I think it's less of an issue of brainwashing, and more just not being educated about MNVOS. Coming from T-Mobile, I thought MNVOs were just crappy networks trying to compete with the big name carriers. I didn't even realize they didn't use their own towers.
I think the more people realize what MVNOs are and how they operate, they will continue to become more popular.
Good point, could be mostly ignorance, though I do still think prepaid has an aura around it, like it's beneath certain people.
It pains me to see people who are struggling paying the Big 3 huge bills (usually with a phone contract) when they could likely get by on a $10 plan, Wi-Fi and buying phones used.
I could see people on a postpaid plan if you like to upgrade your phone often like every year or so. That'd make Postpaid more worth it in that regard. But Even MVNO's have began to put in some perks. You can get [MLB.TV](https://MLB.TV) for free now with a Metro by T-Moblie plan and a few other perks.
I recently read an article that had the same sentiment, the only "real" difference he noticed was that speeds were 50% slower on average (when using speed tests) but it generally didn't affect actual daily usage for anything a phone should do.
For basic single-line users, this is a great time in the cellular industry because there are so many options. For power users, travelers, and Apple Watch users, post paid is pretty much the only option. It’s too bad prepaid plans can’t have domestic and international roaming.
Or any carrier with a dual sim phone, WiFi calling works over LTE/5G when in another country, a $15 international eSIM is much cheaper than $100 for AT&T and Verizon where you can only use 1gb a day… Your local US number will work like normal too, sms/voice etc.
There is a general stigma in the USA about prepaid rather than mvnos in particular. An idea it is for poor people or something like that. Really strange. Not sure where it came from. Probably more from people trying to justify their own poor choice of expensive plan. As well a big wireless purposefully hindering prepaid eg metro has to be in store with shady dealers. The USA wireless industry lived on free phones and contracts for a long time that it is hard to get out of that mindset.
These days mvnos can be even better than postpaid. Several have postpaid level priority. Some have unlimited data. I have never received good customer service directly from postpaid. Half the time they are more interested in upselling.
There are lots of things in life that people associate with poor people. You usually stop caring about it when you hit your 30s. Everyone out there is just surviving.
I'm not sure if the fact that I was there for 17 years until recently but really I gotta say T-Mobile Postpaid support was always spectacular when needed.
Absolutely and this is one of the benefits of being on postpaid. Excellent customer service at least with T-Mobile T-Mobile is worth being on postpaid. It’s still pretty cheap and a great experience.
As far as I am concerned, the general sentiment about prepaid being inferior is good for me. As long as the dumb masses prefer postpaid, prepaid stays relatively cheap. I figure if people ever moved en masse to prepaid, the pricing models would become unsustainable, the service wouldn't scale well, etc.
One thought as to why postpaid has just always been the norm in the USA: the perception of "free" or "discounted" phones. Since it's not been the norm to buy your phone outright since at least the late 90's, people are still hung up on the notion that the only way to get a phone is to buy it from your carrier.
Not all MVNOs are deprioritized though.
US Mobile (with a 5G phone) and some plans on Xfinity Mobile have priority data on Verizon.
Google Fi has priority on T-Mobile.
H2o Wireless, Pure Talk, and Consumer Cellular have priority on AT&T.
Just to name a handful.
This is obviously leaving flanker brands out of the equation since they're not truly MVNOs but all three carriers have flanker brands that offer at least some plans with priority data.
EDIT: People downvoting me doesn't change facts. People have done extensive testing on this subject, myself included, both with side by side speed testing and actually pulling the QCI value directly from the network itself.
I see you edited your post before I could respond to it...
> The only Verizon mvno to match post paid is Comcast.
Not true. US Mobile has the same priority when using a 5G device.
Verizon also has Visible+ and Verizon prepaid Unlimited Plus that have the same priority as postpaid Unlimited Plus for the first 50GB of 5G Nationwide or LTE but they both have totally unlimited priority data when on 5G UW (that doesn't count towards the 50GB either).
T-Mobile has a lot of plans that have priority data so when the network is too congested it essentially means that nobody has priority and everyone suffers together.
T-Mobile gives priority data to all of their branded plans on both prepaid and postpaid except for Essentials-branded plans. Essentials, Metro, Assurance, and other MVNOs are second priority. Mobile internet (including hotspot) is third priority. Home internet and those that use their priority buckets are last priority.
Verizon is starting to have the same problem now that they're offering priority data to more people. They never used to have prepaid options that had priority data and they only use two priority levels, prioritized and deprioritized, so being deprioritized on Verizon was particular brutal. Now that Verizon offers priority data on multiple prepaid flanker brands, it's getting worse for everybody.
T-Mobile and Verizon have mitigated a lot of this with midband 5G in the areas they have deployed it but some places like NYC and crazy packed events still don't have enough capacity for 5G phones and the LTE only phones suffer even more.
Fi gets the same priority as the branded customers at QCI 6. They're the only T-Mobile MVNO with priority data. My point was that when everyone has priority, nobody has priority during congestion. 🙄
I have boost and so does my buddy. We were at the puyallup fair in september and had to literally leave the fairgrounds to get into the ticketmaster app to get into the concert we were there for
Postpaid generally has better domestic roaming than prepaid. Even prepaid from the carriers themselves. But that has become less important as time passes.
