Best cell phone reception in TV?

[kpd3062]

My wife and I have Consumer cellular and our connectivity here in the villages has been horrible. We have especially had trouble in the new areas south of 44. I believe CC uses at& t network. Which carrier seems to have the best coverage? Thanks

[EdFNJ]

There is no best. Depends on where you live and where you go. I am in Amelia just North of 466A and ATT gave me zero coverage at my house and within almost 2 blocks. I had to give them up after probably 30 years (of all their previous iterations) for Verizon which works fine for me here and everywhere I have been but may not somewhere else. Not too many cell towers for any provider servicing TV on it's property. I believe there is 1 tower actually ion TV physical property and the rest are on the outskirts. Bottom line is, try another prepaid like Verizon and see how it works out.

[Bosoxfan]

Verizon has the best network. If you have an old phone or cheap phone your reception won't be as good

[retiredguy123]

My wife and I have Consumer cellular and our connectivity here in the villages has been horrible. We have especially had trouble in the new areas south of 44. I believe CC uses at& t network. Which carrier seems to have the best coverage? Thanks
There are only 4 cell phone networks in the country: Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile. Every independent review I have read in the past 20 years or so have always rated Verizon as the absolute best network. I use the Xfinity Mobile service, which uses the Verizon network. I get unlimited calls and text, and pay 14 dollars per month as long as I use less than 1 GB of data, which is more than enough for me because I almost always use wifi for data. If you use a lot of data, you can get an unlimited data plan for about 45 dollars per month. But, no matter which cell plan you buy, I think you should make sure it uses the Verizon network.

[dewilson58]

Verizon has the best network. If you have an old phone or cheap phone your reception won't be as good




Agree with the Bo................Verizon.




There are gaps in TV with other providers.




There are a number of threads on this site regarding coverage.

[champion6]

My wife and I have Consumer Cellular and our connectivity here in the villages has been horrible. We have especially had trouble in the new areas south of 44. I believe CC uses at&t network. Which carrier seems to have the best coverage? ThanksWe have been with Consumer Cellular (CC) for a about 3-4 years and love it. In TV, we are generally north of 44 and we don't have any problems.

Here's something you can try and it costs nothing. CC uses both AT&T and T-Mobile. Your phone can connect to only one of them. This is specified by the SIM card that CC put in your phone.

Call CC and ask them which one you are using. Ask CC to send you a new SIM card that connects your phone to the other one. If performance is better, leave it in your phone. If not, put the original SIM card back in.

From what I have read on TOTV, "trouble in the new areas south of 44" seems to be common for all carriers at this time. Also, replace "south of 44" with "south of 466A" and you have the situation reported on TOTV about 5-6 years ago. The carriers can't seem to expand their infrastructure at a pace that keeps up with the expansion of TV.

[skyking]

Coverage by carrier seems to vary by location. I live just north of 466a and have excellent coverage with Verizon. When I go north to Spanish Springs Verizon's signal is poor.

[Number 10 GI]

We live in McClure, south of 44, have AT&T and coverage is lousy, one bar on the signal strength indicator. When we go to the Fenney Grill we have very poor or no coverage, depends on conditions. Plan on changing providers if it doesn't improve soon.

[Bosoxfan]

Live in McClure. The Mrs. and I both have high end Samsung S8 and S8+ phones and never have dropped calls

[Fraugoofy]

There are only 4 cell phone networks in the country: Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile. Every independent review I have read in the past 20 years or so have always rated Verizon as the absolute best network. I use the Xfinity Mobile service, which uses the Verizon network. I get unlimited calls and text, and pay 14 dollars per month as long as I use less than 1 GB of data, which is more than enough for me because I almost always use wifi for data. If you use a lot of data, you can get an unlimited data plan for about 45 dollars per month. But, no matter which cell plan you buy, I think you should make sure it uses the Verizon network.And US Cellular...

Sent from my SM-N920R4 using Tapatalk

[thelegges]

We have two carriers Sprint which works perfectly at our home now, and . Att when we are out and about.
In pennacamp our sprint didn’t work at all, at our house, but att did. Each home we have bought carrier was different.

[retiredguy123]

And US Cellular...

