Coverage Reviews for Milwaukee, WI 53216

AT&T

We started with AT&T when the iPhone came out -- and it just gets worse and worse. Dropped calls ALL the time -- which they tried to blame on Apple. AT&T is NOT a good carrier for Milwaukee... or really anywhere. So frustrating!

T-Mobile

Consistent voice and data performance compared to Sprint who has no 4G in Wisconsin. I'm able to tether 2 laptops in my office building (2nd floor) with almost 4G download speeds and nearly no lag. Cost is the T-Mobile's strong suite. My 5GB with free hotspot data feature is only $25 while my wife has unlimited data with no throttle / overages for $20. One thing to keep in mind is if you travel 20 miles outside of a metro area there may not be 4G. I have to use wi-fi calling when I visit my parents up north which connects to a wifi router instead of a tower to make a call.

Verizon

Have had Verizon for years in other parts of Milwaukee with happy results. Moved to Riverwest this month and can only get a signal once in a while.

US Cellular

Excellent service everywhere. Buy a phone(UPrepaid), take it home, CHECK SIGNAL STRENGTH and then pay for the service. I had Virgin (1-2 out of 5 bars)Uses Sprint towers Boost(1-2 out of 5 bars)uses Sprint Towers I had Verizon from 1998-2007 has 3-4 out of 5 bars but clarity was not good. I still have the phones and checked signal strength today. I had a USCell contract from 2007-2009.The overage charges were the final straw. Then switched to prepaid. I now have UPrepaid (4of 5 bars everywhere!)from Walmart is a reseller of USCellular The flip phone is crystal clear. $30 for 1,000 min. $40 unlimited talk text and too much internet for a flip phone. $50 android unlimited But, limited phone options so far.The service started this summer.

Verizon

Verizon coverage is excellent in this area. I get 5 / 5 bars in my house, and even 4 bars in the basement. Data is strong and consistent. I have not had a dropped call or quality issues in the area.

Sprint

I was lured to Sprint from AT&T 8 months ago by the prospect of Unlimited 4g data... . Boy, was I duped. A 4G network is nowhere to be found in the Milwaukee area and Sprint has no current plans for a 4G network. In the meantime your 3G connection will be painfully slow as Sprint shares its network with Boost, Virgin Mobile, Assurance Wireless, Netzero... what a scam!

AT&T

Terrible service, all of the time. Continuous dropped calls.

Sprint

Very poor reception inside buildings in the area. Terrible data speeds in the entire metro-Milwaukee area, even when next to Sprint towers. Very few problems with dropped calls, despite poor reception, however if you plan to view web pages or utilize any sort of a data connection, do yourself a favor and choose another carrier; The cheap price and lure of "Unlimited" data are tempting, but it's not worth it when it takes you 1-2 minutes to load a webpage, and frequent connection errors.

AT&T

No service for half the time and very poor signal. Can't believe this is happening at downtown!

Verizon

Got ok coverage from verizon. Have gotten only a few dropped calls. Other than the price its good.

AT&T

I'll be switching soon if AT&T doesn't get its act together

Verizon

Terrible reception on my street. Within 3 blocks of my home reception drops off a cliff. Goes from hovering around -80dbm down to -120 dbm on my block.

Verizon

Within wood building I receive very poor reception; 1 bar of "Edge" service. Outside I can pull 1 or 2 bars of 3G but the data is very slow.

Verizon

I left US Cellular for Verizon this past year. It was a big mistake! I have to move to the kitchen of my home to make calls. Even there I am lucky to have a phone call not drop. Even moving outside into the driveway its about a 50 / 50 shot that I wont drop a call. Pretty sad! My opinion is if you live in the Glendale area of Milwaukee, do not even consider Verizon as a mobile phone carrier. For the profits that these companies make its a joke that you cant make a phone call every where in one of america's largest cities.

Sprint

I have to comment on the person on North River Trail Dr. I her what you are saying. I live downtown and my service is terrible. I mysef have also been with Sprint tooo many years. I have to say this past year has been the worst. Customer service is terrible both in the stores and on the phone. No one cares and they do nothing. I have my contract till 2014. YUK

T-Mobile

I haven't dropped a call on a cell phone provider in the city of Milwaukee since 2004. There are tall houses in the neighborhood but this is unacceptable. It's 2012. We are not a 3rd world county.