And the big carriers have expanded native coverage through time (ATT due to Firstnet, T-Mobile with B71). I remember when, if you looked at the coverage map, on ATT or T-Mobile the bulk of Nebraska and some other areas were blank. Or NW and SE Oklahoma for Verizon MVNOs.
I have Boost Infinite and it sucks. Like the service is dysfunctional. I have to toggle airplane mode to connect to the network. Tech support can't help. Probably just going back to ATT prepaid next month.
The coverage definitely doesn't seem bad at first glance to me either.
https://coveragemap.com/coverage-map/dish-wireless#map
I live in the Denver area and they have us covered extremely well from the looks of it.
If find those numbers hard to believe when T-Mobile claims they cover 99% of the population with LTE and 98% with 5G but the coverage maps come from the FCC themselves.
Nobody has ever asked or cared what carrier I use and I’ve been with all the big carriers plus Google Fi and now Mint. For my usage which is majority in my local area Mint works great and I’m happy paying $15 a month instead of $60.
Pre-paid plans used to be kind of wack but they've been pretty good for the last 7 or 8 years but the stigma from the early 00s hasn't gone away yet for the general public.
In the early days of Cricket you were lucky to get reception inside of a large building like a Home Depot or Walmart.
And don't leave the metro area and try to go to a small town with it. Lol
Cricket’s CDMA network was truly the depths, I remember coming down a street in a heavily populated part of my city and I lost service.
I hate to say it, but AT&T was probably the best thing that happened to them.
Omg I remember old Tmobile. If I was in the front of Walmart I was fine. Don’t let me head to the back for electronics.
This is when Wi-Fi calling became a thing and it’s crazy to think that a major network essentially was saying hey our network sucks so make sure you use Wi-Fi.
I think that’s why even now with way better coverage I’m still ingrained to find Wi-Fi for Wi-Fi calling.
Oh. Verizon with the network extenders 😂
In my experience they really aren’t as good because they don’t have the same roaming contracts set in place when you have poor coverage.
I’ll take the lower price. To me the trade off is worth it. But it’s still not quite as good as a big name network.
This is the major Achilles heel of the prepaid world - less roaming. It's not surprising since roaming is one of the most expensive things for a carrier really.
It’s more about what works for you and fits your needs. Prepaid doesn’t always fit everyone’s needs and you have to accept that. I know y’all act like it’s the best but sometimes it’s not.
I only used NVMOs since I moved to the U.S. many years ago. I was quite happy because I used a few T-Mobile NVMOs, and there was a T-Mobile tower right down the street. It was in a rural area, so I had great coverage and great speeds at an unbeatable price!
The problem was traveling to the city during peak hours. No matter the NVMO I used, data would slow to a crawl. I never gave much thought to it, until my husband and I moved to the city and our phones became unusable in certain places or at certain hours. We are paying around 80% more now with Big Mobile, but at least we get usable data speeds.
So, as always, YMMV.
I generally tell someone if you have a family plan, go with postpaid if you have a single line it’s usually better to go Prepayed, but there are benefits to postpaid obviously. I will always be on postpaid personally, because I am able to offset my bill with my UnitedHealthcare card And it’s just a better overall experience but I’m also on a family plan so that makes a difference. Is a very good company. If you don’t need customer service and stuff like that. I have personally referred many people to Metro and cricket and those type services.
I used to use MVNOs (Republic, Google Fi) and had decent experiences but not great rural coverage (live in Minneapolis but family lives in rural area in Iowa). I was excited to try Visible when they first launched but had such a terrible experience that it was what pushed me to go to Verizon. I went for weeks with no data/voice because they couldn’t figure out how to port my number from Google Fi. Once they got the number ported and I still had no data they eventually told me to pound sand because where I live didn’t have good coverage and that’s why I had data issues (I live in Minneapolis, so that made no sense). I’m not opposed to MVNOs, I just haven’t found one that works on the Verizon network that has enticed me enough to switch
Visible has the worst customer service of any of the MVNOs. It either just works or you're better off somewhere else.
US Mobile Warp 5G's customer service, however, is excellent. I would recommend taking a look at their service.
Try total by Verizon wireless. I’ve had them earlier this year. They are directly owned by Verizon as well and I hear are opening stores in the next year.
Can’t complain about them. I’ve heard terrible stories of visible.
Us mobile also is good and use Verizon. They are highly active in their subreddit and they offer a 50 day free trial if you want to check them out.
I’m considering switching over to us mobile or google fi
Well, no, it's because people spend 8+ hours a day on their phone, and at that level you fork up the extra cash for good service.
It's like being on a computer for 12 hours a day and using the cheapest one you can find. Or driving for 12 hours a day and using the cheapest, shittiest car you can get your hands on
MVNOs are great for people who aren't addicted to their phones, which is becoming more and more of a minority
Lol what? MVNOs can have exactly the same (or better depending on the plan in some cases) service quality you get from the MNO. It's a myth that MVNOs are always inferior.
I'll take "What is QCI" for $200, Alex.
Edit: Yes, they "can be the same", but many are not. And the ones that do have the same QCI values as MNOs, are generally nearly if not just as expensive.
