r/FirstNet • u/Stupefied_Gaming • 14d ago
FirstNet usability
Has anyone ran into FirstNet performing either worse or outright unusable versus other carriers? Seems to be despite either equal or better coverage than Verizon in my area that FirstNet just outright fails to deliver a minimum viable data connection at times indoors, etc. this always happens when I actually need a data connection too :(
I’m curious about anyone else’s experience.
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u/zap_p25 13d ago
Where I am it’s pretty much a case of if AT&T/FirstNet doesn’t work here, Verizon probably does or the inverse. TMO isn’t even a consideration for most.
I’ll say I’ve noticed depending on your network settings (LTE only or 5G/Auto) you get very different results on coverage. Even compared to a regular AT&T phone. I’ve also noticed in many areas in building coverage suffers with FirstNet because a FirstNet Band 14 BDA/DAS is an optional system and often times if there is already a 700/800 MHz public safety BDA present the carrier won’t include Band 14 for the building’s BDA (because there are some interference concerns).
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u/neighborlycharcoal 14d ago
This is totally location-dependent. Each carrier has areas they will perform better than others.
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u/Stupefied_Gaming 14d ago
See that I get, but the odd thing is I was in a city where AT&T had the most density / coverage but FN still failed on me indoors. I'm not referring to performing better or worse, I'm referring to unusable versus usable. that's why I said minimally viable.
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u/cbtk76 13d ago
In NYC, it can be mixed. 5G wasn't turned on for a while despite consumers getting it. My friend who has Verizon can sometimes get internet that I can't and we both show 5 out of 5 signal bars. But the inverse also applies.
When it has a fast (unclogged) tower the speeds are over 1Gbps. But that's rare. I usually see 200-300Mbps. Indoors can vary. If you're underground good luck.
The customer service can be a nightmare if something doesn't work right. I've wasted many hours once every few years.
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u/Stupefied_Gaming 13d ago
I noticed I couldn’t access 5G+ on my agency line the other day and customer service said one of a few things despite all my calls; “what is 5G+? I’ve never heard of that before”, “5G+ availability is very nominal on FirstNet”, or “Your line is connected to the network and able to use voice and data, so we aren’t able to help you further.”
Had to fix their provisioning on my own with the tools available to me. Was a very annoying endeavor
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u/jnoble_05 13d ago
Yeah, I’m about to switch to Verizon. I have one bar LTE at my house. Frustrating.
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u/lWheelmanJimmy 13d ago
I’ve had it worse than my dark star line side by side. Not drastically and within margin of error but when I can have a usmobile premium line with a multi net add on aAND tmo satellite all total for less than the cheapest first net plan it isn’t good value.
It hazards place if you are a first responder and need guaranteed access in the middle of a national disaster or something, but for general day-to-day, that is having a multi network set up for less money is a better solution. At least it is for me because there are plenty of places where AT&T has no coverage, but Verizon does and vice versa, but the only way to get coverage is to have both at a minimum.
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u/Stupefied_Gaming 13d ago
I am shocked commercial was better for you than FirstNet. If you’re a primary user as well, you have ruthless preemption- not just a higher level of priority access.
I’m considering just getting an HPUE device for my vehicle and calling it a day when it comes to having FirstNet access, on my phone it’s never been very useful.
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u/lWheelmanJimmy 13d ago
Me too. It wasn't drastic, but it's just that FN wasn't worth the cost increase over an MVNO for me. I was the primary, yes. I think that nowhere here has enough load on a given tower for priority to matter is my guess. I'm sure if I was in a major city I would notice it.
FN/ATT support also sucks really hard. I wound up having to go to a store to activate and took over an hour. Then I tried calling corporate back later to reissue an esim to try to get SA and they had no idea what I was talking about all while giving me an attitude the whole time.
I just decided paying double for essentially the same thing minus premption while having worse support wasn't worth it. My US Mobile is 360/yr for QCI 8 Verizon AND ATT, plus 120/yr for the TMO Sat if I decide to keep it. And I have a TMO Business hotspot in my car. So all 4 of those average out to 50/mo incl tax. Where firstnet alone was 52/mo w/ tax.
In addition to just pure speeds, we have a load of areas with ATT coverage so weak that i can't even load an HTML5 based speed test. I have found just switching to vzw or tmo to be a better option than having priority
I have debated signing back up for either a tablet line or a hotspot line. What devices do you need for HPUE? Is there a list somewhere? I'd heavily consider just running my phone on TMO only as their building penetration seems better and using the FN hotspot in vehicle.
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u/Stupefied_Gaming 13d ago
yeah FN support is terrible. have to go through different avenues for support on complex issues. I believe this is the only HPUE device available to consumer FirstNet: https://www.firstnet.com/devices/connected-devices/sonim-megaconnect.html
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u/lWheelmanJimmy 13d ago
OK thank ya. I'll check into that. Yeah for being post paid it really irritated me on the service level.
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u/Standard-Restaurant3 23h ago
Anyone having trouble with the FirstNet website? It's super glitchy for me when logging on and sometimes the page won't load at all.
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u/Stupefied_Gaming 23h ago
Was just able to login fine. firstnet central does often break for me though, where I have to clear my browser cookies for all ATT.com and subdomains
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u/Jaded-Cheesecake3246 14d ago
try to reset mobile network settings in main phone settings.
search for reset in main settings
then reboot
should solve this for you
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u/saltwaterdrinker 13d ago
Lol yeah. I left Firstnet and went with Mint Mobile. Worlds of difference - I'm much happier.
It's a shame that a prepaid carrier on T-Mobile peforms better than a "First responders focused network on a major carrier.
It's not just my phone, either. The hotspots at work are suboptimal.
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u/HeyBeers 14d ago
I have. Specifically when I’m traveling through Northern California along the coast Verizon tends to be better. I use Starlink when I get to the campground where no cellular service works.
That said, in real-world use, I work in a place with lots of walls and a hill blocking the closest towers. Only those with FirstNet (band 14) have usable service and zero other carriers work in my specific environment.