Sent from my SM-N920R4 using Tapatalk
Thanks, you are correct. U.S. Cellular is a company that has it's own network towers. But, their coverage is regional, and mostly in the Midwest and Pacific Northwest. It looks like they have few or no towers in Florida and only provide 4g service in about 10 percent of the country.

[jojo]

We use T-Mobile which has vastly improved. I rarely have dropped calls anywhere in The Villages and it is the best for international travel.

[DeanFL]

We both have Tracfone, which uses the Verizon network here.
NEVER fails us - perfect connection and reception no matter where we are.

AT&T network was horrible, and per friends, still is. Sometimes we see folks on calls outside their home because reception is so poor inside, or no reception inside stores etc.

[Nucky]

During the first month that the Trolley rides were happening to show us the Fenney Area, I tried calling from Verizon To Verizon phones that were next to each other in The Trolley and Zip, Zero, Zilch.

Whenever we take a trip down that way nowadays there is never a problem Receiving, Making Call & Texts or Using the Internet. We are on the 55 Plus plan @ $40 per month per line and $20 for an iPad. Haven't dropped a call anywhere except in our home and the 4G LTE Extender they sent me did the trick. I am totally happy with Verizon. One of these other companies that use The Verizon Tower sound great also. I like that Comcast phone deal but the catch is you have to own your phone first. Good Luck.

[PaulDenise]

There is some help when you are in your house. If you have an iphone (and maybe others), go into settings and put 'wifi calling' on. With this toggled on, your phone will send calls thru your wifi system if the signal is stronger than the cell signal. I think that almost all of my verizon calls from inside the house are using my wifi system.

[kathyspear]

We use T-Mobile which has vastly improved. I rarely have dropped calls anywhere in The Villages and it is the best for international travel.

We travel a fair amount and the international coverage is a huge benefit for us (that, and the fact that we pay $60 per month for unlimited everything for the two of us on their 55+ or whatever plan ... ) Love it!

kathy

[retiredguy123]

During the first month that the Trolley rides were happening to show us the Fenney Area, I tried calling from Verizon To Verizon phones that were next to each other in The Trolley and Zip, Zero, Zilch.

Whenever we take a trip down that way nowadays there is never a problem Receiving, Making Call & Texts or Using the Internet. We are on the 55 Plus plan @ $40 per month per line and $20 for an iPad. Haven't dropped a call anywhere except in our home and the 4G LTE Extender they sent me did the trick. I am totally happy with Verizon. One of these other companies that use The Verizon Tower sound great also. I like that Comcast phone deal but the catch is you have to own your phone first. Good Luck.
I'm not sure what you mean about Comcast. You can buy a phone at the Xfinity store at Rolling Acres and Rt 441. I think you can either pay cash or use the 24 month payment plan. Or, I believe you can now bring your own phone. But, you do need to have Xfinity internet service.

[Nucky]

I'm not sure what you mean about Comcast. You can buy a phone at the Xfinity store at Rolling Acres and Rt 441. I think you can either pay cash or use the 24 month payment plan. Or, I believe you can now bring your own phone. But, you do need to have Xfinity internet service.

I meant that once you are in The Verizon Web, you are stuck with them until you pay off the phone. I tried to pay off the Primary Phone and jump ship to Comcast early with no luck.

It makes sense though. With Verizon, if you time it correctly you get a new phone and then the second one for "Free". But you have to spend the entire Two Years With them UNTIL THE ORIGINAL PHONE IS PAID OFF. Otherwise, the Second Phone is NOT FREE ANYMORE. The illusion of having no contract is appealing but you actually have a leash on you for TWO YEARS. THEY ARE NOT STUPID.

If I didn't Splain this well I'll try it again. :1rotfl:

Bottom line is managing your Data usage and going over to Comcast eventually on the Verizon Network is the best deal. IMHO Whew! :blahblahblah:

[Toymeister]

If you are referring to reception IN a Fenney home, then you problem starts there. The OSB in the roof is foil lined. This interferes with the signal. To overcome this you need a cell signal ampp/antenna. available on Amazon.

If it is simply the signal strength then why use a phone that relies on one specific brand, this includes all carriers mentioned to this point.

Google Fi, yes that Google, offers fantastic coverage and service. The use TWO carriers, switching between the strongest signal. Pricing is also appealing.

