T-Mobile LTE & Network Discussion

[Deval]

Gimmick to some... options for others. Don't need it, don't get it.

 

iPhone lease program from Sprint? Gimmick to some... options for others.

 

At least the iPhone leasing makes sense.

 

iPhone users are the most loyal consumers to the brand, and would jump at a chance to get the latest and greatest every year. Instead of paying $299 for a 64GB device which they have to keep for two years, they can pay $25 or whatever it is per month, and cash in on new ones every year. 

[JossMan]

Here is a great comment from this article:

 

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/watch-t-mobile-data-stash-lets-you-roll-over-105307553349.html

 

 

And that, by and large, encapsulates the tech press.

 

T-Mobile is also the worst for coverage unless you live the poor lifestyle in the ghetto -- and pay for no home broadband.

 

Those seem to be the two ends of the spectrum of T-Mobile subs...

 

AJ

So this explains why T-Mobile doesn't have any LTE coverage in Bristol, there is not an "inner city" and what the heck is a "ghetto" .

 

 All we have is cow pastures and fields so this area is the least important to Legere and company.

[P_M_G]

Here is a great comment from this article:

 

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/watch-t-mobile-data-stash-lets-you-roll-over-105307553349.html

 

 

And that, by and large, encapsulates the tech press.

 

T-Mobile is also the worst for coverage unless you live the poor lifestyle in the ghetto -- and pay for no home broadband.

 

Those seem to be the two ends of the spectrum of T-Mobile subs...

 

AJ

Here is the best comment I read on that article... 

 

If Massachusetts legalized prostitution, a lot of prostitutes would be buying more cell phones from T- Mobile. That would mean more jobs for the telephone industry and electronics industry.

[Deval]

What is that supposed to mean ghetto?

 

I live in the inner city because I prefer to live in the inner city. I attempted to live in the burbs before but hated it.

Not everything in the inter city is ghetto, and even though I don't have t-mobile people I know that do don't live in the ghetto and live in some pretty expensive homes out in the burbs. So last I checked in my City Tmobile coverage is just as good as Sprints.

 

I thought this place was above making stereotypical jokes about the class or area people may live in, but I guess if you don't like a provider all bets are off. 

 

I think the challenge with labels stem from actual experience in some markets. For example, NYC, which is my home market (I live in Queens, NY), has a significant T-Mobile retail and user presence. Most of the market is about as urban, inner city, as you can get. T-Mo has developed their network here specifically for those users. 

 

A lot of the people you see walk into the T-Mo stores here would certainly fit that demographic, and thus the label "ghetto" is born.

 

I'm not condoning it either way, just sharing a personal observation. 

[Hurrcayne_dre]

I think the challenge with labels stem from actual experience in some markets. For example, NYC, which is my home market (I live in Queens, NY), has a significant T-Mobile retail and user presence. Most of the market is about as urban, inner city, as you can get. T-Mo has developed their network here specifically for those users. 

 

A lot of the people you see walk into the T-Mo stores here would certainly fit that demographic, and thus the label "ghetto" is born.

 

I'm not condoning it either way, just sharing a personal observation. 

 

not to take this off thread further but people tend to throw the term ghetto ( and use it as a substitution for the N word)around as a negative stereotype about a group of people they don't understand. 

[mideastbeast]

I rewatched the interview from yesterday. Legere: We have 38 million gross adds.

Interviewer:Gross?

Legere: Yes, new subscribers come over.

Interviewer: Wow

Legere: 10 million net who stay.

Interviewer: Why not allow roll over forever instead of just 1 year then data expires?

Legere: Uh, its a gift. We're giving it as a gift.

 

Haha, he glosses over the fact that 28 million people leave T-mobile after trying it. That's nearly 3/4 of people who try it leave.

[Jones]

Labeling a group of people because of where they live and who they choose to do business with is wrong. I don't like the connotations brought about by the last 2 pages. We should drop this topic...now.

[Deval]

not to take this off thread further but people tend to throw the term ghetto ( and use it as a substitution for the N word)around as a negative stereotype about a group of people they don't understand. 

 

I believe it buddy, trust me I do.

 

I live here.

[Deval]

Labeling a group of people because of where they live and who they choose to do business with is wrong. I don't like the connotations brought about by the last 2 pages. We should drop this topic...now.

