What about prepaid?
I'm dying to find out if, say, Cricket or Virgin's iPhone5 plans will be any better - I'm willing to buy up front.
Apple iPhone 5 US Carrier Comparison Chart
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Re: Apple iPhone 5 US Carrier Comparison Chart
#12Sprint seems to have it together on this one.
The biggest drawback for Sprint is their abysmal LTE coverage. They bet too early on with WiMAX and lost out on the LTE train. It's going to be a good long while before they're caught up there.
That's not necessarily true. There is little difference between WiMAX and LTE on all of the hard parts: antenna configuration, transceivers, and amplifiers. Even the modulation scheme is the same: OFDM. Sprint started installing firmware-upgradable base stations a little while ago and I strongly suspect that the process for converting from WiMAX to LTE is governed by staff time limitations than outright technical debt.
Re: Apple iPhone 5 US Carrier Comparison Chart
#13Sprint seems to have it together on this one.
Especially for those of us with grandfathered SERO accounts :)
Re: Apple iPhone 5 US Carrier Comparison Chart
#14Not relevant for people who switch phone in two years, but AT&T's phone unlocking at the end of the contract or with account charges taken care of, is pretty neat.
If a Verizon account has been in good standing for at least 60 days, supposedly they'll unlock your device: http://news.cnet.com/8301-30686_3-57361283-266/will-verizon-...
Re: Apple iPhone 5 US Carrier Comparison Chart
#15Anyone know if VZW will let you use something other than the "Share Everything" plans with the iPhone 5? I'd like to switch (they're the only ones with LTE coverage in my city) but probably half of my calling is to/from/in Canada.
Share everything is the only current option.
If you're going to Canada a lot, your best option would be the AT&T iPhone as the Verizon iPhone won't support Canadian LTE bands.
Re: Apple iPhone 5 US Carrier Comparison Chart
#16Looks like there's no competition here - Verizon is dominant. Even when it comes to price, they're not much more expensive, and actually cheaper if you've got 3+ members on a family plan.
Looks like AT&T is still the only option for simultaneous voice+data, though, due to antenna limitations: http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/09/still-no-simultaneous-v...
Re: Apple iPhone 5 US Carrier Comparison Chart
#17Earlier quoted context omitted.
The biggest drawback for Sprint is their abysmal LTE coverage. They bet too early on with WiMAX and lost out on the LTE train. It's going to be a good long while before they're caught up there.
That's not necessarily true. There is little difference between WiMAX and LTE on all of the hard parts: antenna configuration, transceivers, and amplifiers. Even the modulation scheme is the same: OFDM. Sprint started installing firmware-upgradable base stations a little while ago and I strongly suspect that the process for converting from WiMAX to LTE is governed by staff time limitations than outright technical deb…
Unfortunately LTE-based devices on Sprint still won't be backwards compatible with the converted WiMAX towers as they only output in 2.3 GHz, 2.5 GHz and 3.5 GHz bands. The iPhone 5 specifically maxes out at a 2.1GHz band.
Re: Apple iPhone 5 US Carrier Comparison Chart
#18Can someone explain the business logic behind reducing the cost per phone on a shared plan?
Incentive to move multiple devices to a single plan. Reduces attrition.
Re: Apple iPhone 5 US Carrier Comparison Chart
#19What about prepaid? I'm dying to find out if, say, Cricket or Virgin's iPhone5 plans will be any better - I'm willing to buy up front.
Same here. I'm curious to know what Sprint LTE coverage will be like once it launches here in Southern California. Hopefully it's better than their 3G coverage/equivalent speeds compared to other carriers (Virgin is on Sprint's network).
Re: Apple iPhone 5 US Carrier Comparison Chart
#20Looks like there's no competition here - Verizon is dominant. Even when it comes to price, they're not much more expensive, and actually cheaper if you've got 3+ members on a family plan.
Even if you use a lot of data? Seems like Sprint would be the best choice in that case.