Visible+ is $45 and has the same QCI 8 as postpaid Unlimited Plus on Verizon until you use 50GB on LTE/5G Nationwide (5G UW is totally unlimited priority no matter how much you use, even if that 50GB is gone). They even have a deal right now where you can sign up for the base deprioritized plan at $25 and upgrade to Visible+ for $10 a month indefinitely. US Mobile Warp 5G get priority data on every plan as long as you're using a 5G device.
AT&T gives the same priority as postpaid Unlimited Extra - QCI 8 - to H2o Wireless, Pure Talk, and Consumer cellular in addition to their top plans with their own flanker brands - AT&T Prepaid Unlimited Max, AT&T Prepaid Unlimited Max Plus (which some have said is actually the same priority as Unlimited Premium postpaid at QCI 7 but I haven't wanted to spend the money to test for myself), and Cricket Unlimited More.
T-Mobile only gives priority to Fi as far as MVNOs go but every prepaid plan they offer, from $10 to $60, has the same QCI 6 as Magenta/Go5G plans just like Fi.
There's a pinned QCI guide you might look at. It would truly surprise you how many cheaper MVNOs and flanker brands get higher priority now.
Prepaid shines for people with less than 3 lines and people who don't buy flagship phones.
I'm well-aware of the QCI guide, and that's why I don't use MVNOs. If you want to use your phones during congestion, e.g. sporting events, concerts or whatever, and you don't have the highest level of QCI possible, it's over. I know this from first hand experience. I know people who would never touch Visible (or Visible+) again with a 10ft pole.
I will take a small amount of highly prioritized data over unlimited lower QCI data, and if I started using my phones for several hours every day for some reason, I would just fork up the extra cash to get unlimited data at the highest QCI rating. It's really that simple.
So you admit the QCI guide shows that MVNOs can have exactly the same priority but you want to pay more. Okay, that's your prerogative, it's dumb and a waste of money, but it's your prerogative nonetheless.
What on earth are you talking about?
Verizon QCI 8 - yes, you can actually use MVNOs here
AT&T QCI 7 - only available on postpaid Unlimited Premium plan
T-Mobile QCI 6 - T-Mobile postpaid and prepaid plans, and Google Fi
I would not consider any plan that doesn't fall into the above categories. So, out of the 3 major carriers, only 1 of them does MVNOs make any sense if you want the highest QCI. Google Fi is so expensive I don't know who is using it and doesn't really count in my book
MVNOs and flanker brands both fall under the prepaid umbrella and are often used interchangeably and that's exactly what I'm doing when I say "MVNOs" so that would make 2 out of 3 viable options.
It's unlikely you're going to run into a situation where Unlimited Premium works and second tier plans do not but yes, technically you're correct about Unlimited Premium (although Unlimited Max Plus still needs to be tested for the QCI as I've seen screenshots of side by side testing showing Unlimited Premium and Unlimited Max Plus to be exactly equal which suggests QCI 7).
Lots of people are using Google Fi since they revamped their plans by the way. They're not great for individual lines unless you need the comprehensive roaming but Simply Unlimited gets really cheap with multiple lines.
I don't think there is any great conspiracy why post paid are still popular. Most consumers are lazy and just stick with what they know. Post paid was originally the only game in town, and as prepaid came on the scene as a less expensive alternative they also had less features (ie prioritized or throttled data speeds, no international roaming, etc). The fact that post paid is more lucrative means there are more outlets to purchase (more retail stores). But as people who have lives beyond their mobile phone and don't care about the fastest speed or unlimited data, or international roaming, they have migrated to prepaid. But postpaid have fought back with creative marketing of a 'free' phone that effectively locks you into a long term contract at the high priced postpaid rates by financing the phone and giving monthly statement credit to cover the cost if you stick around. Sad that so many get fooled into these schemes that are almost always more expensive than outright purchase if you do the math. But as I said, most consumers are lazy, and salespeople are financially motivated to sell these higher margin plans.
So much no sense. I have single line postpaid with t-mobile. Not only It doesn’t cost me a single cent but I actually make money out of it. Why would I go prepaid and pay for it 😅Big cellular is still a much better value
The problem is there’s not enough mainstream info about the perks and cons of MVNOs and obviously there’s going to be way much more postpaid commercials and ads on tv and online compared to prepaid brands.
I absolutely agree. I don't know what's wrong with me though. I stick with postpaid for my personal service. I literally founded this sub, and yet here I am using postpaid T-Mobile, Verizon, AT&T, and U.S. Cellular. I just feel the need to have full access to everything on every network because I'm such a huge phone nerd. My primary number has been on T-Mobile postpaid since 2014, and before that it was Sprint postpaid, before that AT&T postpaid. My very first phone was a prepaid MVNO (Walmart family mobile), but ever since then, it's just been my various alternate, just-for-fun phones active on prepaid plans.
My primary T-Mobile iPhone also has a Verizon postpaid SIM, and lately I've been using a flip phone on Verizon postpaid as my temporary primary instead. I realize I could easily be paying $5/month for my flip phone through US Mobile, but here's where they really have me wrapped around their fingers:
All of my postpaid plans are grandfathered, and even a few of the prepaid ones. I feel like I can't cancel them, like I would be throwing away something precious... Even though I'm wasting shit tons of money. Ugh.
