Which cell phone carrier do you use for your primary cell phone?
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Cricket (Score:2)
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Wut? Cricket is just AT&T rebranded and AT&T gives all your data to the spooks, so WTF would you use them?
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And they're different from AT&T how?
Re:Cricket (Score:5, Interesting)
Rebranded...and significantly better.
We moved my wife from an AT&T contract at $65/mo. to an identical non-contract plan with Cricket for $30/mo.. We discovered that the Cricket customer service is surprisingly responsive and friendly, and unlike her AT&T contract that charged overage fees for going beyond her data allowance, the Cricket plan merely throttles her speed for the remainder of the month once she exceeds her data allowance. No fees. Plus, her plan's data allowance has doubled in size in the two years since she joined, so it comes up less often than it used to.
So sure, it's still AT&T underneath, but the part that you actually interact with as a customer is a completely different experience. It feels like it was actually built to be customer-centric, rather than customer-hostile. And should they ever change, she owns the phone outright and is under no contract, so she'll simply move to a different carrier/MVNO that provides a better experience.
Mind you, there are other MVNOs out there providing similar experiences, so I'm not trying to sell anyone on Cricket over one of its competitors (e.g. Republic, Ting, etc.); I'm merely trying to sell people on the benefits of Cricket over its parent company.
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I was in one of the early Cricket cities back in the late 90s, before ATT bought them. They were one of the first carriers with unlimited local minutes.
I use them even though they're just re-branded ATT now. They're way cheaper and it feels like the data transfer it about the same.
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Smartphone Nation (Score:2)
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Re: Smartphone Nation (Score:2)
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or if you only need a little bit of data. I don't live in the US or Europe but I have a couple freedompop SIM cards to use when I travel there and cost me $0/month.
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(before some idiot adds [citation needed], I'll just say: Google US population, Google World population, do this math operation called division.)
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If you don't live in the US why should you be counted? After all only 95% of the world population lives outside the US.
Yeah, but a lot of those people live in shithole countries... although perhaps the survey could've also mentioned Norway.
Re: I don't live in the US (Score:1)
That was a good one.
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I use Virgin - no contract, about $50/mo
That is horribly expensive. I live in the UK, I use giffgaff [giffgaff.com], for £10/month I get:: unlimited calls, unlimited texts, 3GB data (I own my phone outright). I can choose plans starting at £5 No contract, I can leave at any time without penalty. £10 is about $14.
By my standard you are being ripped off.
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The USA has always been a rip off in comparison to the UK/EU for mobile calls.
I remember being a bit perplexed when I good friend of mine, who lived in the SF Bay Area, refused to give me his mobile number so I could call him.
Turned out it was because he had to pay for receiving calls and not just making them. This was the late 90's.
The US was also slower in mobile uptake until the whole smart phone era began when they also became the leaders in mobile devices displacing the Scandinavians.
Thanks for the rem
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I don't use it much! Maybe I'm just not hip or something.
Then again, I'm not sure you can get PAYG contacts with non-expiring credit now. (I've had my contract for years.)
Re:Virgin (Score:5, Funny)
I use Virgin
Problem is you can only use it once.
Project Fi (Score:2)
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Add another happy Project Fi user - the savings over native Sprint paid for the original expensive phone in 6 months. Now it would be more like 3 months with the 5X.
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But..will Google get tired of Project Fi and drop it, like they got did with the Moto line of smartphones, or Nexus tablets?
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I also use project fi but am about to leave. It screwed up my 10 year old personal gmail account with my usage patterns. I used to religiously keep my phone and gmail account separate. I'm a bit of a privacy nut and use linux plus also keep all my browsers configured in a semi private browsing configuration, meaning no cookies kept and I run plugins to browse as anonymously as possible. The problem came when I started using project fi and travel with my laptop. With my browsers configured the way they are,
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Re:Project Fi - Doesn't Work Everywhere in U.S. (Score:1)
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Re: Project Fi (Score:2)
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A Pixel 1 user here. Still got my headphone jack and working beautifully! Though this is only one generation newer than the Nexus 6.
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I use Ting as well. My phone uses GSM so it's T-Mobile's network and my wife is on CDMA which is Sprint's network.
Ting Re: Other Carrier (Score:1)
None (Score:5, Funny)
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I haven't called or been called on my cell's phone number in years. Being able to use whichever device I'd like to talk is very nice.
Now, If we could just get everyone over to XMPP, life would be grand (yep, still waiting). For now, checking out Zulip, Mattermost, and Rocket.Chat.
Timezone effrect? (Score:2)
Largest category is outside the US? Or is that just a timezone effect from when the poll went up? Or maybe the Americans are noisier so it seems like they dominate Slashdot?
Got news for you (Score:1)
The rest of the world is quite a bit larger than the US. In terms of population and cellphone use too.
Yes, the US has a well-deserved reputation as perennial loudmouths the world over. Though the answer you were really looking for is probably that the site is US-based, the current editors quite redneckish, and that lots of tech news on here is fairly centered around even worse self-important limelight hoggers silly valley.
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You're the loudmouth. We dominate media because we invented every form of it.
We know your words are just jealousy.