AT&T

I've never seen more than one bar of reception inside my home. Weather-permitting, I am able to receive a decent signal if I stand in the exact middle of my backyard, but being Wisconsin, that isn't always possible. The neighbors whom I've spoken with have the identical problem. AT&T signal strength is piss poor in this area.

Sprint

Really Sprint? I have had you as a carrier for too many years to count, and this past year has been HORRIBLE! Now, no service at my house?(and it's not concrete) My son called for his plan, and they told him it was his phone, and to take it to a store... .really? Because the other phones on a different Sprint plan also have no coverage. Second call, they said a tower was down on the Northwest side - sure, they opened a ticket, and were not able to give an estimated day or month this would be in service. Am I supposed to drive 2 miles away and sit in my car to send and receive calls and texts? No answers from 'service reps' at *2. No email response since last week... .what gives? (certainly not me and my $ to pay for Sprint 'service')

AT&T

Not enof cell phone tower around south side of milwaukee but I love AT&T other then the phone signel

Verizon

I know this is not the right avenue but I am looking for any and all help to find the hit and run driver who put my daughter in the hospital at this intersection on June 26th and wondering if there is a way to view cell phone tower records for days / times? ANYthing that you can think of to help in my tracking this person down would be GREATLY appreciated -- I will be offering a reward for information and for the capture of this coward. This person was headed from Oklahoma onto Howell, going West early in the morning (6:30-6:45) on June 26th and would have received extensive damage to front end, hood and windshield so thinking may have pulled over someplace close (in Humboldt Park?) and made a phone call. Again, I know this is not the right venue but looking for any means possible to track them down. I flew in from Colorado to care for my daughter who lives in Bay View and has had multiple surgeries and TBI. I can be reached at 719-641-1931. THANK YOU!

Verizon

Went with Verizon for I pad (using oaid cellular data) because thier maps indicated service in area! NOT! Yet for 1st time in yeas my AT&T cell (iphone4) is getting minimal connection on text! I am NOT a happy camper!

Sprint

most of the sales rep.'s at the stores are assholes but the customer rep.'s over the phone are great... Love the service and the extras they offer... We have five lines and we pay less then two-hundred a month... . sprints coverage is great for us, even stayed with 5 out of 6 bars within the court house damn!! Love sprint...

US Cellular

this is for a business where we need to be able to talk to clients and I want to cry, we had great service then someone decided it would be cheaper to go with verizon... .huge maistake ! everyone is having issues with calls. you cant understand each other, dropped calls constantly and this is just the second day of our new service.

Virgin Mobile

All my calls go to voicemail and I get notified later. This happens in many other locations. Stay away from Virgin Mobile.

Verizon

I've had Verizon for over 4 years. I can't recall one incident, where I had any issues making or receiving phone calls in the West Allis area. Data speeds aren't the greatest around here. I just got the Droid 4 with 4g, and if I put the phone in the window upstairs, I average 500-700k / s. Sitting in Whitnall Park, I got the best speed at over 3 mb / s, averaging consistantly over 1.5mb / s.

Verizon

I've got no love for Verizon, and actually I'm shopping other carriers because of price. However, in the six years I've lived here in SE Wisconsin I don't remember ever experiencing bad reception. Dropped call, what's that? My phone get used everywhere and even when I'm driving and NO dropped calls. How can one person have perfect reception in West Allis and another is crying their eyes out? Strange.

Sprint

Reception 4 Msg 3 Data 3 Customer Service 5 Price $80 bucks over all good choice.

Virgin Mobile

I have 5 or 6 bars (out of 6) in my Bay View house. I do get dropped calls - sometimes it's very bad, other times it'll happen once and that's all. It's not common, though. Overall I'm perfectly happy with voice quality. Data is another story. Virgin Mobile data on my current phone and on my lost Motorola Triumph Android is VERY slow. If I'm lost or trying to get a restaurant's number on the road, it's almost not worth the wait. It takes f-o-r-e-v-e-r to load maps or web pages most places in the Milwaukee area. I say "most" because it's completely impossible in some places. Basically, Virgin Mobile is just fine for voice, but data is nearly unusable.