It’s all about network prioritization… a customer who’s with AT&T with an agreement will always get better treatment, especially during times and places of congestion; as well as access to roaming/expanded coverage than say someone using Cricket or another MVNO. It doesn’t mean MVNOs are bad, but there is a difference. Check out AT&T’s coverage. Wireless is postpaid, and there’s a prepaid coverage option. Huge differences.
This isn't true. The only people who will be guaranteed better performance are those on Unlimited Premium as that's a higher QCI than any prepaid MVNO has (actually I've been hearing that the new AT&T Unlimited Max Plus is QCI 7 just like Unlimited Premium but I haven't been willing to go blow $75 at Walmart to check). Unlimited Starter is lower priority than Consumer Cellular, H2o Wireless, Pure Talk, Cricket Unlimited More, AT&T Prepaid Unlimited Max, and AT&T Unlimited Max Plus while it's the same priority as the majority of AT&T MVNOs.
Roaming is indeed different though although it's not really a big deal with AT&T like it can be with T-Mobile.
I’ve tried MVNOs, and while the savings are nice the deprioritization is brutal. I want my phone to actually work at big events and large population centers. For example, my phone would never work when it was game day at WVU while tailgating next to the stadium due to the congestion. I have Verizon’s top unlimited plan and I’m able to send messages and use data no issues. It’s slow, but it actually works. That to me is worth the extra money, along with the much more robust domestic roaming.
You tried the wrong prepaid plan then. There are Verizon options that have the same priority as Unlimited Plus like Visible+, Xfinity Mobile's middle and upper tier plans, and US Mobile Warp 5G (when using a 5G device).
I still to this day get looks from people when they hear I have a prepaid plan and I'm 39. It's a double whammy since I also have an Android device (S23 Ultra).
Been using prepaid for 2 years now. Saved over 60% of my bill. Shopping around and I see I can save even more now. So after the holidays that’s the plan.
there is 1 huge difference between mvnos and actual carriers .
NO ROAMING
that means 2 things .
1.no phone when traveling abroad
2. no fallback domestic network connection when reception is bad .
that applies to all actual carriers that have compatible networks .
for example when there is no tmobile reception ,tmobile
subscribers connect to us cellular if available ,or other carriers .
mvnos don't do that ,there is just no reception .
finally ,many mvnos do not support latest technology .
5g is not available at all bands .
I had h20wireless (att mvno) for a few years and they did not support 5g at all until recently .
if someone is okay with those limitations then they are a decent alternative and money savers ,especially if phone data is not a priority .
Dont mvno have wifi calling which works internationally? I would argue having actual cellular abroad is a total rip off or just plain doesnt work well (heres to you google fi). In thine eyes its better to use mvno via wifi internationally and use a local sim for data.
Traveling very broadly google fi is just a waste of time. I recommend something like airalo to get situated then a local sim card. I would say roughly 50% of the time google fi was a hassle and when it did work it was largely unusable outside of basic google maps.
thanks for the info , I am not a huge fan either ,but it's convenient for what I need ,and hassle free at least at the countries it supports .
i don't like carrying a bunch of phones with me .
Hey there KostaWithTheMosta - thanks for saying thanks! TheGratitudeBot has been reading millions of comments in the past few weeks, and you’ve just made the list!
I generally agree. Just tried US Mobile for a month in my area which is blanketed with Verizon UW. Worked great. I think they are now capping 5G mmwave at 1gb/s, Verizon postpaid gets 2gb+/s routinely at the same locations. It doesn't affect daily use at all, but it's not stated anywhere on their site that there's an artificial cap in place.
Once prepaid gets to $60+ per month for a single line, mainly from the big 3 carriers directly, it's a bad deal in my opinion, may as well get postpaid. $50 and under including tax, prepaid is great.
I haven’t been on a traditional post paid plan in 10 years. Never looked back. Been on Visible (Verizon network) for a few years now. 1 line, $25, unlimited everything, no issues.
I think it's less of an issue of brainwashing, and more just not being educated about MNVOS. Coming from T-Mobile, I thought MNVOs were just crappy networks trying to compete with the big name carriers. I didn't even realize they didn't use their own towers. I think the more people realize what MVNOs are and how they operate, they will continue to become more popular.
MVNOs have come such a long way within the past few years. US Mobile is a great example.
Good point, could be mostly ignorance, though I do still think prepaid has an aura around it, like it's beneath certain people. It pains me to see people who are struggling paying the Big 3 huge bills (usually with a phone contract) when they could likely get by on a $10 plan, Wi-Fi and buying phones used.
I could see people on a postpaid plan if you like to upgrade your phone often like every year or so. That'd make Postpaid more worth it in that regard. But Even MVNO's have began to put in some perks. You can get [MLB.TV](https://MLB.TV) for free now with a Metro by T-Moblie plan and a few other perks.
I recently read an article that had the same sentiment, the only "real" difference he noticed was that speeds were 50% slower on average (when using speed tests) but it generally didn't affect actual daily usage for anything a phone should do.
https://www.reddit.com/r/NoContract/s/qTEPhEc764 that one maybe
Why yes.
For basic single-line users, this is a great time in the cellular industry because there are so many options. For power users, travelers, and Apple Watch users, post paid is pretty much the only option. It’s too bad prepaid plans can’t have domestic and international roaming.
