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Stay w/TMobile and get Gal.S2 or switch to Verizon for Gal. Nexus?

I use T-Mobile currently with an unlocked Nexus One, no contract, on the Even More Plus plan which I'm not sure is even offered anymore ($70/month for unlimited data/text/500 minutes talk). It recently bricked on me, so I need a new phone.

I have had a really hard time debating whether or not I should stay with T-Mobile and get the Galaxy S2 or make the jump to Verizon for the Galaxy Nexus. The cameras seem comparable, but the data speeds seem to differ greatly. The Nexus lacks an SD card slot but that isn't a dealbreaker to me at all (I typically transfer files via USB anyway), but the screen is beautiful.

But I'm curious what you guys would recommend. Thanks!
 
I don't really feel like dumping another $600/700 on an unlocked phone at the moment. I'm okay with switching to a contract, especially since I don't think I can go wrong with either phone.

I live in the NYC area, where reception is OK, depending. Apparently Verizon is a bit better, especially over in certain areas of Jersey, too.

The Galaxy Nexus looks prettier but I hear the S2 is faster and packs a punch in terms of performance. How true do you find this to be?
 
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As I'm from the UK, I can't comment on the carrier side of things, but I prefer the GNex in terms of hardware.

Although not the AMOLED Plus, the screen is drop dead gorgeous, I think the phone is generally better looking and most importantly it's free from Sammy's TW crap they insist on slapping on top. In terms of performance, I don't think there is any measurable difference when performing day to day activities.

However, I understand that there can be huge variations in the quality of US carriers. If gong to Verizon is a problem, the SII is a mighty fine phone that will probably get ICS soon anyway. And if you want a pure google experience, you can always root it and install whatever you want anyway.
 
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I haven't used the GS2 so I can't really comment on it.

As far as the differences go, I would also look at what you will be paying and getting monthly with regards to what you are paying.

Going by what you have now it will look something like this:

Verizon:
Samsung Galaxy Nexus $299.99 on 2 year contract
450 min + Unlimited Text + 2GB of data for $89.99 a month

T-Mobile:
Samsung Galaxy S2 $279.99 on 2 year contract (Plus a $50 mail in rebate)
Unlimited Talk + Text + Data (Throttled after 2GB) for $79.99 a month
or
Unlimited Talk + Text + Data (Throttled after 5GB) for $89.99 a month

Plus the possibility that you could get the SGS2 on Tmo and stay on your current plan.

I love my GNexus, but I have to say that with the plans T-Mobile is offering and the quality of the phone I'd be going that route if I didn't already have unlimited data on Verizon. The big difference IMO is that Verizon is going to charge you after you go over your data limit. T-Mobile may throttle you back to a lower speed, but they aren't going to charge you an arm and a leg for going over and you seem to get a whole lot more for the same $89.99 price.
 
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I had the exact same phone and t-mo plan b4 switching. I also live in nyc.
verizon's coverage has been a lot better for me than t-mo, especially in buildings and in nj. t-mo is pretty good in nyc, but i've come across many deadspots inside big buildings and when traveling to other states. also, if you get a family plan, vz can actually be a little cheaper. the only thing i miss is unlimited data, but i started using wifi more, so it really hasn't been an issue. i don't know how fast or how good the coverage of t-mo's hspa+ is but vz 4g on the gnex is pretty damn fast.
for me, the biggest advantage the gnex has over gs2 is the os. gs2 is still a gingerbread phone and who knows when it's going to get ics. gingerbread is nice and does everything i need, but i was really getting bored of it so getting the gnex with ics was a nice change.
if you do go with the gnex, get it from a store with a liberal return policy. i had to exchange mine due to bad 4g connectivity, as have other people for various reasons, so there are some qc issues.
 