US Cellular

Why can I not find any info on USCC here? For towers or any kind of info. I average 3 to 4 bars. -80dBm.

Verizon

I was a Sprint customer for approx 9 years, I decided to switch to Verizon because they claimed to have the most reliable network with the best signal and data speeds. I switched in April of 2011 and got the HTC Thunderbolt. As of the first day of my new contract I have had 0 signal outside my home in about half of the city of West Allis ( actual signal on the phone reads from -102dbm to -109dbm) They did send me a network extender so the phones could work in the house but the $140 I had to spend on the router wasnt worth it considering its also using my bandwidth I pay for. I've made numerous calls and stopped at Verizon stores from April 2011 until now,Oct 2011 and NOTHING has been fixed, in fact they never,ever call you back like they say they will. Verizon Techs have been in the area testing and have admitted via the phone this area of West Allis has "marginal" cell signal for unknown reasons, but has no plans to fix it. I beleive "marginal" is a nice term for "No signal", but they wont admit that. Oh they have also admitted to me that there are alot of Verizon customers near me in this area that have had network extenders sent to them. My opinion is that Verizon knows about a serious signal problem affecting their customers in West Allis, but refuses to fix it, other then hoping network extenders will keep them happy for now. Do not use Verizon in West Allis! I spend $150 dollars a month for two Verizon phones that dont work outside my home in a horrible economy. I spent $500 on two new phones and Verizon wont give me a refund on them even tho this has hapened since day 1, but would be willing to waive my early termination fee, unacceptable! I will not be stuck with two phones I spent alot of money on for a cell service that does not work in a large area. If Verizon won't fix this giant dead zone in West Allis, then they should not be allowed to sell service in West Allis without warning new customers... ..period!

AT&T

Hesitated between "poor" and "no reception" because, even though Apple gave me a brand new phone last week - it still defies all - Internet connection? Ha! Now I'm off to ATT - am expecting a fight.

Sprint

The worst thing I have ever had in my life. How do I not get service at MY house?

Verizon

Cant receive calls without a drop. Can't receive calls.Should I wonder? The map shows one tower in an area where the other carriers have 4. Never had a dropped call with ATT. Gonna switch back if a phone switch doesn't fix it.

Sprint

I did not get any reception this evening and I usually have good reception..sometimes my calls drop but not often..but I'm upset because it's friday and I can't make plans..uh

Sprint

There are problems with coverage inside the home because Sprint's spectrum of choice does NOT penetrate buildings well. Not that any current spec does, but there are homes that still have lead in them. This may interfere with the cell signal penetrating the walls of your home. If that is the case, consider acquiring a cell signal repeater.

AT&T

Service is average to good, occasionally excellent. Not sure it's worth the risk to change to and learn the nuances of a new carrier. They all have good and bad points.

AT&T

reception is so spotty. I have never experienced so much inconsistency with cell reception. Very unhappy with AT&T and apple. AT&T has the deepest pockets of all the cell companies and you would think they would have solid coverage in a city.

Cricket

They say the Motorola V465 is there best seller. First, they only have 4-5 phones until the ones with the keyboards some other fancy deal and a black berry on the way. I have used Motorola phones from net 10 that BLOW the VE465 away I swapped it for the one made by QUALCOMM-Average at best-because it actually has push buttons not that rubber slab looslyin tact to operate functionwit less moving part-creating slippage errors and other function keys are dual purposed-opposity functions-its like having a combo on -emergency off button to operate the space shutle.

Nextel

Works awesome! Full coverage at my house, even in my basement. Stable calls and great sound quality. Overall, the best for the Metro area.

AT&T

Absolutely terrible AT&T service in and around the Milwaukee area. Bad with Iphone3gs, worse with IP4.

