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We are getting ready to move to the area (somewhere in or between Brunswick and Portland) and since our cell phone contract is up for renewal, we're trying to choose the best carrier for our new location rather than here in the Chicago area.
We have Verizon now. Our daughter wants an iPhone for graduation but we're not sure we want an AT&T cell phone contract. She says she's read that Verizon coverage on the Bowdoin campus isn't very good. This surprised me because I've read that Verizon gets the best reviews for all of Maine in terms of lowest dropped calls, etc. AT&T scares me (we had them about six years ago and their service in Chicago was very bad) but if that's the best carrier, I'm willing to switch. On the other hand, Verizon has a great deal on Blackberries right now.
This morning I read the following on a site reviewing cell phone carriers nationally that seems like very good advice: .......Best thing to do is ask people where you will be using the phone. I'd pick the best coverage and signal strength over the best customer service if you have to choose. Customer service needs are periodic, but you need a strong signal and good coverage 24/7.
So can anyone offer their own local experience/opinions?
I'd appreciate it! Thanks.
Note: I searched carefully on previous threads but there isn't anything that specifically compares local quality of the carriers.
My son lives less than a block from Bowdoin on Potter St. He's never had any problems with Verizon wireless. We all use it, my DH, DD and other family. I spoke with my son for a long time today while he was driving from Brunswick to Madawaska. He was in Sherman just an hour ago, we never lost contact or had bad reception. The only place where we have problems are along the coast. I had reception issues while living in Harpswell and in some areas east of Rt 15 close to Blue Hill down towards Stonington.
Also, there is just one short little 1/2 mile lapse on 295 between Freeport and Brunswick. But if you drive fast enough, you'll never notice it.
We also use Verizon air cards for our lap tops and have never had any problems connecting while within the same area's mentioned.
I moved up to Maine (from Mass) for college with Verizon and it worked great... no real problems (especially along Southern Maine and the Midcoast... some difficulty in the remote areas).
Last year, like you're daughter, I decided I wanted an iPhone so I made the switch to AT&T. Love it. Maine was late in the game when it came to getting 3g service (she'll take advantage of it for sure), but has it now and it's great.
My family (until this past December, now they're all on iPhones except my mom who swears by her Blackberry) all had Verizon and I had AT&T. When in Maine together, we've noticed no difference in the service. AT&T has expanded significantly in the past 6 years (since you were last with them). They absorbed the "Cingular" network creating the largest nationwide network. It's slightly better than Verizon and I've felt that is true here in Maine too (it's also handy when traveling abroad to be on AT&T's Quad-Band phones which work everywhere... not so for VZ).
As far as your daughter and the iphone go, she will love it. She would probably love it even if AT&T weren't as good as Verizon. The combination of 3g, wifi, and all of the things the phone can do make it an incredible device (like none I've ever had). I watch full-length films, play all sorts of games (not crappy phone games, but major platform titles), send/recieve emails, use it as a TV remote (not kidding), make dinner reservations, browse the internet, etc. The mandatory data plan comes in handy as she will be able to use features like the gps and internet anywhere (with or without a wifi connection). The Blackberries are nice, but unless she's doing corporate work on it, the iPhone blows them all out of the water in just about every way.
While Verizon is certainly a good option, I wouldn't fear AT&T. Either/or will work more than sufficiently on the campus for your daughter. Not only is AT&T suitable, but I feel that now, it's better than VZW (though this wasn't the case even 2 years ago). When paired with the iPhone (which really does out do ANY blackberry, even the touch-screen storm), I feel it's an unbeatable combination.
Hi Mermaid! Thanks for the information ~ very helpful.
I'm really happy with my Verizon phone. It's not a blackberry but has a text pad and I like that. They have a blackberry offer right now (buy one get one free) so I'd sure like to be the beneficiary of the free one.
And lrfox - thank for the details. It's nice to realize that either carrier will be fine. Question for you: don't both Verizon and AT&T have 3G? And other than games, what are the advantages or capabilities on the iPhone that are not available on a Blackberry? Is is a quality difference or a feature difference or both?
My DD has an iTouch and just one month after the 1 year warranty expired the battery now needs to be replaced and it isn't inexpensive ($60 I think but I am not sure). Makes my husband mad ~ we've purchased three i-Pods and we've had various problems with every one of them. The local Apple store hasn't been much help - they have a kind of "get-in-line" service mentality. Makes him skeptical about other Apple products, particularly for college students who need reliability. I am guessing however, that the reliability factor of various Apple products (iPod vs. laptop vs. iPhone for example) probably varies quite a bit?
Now that I know the cell coverage is equally good, hardware reliability, customer service, and cost become considerations. It's nice to have a choice. I'm guessing AT&T and the iPhone are a lot more expensive than Verizon and its Blackberry but I'm not sure.
Cost is now a biggie since we were told yesterday by a techie we trust that her laptop should be replaced before she heads off to campus rather than putting any more money into it!!
So guess what's #1 on her wishlist? A MacBook Pro.
At this rate, we'll need a technology loan as part of our relo budget!
Question for you: don't both Verizon and AT&T have 3G? And other than games, what are the advantages or capabilities on the iPhone that are not available on a Blackberry? Is is a quality difference or a feature difference or both?
Yes to the 3G. The iPhone, overall, is easier to navigate than a Blackberry and to be honest all the iPhone is is an iPod Touch that you can also use as a phone. It is essentially an all-in-one nifty gadget way more than it is a phone. There are also tons of cool apps for the iPhone, but you have to pay for them. $5 is about the average price per app, and keep in mind that it is often $5 a month for that app. Most apps are more or less only good for the 'cool' factor than actually being something that would be used but many of them are cool to the point where it is easy to get five or six of them on your phone which would add another $30 or so to your monthly bill.
