Everybody switching to T-Mobile.What has led to this mass migration

The younger crowd (especially high school and college age) always go for GSM (Cingular & T-Mobile) here in CA. I don't know what it is that draws them to it. Maybe the 'cool' phones and the cheap plans.

 

I've noticed in my area that many younger people also have Cingular Wireless. I think it's the phones and rate plans. I will admit I even find Cingular Wireless attractive myself.

 

Verizon is just too expensive if you use a lot of minutes, even though their coverage is good. My company just designated T-Mobile as a "preferred" carrier, along with Verizon Wireless. I've been negotiating with their sales rep to switch from Verizon, and here's how the deal is shaping up:

- Free Nokia 6610
- Waived activation fee
- 1000 peak, unlimited off-peak and weekends
- No roaming charges for any GSM network nationwide
- $39.99/mo before 5% discount.

I asked Verizon whether they could come anywhere close, and they just laughed at me. Granted, T-Mobile doesn't have great coverage; GSM is pretty lousy in the Seattle area, actually. However, for the price, not to mention the cool phone, I can probably live with the coverage limitations. I'm planning, at least initially, to maintain service with Verizon and carry that phone along with me, so I can compare coverage to the AC plan I'm currently on.

 

maybe Starbucks hot zones? That is where they students like to hang, no?

 

definitely cheaper plans, but Verizon has the $39.99 for 1000 minutes now, could T-Mobile's
pricing plans have anything to do with that?

 

After seven years with AT&T, I switched to T-Mobile right when they started service in CA. I am not exactly a teenager and it's been a few years since my graduation from college.
I find T-Mobile service equally as good as what I had with AT&T -if not better. I find TM's GSM sound quality superior to AT&T's TDMA. In addition to reasonable rate plans, I find TM customer service reps to be more service oriented and pleasant than the arrogant AT&T reps. Hence the reason for my switch!

 

Calbee, what part of California are you? Thanks

 

Dunno about those other people, but I use Verizon for work and though the coverage is good: It is not really worth it for me on my personal cell because I don't travel with my personal cell. I switch my personal cell from SprintPCS to T-Mobile because I like the option of being able to move between phones and because the rates are awesome.

 

The Verizon 1000 minute plans are an apples-to-oranges comparison...

T-Mobile: 1000 peak, unlimited off-peak, unlimited weekends, free nationwide roaming, free long distance.
Verizon: 1000 minutes total, local plan only, long distance extra.

 

At least you have that local plan avaible in your area. Verizon's $40 a month plan here in Eastern TN is pretty crappy.

Local DigitalChoice 500:
$40 A Month
500 Anytime
1,000 Anytime Mobile To Mobile
Unlimited Nights & Weekends
Long Distance is NOT Included and is 20 cents a minute.

 

t-mobile always sells to the the kids..

they are at more concerts and 'young' areas..

 

I'm not exactly a kid. However, I can't even buy a comparable Verizon plan at anywhere near the same price point. I plan to keep the Verizon handset around for awhile until I'm satisfied that T-Mobile coverage really does meet my needs. That said, they have much better geographic coverage here in the Pacific Northwest than Sprint (of course, so does AT&T and it doesn't matter because their network is awful), and I rarely strayed outside of Sprint coverage, so I expect that I'll probably find it adequate.

 

Not sure about your area, but here in Portland Metro area, T-Mobile's coverage pattern is like Swiss cheese.

T-Mobile seems to be quite problamatic in Beaverton.

 

Originaly posted by Trojan:T-Mob offers fantastic plans but is their coverage really superior to that of Verizon.

Not here in Southern Calif.. T-mobile has got a long way before they catch up to Verizon, and even Sprint (at the rate they're going) in order for T-Mobile's coverage to be superior to Verizon and Sprint.

 

Do you have more statistics to back your side?

14 out of 22 of _your class_ could just be because of something someone said causing people in class to switch over. It's hardly enough demographic to say "everyone" or "mass migration".

