Verizon Jumpers - was it worth moving to AT&T for the 920?

[Bkr11]

I'm still in a holding pattern and using my Droid Razr since I need Good for Enterprise (www.good.com) to release a WP8 app (they aren't allowing their WP7 app to install to WP8) for my corporate email, but my wife's HTC Trophy is going bad. Her power button is stuck, resulting in a quick battery drain and the need to use the camera button to get into the device. On top of that she's had issues w/ her camera for a while, so while the pictures are decent they aren't as good as they used to be.

I'm pushing hard for her to go w/ the 920 on AT&T, but it will be a new network. She could get the 822 or 8X on Verizon, but since photos of the kids (4 year old twins) in low-light seem to be pretty regular need, I think the 920 is the right way to go.

So - any regrets? Did anybody get a rude awakening moving networks? TIA for any thoughts.

 

[Keith Wallace]

I went from an HTC Droid Incredible on Verizon to a Lumia 920 on AT&T myself. At my house and school, I always got better service on AT&T than Verizon (had an old AT&T phone active at the same time as the Verizon one). Therefore, I got the best phone on the market and better cellular service. If AT&T has good service in your area, then the 920 is definitely worth the switch. The 920 is the same price as the 822 (the 822 is $150, but you get a $50 mail-in rebate; my sister got the 822 on Verizon).

What that means is if you go for the 920 over the 822, there are two negatives. The first negative is the loss of the microSD slot of the 822, but with 32 GB of storage on the 920 (instead of the 16 GB the 822 has built in), it's not a problem. I have 4 TV show episodes, 1,800+ songs, 40 or so pictures, and 40 or so apps and games. I'm around 21 GB used, so I have plenty of room left on my 920, but I would have had to purchase a microSD card for an 820/822 if I had gone that route. The other negative is preferential. The IPS display on the 920 isn't as deep and vibrant as the AMOLED display on the 820/822. What that means is my sister's 822 has somewhat better coloring than my 920. It's not a big deal for me because I used blue, emerald, and orange for my theme colors. For her, it would matter because the lime theme looks washed out on the 920, but VERY bright and obnoxious on the 822, and she loves it. When I first saw the lime theme on my phone, it bothered me (mostly because I knew she'd not like it and she loves the color green--especially lime), but after seeing it on her 822, I felt better.

Now, the benefits to that IPS display are that it has a much faster refresh rate (not sure what it is on the 820/822, but the 920's display has a 9 ms refresh time, the fastest ever for a smartphone, and that means less motion blur during things like fast-paced games--and video, I'd imagine). You also get a 1280x768 HD resolution with the 920, as opposed to just an 800x680 resolution (I think that's it) on the 822.

I can go on and on with the comparison, but if you get good AT&T service where you're at, the 920 is DEFINITELY worth the switch--superior display and camera tech, twice the storage, same price, and you get the free wireless charger (and the feature built-in, while you have to pay $30+ for a wireless charging case on the 820/822, then buy the wireless charger).

 

[Beast of Haeven]

...since photos of the kids (4 year old twins) in low-light seem to be pretty regular need...

For this alone the 920 should be worth it. As long as you have decent service in your area then the 920 should make you and your wife happy.

 

[VisceralMonkey]

Can't speak for Verizon, but, I switched from Tmobile to AT&T for the L920 and the LTE speeds are awesome, just night and day compared to Tmobile.

 

[irvin792]

Can't speak for Verizon, but, I switched from Tmobile to AT&T for the L920 and the LTE speeds are awesome, just night and day compared to Tmobile.

no such thing as mobile lte yet gotta love how they call 3g+ 4g

 

[jiffffy pop]

I left Verizon early and paid an ETF of $200. It was well worth it as I got a Samsung Focus for free. As the first reply said, I too get better reception with AT&T than I did with Verizon. I now have use a 920 and I could not be any happier. It was a smooth transition and I get more discount on my bill with combined billing with my U-verse account and a 20% wireless discount through my job.