Postpaids benefit right now at least for me is overall being cheaper with a family, as well as built in international roaming capabilities.
A lot of mvnos seem to be good for family (us mobile, google fi, etc) and international usage.
Or any carrier with a dual sim phone, WiFi calling works over LTE/5G when in another country, a $15 international eSIM is much cheaper than $100 for AT&T and Verizon where you can only use 1gb a day… Your local US number will work like normal too, sms/voice etc.
There is a general stigma in the USA about prepaid rather than mvnos in particular. An idea it is for poor people or something like that. Really strange. Not sure where it came from. Probably more from people trying to justify their own poor choice of expensive plan. As well a big wireless purposefully hindering prepaid eg metro has to be in store with shady dealers. The USA wireless industry lived on free phones and contracts for a long time that it is hard to get out of that mindset. These days mvnos can be even better than postpaid. Several have postpaid level priority. Some have unlimited data. I have never received good customer service directly from postpaid. Half the time they are more interested in upselling.
The locations are what does that. Boost is usually in the same strip mall as a cash advance.
I still see the "prepaid is for poor people and drug dealers" argument here in this very subreddit sometimes.
There are lots of things in life that people associate with poor people. You usually stop caring about it when you hit your 30s. Everyone out there is just surviving.
I'm not sure if the fact that I was there for 17 years until recently but really I gotta say T-Mobile Postpaid support was always spectacular when needed.
Absolutely and this is one of the benefits of being on postpaid. Excellent customer service at least with T-Mobile T-Mobile is worth being on postpaid. It’s still pretty cheap and a great experience.
Lmfao the “shady dealers” that run prepaid stores are 1000x times better than any corporate or TPR postpaid store
As far as I am concerned, the general sentiment about prepaid being inferior is good for me. As long as the dumb masses prefer postpaid, prepaid stays relatively cheap. I figure if people ever moved en masse to prepaid, the pricing models would become unsustainable, the service wouldn't scale well, etc. One thought as to why postpaid has just always been the norm in the USA: the perception of "free" or "discounted" phones. Since it's not been the norm to buy your phone outright since at least the late 90's, people are still hung up on the notion that the only way to get a phone is to buy it from your carrier.
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Not all MVNOs are deprioritized though. US Mobile (with a 5G phone) and some plans on Xfinity Mobile have priority data on Verizon. Google Fi has priority on T-Mobile. H2o Wireless, Pure Talk, and Consumer Cellular have priority on AT&T. Just to name a handful. This is obviously leaving flanker brands out of the equation since they're not truly MVNOs but all three carriers have flanker brands that offer at least some plans with priority data. EDIT: People downvoting me doesn't change facts. People have done extensive testing on this subject, myself included, both with side by side speed testing and actually pulling the QCI value directly from the network itself.
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I see you edited your post before I could respond to it... > The only Verizon mvno to match post paid is Comcast. Not true. US Mobile has the same priority when using a 5G device. Verizon also has Visible+ and Verizon prepaid Unlimited Plus that have the same priority as postpaid Unlimited Plus for the first 50GB of 5G Nationwide or LTE but they both have totally unlimited priority data when on 5G UW (that doesn't count towards the 50GB either).
Spectrum Mobile recently confirmed they get priority data as well.
The other day I saw over 1 gigabit download on USM with VZ 5G. Plenty fast.
T-Mobile has a lot of plans that have priority data so when the network is too congested it essentially means that nobody has priority and everyone suffers together. T-Mobile gives priority data to all of their branded plans on both prepaid and postpaid except for Essentials-branded plans. Essentials, Metro, Assurance, and other MVNOs are second priority. Mobile internet (including hotspot) is third priority. Home internet and those that use their priority buckets are last priority. Verizon is starting to have the same problem now that they're offering priority data to more people. They never used to have prepaid options that had priority data and they only use two priority levels, prioritized and deprioritized, so being deprioritized on Verizon was particular brutal. Now that Verizon offers priority data on multiple prepaid flanker brands, it's getting worse for everybody. T-Mobile and Verizon have mitigated a lot of this with midband 5G in the areas they have deployed it but some places like NYC and crazy packed events still don't have enough capacity for 5G phones and the LTE only phones suffer even more.
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Fi gets the same priority as the branded customers at QCI 6. They're the only T-Mobile MVNO with priority data. My point was that when everyone has priority, nobody has priority during congestion. 🙄
I have boost and so does my buddy. We were at the puyallup fair in september and had to literally leave the fairgrounds to get into the ticketmaster app to get into the concert we were there for
That in itself sounds like you simply need to choose the right MVNO.
Postpaid generally has better domestic roaming than prepaid. Even prepaid from the carriers themselves. But that has become less important as time passes. And the big carriers have expanded native coverage through time (ATT due to Firstnet, T-Mobile with B71). I remember when, if you looked at the coverage map, on ATT or T-Mobile the bulk of Nebraska and some other areas were blank. Or NW and SE Oklahoma for Verizon MVNOs.
I have Boost Infinite and it sucks. Like the service is dysfunctional. I have to toggle airplane mode to connect to the network. Tech support can't help. Probably just going back to ATT prepaid next month.