 

I really don't find Verizon's plans too bad if you would use the mobile to mobile. T-Mobile sucks in Delaware so I'd never consider them. However, I am getting tired of Verizon's rather bad service of late, and am looking into Sprint....if the plans get better.

 

Sprint should have some better holiday plans coming out by November.

 

About a year ago I switched five phones in my house from Cingular to Sprint. (As you know, Cingular and T-Mobile share the same network here in So-Cal)

My kids originally hated switching. The SMS text messaging on Cingular/T-Mobile is really quite elegant. Sprint's Short-Mail is rather klunky in comparison.

Also the Cingular/T-Mobile phones have more ringers available (Sprint is really catching up here.)

Cingular/T-Mobile Nokia phones also have tons of aftermarket goodies such as cutsie phone covers, cutsie lights, cutsie etc.

So the High School crowd loves the cutsie phones, but frankly the coverage is not anywhere as good as I have experienced with Sprint here in So Cal. With Cingular, I had dropped calls on the FREEWAY... Inexcusable. (I was using a Nokia 3395)

I wound up springing for a Sanyo 8100 (Dark Blue/Gold) for my HS son and a lavender 8100 for one of my college coed daughters. With the cameras and other cool Vision features, they are both the envy of their campuses. (That daughter was a staunch Nokia fan and now loves her Sanyo)

I would not be surprised to see Sprint and other competitors run over Cingular/T-Mobile with the youth market over time.

Just my thoughts,

--Mark

 

Cingular and T-Mobile target the younger crowd IMHO. Their ads and their company image make it look hip and cool to have a GSM phone. Their plans are cheaper and the phones are hipper. To bad they are crappy Nokia phones and to bad their coverage is horrible.

 

so there Trojan, as you can read on some of these post, you get what you pay for with T-mobile

 

You can roam for free on Sprint if you have a Verizon handset. If you want to try out their coverage, I suggest getting a Sprint handset from somewhere that will let you return it. Then program your Verizon NAM into it (the programming instructions will be on the manufacturer's Web page), set the handset to "PCS Only," and call 1-866-ESN-CHNG. Tell them you lost your phone and need to perform an ESN change temporarily, and the temporary handset is already programmed. They'll ask you for the ESN, will plug it in, and voila! You'll be ready to go. Just bear in mind that no data services (such as Web browsing or SMS) will work, nor will voicemail notification.

 

Hi tangobythebay -I live in Los Angeles!
Sorry for the delay but I was out of the country.

 

Hey Calbee,

No problem and thanks for your response. I suspect AT&T may be a bit better in S.F. area than L.A. area. When I had AT&T and traveled to L.A., I had more problems than in the S.F. Bay Area.

 

I get a lot for what I pay for with T-Mobile...Check it out...

 

good for you ultramookie, whatever makes you happy, in my experience i had really bad reception with T-mobile, which is what i was refering to.

 

Hehe, oh, ok My house is like a tin can and I get bad reception in it no matter what. So it was really more about price when it came down to it. The great customer care from T-Mobile was a definite surprise and benefit.

 

Hi tangobythe bay,
I just recently moved to LA from SF and indeed there were no real reception issues with AT&T TDMA in the Bay Area. But then again, AT&T took over CellularOne which was probably the strongest carrier there at the time.
AT&T reception was acceptable to me down here but it was the customer service issues that drove me away. In the seven years I had CellOne/ATT I never had any service issues but the experience for transferring my 415 # to an LA one left much to be desired.
I am really very satisfied (reception & service) with TM and appreciate the GSM technology as far as its global acceptance and sound quality, not to mention the reasonable price plans they offer.

 

Even this is not really related to T-Mobile. I use Cingular when I'm back home on the Peninsula in the Bay Area and the Cingular/T-Mobile coverage is great everywhere except at my own house . I get 1-3 bars at best and AT&T gets a full 7 bars (one of my friends from Europe was roaming on AT&T when he was visiting) at my house.