Discussions

So I recently got out of contract with my cell phone provider and I’m currently looking for the best provider! What’s everyone’s opinions on service, coverage, and customer service!

is overpriced for what they provide. Their Internet plans are beyond overpriced & if I had a choice (which I don't in a rural area) I'd switch. Not sure what Bell is like

Sorry, not on topic, but saw commercial for Freedom Mobile and it looks like they have the lowest rates, but sadly not available in Manitoba. We've been with MTS for many years, good overall coverage, but maybe it's time to try someone else, except we get the bundle discount which helps reduce the cost.

How do you say that Rogers is overpriced for what they provide yet you don't know what anyone else is like? Rogers/Bell/Telus are all offering the same plan for $75. I have been getting Network Busy and dropped calls like no tomorrow on Bell. They are blaming my SIM card which will be replaced tomorrow. Rogers I have had for years now with no issues. Plus I can't beat my 6GB unlimited calling package for $54 bucks.

I just switched from Rogers whom I was with for four years to TELUS. I’m finding that they’re just as good and I get more gigs of monthly data for the same price

Telus actually has unlimited data now, for roughly $65/month.

They all have unlimited data now... Bell and Rogers first did it then Telus followed suit when they noticed their sales went down because they tried to not do unlimited at first.  
 
MTS has unlimited data many years before any of the big 3 conceived that as a thing and many people still have the MTS unlimited plan ( like myself ) just on the Bell or Bell MTS network names.

Mainly because of the terrible customer service I had with Bell/MTS.

been with mts a long time,love their customer service,they even help me skinny down my bill,I still have to pay full bill but for upcoming bills when i tell them i don't want to go over a certain price...very helpful in my books

Not anymore. Rates have jumped considerably. Cheapest now is $75 for 10GB, $95 for 20GB and $125 for 50GB. Add on a new phone and your bill is well over $100 a month now.

My contract was up with BellMts and so when renewing I had to go with Bell. They honoured my old contract, but warned me that the next contract renewal, they are not offering the unlimited data anymore. Same as when we got my husband a cell phone last year: they did not offer unlimited anymore.

Bell got rid of the MTS unlimited data shortly after they took over.  
 
Recently all 3 big carriers brought unlimited data plans out. Nearly at the same time, Telus was a bit late to that party however.  
 
The low plan offered is 10GB per month at full network speeds, after that you don't get billed for extra data but your speeds are slowed down to 512kbs. Making it difficult to do more than basic social networking and email.  
 
The old MTS unlimited plan was 15GB before being throttled per month.

I signed up for Koodo in June. They had a promo 5GB plus unlimited calling and texting Canada wide for $48. The service has been awesome. Zero issues so far and easy to get a hold of customer service if you need them. Dumping Bell after years never felt better the service was getting worse and the bills were climbing.

I have found that the best deals are not with the "Big 3" main brands, but with their secondary brands.  
 
Koodo for example is part of Telus, but usually runs better deals. If you pay attention the next month or so, you should find some very cheap deals after gift card rebate on a number of their phones. They usually have some pretty good back-to-school deals.  
 
For example, in April I opted to get an iPhone 6S (yes, a few years old, but still a good daily phone) as a $0 phone on their small tab. The small tab means that the phone is costing $240 (24x$10/month), but then I got $250 in Walmart gift cards. There was a $35 setup fee. After 90 days you can pay off the tab in full. What we did was whenever we used the gift card at Walmart, we put the same amount aside for paying the phone off. At 90 days, pay off the phone, net cost was $25 (not including monthly charges I had anyway), and no longer stuck in a contract.

About the unlimited data . . . I have to give a shout out to Telus on that front. I was one of the accounts that were transitioned during the Bell acquisition, and thus my unlimited plan came with me. However, they didn't just renew it for my first new contract, but also my 2ed too!  
 
I was NOT expecting the option the 2ed time around (let me be clear). Heck, I didn't even ask for it . . . the option was made available when I chose the maximum device down payment that one could make. The plan is likely gone when I renew next time around, but hey . . . looks like unlimited is back anyway.  
 
Indeed, I have a Telus bias.  
But though they were apparently slow to introduce unlimited data, they were also the slowest to scrap the old MTS Unlimited plan.

I am with bellMTS and my bill is $80 (everything and unlimited data). I renewed my contact a few months ago and got to keep my unlimited data  
 
Edited by ChelseaCaS, 2019-08-14 12:19:15

Both Lucky and Chatr data are only 3G. So if you just need texting and calling I suppose they'd be okay but there's better deals to be had and you don't have to put up with slow, practically useless data speeds.