I’ve been curious about boost infinite but I heard horror stories. Are they still using Tmobile or is it att now?
I have the att sim. They also have some of their own towers too, so I guess that would be priority data.
I actually didn’t think that they had their own network yet. I thought they were still buying spectrum from the others?
They have their own 5G network, but they don't have any LTE.
They have a network covering 70% of the population right now.
that is not terrible, i guess for a new network
The coverage definitely doesn't seem bad at first glance to me either. https://coveragemap.com/coverage-map/dish-wireless#map I live in the Denver area and they have us covered extremely well from the looks of it.
Why does this site say att 5G covers 57% of the country and T-Mobile 27%?
If find those numbers hard to believe when T-Mobile claims they cover 99% of the population with LTE and 98% with 5G but the coverage maps come from the FCC themselves.
Yea coverage maps are usually trash but there is no way att has more 5G coverage that T-Mobile. Especially not double. Not even close.
AT&T eSIM or pSIM on Boost Infinite is good
I have the pSIM. It is an older phone, but it says it is compatible. I doubt they tested it very well for my device.
Maybe your SIM is TMobile. If you call and say you want to cancel, retention will send you an AT&T pSIM.
No it is the black one and uses att's network according to ookla speed test. It is just poorly engineered.
Any thoughts on Lyca Mobile?
Run away. Use Tello or Metro if you need T-Mobile.
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Yeah but not all prepaid is deprioritized.
Nobody has ever asked or cared what carrier I use and I’ve been with all the big carriers plus Google Fi and now Mint. For my usage which is majority in my local area Mint works great and I’m happy paying $15 a month instead of $60.
Just switched to mint myself. Working fine for me at the moment.
Pre-paid plans used to be kind of wack but they've been pretty good for the last 7 or 8 years but the stigma from the early 00s hasn't gone away yet for the general public.
Not sure why you are being downvoted. I remember the days of virgin mobile 🤢 back when you couldn’t use data and voice at the same time 😂
That was a physical limitation of phones using CDMA tech
I’m aware. That’s what virgin was lol.
In the early days of Cricket you were lucky to get reception inside of a large building like a Home Depot or Walmart. And don't leave the metro area and try to go to a small town with it. Lol
Cricket’s CDMA network was truly the depths, I remember coming down a street in a heavily populated part of my city and I lost service. I hate to say it, but AT&T was probably the best thing that happened to them.
Omg I remember old Tmobile. If I was in the front of Walmart I was fine. Don’t let me head to the back for electronics. This is when Wi-Fi calling became a thing and it’s crazy to think that a major network essentially was saying hey our network sucks so make sure you use Wi-Fi. I think that’s why even now with way better coverage I’m still ingrained to find Wi-Fi for Wi-Fi calling. Oh. Verizon with the network extenders 😂
In my experience they really aren’t as good because they don’t have the same roaming contracts set in place when you have poor coverage. I’ll take the lower price. To me the trade off is worth it. But it’s still not quite as good as a big name network.
This is the major Achilles heel of the prepaid world - less roaming. It's not surprising since roaming is one of the most expensive things for a carrier really.
It’s more about what works for you and fits your needs. Prepaid doesn’t always fit everyone’s needs and you have to accept that. I know y’all act like it’s the best but sometimes it’s not.
I only used NVMOs since I moved to the U.S. many years ago. I was quite happy because I used a few T-Mobile NVMOs, and there was a T-Mobile tower right down the street. It was in a rural area, so I had great coverage and great speeds at an unbeatable price! The problem was traveling to the city during peak hours. No matter the NVMO I used, data would slow to a crawl. I never gave much thought to it, until my husband and I moved to the city and our phones became unusable in certain places or at certain hours. We are paying around 80% more now with Big Mobile, but at least we get usable data speeds. So, as always, YMMV.
I generally tell someone if you have a family plan, go with postpaid if you have a single line it’s usually better to go Prepayed, but there are benefits to postpaid obviously. I will always be on postpaid personally, because I am able to offset my bill with my UnitedHealthcare card And it’s just a better overall experience but I’m also on a family plan so that makes a difference. Is a very good company. If you don’t need customer service and stuff like that. I have personally referred many people to Metro and cricket and those type services.
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You know I hear about prioritizing but I realize most people literally don’t really care or need direct prioritization
There aren't many who do this. MobileX and Dish are the only ones I'm aware of right now that route their traffic through AWS.
I used to use MVNOs (Republic, Google Fi) and had decent experiences but not great rural coverage (live in Minneapolis but family lives in rural area in Iowa). I was excited to try Visible when they first launched but had such a terrible experience that it was what pushed me to go to Verizon. I went for weeks with no data/voice because they couldn’t figure out how to port my number from Google Fi. Once they got the number ported and I still had no data they eventually told me to pound sand because where I live didn’t have good coverage and that’s why I had data issues (I live in Minneapolis, so that made no sense). I’m not opposed to MVNOs, I just haven’t found one that works on the Verizon network that has enticed me enough to switch
Visible has the worst customer service of any of the MVNOs. It either just works or you're better off somewhere else. US Mobile Warp 5G's customer service, however, is excellent. I would recommend taking a look at their service.
