Individual experience definitely varies. That's why for every person saying they get great reception with a phone you'll find another person who says they don't. There are a lot of issues that impact reception, and those will create a different experience from person to person.
That said, on the whole Motorola is generally regarded as having the best reception. Not everyone will have experiences that back that up, and some will outright disagree with it, but generally speaking, they tend to be at the top of the list. They've been in the game longer than anyone, and they really know how to make a solid software radio.
It's like Verizon always being ranked as the number one carrier in U.S. from a customer service point of view. Individual experience will vary (and if you read through these or any other phone forums, you'll see that individual experiences vary greatly, with a lot more complaints than praise), but overall, they do what they do better than the rest.
I still think they need to be looking carefully in the rear view mirror though. Samsung has already overtaken them in most aspects, and they're getting awfully close to potentially doing the same in reception.
Edit: But I still think the S3 is the better device between the two.