[fw102807]

If you are referring to reception IN a Fenney home, then you problem starts there. The OSB in the roof is foil lined. This interferes with the signal. To overcome this you need a cell signal ampp/antenna. available on Amazon.

If it is simply the signal strength then why use a phone that relies on one specific brand, this includes all carriers mentioned to this point.

Google Fi, yes that Google, offers fantastic coverage and service. The use TWO carriers, switching between the strongest signal. Pricing is also appealing.

How do you know so much? What did you do in your other life?

[Toymeister]

How do you know so much? What did you do in your other life?

The key to continually learning is listening. A skill that is in short supply. Reading diverse topics helps.

I award and administer contracts. A position which frequently places me between some technical expert w/o the ability to clearly express ideas and a generalist. Most of all I dislike being dragged through litigation to defend some engineering minutiae.

Most people will not get Google Fi, but for the OP it is ideal, better service and a pricing structure geared towards someone who is fiscally responsible with the added benefit of pricing caps.

[fw102807]

The key to continually learning is listening. A skill that is in short supply. Reading diverse topics helps.

I award and administer contracts. A position which frequently places me between some technical expert w/o the ability to clearly express ideas and a generalist. Most of all I dislike being dragged through litigation to defend some engineering minutiae.

Most people will not get Google Fi, but for the OP it is ideal, better service and a pricing structure geared towards someone who is fiscally responsible with the added benefit of pricing caps.

:bigbow:

[Altavia]

If you are referring to reception IN a Fenney home, then you problem starts there. The OSB in the roof is foil lined. This interferes with the signal. To overcome this you need a cell signal ampp/antenna. available on Amazon.

If it is simply the signal strength then why use a phone that relies on one specific brand, this includes all carriers mentioned to this point.

Google Fi, yes that Google, offers fantastic coverage and service. The use TWO carriers, switching between the strongest signal. Pricing is also appealing.

The wall insulation is also foil lined (at least concrete block) so the entire homes in the new Villages are wrapped in aluminum foil.

Google Fi is very interesting, uses 3 carriers on their supported phones. Now works with iPhone/Android but just T-Mobile, no carrier switching on those devices.

I've wondered about using it with a hotspot device installed in the car for road trips.

[Bosoxfan]

I meant that once you are in The Verizon Web, you are stuck with them until you pay off the phone. I tried to pay off the Primary Phone and jump ship to Comcast early with no luck.

It makes sense though. With Verizon, if you time it correctly you get a new phone and then the second one for "Free". But you have to spend the entire Two Years With them UNTIL THE ORIGINAL PHONE IS PAID OFF. Otherwise, the Second Phone is NOT FREE ANYMORE. The illusion of having no contract is appealing but you actually have a leash on you for TWO YEARS. THEY ARE NOT STUPID.

If I didn't Splain this well I'll try it again. :1rotfl:

Bottom line is managing your Data usage and going over to Comcast eventually on the Verizon Network is the best deal. IMHO Whew! :blahblahblah:

The only time you get a free phone is if you add a line.Least the last I checked

[Tom C]

This is the final nail in the coffin for me... I get VERY POOR reception (see my post in the “Just for laughs” section) here in The Villages at our new home and... where I work there is NO AT&T service at all.... so it only make sense for me to switch. I will be going with Verizon. At home we will soon be on WiFi, so it really won’t matter (I can make WiFi calls and such), but at work it is Version or nothing. I will be on their service before the end of the week... after having been an AT&T member for the past 15 + years...

[EdFNJ]

We travel a fair amount and the international coverage is a huge benefit for us (that, and the fact that we pay $60 per month for unlimited everything for the two of us on their 55+ or whatever plan ... ) Love it!

kathy


It's now $70 unless you have grandfathered (or grandmothered as the case might be) at the original rate. Great deal .....

[TimeForChange]

If you have a concrete block home the best location ( with no foil foam insulation) is out side.

[TimeForChange]

The foil insulation is not the main insulation but only on the outside of the "polyisocyanurate" foam on the outside of the concrete block. For all you who think you are more informed than anyone else.

[Altavia]

The foil insulation is not the main insulation but only on the outside of the "polyisocyanurate" foam on the outside of the concrete block. For all you who think you are more informed than anyone else.