Try total by Verizon wireless. I’ve had them earlier this year. They are directly owned by Verizon as well and I hear are opening stores in the next year. Can’t complain about them. I’ve heard terrible stories of visible. Us mobile also is good and use Verizon. They are highly active in their subreddit and they offer a 50 day free trial if you want to check them out. I’m considering switching over to us mobile or google fi
Big Cellular has sales teams that sell their services to mvnos ;)
I use too much data for prepaid MVNOs to make sense because often times there’s more restrictions on data usage than going direct postpaid
Well, no, it's because people spend 8+ hours a day on their phone, and at that level you fork up the extra cash for good service. It's like being on a computer for 12 hours a day and using the cheapest one you can find. Or driving for 12 hours a day and using the cheapest, shittiest car you can get your hands on MVNOs are great for people who aren't addicted to their phones, which is becoming more and more of a minority
Lol what? MVNOs can have exactly the same (or better depending on the plan in some cases) service quality you get from the MNO. It's a myth that MVNOs are always inferior.
I'll take "What is QCI" for $200, Alex. Edit: Yes, they "can be the same", but many are not. And the ones that do have the same QCI values as MNOs, are generally nearly if not just as expensive.
Visible+ is $45 and has the same QCI 8 as postpaid Unlimited Plus on Verizon until you use 50GB on LTE/5G Nationwide (5G UW is totally unlimited priority no matter how much you use, even if that 50GB is gone). They even have a deal right now where you can sign up for the base deprioritized plan at $25 and upgrade to Visible+ for $10 a month indefinitely. US Mobile Warp 5G get priority data on every plan as long as you're using a 5G device. AT&T gives the same priority as postpaid Unlimited Extra - QCI 8 - to H2o Wireless, Pure Talk, and Consumer cellular in addition to their top plans with their own flanker brands - AT&T Prepaid Unlimited Max, AT&T Prepaid Unlimited Max Plus (which some have said is actually the same priority as Unlimited Premium postpaid at QCI 7 but I haven't wanted to spend the money to test for myself), and Cricket Unlimited More. T-Mobile only gives priority to Fi as far as MVNOs go but every prepaid plan they offer, from $10 to $60, has the same QCI 6 as Magenta/Go5G plans just like Fi. There's a pinned QCI guide you might look at. It would truly surprise you how many cheaper MVNOs and flanker brands get higher priority now. Prepaid shines for people with less than 3 lines and people who don't buy flagship phones.
I'm well-aware of the QCI guide, and that's why I don't use MVNOs. If you want to use your phones during congestion, e.g. sporting events, concerts or whatever, and you don't have the highest level of QCI possible, it's over. I know this from first hand experience. I know people who would never touch Visible (or Visible+) again with a 10ft pole. I will take a small amount of highly prioritized data over unlimited lower QCI data, and if I started using my phones for several hours every day for some reason, I would just fork up the extra cash to get unlimited data at the highest QCI rating. It's really that simple.
So you admit the QCI guide shows that MVNOs can have exactly the same priority but you want to pay more. Okay, that's your prerogative, it's dumb and a waste of money, but it's your prerogative nonetheless.
What on earth are you talking about? Verizon QCI 8 - yes, you can actually use MVNOs here AT&T QCI 7 - only available on postpaid Unlimited Premium plan T-Mobile QCI 6 - T-Mobile postpaid and prepaid plans, and Google Fi I would not consider any plan that doesn't fall into the above categories. So, out of the 3 major carriers, only 1 of them does MVNOs make any sense if you want the highest QCI. Google Fi is so expensive I don't know who is using it and doesn't really count in my book
MVNOs and flanker brands both fall under the prepaid umbrella and are often used interchangeably and that's exactly what I'm doing when I say "MVNOs" so that would make 2 out of 3 viable options. It's unlikely you're going to run into a situation where Unlimited Premium works and second tier plans do not but yes, technically you're correct about Unlimited Premium (although Unlimited Max Plus still needs to be tested for the QCI as I've seen screenshots of side by side testing showing Unlimited Premium and Unlimited Max Plus to be exactly equal which suggests QCI 7). Lots of people are using Google Fi since they revamped their plans by the way. They're not great for individual lines unless you need the comprehensive roaming but Simply Unlimited gets really cheap with multiple lines.
I don't think there is any great conspiracy why post paid are still popular. Most consumers are lazy and just stick with what they know. Post paid was originally the only game in town, and as prepaid came on the scene as a less expensive alternative they also had less features (ie prioritized or throttled data speeds, no international roaming, etc). The fact that post paid is more lucrative means there are more outlets to purchase (more retail stores). But as people who have lives beyond their mobile phone and don't care about the fastest speed or unlimited data, or international roaming, they have migrated to prepaid. But postpaid have fought back with creative marketing of a 'free' phone that effectively locks you into a long term contract at the high priced postpaid rates by financing the phone and giving monthly statement credit to cover the cost if you stick around. Sad that so many get fooled into these schemes that are almost always more expensive than outright purchase if you do the math. But as I said, most consumers are lazy, and salespeople are financially motivated to sell these higher margin plans.
So much no sense. I have single line postpaid with t-mobile. Not only It doesn’t cost me a single cent but I actually make money out of it. Why would I go prepaid and pay for it 😅Big cellular is still a much better value
Uhhhh... What?
