With an endless barrage of advertising creeping into every aspect of your cultural consumption, it can be difficult to pull the plug and decide on a cellular network. With all the factors to take into account — cell service in your region, cost of data plan, etc. — what option is best for you and your family can become increasingly muddled in the midst of the white noise. However, there is finally a little bit of clarity, and while one provider ultimately comes out on top, a little more research into the available data is required to make an educated choice.
Now that all four of the major networks — Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint — have relatively affordable unlimited data plans, the competition has become increasingly close. According to PC Mag, Verizon is ultimately the best overall, but had the greatest variety of quality according to your region. For residents of Oklahoma, Texas, and Louisiana, AT&T was still the number one for coverage. However, if you live in the northeast or northwest, T-Mobile was surprisingly your best bet.
Despite Sprint’s poaching attempt by offering new customers a free year of service if they switch from a different provider, PC Mag still found that Verizon was the best value in terms of coverage after testing 36 cities and rural areas.
“This was the tightest contest eve. T-Mobile has largely closed its coverage gap with Verizon within metro areas, making it an excellent lower-cost choice. And AT&T sprinted ahead this year, especially in the Southeast and Midwest. Sprint seems to have hit a speed bump, mostly in terms of consistency, but it’s also much more competitive than it was two years ago.”
On top of the networks reliability breakdown, the study also revealed that outside of Sprint, the Galaxy S8 outpaced the iPhone 7 in terms of downloading and uploading speeds. However, this could change with the next Apple rollout expected later this year. The Fact of the matter is that many should reconsider their business alliances if they want the fastest coverage. Brand loyalty may be holding you back.
(Via Fortune)