What cell phone carrier do you use (CONUS and OCONUS)?

Capt Brandon Charters — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 12:36:27 -0500

I'm shopping around for a new cell phone plan and would really like to hear what your coverage is like and if you're satisfied with what you're getting. I remember when AT&T came out with one of the first unlimited data plans and was the only original partner with iPhone. I know this market has shifted tremendously and I'm curious to know who you pick as a carrier now. Are you satisfied?

Response by SSgt Robert Marx made Feb 12 at 2016 12:39 PM

SSgt Robert Marx — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 12:39:18 -0500

Verizon has a pretty solid national presence. I recall that when I was deployed a few years ago in the boot heal of New Mexico that I had spotty coverage even there but no other carrier had any coverage whatsoever. Living in the great state of Montana, I experience a lot of dead zones. The coverage Verizon provides is great, especially compared to other carriers. 'Nuff said!

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 12 at 2016 12:46 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 12:46:00 -0500

*sniff *sniff - Something smells phishing. Seriously, though, I've heard great things about Verizon, Sprint, and AT&T.

http://lifehacker.com/5939237/whats-the-best-wireless-carrier

What's the Best Wireless Carrier?

Dear Lifehacker, My wireless contract just expired. Now that I'm free to use any mobile carrier, I'm wondering: Which is really the best for me? I need reliable service, of course, but I also want to get the best value and features. Please help me decide.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 12 at 2016 12:48 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 12:48:59 -0500

I got Straight Talk , its reliable and cheap and no contracts !!!

Response by LTC Chris Norton made Feb 12 at 2016 12:49 PM

LTC Chris Norton — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 12:49:47 -0500

Full disclosure, I helped build it and work for the company.

I use Defense Mobile. We use multiple carrier networks (ATT, Verizon, Sprint), meaning I can get the best possible signal where ever I live and not have to change carriers.

Non-contract, prepaid, no deposit. The way it should be, but I use auto pay so functionally it works like my old AT&T bill did. Bill is about 30% than retail post paid on the other carriers...even with the military discount they offer on the service plan. Oh yeah, no overages on data.

No "per line" fees to factor in.

I was able to bring my number over and use the phone I had on one line, and I got a new iPhone 6 through our sales channel as well.

Member care is 100% veteran staffed and in the United States.

10% of the company's profit goes back to the military community as part of our commerce for a cause program.

International calling is available, and a wifi calling platform is coming soon which makes it even more effective.

Available at a small number of Exchange locations, online, and in independent dealers nationwide.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/04/22/defensemobile-launches-wireless-service-for-active-military-veterans/26125247/ has a pretty good writeup on us.

Pitch aside...If you're on post-paid with ANY carrier at this point, you really ought to be looking at converting. I'd love it to be us, of course, but even converting to the in-house version is a smart move financially. There's very few compelling reasons to be beholden to a postpaid arrangement.

Also, if you can do it, buy your phone outright.

Defense Mobile launches wireless service for vets

If you're going to launch a telecommunications startup for veterans you gain cred by having an army of military heavyweights in your camp. Defense Mobile's team includes an ex-Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman.

Response by SGT Edward Wilcox made Feb 12 at 2016 12:58 PM

SGT Edward Wilcox — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 12:58:39 -0500

I use Defense Mobile. Have since they started. I get far better coverage than I did with my last carrier without the costs of using the big names. I have never had a major issue with them. I like that they are veteran owned and vteran staffed. I also like that they contribute to veterans' groups.

Response by Capt Brandon Charters made Feb 12 at 2016 1:06 PM

Capt Brandon Charters — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 13:06:43 -0500

I have AT&T and received a notice they are pushing unlimited talk & data rates up again. Never had an issue with their coverage when I was stationed in Mississippi, New Mexico, or California. Also never had issues while TDY all over the CONUS and Hawaii. Looking forward to hearing what everyone else has and also wondering what kind of DoD and veteran discounts are out there.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 12 at 2016 1:25 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 13:25:06 -0500

I had T-Mobile for over a decade then I moved to Savannah, Georgia in 2013 and had 2G on a 4G LTE network. I switched to Verizon and I've been happy since. However, I'm going to look into LTC Chris Norton's recommendation and compare the pro's and con's of a switch to Defense Mobile.

Response by SPC Elijah J. Henry, MBA made Feb 12 at 2016 2:16 PM

SPC Elijah J. Henry, MBA — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 14:16:33 -0500

Defense Mobile. It's like USAA, for cell phones.