US Cellular

I rarely ever had problems with US Cellular until moving to the south side. Now it's common to have bad reception, dropped calls, missed calls where the phone doesn't even ring, late voicemails or text messages, dying battery, etc. But no problems when I'm out of bay view. Is it just this part of town or what? Being close to the airport or the lake?

Verizon

North of wabeno to rhinelander my Verizon phone works fine, South of Wabeno to Oshkosh my Verizon phone requires me to re-enter every phone number I dial before it will dial through and connect a call. Once I get to Fond Du Lac and South all the way back to Milwaukee it works fine again. This has been with both contract and prepaid Verizon Service. I have used Motorola Android, Blackberry Pearl Flip, Chocolate 2, 3 and touch all with same issue in these areas regarding the phone dialing. Funny thing is that with all of these Smart phones internet and texts are completely unaffected almost anywhere I have gone in this state. The only place I did not have service is a 10 mile dead spot between Black River Falls and Tomah. Verizon has the best coverage in WI, all-be-it I have to re-enter all numbers when passing through certain areas of the state, but all calls have always gone through with very little droppage. I am now Using Straight Talk Prepaid on a $45 unlimited plan for 30 days, which uses the Verizon Network, but coverage is very spotty, lots of dead spots, dropped calls, etc. I have the $100 Samsung with the slide out QWERTY keyboard, bought 10 days ago (today is 6-22-2010) at Rhinelander Walmart. (I now Reside In Crandon as of May 22, 2010 zip 54520). will be retuening Strait Talk phone in a couple of days and going back to Verizon PrePaid because of the better coverage area, despite the inconvience of often having to re-enter the phone number after the initial dial when passing through many areas here. Calls always went through, very few were dropped. I believe the Strait Talk limitation is due to the phones and not the Verizon network. I know that for Verizon Customers whether prepaid or contract; service will get better in this area when they complete their acquisition and conversion of Alltel wireless. I have been a Verizon customer for 8.5 years and the acquisition of Alltel will be totally complete by fall 2011 as I was told that the changeover would take three years to complete in its entirety. On the upside, I have Charter Cable services with 25mbps downstream i-net, in state calling on home phone, and two high def cable boxes with every kids channel imagined, line maintence package and an unlisted phone number for $160 per month with taxes and fees. I was paying three times that for much lesser service with Time Warner in Milwaukee and four times that for the three months I used lesser services with AT&T U-Verse. I will go back to contract services with Verizon once the Alltel acquisition i9s complete, until then I will use Verizon Prepaid.

Sprint

Sprint has good reception in most of milwaukee, except at my house. I am about 2 blocks from the lake, and I often will not get any bars at home. Wanting to switch, but not sure that anyone is going to have better service near the lake.

AT&T

Some times five. Calls dropped late evening. My phone tells me to wait while it finds customer? Called AT&T. Could not tell me why my phone not listed as a 3G or even Edge. Whish Apple would choose another carrier.

US Cellular

I've never once dropped a call, in my own home, in basements, in bars, or anywhere else my friends phones / providers have dropped calls. Even when I take camping trips in the middle of nowhere I get calls (good thing for US Cellular, bad thing for my peaceful camping trip!). The only drawback to the service is the fact that its a little more pricey than most plans. Emphasis on the word little, however.

Sprint

No reception. Could not use my phone on 10 / 4 / 2009 and could not use my wireless 3G air card. No reception at all. Had to physically get in my car and drive 5 miles away from downtown central before either would work.

Sprint

I've been happy with my Sprint reception and prices. Their customer service is absolutely terrible though, but I just push through that in order to have a plan that is about 2 / 3 the price of any other carrier. I don't know about the outskirts of Milwaukee or the surrounding areas much, but downtown I almost never lose reception

Sprint

I use my phone all over the milwaukee / waukesha area and the only times I've had reception problems are in 2 of my friends houses where nobody gets reception. But even there I usually get 2 bars.

AT&T

One to two bars consistently outside of my home. Cannot use inside unless at 2nd floor window.

T-Mobile

Outside, great reception. Inside, nothing. Customer service is always great, and for two phones on a family plan, including internet, I always pay under $100 a month.

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