The iPhone is cool, but to be honest I do not think that it is worth it as the service plan (plus any apps). The data plan (mandatory) is $30 a month, the cheapest phone plan is $39 and unlimited texting is $20. That does not include taxes and fees.
The GF passed up an iPhone for a Blackberry and she is pretty happy with the Blackberry.
The games are a minimal feature to be honest. Furthermore, not every application from the app store costs money. In fact, at least 50% are free and most of the free ones are very useful. To illustrate I'll list what I have for free apps on my iPhone:
I have the google app which allows you to speak into the iPhone what it is you want to search for and google will find it (i.e. say, "Red Sox" and the phone will do a google search for everything Red Sox). The weather channel application which gives live and up to date local weather forcasts for your favorite cities (you can save more than 10) as well as live radar feeds and video forecasts. "sportacular" which is live streaming sports scores (for every major and college sport) as well as standings, and play by play analysis. Facebook has a free, specially designed app that allows you to take photos on your iphone's camera and upload them right on the spot as well as do everything else one does on facebook. Bloomberg is good for stocks. Around Me is a free application that uses the built in gps on the phone to find the nearest restaurants, movie theaters (and times for those theaters), taxi companies (and numbers), hospitals, bars, grocery stores, pharmacies, atms, etc. Furthermore, a simple "tap" and the application gives you turn by turn directions from where you are to whichever place you want to go. Opentable allows me to make reservations at my favorite restaurants with about 3 touches from my phone. Spanish Tutor is a pocket spanish/english dictionary (they have them for tons of languages) that shows and speaks different words and phrases to help you learn a language... this was vital when I was out of the country last week. Finally, one of the best free applications is a text messanging one that allows you to send texts for FREE via the internet (wifi, 3g or edge networks) without having to use a text plan or pay as you go method.
The phone also has great features fully installed right out of the box. It has itunes built in (syncs with your itunes), the app store of course, email (syncs with just about every type of email account including microsoft accounts), a good camera, you tube, google maps (which give you directions and use gps to locate yourself), and some others.
The prices of applications range. I've spent a grand total of $3 on applications since having the phone (not per month, but in total... in fact, I don't know of any apps with monthly fees). Most apps are either free or $.99 (one time fee, not monthly). There are a good number of apps in the $5-10 range and a few that are $30 or more (there is a medical journal available for $300 from the app store). You don't need to spend ANY money on apps to enjoy the features of the phone. You can, but you don't need to at all (my $3 was on a game).
the ability to syncronize with itunes is awesome. I can have all of my favorite songs on this as well as movies and tv shows (i have about 2,000 songs and an entire 21 episode season of "30 Rock" on my phone at the moment). You can also sync your e-books (or download them via itunes on the phone directly) to the phone and read them too.
There is the matter of the mandatory data plan. It's no more expensive than verizon's, and if you're going to get a blackberry, there's no sense in getting one without a data plan (though you can) as the data plan is how you access internet, email, etc. If you have a blackberry without a data plan, it's like having a car with no wheels... it completely defeats the purpose and utility of the device.
Now, as to reliability. I haven't had any problems. Neither has my sister or my father. I would suggest browsing a technical site like Cnet.com for detailed info. My biggest complaint with the iphone is battery life. It's just not that long. It's good for about 1 day's worth of calls, internet browsing, music listening, etc and then needs to be charged or you won't get through the second day. This isn't that big of a deal for most people because the iphone charges while plugged into the wall, into the car, into the computer, etc. They even make cases that have a "booster" battery which doubles the life of the phone. So in short, battery life is very short (about 1/2 as good as the blackberry).
The iTouch is essentially what the iPhone is with an additional phone feature (and bigger/better battery... the battery on those two are not at all the same). If you're really insecure about apple products or just don't like them, then I would suggest going with the blackberry. The iphone is great, but it's an apple product. There is also the matter of the only apple store in Maine is in South Portland so your daughter would have to go there for repairs/ service (AT&T can help with the basics and ship it out, but they aren't as thorough as apple).
Anyway, I still prefer the iPhone. I had a blackberry curve before and this is far better (in my opinion). Best of luck!
Location: Hidin' out on the Mexican border;about to move to the Canadian border
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You might want to check and see if Verizon is even still available in Maine. And you might want to read the posts about Fairpoint. They bought out Verizon in this area (Downeast), and Verizon bought out Alltel, who has no service here. I should know. I'm--was--an Alltel customer, and still locked in to my contract for another year. If Verizon isn't available in the area anymore, it might save you the trouble of making a choice.
I have Verizon... they are expensive, not that AT&T isn't but they charge 20% rax... T-Mobile charges 18%... I dont remember the tax being that high...hmmmmm
T mobile give massive customer retention discounts in 2 years.. the other 2 don't. I love my Voyager but I have had it replaced already and the present one is not working right. The storm is a great phone but I don't want to add another $35 to my $165 bill.
I have unlimited calls, text, internet and navigation. the phone cost $190 now and at the end of a contract they provide a $100 credit towards a new phone.
If T-Mobile is a choice I would strongly consider it. to have what I have now they are $24 / month cheaper. and in 2 years would drop another $40.... thats a pretty big difference
Nextel sucks, Sprint sucks Metro is cheap but their networks sucks for now.
Verizon wireless is very much available in Maine, and has excellent coverage at least in the Portland area. Fairpoint is only for landlines. Nothing to do with cellphones.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Casper1212
You might want to check and see if Verizon is even still available in Maine. And you might want to read the posts about Fairpoint. They bought out Verizon in this area (Downeast), and Verizon bought out Alltel, who has no service here. I should know. I'm--was--an Alltel customer, and still locked in to my contract for another year. If Verizon isn't available in the area anymore, it might save you the trouble of making a choice.
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