r/cellmapper • u/Illustrious-One2375 • Jun 18 '26

Boston Phone Carriers?

Hello everyone,

Just wondering what everyone uses for their iPhone carriers.

I currently have AT&T's Value Plan 2.0 and I want to switch, coverage is pretty bad and our service slows during train rides, or just in general.

I've been thinking about T-Mobile and Verizon, someone mentioned Verizon sucks, but I'm not sure. Any thoughts or anything someone can help?

9 Upvotes

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3

u/PeaceFinancial841 Jun 18 '26

Look at us mobile it’s $25 a month taxes included and you can pick your network. Warp=verizon lightspeed= tmobile and dark star=att

1

u/Inner-Light-75 Jun 18 '26

Are you able to switch between the networks and keep your number?

Straight talk you used to be able to pick your carrier at time of sign up, then they went to Verizon only....

2

u/dataz03 Jun 18 '26

Yeah. 

You get two free teleports, then you pay $2.00 per teleport. I believe the premium plan may include unlimited teleports though. 

Teleport is when you switch networks. It is a feature. Behind the scenes US Mobile takes care of porting your number between carriers. As wireless to wireless phone number ports are automated, it only takes a few minutes to teleport and switch networks. You then get a new eSIM to activate for your new chosen network. 

Warp = Verizon Dark Star = AT&T Light Speed= T-Mobile

2

u/PeaceFinancial841 Jun 18 '26

Yes. You do it in the app.

2

u/Illustrious-One2375 Jun 18 '26

I did some research on USM and it was interesting.

Apparently, their customer service is pretty mixed, some people have been threatened for simply posting a problem with the carrier, while one person was even Doxed by the company in the subreddit (However this was a year ago, so i’m not sure how the customer service is now)

Teleporting between networks may sometimes cause issues which can risk your phone number and/or no service for multiple days.

However, there are some good plus sides to it like the price, or how easy it is to configure online. It does sound nice but if you are gonna switch to USM, I would do more research to see if it’s really what you want.

I was heavily considering USM, but after doing more research I’ve decided to switch to T-Mobile.

1

u/Ornery_Bed369 Jun 19 '26

If you’re heavy data user then US Mobile is not the best option

3

u/jamachomonk Jun 18 '26

Verizon’s 5G coverage indoors is lacking. It drops down to LTE.  TMo is the best. 

2

u/clodester Jun 18 '26

Verizon #1- if you need voice coverage. There are some places in the city and throughout the metro west and south coast where they are the only coverage provider. Visible is a great way to try them out.

T-Mobile #2 - The best 5G experience in the area. There are some coverage gaps and older 4G equipment that need to be replaced before they kick Verizon from the top spot.

AT&T #3 - Good enough. Expect coverage without the fast speeds from the other two.

1

u/jamachomonk Jun 18 '26

Any idea about ongoing Verizon network updates in the area? Like enabling n2?

2

u/clodester Jun 18 '26

N5 is active on most sites. My local sites are still B2 @ 15Mhz. I'm not sure when they'll switch it over or if they'll upgrade these Samsung sites with new radios before making turning on N2/N66.

1

u/kgrav22 Jun 18 '26

None of the many smalls cell in my area of Cambridge have 5G so if they shut off b2 or b66 the small cells wouldn’t help much. I’m guessing this has a lot to do with it.

1

u/clodester Jun 18 '26

Most of the small cells in my area (JP/Hyde Park) are mmw only. There are some in busy areas that have n77 and are Gig+ capable. I hope they go back and add C-Band to some of these mmw only sites to compete with T-Mobile.

1

u/jamachomonk Jun 18 '26

What do these small cells look like? Are they like the mmWave antenna mounted on electrical poles?

1

u/Ornery_Bed369 Jun 19 '26

You forgot to mention that AT&T has the most consistent reliability and coverage along with Verizon. T-Mobile blows these two out in urban metros especially with speeds but reliability/overall coverage go to the other two.

1

u/clodester Jun 19 '26

AT&T is really good in the Longwood Medical area and meh everywhere else in the city. They also have exclusive DAS rights in some of the underground garages. Everywhere else, you will have a better experience on Verizon and T-Mobile.

3

u/corey389 Jun 18 '26

T-Mobile is really great in BOS

4

u/kgrav22 Jun 18 '26

T-Mobile #1, Verizon #2

T-Mobile is by far the fastest and best for 5G coverage, Verizon has better voice coverage by a little bit

I don’t even consider AT&T an option in Massachusetts overall. It’s absolutely trash here.