What is your experience with Verizon?

One of the many (unfortunately) things that make my life shorter by weeks if not years, is horrible phone service. Neither at work nor at home can I get reliable signal, both phone and data, even when I'm within feet from the wireless router in my own apartment. If this were happening in the middle of South Dakota somewhere, it would be at least understandable or even excusable. But I live and work here in Chicago, not a small rural township.

So . . . I've tried T-Mobile. Sucks. Now I'm with Sprint. Sucks as well. Judging by my girlfriend's experience with AT&T, it's no better than the first two.

That leaves Verizon (or something else?).

Are there any Verizon customers? Would you recommend it?

Or something else entirely?

Thank you.

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Permalink Reply by Thunder Snow on March 20, 2013 at 4:00pm

Yeah, Lisa, I'm well on the way to Geezerville.  Let me practice...."Get off my lawn!!"  Yup, I'm all set.
 
Lisa Curcio 4.0 mi said:

Your age is showing!

Permalink Reply by william on March 21, 2013 at 12:51pm

I am using Straight Talk (along with Google Voice) with an unlocked GSM/rooted/rom'd Android phone. I recommend it. Basically, I'm using the same towers as the Big Carriers -- just cutting out the middle man. Read up on it. 

http://www.straighttalksim.com/

1zt7hr8qm0y90Permalink Reply by 1zt7hr8qm0y90 on March 21, 2013 at 8:56pm
I have had Verizon since it was Ameritech and it is the only provider I have ever had. At home the calls never drop because at home it's the good ol' hard wired and why not. Mobile phones are for use in public although I believe there should still be pay phones. Consider the fact that a dropped call may come from the person you are talking to. How many dropped calls were there with analog? Look what has happened to TV reception since the introduction of a digital signal. I geocash and told people that "how do you know or would you assume that my coordinates are off?" Maybe your coordinates are off. My GPSr leads me right to my hidden geocache. What goes around comes around in more ways than one. Chainlinkers trying to scrounge up a video camera at the bike swap with high resolution digital. Remember VHS? Right now as I type this I am listening to a 50 year old vacuum tube stereo and "spinning vinyl" (AC/DC Back in Black) on a vintage Marantz turntable. High end audio, even state of the art new employs ancient technology and sounds much better than solid state (transisterized) crap. I am reluctant to accept new technology because it is harder to figure out and not as reliable as tried and true traditional technology.
Permalink Reply by Amanda on March 22, 2013 at 3:03am
I have been a Verizon customer for 7 years! They have amazing reception. I'm usually the only one of my friendsnwhomalways has reception. They also have great customer service!
Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on March 22, 2013 at 3:46am

Nope.  I previously had service with Ameritech, until it was absorbed by Verizon.

h' 1.0 said:

I could swear Ameritech was absorbed by AT&T.

Douglas Iverson said:

I have had Verizon since it was Ameritech 
Permalink Reply by Banshee: 12-15mi on March 22, 2013 at 4:17am

Hi Serge - We use Verizon for work and have been very happy with them.  I travel about 30% of the time and have found that their coverage is really good.  I did experience coverage problem around Billings, MT about two years ago, otherwise, the coverage has been really reliable from anywhere in North America - well, at least for the cities I have visited and travelled to for work.

Permalink Reply by Thunder Snow on March 22, 2013 at 4:18am

Yep, in the 1990's, Chicago had two cellular providers, Ameritech (the "A" provider) and the runner-up "B" provider, which was, I think, SBC. When Ameritech disappeared around 1996, you had Verizon or SBC to choose from.

1zt7hr8qm0y90Permalink Reply by 1zt7hr8qm0y90 on March 22, 2013 at 8:15pm
No, h', My first cellular phone was a brick with a telescoping antenna (beautiful, bring extending antenna's back) but morons complained that they broke the antennas. This brick phone which I still have but can't use says Ameritech on it and I have never changed my provider. So, Verizon was Ameritech. Verizon service is awesome.
Permalink Reply by Barry Aldridge on March 23, 2013 at 3:44am

"Consumer Reports" readers rated Verizon as best in the Chicago area (well, US cellular was best, but they're exiting the Chicago market). AT&T and T-Mobile were in the middle and Sprint was by far the worst. I used to use AT&T, which wasn't very good, and switched to Virgin/Sprint and can say that Sprint it much worse and slower than AT&T.

Permalink Reply by Justin B Newman on May 16, 2013 at 9:36am

Just to clarify the record re: Verizon, AT&T, and Ameritech... When Ameritech and SBC merged (forming the company we now call AT&T), both Ameritech and SBC had wireless networks in St Louis and Chicago. In order to complete the merger, Ameritech's Chicago and St Louis assets were sold to GTE (1999, $3.27 billion). GTE eventually merged with Bell Atlantic, forming Verizon.

From a purist standpoint, Ameritech became AT&T, not Verizon. OTOH, the Ameritech wireless network and customers in St. Louis & Chicago ultimately became the Verizon Wireless network and its customers. 

Happy beautiful Thursday!

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