 

[jsk0703]

My wife and I switched from Verizon. She had the Trophy and I had the Thunderbolt. We both now have yellow 920s. So far I think AT&T has faster LTE and better voice clarity. Coverage is about equal in my city. I lost my unlimited data with Verizon but that was going to happen eventually anyway. Now we're paying $5 more per month but AT&T includes visual voicemail and hotspot at no extra cost. Verizon wanted to charge me extra for those features.

 

[ynight]

I think you mind are pretty much made already when you mentioned your twins. Gosh I would do the same if I had twins of my own..920 low light pic is so good that I added more pic to my favorite the passing weeks than the whole year without 920

 

[pkvillager]

It was well worth it to me. Coverage is the key then cost. Compare your Verizon bills with a similar ATT plan. Coverage is similar in my area but I'm saving $100 per month now on ATT. 3 phones with unlimited data was putting me at $300 per month with Verizon. Now on a mobile share plan with 2 family members and our part of the bill was just under $200 and it should be lower next month. Part of the savings is a 15% veterans discount because of my brother.

I looked at a data sharing plan with Verizon and we weren't going to save any money.

I started with all refurbished SIII's for $50 each but when the 920 released I returned mine and paid an extra $100 for a black 920.

 

[Bkr11]

My wife and I switched from Verizon. She had the Trophy and I had the Thunderbolt. We both now have yellow 920s. So far I think AT&T has faster LTE and better voice clarity. Coverage is about equal in my city. I lost my unlimited data with Verizon but that was going to happen eventually anyway. Now we're paying $5 more per month but AT&T includes visual voicemail and hotspot at no extra cost. Verizon wanted to charge me extra for those features.

You must be my twin in another universe. She has the Trophy, I had the Thunderbolt until the screen cr@pped out on me and forced me to pick up the used Razr to hold me over. We'll also be losing unlimited data, but in all honesty we're rarely above 3-4GB and I'd actually end up having a cheaper bill even with the 6GB plan IIRC.

 

[Bkr11]

Thanks to all of you for the feedback. According to the coverage map we have pretty solid coverage at our home and our respective work places. Recognizing that my wife generally resists change, and that if I force her onto a phone she doesn't like I'll be in the dog house for a while, the worst case scenario is that she needs to "deal" with the phone until they release Good for WP8, at which time I'd gladly take it off her hands. As us married guys know, Happy Wife = Happy Life.

 

[thekonger]

Interesting post. I jumped from Sprint to AT&T but wanted to use Verizon. We had 5 phones on Sprint with good coverage in our area and I was paying about $240 with unlimited text and data. Now I have a $200 plan on Sprint still (4 phones) and about a $80 bill on AT&T with a 5GB data plan and unlimited text.

I still would have liked to jumped to Verizon, but maybe the cost would have been higher?

 

[Bkr11]

Woot - it's official. Picked it up today. Online it said they only had white & black in stock, but ended up having one red one so we nabbed it. Nokia Transfer wouldn't work with the HTC Trophy so we couldn't transfer the SMS Messages, but thanks to live.com integration all the contacts imported without a hitch. Only had a few minutes to play with it during lunch, but I'm very impressed. Can't wait to see the ooh's and aahs from the pictures she'll be capturing now! Thanks again to all for the feedback.

 

[jsk0703]

Woot - it's official. Picked it up today. Online it said they only had white & black in stock, but ended up having one red one so we nabbed it. Nokia Transfer wouldn't work with the HTC Trophy so we couldn't transfer the SMS Messages, but thanks to live.com integration all the contacts imported without a hitch. Only had a few minutes to play with it during lunch, but I'm very impressed. Can't wait to see the ooh's and aahs from the pictures she'll be capturing now! Thanks again to all for the feedback.

Nice! I hope she likes the phone as much as my wife does. By no means is my wife a professional photographer but the 920 quickly surpassed her old point and shoot Nikon camera. She loves it.