Gutenberg was an American?
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You're the loudmouth. We dominate media because we invented every form of it. We know your words are just jealousy.
Why do they teach you lies in America? Just like Americans didn't invent the light bulb nor the airplane:
Americans didn't invent the printing press;
Americans didn't invent newspaper;
Americans didn't invent the telegraph;
Americans didn't invent the telephone;
Americans didn't invent radio;
Americans didn't invent magnetic tape;
Americans didn't invent television;
Americans didn't invent packet switching, the basis for the internet;
Americans didn't invent the world wide web.
What media did you Ameri
Tmo resellers (Score:1)
I bouce a lot for financial reasons, but usually end up on MVNO of T-Mobile or Sprint. Starting with my phone in high school:
Sprint postpaid (flip phone)
T-Mobile prepaid (Nokia cheapo)
Pocket (Sprint?) prepaid (Nokia cheapo)
Sprint postpaid (Nexus One, Nexus S)
T-Mobile prepaid (Nexus 4, Nexus 5)
Solavei (T-Mo) prepaid (Nexus 5)
T-Mobile prepaid hidden $30 plan (Nexus 5, Nexus 5X)
Project Fi (T-Mobile, Sprint, US Cellular) (Nexus 5X, Moto X4)
Metro PCS (T-Mobile) 4-line $100 family plan promo (Moto X4)
I must say o
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Wait, you can make Fi roam to Verizon, how? Are there limits to how much you can roam in a month, is it voice only or data as well? I'm asking because the reason I stay on a Verizon MVNO is that I'm out in the boonies a ton with Boyscouts and visiting national parks on vacation and Verizon has by far the best coverage in such areas (AT&T is #2 currently but T-Mobile with their band 12 and 71 rollout is probably going to pass them some time this year, though AFAIK none of the Fi devices support band 71 A
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Whoever is cheapest (Score:2)
Google Project Fi (Score:3)
Data flat rate of $10/GB with $100 monthly max. Works just about anywhere in the world. One downside is a very limited selection of phones.
Realy, check Project FI (Score:3)
Even if you do not like Google (DuckDuckGo user here) have a look at Project Fi.
Very reasonable costs. Data roaming outside the US has zero cost (i.e. you pay the same as in the US). Roaming calls are reasonably priced. SMS are free outside the US.
Even if you never leave the US, it mostly beats all standard carriers by a mile.
As somebody said above, the big problem is the very limited choice of cell phones (like half-a-dozen). I actually had a Nexus 6 when I changed, so no problem in that case.
Coming from Europe, I was shocked with mobile costs in the US. FI is actually competitive with European prices.
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You can buy a phone for FI from anywhere as long as its not locked to certain bands for a specific carrier. However FI only supports specific phones since it hops many networks so it has to have radio support for all the towers it can use
Company Provided (Score:2)
My company provided my first cellphone and I haven't switched carriers yet. Kinda of like the saying better the devil you know...
Project Fi (Score:1)
Project Fi (Score:2)
My wife and I both use Project Fi.
Project Fi FTW (Score:1)
Verizon for 17 years (Score:2)
I've been on Verizon for 17 years now. Zero complaints, I get a signal everywhere I've been and have only had pleasant experiences with customer service. I'm currently getting 5GB of data with unlimited talk and text for $40 a month. I always just assume the complainers are dead-beats that can pay their bills. I would love to switch to Project Fi but it works on too few devices and is not available on iPhone at all.
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*can't pay their bills.
Stupid Slashdot and lack of editing.
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Sprint - Low Price Family Plan w/ Unlimited Daat (Score:2)
My family and I have been with Sprint for many years now, and ever since we got our first smart phones we've had unlimited data through them. It has actually gotten *cheaper* over time as well, with five people on the plan now for under $200 a month after taxes (down from a high a year or two ago of a little over $300 a month). We have a run rate of about 50GB per month on average, between the five of us, with two heavy users, one moderate user, and two light users. I don't think there is a less-expensive o
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Dang it, I misspelled "Data" in the subject line. Sorry! I wish there was an edit feature...
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Ha ha - well played :)
However, I was actually typing that from a computer at work - so it was on Comcast cable for data. I can't fault them, though, as it was just me failing to proof-read before submitting.
As an aside, I hate commenting on Slashdot and many other forums from a mobile browser. Some are worse than others, but there are often oddities like pressing the "Return" button on your mobile on-screen keyboard resulting in a comment posting rather than starting a new line. I still stand by the philoso
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I can't speak for Dallas, but in the Seattle area there are certainly places where I get no / very poor reception. It usually seems to be a combination of location + being indoors, in the lower floor of my church for example, but I've run into a few dead spots as I drive around as well (there are two on my way to / from work). I think that is one place that Verizon (and I assume AT&T) have an edge, but for me the unlimited data plan / price has been much more important than a dropped call or data interr
Videotron (Score:2)
Because is the cheapest in Canada, and Canada have the most expensive cell phone service in the world. I paid 45$ for 7gb because I also have all other comm services with them.
