I am puzzled by why, after the seemingly endless Republic Wireless-to-Boost debacles, so many folk are staying with Boost? I left RW the day after @southpaw was no longer at Republic and I’ve had nothing but great experiences from my new MVNO.
Indeed, when I recently changed from Android to an iPhone 15, I called my new company, they sent me an e-mail with a QR code, I scanned it, a few minutes later I had my eSIM, my new phone popped up with my good-old number, and the change was done! There is no separate app for voicemail; the iPhone phone app does Voice-to-text visual voicemail just fine.
I read comment after comment here on this new forum about bizarre foul-ups from Boost. Seemingly, Boost’s fundamental incompetence is completely masked by their superficial incompetence.
There are many better MVNOs available, why do you stay?
I could sense that RW was destined for oblivion before the forced migration. I switched back in December, when the plan offering at BI was a bit sweeter than it is now. Also, at the time, I did not know about other options that rolandh brought up on this forum. The MVNOs I would be interested in use Verizon, and I am satisfied with the AT&T coverage through Boost, which makes me reluctant to switch. T-Mobile coverage is not good in my area, so I could not use Mint Mobile, for example.
But, also, I am kind of excited to be part of a new, fourth, MNO. I admit, it will be a while before I will be able to take advantage of the native network because I have no plans to upgrade my phone in the near future.
I’m holding on to the Boost line out of curiosity and for testing. Some years ago I found the lack of RW support for Canadian calling to be an issue. I went to T-Mobile for a few years, then to Mint as while the Canadian roaming was expensive, it was still cheaper than paying $5/month for the T-Mobile Canada add-on, plus the $40/month base line rate. As I have described elsewhere, I have found a low-cost solution to the Canadian data roaming issue.
I set up the port with RW that they would give me a new number when I ported out. When all the line juggling started for me, RW was still on Sprint. As I had the free line from the Ambassador days the extra coverage was handy while traveling.
When the trial period runs out, I’ll report any interesting findings and drop the Boost line. It is unfortunate that I will not be able to test the Canadian roaming as my next trip to Canada will be 2 or 3 months after the trial period ends.
We have stayed with BI because it was working and has been the most convenient to do. The service transferred to my 2 lines seamless and I have been paying the same or less each month.
Things are changing now as BI is telling me it is not possible for me to change phones and I find this out after purchasing a new phone. They are working on it but the only option right now if I want to change phones, even if my current phone stops working or is lost or stolen is to transfer to another provider.
Some timeless advice for our friends at DISH Wireless:
DISH deserves some credit for its network buildout but, in and of itself, that won’t be enough. One must acquire then take care of customers. To the extent one already has customers, one shouldn’t seemingly go out of the way to lose them. It’s all about providing customers not just with a great product or service but a great experience using one’s product or service.
I follow Peter Adderton on Twitter because of my interest in MobileX. Mr. Adderton is the original founder of the Boost brand. He remains the Executive Chairman of Boost Australia but has no connection to Boost (Infinite or Mobile) in the U.S.
A need for AT&T’s network is about the only scenario in which I think staying with Boost Infinite makes sense. It’s relatively easy to find quality alternatives using T-Mobile’s or Verizon’s networks but not so much for AT&T’s network.
Good2Go Mobile (with whom I have no experience) has recently revised their plans and offers a choice between AT&T’s and T-Mobile’s networks. My understanding is one needs to explicitly request an AT&T network SIM.
I briefly used H2O Wireless to test phone compatibility with AT&T’s network before launch of Republic’s 5.0 plans back in December 2021. I had no issues with H2O Wireless but their reputation for support isn’t stellar.
Red Pocket offers a choice of AT&T’s, T-Mobile’s or Verizon’s network. I used Red Pocket years ago. Support was hit or miss.
Probably the best choice in terms of support for AT&T’s network is Consumer Cellular if one is OK with their marketing niche.
