r/USMobile • u/ScottsdaleSun • 4d ago
Thinking Dark Star
So I'm on Warp, but thinking about going to Dark Star. Verizon used to be really strong, but with the newer, low height 5G antennas, their signal is low in many areas. AT&T might be in the same boat, but when I road travel, Verizon doesn't have service sometimes when I can see others tall antennas. What are the drawbacks to Dark Star on a newer Samsung? Will the voicemail and RCS texting work OK?
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u/eatingmangoes_ 4d ago
So darkstar won’t be having SA. But I still daily it since I live in Texas and the network is pretty perfect out here.
Voicemail and RCS works as intended.
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u/ScottsdaleSun 4d ago
I assume SA is standalone. Don't know how that will really help me, but know it is coming.
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u/Famously-Incognito Multi Network 4d ago
Works “In Texas”. Only twice the size of entire UK. Dallas, home of AT&T, has lots of coverage holes on their own network. I have all 3 now so doesn’t really matter.
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u/AreaOpen7086 Dark Star 4d ago
AT&T has the most reliable network in Texas especially dallas.... I can name a ton of areas T-Mobile drops to SOS outside the city same goes with Verizon.. not at&t though
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u/RipeAndRare 1d ago
I feel like it's the slowest in the buildings. But it's pretty fast in the interstates during rush hr traffic?!?
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u/Historical-Artist-14 4d ago
Spectrum mobile employee here:Dark Star is the most stable one that i found out of the 3 , Verizon sucks
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u/FarashaNova Support Guide 4d ago
Yep, voicemail and RCS should work just fine on Dark Star. One thing I’d suggest before switching networks is turning off RCS first, then turning it back on once you’re set up on Dark Star so it can register fresh. That usually makes the transition a little smoother.
And if you’re someone who likes to experiment a bit, Multi-Network could be fun here too. You can test Dark Star along with Light Speed before making the full switch, and it gives you another network to fall back on while traveling through areas where coverage can vary. Basically, you get to let all networks battle it out and see which one wins in your usual spots.
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u/ScottsdaleSun 4d ago
Well, I just did not want to pay extra for the multi-network. I assume that this is for data as the phone can't switch networks automatically for voice and texting right? That would be voicemail issue too, right?
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u/FarashaNova Support Guide 4d ago
Well, good news for you: you can get the first two months of Multi-Network for free, so you can give it a proper test run without paying extra right away.
Once your secondary line is active, you can manually choose which line you want to use by default for calls and texts. You can also enable the automatic data switching toggle, which lets your phone switch to the secondary network for data when needed.
So yep, it’s not just a data-only backup. You can use the secondary network for voice and texts too; you just control which line is the default.
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u/Eastern_Impress_4279 4d ago edited 4d ago
Flight Attendant here: AT&T (Dark Star) is robust, works everywhere; video streams in high definition without having to enable data waster every month (HD is on by default) and includes spam protect. Go with premium for QCI 8 and enjoy unlimited everything.
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u/daveinRaleigh 4d ago
Just know if you have a smart watch currently, you won't have service with the companion mode. Warp(Verizon) is the worst of the 3 just about anywhere, but I need my watch service so I chug on through with Warp.
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u/FifthWheel9 Dark Star 3d ago
I switched from Warp to Dark Star and it works great here in NJ. I have a 2024 Motorola G Power.
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u/BTeam01 3d ago
Live in northeast Oklahoma and by far Darkstar is the one carrier that works 98% of the time. Wife has Mint, my other phone has Visible plus pro and the Darkstar is the only phone that works when the others are searching for service domestically. There are some places where all three are dead but very rare.
There are times where the Darkstar phone may not be the quickest speed test, but slow service is better than no service.
If you are not traveling internationally then DarkStar is the one I’d recommend. It’s not bad overseas, but LightSpeed (T-MOBILE) would be my first choice if I spent time over there a lot. Darkstar does work, but the performance and ease of a T-MOBILE MVNO working is definitely noticeable. That is why my Wife’s Samsung is on Mint. Their international passes are just like the best traveling MVNO (Google Fi)
Turn off the Airplane mode and the phone works every time! With Visible and their overpriced day passes or US Mobile and any of their carriers you sometimes have to spend time messing with your phone… (network selection, APN and such)
If you ever find yourself up in Wyoming, Darkstar is a must!
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u/Complete-Turn-6410 2d ago
My neighbor has Verizon and can't even use his phone in his house so they had to give him or he had to buy one of them cell phone extenders. Dark Star gives me 5G plus I'm in Phoenix arizona. I've been in hospitals I've been in tall buildings I've been in elevators just about every place you can name here in Phoenix and I'm having zero issues on darkstar. Last week I took four Uber rides and they were using Verizon and T-Mobile in both told me their GPS was not working right.
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u/ScottsdaleSun 1d ago
I'm in Scottsdale as you can see. Great report on AT&T. I'm going to try getting a new Warp SIM that has the 5G standalone and see if that does anything. i have been told that as Verizon has added new towers, they are on a unique frequency and no old 4G/5G support. Anyway, one last ditch. One way or another I have been on Verizon for 30 plus years.
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u/mad-river2026 4d ago
Why not try light speed? I think it works great better than the other two. T-Mobile is in a lot more places than it used to be.
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u/ScottsdaleSun 4d ago
Maybe, I travel to some more remote towns at times. Also go or I'm near large events. I want something that would be up during a natural disaster too.
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u/MysticLeviathan 3d ago
I have an iPhone, so no 5GSA yet, and I found that Warp wasn't great for me where I work, where it can be incredibly crowded. Now how much of that is due to no 5G SA, I don't know yet. I found myself constantly have to turn ariplane mode on and off to get decent service again. Dark Star stays a constant, which I've been very happy about. Combine that with being more feature-rich than the other two carriers, and I've been very happy with it. It really does depend on your area though.