all their phones and such plus you get the T-Mobile phones cheaper
Nice I always wanted to try out AT&T..All right!!!!
*says sarcastically*
In lots of markets TMO is the best alternative…..Not in the pockets of Edge tho lol
I like the ad it makes sense
I have T-Mobile and when I have a connection it is extremely fast. But when I get into some places out in the woods I get absolutely no signal at all
Why would you be in the woods expecting service and why would you need a phone in the woods?
I get great service in the woods with verizon… (clear out in the middle of nowhere BFE type of woods) Its quite useful if I forget my grunt call and need to dl an electronic hunting call, or if I have my kid with me he can stream YouTube while I’m hunting.
I dont think its ridiculous in the slightest to expect coverage out there anyway as that would be one of the worst places to go without coverage if an emergency were to happen.
Gee, wanting service when your in a remote area where you might get injured and there may not be another person for miles. Why would anyone possibly want service in those conditions?
Yeah because nowadays with technology people are actually always in the woods.
You are not wrong when it pertains to (maybe?) your lifestyle. So understanding that your point view is (probaly?)based off your lifestyle, it allows me to understand that it would be hard for you to fathom a call in the wood as a normal circumstance. However, visiting my wife’s family in the country (heavily wooded area) I tend to lose signal and I mean complete dead zone, which can be a real inconvenience. I continue to stick with tmobile because it is great in my residential area. However, I would like for them to expand their towers. My wife’s family all have Verizon (some AT&T) and maintain decent coverage in those heavily wooded areas.
This is not the movies where the dumb blonde goes running into a forest for help because she’s about to be murdered with an axe. This is real life 9 in 10 people rarely go in woods for anything.
I think making phone calls in the middle of nowhere was the original selling point for cellular telephones in the 80s (e.g. car broken down). It is definitely not astonishing to desire to make a call far away from a store or pay phone (which don’t exist anymore). Once upon a time there used to be emergency phones on highways and such.
Of note, the range of analog/cellular mobile phones was far superior to digital :)
Yeah the satellite phones were big back in the day for those reasons but it seems as if nowadays today 9 people in 10 aren’t in the forest looking for signal but in the major cities of which any carrier is great. its a small demographic of “forests” that people travel to.
Let me rephrase. When I was using an analog cell phone or car phone in the 90s I had no problems living in my CT suburb of NYC. But then we all switched to digital-only phones … No reception at my parent’s house for the next 10 years. By no means is the section of CT between US-15 and I-95 “the forests”.
In present day, I work on I-495 in MA (35 miles from Boston), and while looking for houses my wife noticed that in the majority of locations had no T-Mobile service (her carrier), including my workplace. That is a significant problem, and this is also by no means “the forest”.
he has to call his friends to help dispose of the bodies. DUH! lol
If I pay for it, I expect to have a signal just about anywhere that is not a nuclear bunker.
The truth is, TMobile and Sprint will always be behind AT&T and Verizon in rural coverage because of the spectrum in which they operate. Since Tmo and Sprint operate on higher frequencies, the signal does not travel as far and does not penetrate walls as well. Tmo/Sprint will always need more towers to have the same coverage as AT&T/Verizon. On the plus side, higher freq spectrum also causes less brain cancer, so there’s that.
My T-Mobile LTE speeds on my phone are often faster than connecting to wifi.
Me too. I get like 42mbps over LTE on my Nexus 4 in my apartment.
I just switched 2 weeks ago to t-mobile from att. I was not unhappy with att but they did bug me in more than one way. Pricing was too high, the extra fee to use your device as a hot spot was ridiculous. basically they want to charge you 20.00 to use your allotted data which you already paid for. Bottom line, ATT has great coverage but CRAP plans and restrictions.
After switching to t-mobile, my coverage is not bad but I do have a few voice dead spots where I did not with ATT. This can be frustrating but from what I read, they are expanding their coverage and may be worth waiting for it due to the cost benefits. I lik emy unlimited data, talk plan with no additional charge for wifi hotspot tethering from my android phone. I am saving over 125.00 per month with my 5 lines. If att would offer a similar plan as t-mobile, i would consider moving back. But for now, I will let T-mobile try and win me over with the planned coverage expansion.
Apparently Victor Who is still using gmaps from 2004 since it is not caching for him.
if you live in a place where the less expensive services don’t work then it sucks to be you.
verizon and ATT have you over a barrel.