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In Mobile Notes earlier this week, we came across an item saying Sprint was trying to attract customers with their phone selection. A company rep gave quick reasons why people choose the other carriers, and said that no on really gives much consideration to Sprint. So they’re looking to grab the device market. Kind of tough to do without the iPhone and its endless hype, but give them some credit for trying.

Meanwhile, it can make you wonder: Why do people choose certain carriers? Clearly, local coverage is an enormous consideration. But what if all of the top six U.S. carriers are available, or at least a few of them? So let’s dig into this and see where each carrier has an advantage.

Verizon: Signal strength and mobile to mobile

A common complaint in the wireless industry is signal strength. I’ve got friends in New York City who abhor their T-Mobile service because it seems like they have one bar everywhere they go. Many New Jersians deplore AT&T because it seems like there’s a drop zone every few miles. But I rarely, if ever, hear complaints about Verizon’s coverage. In fact, I often hear detailed praise of Verizon’s coverage.

They’re about to become the nation’s No. 1 carrier because they got the most basic part of cell service right: the signal. Yes, their acquisition of Alltel is what will officially push them to the top spot, but the current champion, AT&T, only got there because of their own merger game. Verizon’s fight to the top will be fueled by quality service, with Alltel providing a rocket boost along the way.

Because they have over 60 million subscribers nationwide, Verizon’s mobile to mobile service is also attractive. Everyone loves unlimited mobile to mobile — then again, everyone loves unlimited anything. But the real value of a M2M network is, well, having the most robust customer base. It’s not as good a deal when Sprint or T-Mobile offers unlimited M2M, because they don’t have the network to make it as worthwhile as AT&T and Verizon.

AT&T: Mobile to mobile and iPhone

Because AT&T is a GSM network, they’re going to have access to a greater number of phones. Since most of the world outside of North America runs on GSM, there are simply more phones being developed for GSM. And it’s a ton easier to change the GSM frequency than to replace the GSM technology with CDMA technology. So you can even add phone selection to the two items above.

As with Verizon, AT&T has tens of millions of customers, which makes its mobile to mobile network the most robust in the nation. They even go so far as to advertise their mobile to mobile as truly unlimited, even though it’s not. But that’s another issue, I suppose. AT&T, as well as Verizon, holds the advantage of established numbers. They gain customers simply because most of that customer’s friends and family are on AT&T. And that is the advantage of M2M.

Of course, there’s the matter of that nifty little phone that gets so much attention, especially nowadays. The launch of the original iPhone was rather insane — the line grew from around 20 people deep when I first passed the store to about 200 deep little more than an hour later — but the launch of the iPhone 3G could be even bigger. It’s cheaper, at least in marketing terms, which should attract even more buyers. This time around, thanks to the subsidy and contract requirement, it seems that no one else will have the iPhone. This is why you want AT&T.

Sprint: Simply Everything and phones?

Like the Sprint representative, I wasn’t able to really find a reason to choose Sprint over the rest. If they’re going with the phones angle, they’re going to have to beef up their lineup. That could take time, of course. But as it currently stands, it doesn’t look like Sprint has the best handset selection of the carriers.

Yeah, they bring the Instinct to the table, but it’s received decidedly average reviews. Can’t say I’m a fan of their brand of touchscreen myself. But some people will surely enjoy the device. They’ve got some neat QWERTY devices like the LG Rumor and the Palm Centro, some music devices like the Samsung M520, some higher end PDAs like the HTC Touch and Mogul, and the standard BlackBerry line. But really, where does that differ from the rest of the carriers?

Sprint’s best asset at the moment is its Simply Everything plan. For $99 per month, the same as you pay with AT&T and Verizon for just voice services, Sprint provides unlimited mobile Web, email, messaging (text, picture, video), GPS navigation, Sprint TV, and of course voice. Adding all these services to Verizon’s or AT&T’s plans would cost a ton, probably in the neighborhood of $40 or $50 a month. Even with their 450 and 900 minute plans, you get all the extras. Once again, it amounts to cheaper than the competition.