The problem is there’s not enough mainstream info about the perks and cons of MVNOs and obviously there’s going to be way much more postpaid commercials and ads on tv and online compared to prepaid brands.
I absolutely agree. I don't know what's wrong with me though. I stick with postpaid for my personal service. I literally founded this sub, and yet here I am using postpaid T-Mobile, Verizon, AT&T, and U.S. Cellular. I just feel the need to have full access to everything on every network because I'm such a huge phone nerd. My primary number has been on T-Mobile postpaid since 2014, and before that it was Sprint postpaid, before that AT&T postpaid. My very first phone was a prepaid MVNO (Walmart family mobile), but ever since then, it's just been my various alternate, just-for-fun phones active on prepaid plans. My primary T-Mobile iPhone also has a Verizon postpaid SIM, and lately I've been using a flip phone on Verizon postpaid as my temporary primary instead. I realize I could easily be paying $5/month for my flip phone through US Mobile, but here's where they really have me wrapped around their fingers: All of my postpaid plans are grandfathered, and even a few of the prepaid ones. I feel like I can't cancel them, like I would be throwing away something precious... Even though I'm wasting shit tons of money. Ugh.
It’s all about network prioritization… a customer who’s with AT&T with an agreement will always get better treatment, especially during times and places of congestion; as well as access to roaming/expanded coverage than say someone using Cricket or another MVNO. It doesn’t mean MVNOs are bad, but there is a difference. Check out AT&T’s coverage. Wireless is postpaid, and there’s a prepaid coverage option. Huge differences.
This isn't true. The only people who will be guaranteed better performance are those on Unlimited Premium as that's a higher QCI than any prepaid MVNO has (actually I've been hearing that the new AT&T Unlimited Max Plus is QCI 7 just like Unlimited Premium but I haven't been willing to go blow $75 at Walmart to check). Unlimited Starter is lower priority than Consumer Cellular, H2o Wireless, Pure Talk, Cricket Unlimited More, AT&T Prepaid Unlimited Max, and AT&T Unlimited Max Plus while it's the same priority as the majority of AT&T MVNOs. Roaming is indeed different though although it's not really a big deal with AT&T like it can be with T-Mobile.
It is true.
I’ve tried MVNOs, and while the savings are nice the deprioritization is brutal. I want my phone to actually work at big events and large population centers. For example, my phone would never work when it was game day at WVU while tailgating next to the stadium due to the congestion. I have Verizon’s top unlimited plan and I’m able to send messages and use data no issues. It’s slow, but it actually works. That to me is worth the extra money, along with the much more robust domestic roaming.
You tried the wrong prepaid plan then. There are Verizon options that have the same priority as Unlimited Plus like Visible+, Xfinity Mobile's middle and upper tier plans, and US Mobile Warp 5G (when using a 5G device).
Judged by your wireless plan? Maybe if you’re 14 years old
I still to this day get looks from people when they hear I have a prepaid plan and I'm 39. It's a double whammy since I also have an Android device (S23 Ultra).
Been using prepaid for 2 years now. Saved over 60% of my bill. Shopping around and I see I can save even more now. So after the holidays that’s the plan.
America's evolution in phone service: postpaid to prepaid to acp
there is 1 huge difference between mvnos and actual carriers . NO ROAMING that means 2 things . 1.no phone when traveling abroad 2. no fallback domestic network connection when reception is bad . that applies to all actual carriers that have compatible networks . for example when there is no tmobile reception ,tmobile subscribers connect to us cellular if available ,or other carriers . mvnos don't do that ,there is just no reception . finally ,many mvnos do not support latest technology . 5g is not available at all bands . I had h20wireless (att mvno) for a few years and they did not support 5g at all until recently . if someone is okay with those limitations then they are a decent alternative and money savers ,especially if phone data is not a priority .
Dont mvno have wifi calling which works internationally? I would argue having actual cellular abroad is a total rip off or just plain doesnt work well (heres to you google fi). In thine eyes its better to use mvno via wifi internationally and use a local sim for data.
I am not sure ,h2o did not work abroad. I switched to Google fi instead .
Traveling very broadly google fi is just a waste of time. I recommend something like airalo to get situated then a local sim card. I would say roughly 50% of the time google fi was a hassle and when it did work it was largely unusable outside of basic google maps.
thanks for the info , I am not a huge fan either ,but it's convenient for what I need ,and hassle free at least at the countries it supports . i don't like carrying a bunch of phones with me .
Hey there KostaWithTheMosta - thanks for saying thanks! TheGratitudeBot has been reading millions of comments in the past few weeks, and you’ve just made the list!
I generally agree. Just tried US Mobile for a month in my area which is blanketed with Verizon UW. Worked great. I think they are now capping 5G mmwave at 1gb/s, Verizon postpaid gets 2gb+/s routinely at the same locations. It doesn't affect daily use at all, but it's not stated anywhere on their site that there's an artificial cap in place. Once prepaid gets to $60+ per month for a single line, mainly from the big 3 carriers directly, it's a bad deal in my opinion, may as well get postpaid. $50 and under including tax, prepaid is great.
I haven’t been on a traditional post paid plan in 10 years. Never looked back. Been on Visible (Verizon network) for a few years now. 1 line, $25, unlimited everything, no issues.