Response by Sgt Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 12 at 2016 2:23 PM

Sgt Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 14:23:33 -0500

Sir, I have AARP Consumer Cellular and I am satisfied.

Response by MSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 12 at 2016 3:01 PM

MSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 15:01:48 -0500

I have been with T-Mobile since 2000, switched from Verizon. For the most part Ive have been happy with the service. There are areas that I find no service or no LTE. I will admit Verizon has some of the best coverage but I hate their customer service (bad experience). T-Mobile has always been great in that regard. They also have no contracts and it is GSM which is what I prefer. I have four phones all with unlimited calls and text and two of the phones have 3 gbs of data the other two are 1 gb. Actually its unlimited but they throttle it down after the 3 & 1. It runs me about $155 with taxes included. I also have been looking into that Defense mobile to see if it is a benefit worth switching to.

Response by PO1 William "Chip" Nagel made Feb 12 at 2016 3:10 PM

PO1 William "Chip" Nagel — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 15:10:59 -0500

Used to work for Sprint as a Senior Network Operations Specialist and as a Contracted Network Analyst. Still do some Private Contract Physical Security for them. I've done some Store Security for Verizon but my Carrier is Verizon.

Response by PO1 Brian Austin made Feb 12 at 2016 3:57 PM

PO1 Brian Austin — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 15:57:35 -0500

Tracfone, pay as i go/as i need. I haven't spent a cent on my phone since Jul 2015 when i bought 1000 texts for $10. I'm still at 510 texts. Everything rolls over, no "use it or lose it". Also if you have a smart phone and add minutes, the minutes and texts are tripled.

I really don't use it much. Just have it in case i need it.

Response by PFC Tuan Trang made Feb 12 at 2016 4:04 PM

PFC Tuan Trang — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 16:04:22 -0500

I'm using t-mobile, it good but sometime signal is drop, expecially if you at a parkinf garage.

Response by SP5 Mark Kuzinski made Feb 12 at 2016 8:26 PM

SP5 Mark Kuzinski — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 20:26:28 -0500

Hands down - Verizon!

Response by CSM Charles Hayden made Feb 12 at 2016 8:32 PM

CSM Charles Hayden — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 20:32:58 -0500

Capt Brandon Charters My sons, their children and my lady friend are all VZ customers. We enjoy unlimited usage between us. My previous VZ plan offered a 15 % Military discount. I am now on an unlimited plan that is so low they cannot discount it. So they say!

Response by CAPT Kevin B. made Feb 13 at 2016 12:11 AM

CAPT Kevin B. — Sat, 13 Feb 2016 00:11:38 -0500

I've been with Verizon for some time after getting torqued with ATT for spotty signal west of Seattle. Sprint and TM were even worse. Then one of my upgrade phone's receiver wasn't as sensitive as it should be but always had 5 bars at the store 1/2 mile from the cell tower. So one thing Verizon has is a Network Extender which is like a mini-tower at the house which ties you in through the internet. That is just the ticket out in the sticks where nobody would have coverage in my basement. It's just a matter of where you are and where you're likely going.

Response by SSG Eddye Royal made Feb 13 at 2016 10:07 AM

SSG Eddye Royal — Sat, 13 Feb 2016 10:07:12 -0500

I currently have AT&T, I like them because if tell them your military and show ID, there is a discount on your service plan. I have both the IPHONE 6 plus, and IPAD Air on the same plan; you have International added also.

Response by PO2 John Crutchfield made Feb 15 at 2016 10:50 AM

PO2 John Crutchfield — Mon, 15 Feb 2016 10:50:22 -0500

We were Verizon customers since 2007. Four months ago, our contract was up and I wanted to see what changes could be made to our family phone plan. Verizon would not work with us at all. Customer service is everything these days and we decided to see what else is out there. We decided on Sprint. Best bang for the buck. Coverage not as good as Verizon, but it works well for us here in Albuquerque. No freaking two year contract.

Never heard of Defense Mobile until today.

Response by SSG Carlos Madden made Feb 16 at 2016 4:38 PM

SSG Carlos Madden — Tue, 16 Feb 2016 16:38:15 -0500

I've had Verizon my whole life. It was the only provider that would work in the field. Everyone with AT&T, Sprint or T-Mobile would always ask to use our phones.