Telus also added just recently a $55 shareable plan!

Rogers is cheaper by a mile if you wait for the sales.  
 
First I'll give the straight price, 4 phones - unlimited talk time, long distance, and texting. All the bells and whistles for features and 17gb data. I pay $151.20/month total for 4 lines inc tax or:  
 
$37.80 per phone inc tax.  
 
But wait there's more!  
 
I renewed on a black Friday sale with Rogers through Wireless Wave. I got 4 free iPhone's that i sold for $2400 on eBay($600ea and I already had good phones). I also got phone bill credits covering just over the activation fee and a bonus $600 worth of free accessories that I ended up selling for $300.  
 
So that's $2700 or $112.50/month for the 24 month renewal contract, in my pocket.  
 
So I'm actually paying just under $10/month per phone including taxes.

I’m wondering if anyone can give me feedback on how Telus coverage is outside of Brandon. I’m looking at switching companies from Bell/MTS to Telus. I travel north to Dauphin, Clear Lake area often and want to make sure I still have a a useable phone in those areas.

When I signed up with Rogers, they told me all about their plan flexibility, and signed me up for extra data “just in case” and said I could decrease it later if I wasn’t using it. Then they changed all their plans to unlimited and it just left a bad taste in my mouth.  
I also had bad experience with Bell too.

My choice is Rogers. Maybe since I have been with them forever I feel. MTS customer service was crap but technical support was terrible also.  
 
That was awhile back. Rogers support of all flavours is super. Rates ? I have 10 or 12? GB shared. Two new phones My wife pays 37.50 plus taxes I pay 75 plus device protection. Free long distance etc. Now that I think of it my phone should be 75 less 25 percent. Need to call I guess. I have yet to run into one of those horror stories I hear about Rogers service. Probably two sides to each story. Loyalty pays in my opinion.

Telus only has towers along the Trans Canada highway so once you go past Minnesota, it automatically uses Bell’s towers, the service will be 100% identical to Bell’s service in those areas

Give Virgin Mobile a try. They are truly a hidden gem they have better coverage than Rogers and the same speed and coverage as bell but most of their plans are way cheaper than Bell Telus or Rogers and the customer service is great.

I went with chatr mobile $25 a month for unlimited text and calling. They have internent plans but only needed texting and calling for work. So for $300 a year i have a phone. I believe that is cheaper then any plan bell or rogers have

Coverage wise, I doubt there is much difference between Rogers and BellMTS, at least in major centers. I don't know how much of the out of town infrastructure they share, but the footprints are mostly identical in town.  
 
Which leaves other factors.  
 
Or alternatively, Telus. In terms of coverage, I think they may be a tad better since they now have built out their own infrastructure AND have access to the BellMTS infrastructure as well (I assume as part of the takeover agreement). A handy factoid that being, since the new tower on Aberdeen made the mild hiccups in my workplace vanish instantly.  
 
Also, at least from my point of view, Telus has been a much better company to deal with than MTS ever was. Certainly during the transition phase, but even now (years, and 2 contracts, later).  
 
If you want to experiment with coverage, I would port your # to a pay as you go service on whatever provider you are interested in (chatr / Fido = Rogers, Koodo = Telus etc). If they are satisfactory, then you can either stick with that or go all in.  
 
It's nice having options.

I finished my contract with Bell mts. Services continues and I keep paying the bill. There is nothing wrong with my phone or plan for $50.

Has anyone looked into the plans that public mobile offers? They don't offer phones but offer some extreme good deal plans I believe the one is still around $60 a month and it gives you unlimited calling long-distance as well as roaming stateside.

If you are with BellMTS and upgrade your phone you will automatically be switched to Bell. No option to stay with BellMTS!!!  
 
All companies have deals on right now.  
 
They all share towers.  
 
LTE is apparently not available in this area and your phone will have faster service if you switch it to 3G. I did that and it is much faster.

I'm not sure where you are getting your information from about LTE but it is incorrect. LTE coverage is available in all of Brandon and majority of westman I have bell and get LTE+ coverage everywhere in Brandon and I get 150-200 Mbps on speed test vs 10Mbps on 3g. As well MTS wireless dosent exist anymore so no duh you get migrated to Bell and the old MTS network was lacking many of the modern tech the big guys have. They also don't all share towers. Bell has its own towers it and it's subsidiaries use , Telus has their own and rogers has their own they do share some of the real estate on the towers but they are different networks with bell and Telus having significantly better coverage than Rogers.  
 
Edited by HappyGilmore, 2019-12-01 23:30:56