 

I agree, but the truth is, T-Mobile focuses their network and all on urban markets. That's all.

[jamisonshaw125]

To get this thread back on topic, someone talked yesterday about how he didn't use rollover because it isn't cool enough sounding.

 

Here you have it.

 

"T-Mobile said it never planned to use the term. "'Stash' is cooler," T-Mobile CEO John Legere said Tuesday on a conference call with reporters. "'Rollover' is such a 1980s term."

He added, "If you want to call it 'rollover,' that's OK."

[Keitarou]

That is circular logic at best. If you're paying for 3GB, and not using it, you're already overpaying. On top of that, they are giving you 10GB to begin with, on top of the 3GB, so you're banking GB which will all expire at the end of the year anyway.

 

Who said anything about not using it. When you signed up for 3GB and end up using 2GB, you can stash 1GB for later. Why is that over paying? It's no different from anyone who shares data and not use it all. So at year end, you might have 10GB plus whatever you didn't use or you might have less then that left. Still an option vs not being able to use it at all after the month ends and you didn't use it all.

[Keitarou]

At least the iPhone leasing makes sense.

 

iPhone users are the most loyal consumers to the brand, and would jump at a chance to get the latest and greatest every year. Instead of paying $299 for a 64GB device which they have to keep for two years, they can pay $25 or whatever it is per month, and cash in on new ones every year. 

 

So data stash doesn't make sense? Letting people keep what they paid for and use it when they might need it, is not worth it? Wow... just wow.

[Hurrcayne_dre]

I agree, but the truth is, T-Mobile focuses their network and all on urban markets. That's all.

 

not urban but Metropolitan areas

[Deval]

So data stash doesn't make sense? Letting people keep what they paid for and use it when they might need it, is not worth it? Wow... just wow.

 

So if you don't use it, it goes away, effectively being net-useless.

 

Correct?

 

It's like having a safety blanket, for that rainy day where all that stashed data may come in handy. If not, well you paid for it, and it was taken away anyway.

[WiWavelength]

For those of you who think it wrong to stereotype T-Mobile subs, you need to take a look at the source:  John Legere.  Absolutely, Legere himself is typecasting his own current and potential customers.  With his juvenile antics, crass words, antiestablishment attitude, and exurban prejudice, Legere is playing to a few preconceived audience groups.  And some of the stereotypes surrounding some of those groups may not be positive, but they are what they are.

 

AJ

[P_M_G]

Stash is conceptually no different from the old ATT Rollover Minutes...I would guess a large portion of the population doesn't ever really use what they are paying for...I'm on ED1500 plan and even though my wife uses her cell as her work phone, we have never even come remotely close to that 1500 shared minutes cap between the 4 lines in the family.

 

If I wasn't on unlimited data, I'd absolutely love a stash type program for when my daughter blows through 7GB in a month instead of the usual 2...

[Deval]

So data stash doesn't make sense? Letting people keep what they paid for and use it when they might need it, is not worth it? Wow... just wow.

 

I'm just stating an opinion that it is not the holy grail that some folks believe it to be. I understand the message behind it, and the value for some users.

[jamisonshaw125]

Stash is conceptually no different from the old ATT Rollover Minutes...I would guess a large portion of the population doesn't ever really use what they are paying for...I'm on ED1500 plan and even though my wife uses her cell as her work phone, we have never even come remotely close to that 1500 shared minutes cap between the 4 lines in the family.

 

If I wasn't on unlimited data, I'd absolutely love a stash type program for when my daughter blows through 7GB in a month instead of the usual 2...

Did you take part of the free upgrade to unlimited minutes for loyal ED customers?

[twospirits]

I'm still undecided if the data stash / rollover / bendover strategy will be a good one or not for T-Mobile (financially) or if anyone else should copy it. Either way, much like any other plan out there, it will be good for some and not for others.

So one can agree to disagree on that topic.

