Sprint Service/Signal/Reception (Charleston, Huntington: homes, fence, best)

[rawrockills]

Can anyone describe their experience with Sprint in WV and surrounding areas? I currently have Verizon and have been considering switching to Sprint when my contract runs out due to their enticing rates. Only thing I'm kind of on the fence about is cell signal as it appears they have the least amount of coverage when compared with AT&T and Verizon.

[pknopp]

You are right. Their coverage sucks. Don't switch. Look to someone else.

I should note that I'm in the Parkersburg area and the coverage is fine as long as I'm in the city proper but anywhere outside of the city it's really spotty. People I know with Verizon or ATT still get fine reception where I can not. I lose it traveling Rt 77 to Charleston.

I'll be switching when my contract is up.

[rawrockills]

I hate AT&T so I would never switch to them. However, my Verizon signal can be spotty at times. I get 1 bar many places in Huntington. Guess I just gotta get used to it :/

[CTMountaineer]

Sprint has very good service in Morgantown.

Have they upgraded their service around Morgantown lately? When I had them, it was next to useless. Actually being able to make a call was a total crap shoot, and if it did work, I was almost guaranteed to get disconnected at some point. I suppose it might be okay if you only use your phone while standing outside.

The same experience was mirrored in WI and OR - horrible service and lots of dropped calls - which makes me a little skeptical that it's really improved all that much.

[atlantagreg30127]

When you say "WV and surrounding areas" it's very vague though, because cell service can vary greatly over short distances. WV in general is notorious due to the geography for having spotty service in generall with all of them in the right (wrong) areas.

My family uses Sprint in the Charleston area and say it's "ok". They don't lose the signal a lot but they do think customer service is pretty so-so at best in the stores. I know people up there who use AT&T and Verizon as well and they claim that they work better but Verizon has the better customer service (especially through their 800 number). From what I understand as well, AT&T and Verizon use a different frequency in their towers than Sprint and T-mobile do, and this allows ATT/Verizon signals to work inside of homes and buildings a bit better than the others.

But if you're really in the boonies, you could always get a satellite phone ($$$$).

[drs72]

Originally Posted by atlantagreg30127

From what I understand as well, AT&T and Verizon use a different frequency in their towers than Sprint and T-mobile do, and this allows ATT/Verizon signals to work inside of homes and buildings a bit better than the others.

Verizon and Sprint run on CDMA networks. It's newer technology, signal goes further and penetrates buildings better. It never caught on world-wide though.

AT&T and T-Mobile both run on GSM, but on separate frequencies. GSM phones have SIM cards. This is older technology, but is more pervasive world-wide. It doesn't function quite as well in rural areas because the signal isn't quite as strong.

The latest technology, LTE 4G, where all the carriers are headed, is based off of GSM so it won't matter much in the long-run.

As the largest network in the country, Verizon is usually the most reliable carrier where ever it has native coverage. For the Charleston-Huntington corridor, it is probably best.

Up here in Morgantown, Verizon doesn't have native coverage yet, so people with Verizon roam on US Cellular towers here. For this reason, Verizon customers don't have 3G coverage here which is a complaint I hear all the time. Sprint has pretty good coverage, as does US Cellular. Personally, I have AT&T and I haven't had too many issues (except on gamedays).

One problem with Sprint and T-Mobile is that, because they're smaller networks, they're service tends to be overall limited.

[CTMountaineer]

Originally Posted by drs72

Verizon and Sprint run on CDMA networks. It's newer technology, signal goes further and penetrates buildings better. It never caught on world-wide though.

AT&T and T-Mobile both run on GSM, but on separate frequencies. GSM phones have SIM cards. This is older technology, but is more pervasive world-wide. It doesn't function quite as well in rural areas because the signal isn't quite as strong.

The latest technology, LTE 4G, where all the carriers are headed, is based off of GSM so it won't matter much in the long-run.

As the largest network in the country, Verizon is usually the most reliable carrier where ever it has native coverage. For the Charleston-Huntington corridor, it is probably best.

Up here in Morgantown, Verizon doesn't have native coverage yet, so people with Verizon roam on US Cellular towers here. For this reason, Verizon customers don't have 3G coverage here which is a complaint I hear all the time. Sprint has pretty good coverage, as does US Cellular. Personally, I have AT&T and I haven't had too many issues (except on gamedays).

One problem with Sprint and T-Mobile is that, because they're smaller networks, they're service tends to be overall limited.

I was a Verizon customer for more than 9 years, but switched to Sprint last month because they offer much better service in Morgantown. The 3-G Sprint coverage in our area is excellent so far. We have no complaints.

AT&T and T-Mobile both run on GSM, but on separate frequencies.

Mostly true. For voice and 2G data, you can roam between AT&T & T-Mobile. They do use different frequencies for 3G & HSPA+ data.

GSM signal strength is generally weaker, but towers are placed higher, meaning it can actually end up working better in mountainous areas (as is the case near my parents' place in WV). 2G works better than 3G in this regard.

[cat1116]

Had Sprint several years ago [Eastern Panhandle of WV] and hated it. Calls kept getting dropped, etc.. Maybe they've improved? Hopefully. Glad we switched to AT&T. Have not had any major issues.

Should add 'so far'