T-Mobile: Hotspot @Home, voice plans

When we’re talking what each carrier brings to the table, it’s impossible to mention T-Mobile and not say Hotspot @Home. While the big carriers have landline services they’re trying to keep alive, T-Mobile has no such affiliation. And so they have the flexibility to offer cheaper and more efficient solutions to customers who might not want their landline anymore. This led to the development of Hotspot @Home.

With the new Talk Forever service and the upgraded router, T-Mobile is taking WiFi calling to a new level. Starting soon, you can sign up for the service and port in your home phone number. You can then plug your existing phone into the new router, and voila! You’re getting unlimited calling for just $9.99 per month. Beats the crap out of paying for your cell phone and for a $30/month landline bill.

T-Mobile also appeals to consumers with their myFaves plans. For instance, for just $40 per month you can nab 300 anytime minutes, plus unlimited calls to any five numbers you choose. If you pick the numbers wisely, you can afford a far less expensive voice plan, since your most frequently dialed numbers won’t deduct from your minute pool. Even when you get out of myFaves, their individual plans are some of the cheapest in the country, offering 600 anytime minutes and unlimited nights and weekends for $40 a month. Then again, you don’t get the same mobile to mobile services as the big fellas. But we’ve gone over that.

Alltel: My Circle and prepaid

Alltel’s biggest promotion for the past few years has been My Circle, which has been flaunted by their pretty boy blonde Chad. The concept is nearly identical to T-Mobile’s myFaves. You can choose five, 10, or 20 people to add to your circle, and then pick a corresponding number of anytime minutes beyond that. The members of your circle can be from any provider.

(Then again, if you look at their rates page, you’ll see that you can pay up to $200 for a My Circle plan. Just below, though, Alltel offers completely unlimited calling for $99 per month, just like the other carriers. Does My Circle even matter at that point? All calls are unlimited. What am I missing here?)

Alltel also offers some quality prepaid plans. We don’t normally talk about those on Going Cellular — they’re usually reserved for our sister site. There are three ways you can enjoy Alltel’s U prepaid. First is a monthly plan, which mimics a postpaid scheme. For $70 per month, for example, you get unlimited nights and weekends, mobile to mobile, and text messaging, plus 700 anytime minutes. You can choose to pay per day, which costs 75 cents per day but gives you two of the following: Unlimited mobile to mobile, unlimited nights and weekends, unlimited favorite number calling, unlimited text messaging. Calls are 10 cents a minute, and you can add more of the listed features for 25 cents each a day. Finally, you can pay 15 cents per minute, all day, every day.

U.S. Cellular: Free incoming calls

Really, is there much more to say than this? U.S. Cellular might not have the best coverage in the world — after all, they are considered a regional carrier. But they are the sixth largest in the nation, and they do have that nifty feature which gives you free incoming calls. It’s a throwback to the early days of mass cell phone communication. I remember having a buddy, not sure what carrier he had, but he had free incoming calls for the first minute, and the phone would actually beep at the 50 second mark.

Really, where else are you going to get 700 anytime minutes, unlimited incoming calls, and unlimited nights and weekends for $40 a month? Then again, U.S. Cell doesn’t offer roaming services, so you’ve gotta be careful with where you go with it. But free incoming calls? Sign me up, man.

Different areas, different choices

Despite the advantages mentioned above, the most important aspect of choosing a cell phone can only be addressed locally. Believe it or not, there might be some areas where Verizon doesn’t have good coverage. There are yet other places where, gasp, not a ton of people have AT&T, and you won’t benefit from their mobile to mobile network. And, of course, there are plenty of areas where Sprint, T-Mobile, Alltel, and U.S. Cellular aren’t available at all.

This is just a guideline, though. What about you? What advantage do you think each carrier has?

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