In2ishn

I will be getting the iPhone 5S. I'm really not happy with AT&T and am considering switching to Verizon. Verizon has better coverage in the Midwest. But I travel to Europe and Asia a few times a year and am comfortable with the AT&T international coverage.

I'm wondering what sort of experience FTers have had with each company while traveling.

willzzz88

AT&T and Verizon are the same models for the 5S. Verizon has the same international roaming capabilities as AT&T (if you want to get technical, CSIM for CDMA, USIM for LTE and roaming, etc.).

Where in the Midwest does AT&T have problems? I've had no problems with AT&T or Verizon here in the DTW area.

Have you talked to AT&T about this problem? Sometimes the problem is as simple as a software/firmware update to the latest on the device.

Also note that VZW roams on CDMA in Canada/Mexico right now and if you go into a Mexico rural area you WILL NOT HAVE COVERAGE on Verizon because Verizon refuses to enable GSM roaming in Mexico (all the areas where there is coverage). Verizon also roams on the legacy (lots of experience) CDMA network in Canada (Bell/Telus/MTS and Sasktel). You may not have the fastest data speeds, etc. because the Canadian and Mexican carriers switched to GSM 3G (UMTS/HSPA+ the same technology as AT&T). EVDO Rev A roaming in Canada/Mexico will be 3.1Mbps max. Verizon also has CDMA roaming in the Caribbean and East and South Asia. Some CDMA roaming does not have data or it will be really slow (1X, slower than EDGE) so you will have to switch to GSM to get data (depending on country).

DrJohn999

AT&T works well for me in Europe, Great Britain, Middle East. iPhone 5 original U.S. version. For data I add 120 MB for $30 which pretty well gets me by for up to 2 weeks. I'm not a big phone-surfer, just email and basics. LTE is N/A but 3G works just fine for me. Sometimes I add minutes or messaging but usually I don't use the phone enough to make this worthwhile. And I can always add while I'm traveling.

Never had a problem, just turn off airplane mode on landing and it picks up the local carrier just as fast (or slow) as in the U.S.

Skype WiFi works well in many locations with many of the providers too.

AT&T isn't so good in mid-Wisconsin off the interstates. Lots of drop-outs. Interstates out in corn country are better. No real problems in civilized areas.

Dubai Stu

Verizon may use CDMA in Canada, but ATT refuses to release their weak signal to a strong Canadian signal until the ATT signal is gone without a trace. For example, I couldn't get a Canadian signal at the Vancouver (Tswwassen) Ferry terminal because of a really weak ATT signal coming from across the bay. In Windsor Ontario I often find myself without coverage two to three miles over the border because of a weak ATT signal. I've also had the problem at the Leamington Ontario docks.

ATT and Verizon's international data bucket plans are similar. The bigger difference is that ATT's now includes a gig of European hotspot data if you buy all but the most basic plan.

An alternative to Verizon might be a Toggle Mobile SIM in your Verizon phone when you got o Europe. The EU is getting simple and there are a number of alternatives. Asia, however, is still more complex.

DrJohn999

The number of the ATT hotspots is quite limited: https://www.att.com/shopcms/media/at...Lcountries.pdf
There is an app to find the actual hotspots (the pdf above only lists the cities, no map or establishment names), but last I checked the app was not reliable. Don't know about Verizon.

CatJo

There's one big advantage to a Verizon contract iPhone - they're SIM unlocked for international use, while AT&T will only do it after your contract is up. This means you can use local SIM's while travelling if you so choose with your new Verizon iPhone 5S.

I have similar Verizon vs. AT&T coverage issues in my area (the former is generally better), and this unlocked SIM advantage was one of the reasons that swayed me over to Verizon when I bought my iPhone 5 last year.

dtsm

Couple of thoughts, some which might be duplicates:

The new iPhone for Verizon works with any third party network; it comes factory unlocked.

If so desired, you could sign up with AT&T or TMO for the period you travel and get their international plan. I know with TMO this should work as contracts are no longer mandatory; you'd have to check with AT&T.

Many of us just third party local provider. You should forward your Verizon number to a skype-in number, and then forward that skype number to your local provider....

In2ishn

Thanks to all for the input.

AT&T has very poor coverage in areas of MN, WI, and IA. In fact AT&T drops calls when I am in Minneapolis itself! Verizon is much better domestically.

My concern was my travel in Europe and Asia. It sounds like Europe will be a breeze with Verizon. I appreciate the ideas for how to make things work in Asia and SE Asia.

gfunkdave

It's the exact same. What are you asking?

dtsm

Not sure what you're asking. International is international...getting third party prepaids with voice/data is a breeze is most of Asia with exception of Japan/Korea.

I have no experience in Japan but in Korea you can easily rent a phone/number upon arrival at airport for reasonable fee. Rest of Asia, just get a sim card -- there are specific threads that deal with each country. Some as cheap as $10 for voice/data for one week.

Call forwarding via skype works the same way too.