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I had the exact same phone and t-mo plan b4 switching. I also live in nyc.
verizon's coverage has been a lot better for me than t-mo, especially in buildings and in nj. t-mo is pretty good in nyc, but i've come across many deadspots inside big buildings and when traveling to other states. also, if you get a family plan, vz can actually be a little cheaper. the only thing i miss is unlimited data, but i started using wifi more, so it really hasn't been an issue. i don't know how fast or how good the coverage of t-mo's hspa+ is but vz 4g on the gnex is pretty damn fast.
for me, the biggest advantage the gnex has over gs2 is the os. gs2 is still a gingerbread phone and who knows when it's going to get ics. gingerbread is nice and does everything i need, but i was really getting bored of it so getting the gnex with ics was a nice change.
if you do go with the gnex, get it from a store with a liberal return policy. i had to exchange mine due to bad 4g connectivity, as have other people for various reasons, so there are some qc issues.

I didn't realize that there was such a difference in the quality of coverage in that area. I figured all the major carriers would be about the same, minus the difference between LTE and HSPA+ obviously. I've always been of the opinion that coverage > than cost in most cases. If you own a phone and can't use it due to poor network coverage then it is just about worthless. So I'd have to amend my previous post to say, if all things are equal coverage wise.

If Verizon is going to give you better coverage in more areas then it is a better choice, IMHO.
 
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forgot to mention that vz charges you $10 for txt messaging, while unlimited txt is included with the t-mo plan. i decided to not get txt messaging on vz and use gvoice and other messaging apps for texting instead. it has it's drawbacks since texts are sent with your gvoice number but i'm not a big texter so it works for me.
 
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forgot to mention that vz charges you $10 for txt messaging, while unlimited txt is included with the t-mo plan. i decided to not get txt messaging on vz and use gvoice and other messaging apps for texting instead. it has it's drawbacks since texts are sent with your gvoice number but i'm not a big texter so it works for me.

One way to do this and not worry about the number is to port your current number over to Google Voice. Then your current number is your number no matter what service or phone you use. Then a texting plan doesn't matter and the number doesn't matter.
 
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One way to do this and not worry about the number is to port your current number over to Google Voice. Then your current number is your number no matter what service or phone you use. Then a texting plan doesn't matter and the number doesn't matter.


How do you port a number to google voice ?? I would love to do this with my sprint line
 
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One way to do this and not worry about the number is to port your current number over to Google Voice. Then your current number is your number no matter what service or phone you use. Then a texting plan doesn't matter and the number doesn't matter.

I was considering doing this but wasnt sure how reliable gvoice is. Is it the same as using verizon?
 
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I was considering doing this but wasnt sure how reliable gvoice is. Is it the same as using verizon?

It is more like having your calls forwarded without all the extra wait a caller would get on the other end. The nice thing is that you can have that number sent anywhere you want. I've never had a reliability issue with GV and never missed a call.

While I've had several friends port their number, I actually did something similar when I moved. However, instead of porting my number I just picked up a GV number for my new area code and started giving that to everyone as my new number. Since we moved to a new area anyway nobody knew the difference. We even had the friends and family plan for a while which allowed for unlimited calling via GV, but I have switched to using VOIP now with the built in internet calling on the Gnex.
 
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i had the Nexus One for over 2 years and loved it. I test phones for my work and i've always gone back to the Nexus One as it was the most stable of all the phones i've tested. The others were faster bigger newer but I really liked it. That being said the GSII is a pretty solid device and the speeds on it and the size of that screen is amazing. I just got the Galaxy Nexus and my wife the GSII and both are nice, i just like the pure android experience vs Samsung's touchwiz etc
 
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Sprint Unlimited + GNex would be nice if Sprint had better 4G coverage. I mean why have a 4G phone if you cant use it?

well we don't know yet exactly what Sprint's LTE coverage is but i'm sure they will announce it when the G-Nex is released. they are working behind the scenes on their infrastructure as we speak and they are not yet sharing those details. IMO they are under-promising and will over-deliver. we shall see.

i have Sprint 4G WiMax now. it's fast but i rarely even use it. why? because 3G is fast enough for me for a phone and i'd rather save the battery life. i toggle it on when i need simultaneous voice+data or if i have a large download. yeah it's nice to have - i just don't find myself using it that much.
 
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