 

As for the ghetto comments, I honestly feel that we should stop using that term. Usually, of late, it is being more associated with skin color and that is problem in of itself. Originally, ghettos were tied to immigration of Irish, German, Italians, Polish, Spanish and Puerto Rican coming from Europe, Caribbean and South America and settling in certain areas like the Lower East Side of NYC, Harlem, etc. all looking for a better way of life and liberty. Naturally with such an influx, folks will be crammed into a spot thus not giving the the view of spacious comfortable safe environment.   This is repeated in other cities as well. Some of those areas are now considered hip, cool, visited by the elite since they have been (or are in a transition) much better than their former origins. It is a cycle that repeats all over the inner cities. Then again what is a inner city? Is it (for example in NYC) is it the Business district, the Village, Lower East Side, Alphabet City, Times Square, Lincoln Center, Harlem, Astoria, Corona? Each and every one of those mentioned has spots that can be labeled ghetto or hip or elite depending on who you see and what you see. Does it end at the border of the city or continue into the next county? Now-a-days the term is more associated with race, that ends up being a problem, especially one for such tech sites like ours where we should be discussing the deployment and not who is using the frequencies due to their race, color, ethnicity, religion, gender or status. etc etc. 

 

again, while I understand that it may not be avoidable, I feel it has no business in a tech forum such as ours regardless of the carrier being discussed.

 

TS

[lou99/maximus1987]

I rewatched the interview from yesterday. Legere: We have 38 million gross adds.

Interviewer:Gross?

Legere: Yes, new subscribers come over.

Interviewer: Wow

Legere: 10 million net who stay.

Interviewer: Why not allow roll over forever instead of just 1 year then data expires?

Legere: Uh, its a gift. We're giving it as a gift.

 

Haha, he glosses over the fact that 28 million people leave T-mobile after trying it. That's nearly 3/4 of people who try it leave.

What's Sprint's net adds over last two years?

[richy]

For those of you who think it wrong to stereotype T-Mobile subs, you need to take a look at the source:  John Legere.  Absolutely, Legere himself is typecasting his own current and potential customers.  With his juvenile antics, crass words, antiestablishment attitude, and exurban prejudice, Legere is playing to a few preconceived audience groups.  And some of the stereotypes surrounding some of those groups may not be positive, but they are what they are.

 

AJ

No.  Is wrong when he did it like that and it's wrong when it's done here. How many Jews were in ghettos before going to their death? Legere's comments were in poor taste, as normal, but that is not open license to try and one up them.

 

There irony was not lost on me that I watched his talk whilst stood in a field getting 5 bars of lte. Perhaps it was the lack of cows?  Do cows block signals? I thought cows broadcast signals ; )

[WiWavelength]

What's Sprint's net adds over last two years?

 

That sounds like a trolling type question.  And it is not relevant to this thread.

 

We all know that Sprint has not fared well recently in subscriber acquisition/retention.  Honestly, many of us do not care -- we care about the network deployment.  Sprint is not going bankrupt, so we do not tie our egos or personal concerns to Sprint's net adds/losses.

 

On the other hand, many perceive that T-Mobile has succeeded wildly in subscriber acquisition/retention with its "un-carrier" campaign.  If the cited stats are accurate, though, T-Mobile has been quite the revolving door -- some come and stay, but most leave.

 

AJ

[Keitarou]

So if you don't use it, it goes away, effectively being net-useless.

 

Correct?

 

It's like having a safety blanket, for that rainy day where all that stashed data may come in handy. If not, well you paid for it, and it was taken away anyway.

 

So you rather pay for 3GB anyway since you use 1GB or more but not even have an option to keep it for a rainy day. Is that right?

 

[Deval]

So you rather pay for 3GB anyway since you use 1GB or more but not even have an option to keep it for a rainy day. Is that right?

 

 

What other option would I have? The whole point is, with T-Mo not charging overages, it makes zero difference.

 

If I'm paying for 3GB, and not using it, it's gone anyway. The concept of "banking it" is all well and good, but unless your usage is significantly high for a month, the consistent usage remains.

[Conan Kudo]

We all know that Sprint has not fared well recently in subscriber acquisition/retention.  Honestly, many of us do not care -- we care about the network deployment.  Sprint is not going bankrupt, so we do not tie our egos or personal concerns to Sprint's net adds/losses.

Don't discount the power of growth (or lack thereof) in influencing network decisions. They are tied very closely together, so it's critical to understand the effects of one on the other. This is true with Sprint and T-Mobile, as well as AT&T/Verizon.