Dual-SIM - GSM Resellers (Score:1)
I use dual-SIM phones w/ AT&T/T-Mobile resellers H2O & LycaMobile. No plans -- 100% pay-as-you-go. Google Voice is my published number, and it forwards to both numbers (and Hangouts), but I use Wi-Fi almost everywhere unless I'm driving (Comcast APs help), so even though the per-MB charge for data is insane ($.10/MB) I typically only pay $7-10 per month.
Virgin Mobile (Score:2)
They've met my cell needs for about 10 years but they will loose me soon, they are switching to apple only.
Soon as my phone needs replacing virgin will not be an option.
Weird corporate choice.
Tracfone (Score:1)
I don't use a phone often, so the $15 LG flip from Tracfone is good enough. I grab it when I leave the house in case an emergency comes up, or I might accidentally need to make a call.
All my "internet stuff" I do at home on a desktop PC.
Only Available (Score:2)
No other providers around my place but AT&T. It’s one bar so I also have a mini-cell connected to my network to improve connection speed for others in the house.
[John]
My Phone Service Provider (Score:1)
Ting (Score:2)
I was a late adopter for smartphones. My wife used Virgin Mobile (US) for several years - she got a lifetime "unlimited" deal but after Ting came along it was plain cheaper. Both were Sprint MVNO's, but now Ting lets you choose T-Mobile or Sprint on a per-phone basis and puts the phones *on the same bill*. You can set alarms and cutoffs for your kids, etc. I have four lines on the same bill and rarely go over $80/mo.
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Work benefits (Score:1)
I use whatever carrier is linked to the phone I'm monitoring. One of the benefits of the job.... I work for the NSA :)
Google Fi (Score:1)
Now, using the phone on a daily basis in the St. Louis area is terrible! I have to make every call twice. People can't hear me half the time when I talk. Tech support has been ZERO help.
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This is totally normal behaviour, nothing special. Are American carriers so bad that you don't expect this to happen?
Uh, pretty much. Incompatible phones and outrageous international roaming rates used to be the norm -- if you wanted to go overseas, you usually bought a separate pre-paid international SIM, and maybe a separate unlocked international phone as well.
Although the US carriers are starting to get a bit better with their international support over the past few years, to the point that they are now usable. And T-mobile has always been quite good internationally (probably because they're owned by Deutsche Teleko
My 4G provider is... (Score:1)
Virgin Mobile.
metropcs (Score:2)
Consumer Cellular (Score:2)
CC is good, in my opinion, because they allow me to choose the plan I need. I can change the plan whenever I like and if I go over my data cap while travelling, for example, they just upgrade the plan automatically. I reset it the following month when I don't need it. Plus there is no contract. Their service has been excellent and their support is stellar. They also allow me to choose between networks when I signed up.
Verizon... (Score:1)
Ferret
Verizon (Score:2)
Mostly because my company pays for it. At this point in my life, if I did not have to have a phone for work, I would have something basic that does voice and SMS.
Me (Score:2)
Come on over here sweetheart. Let daddy be nice to you.
Boost mobile (Score:1)
Ting (Score:1)
I use Ting, which I believe is on T-Mobile's network. My bill is about $25 per month most months but runs more like $50 when I'm traveling and using a lot of data.
Other - Roll your own (Score:2)
In the UK, there are four dominant carriers, O2, Vodaphone, EE and 3. All of the other carriers piggyback on those four to some extent, for example Tesco Mobile uses O2 as a carrier.
I have a number of SIM cards from sip2sim.uk which connect a mobile device to a VoIP service, which can be provided by their parent company, or any other VoIP provider on the planet. The SIM card itself does not provide a mobile telephone number, as the VoIP service does that. The mobile phone then becomes a registered device
Not in the US (Score:2)
But I figure it's interesting to compare price:service in different countries.
I'm in Denmark, and I have a pre-paid subscription with Telmore, which was originally an independent MVNO, but is now owned by TDC, the former monopoly telco.
My subscription costs DKK129/month ($21.15) for 25GB of 4G data, plus unlimited SMS/MMS/minutes. Out of my 25GB, I can use up to 5GB in any other EU country. Messaging and minutes are also unlimited within the EU.
Are you kidding? (Score:1)
It's bad enough we have a land line. One of my goals in life is to someday live in an area where there are no phones at all.
Currently X-Finity(Verison) and Tello (Score:2)
Started out with Ecomobile, went to Ringplus as Ecomobile moved away from Sprint. Ringplus went tits-up and we went to Ting. Ting was way too expensive for what we got. Comcast started X-Finity mobile and I could get 2 brand new phones for $1 each, so canceled 2 of the phones on Ting. Xfinity is unlimited calls and texts, and fist 100mb of data is free, so my bill has been $7 a month for 2 phones most of the time. The other phone got moved to Tello as it was $15/month unlimited calls/texts and 1gb data on S
Multiple answers allowed... (Score:1)
Google Fi (Score:1)
I use Google's Fi service which uses T-Mobile, Sprint and U.S. Cellular as well a WiFi. Its advantages are that the network with the best signal is used for a call and that unlimited text and voice costs $20/month with an additional $0.01 per megabyte of data. The disadvantage is that the service is limited to Nexus 5/6 and Pixel phones.
Tracfone (Score:1)
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