If you look at the photo in my previous post above you will see Rmax R-Matte® Plus-3 Building Envelope Insulation installed as a thermal break on the interior side of concrete block of a home under construction in Monarch Grove.

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/57a39be0579fb3a3a8540f56/t/5a4d19c0652dea72c89b38eb/1515002305193/Rmax+R-Matte+Plus-3+Application+-+Masonry+Walls.pdf

[EdFNJ]

Re Google Fi: If you use small amounts of data the pricing is OK but there are a lot better deals these days out there. Google Fi is $95 for TWO lines with 6GIG of SHARED Data, not unlimited) and is actually quite expensive these days with $40 month per line unlimited (must have 2 lines) on Verizon and $35/month unlimited on T-Mobile (also must have 2 lines) and $45 month unlimited on Xfinity or $12/gig of data and no charge for voice or text (uses Verizon towers). Google-Fi uses THREE 3 services but ONLY if you buy their phones, (T-Mobile Sprint and US Cellular) only T-Mo is decent around here. I've never had good luck with public WiFi hotspots as they are usually very slow and throttle some downloads but of course YMMV. Google-FI does give you unlimited TEXTS overseas but no voice (same as T-Mobile who they are probably using for that). iPhone service is still in beta last time I checked.

[CWGUY]

The foil insulation is not the main insulation but only on the outside of the "polyisocyanurate" foam on the outside of the concrete block. For all you who think you are more informed than anyone else.
:confused:

1. This is a thread on cell phone reception. They talk of foil hindering it.
One person said it was on the roof panels and another person
said it was wall insulation panels.

2. I didn't read where anyone said the foil insulation was the main insulation.

3. It is installed on the inside of the wall.

4. :ohdear: Can't follow your post..... sorry.

[Nucky]

The only time you get a free phone is if you add a line.Least the last I checked

It's true, had to add a third line for a few months because the old Phone a Samsung Edge S7 had an Old School Contract on it. If I remember correctly the third line was $20 for a couple of months.

The Representatives at Verizon on 441 know how to manipulate the Verizon System to Get 'Er Done.

We originally got an Apple 8+ then one week later while I was under the 14-day return they offered a second one for free and they made it happen. $20 for a few months was just sharing the pain with them a little for the old line. It was worth it. The guy then called me when I could update the Primary Phone and I did. It's big, I can see it and I don't intend to update it anymore. We shall see.

They both work great at The Fenney Pool. A whole lot of great people live down that way nowadays. :bigbow: Verizon is a great deal. I can stream music all day if I wish or on trip back up North without being concerned about the data.

[VJBama]

:popcorn:Re Google Fi: If you use small amounts of data the pricing is OK but there are a lot better deals these days out there. Google Fi is $95 for TWO lines with 6GIG of SHARED Data, not unlimited) and is actually quite expensive these days with $40 month per line unlimited (must have 2 lines) on Verizon and $35/month unlimited on T-Mobile (also must have 2 lines) and $45 month unlimited on Xfinity or $12/gig of data and no charge for voice or text (uses Verizon towers). Google-Fi uses THREE 3 services but ONLY if you buy their phones, (T-Mobile Sprint and US Cellular) only T-Mo is decent around here. I've never had good luck with public WiFi hotspots as they are usually very slow and throttle some downloads but of course YMMV. Google-FI does give you unlimited TEXTS overseas but no voice (same as T-Mobile who they are probably using for that). iPhone service is still in beta last time I checked.
And you are wrong, after 6 gig data is free (unlimited)

After 15 gig data is throttled back. According to Google less than 1% of there users use over 15 gig.

And of course, we have no idea if the OP needs two phones. Google used to have two carriers, they added a third in the last 24 months.

Don't let facts get in your way!

[EdFNJ]

/// NM, not worth it. ;)

[TimeForChange]

Verizon and only Verizon!

[tophcfa]

Where we live, in the Tierra Del Sol area, Verizon works great. With unlimited data, our phone service also serves as our internet if we turn our phone into a mobile wifi hotspot.

[kpd3062]

It sounds like the Verizon network is the way to go. I will start looking at Verizon and carriers that use their network. Thanks again!!:bigbow:

[Rick13994]

We just bought in McClure. I have AT&T and my wife has Sprint. Both have poor connectivity. What network does US Cellular use?