Who's your F******G cell phone provider?

Good morning friends,

Not of utmost importance nor particularly political, but today I turn to you, my extended family, to find out what kind of cell phone you have and who your service provider is.

After 4 or 5 odd years of toiling along with the exact same phone and the exact same service provider, I find it is time for a replacement.  I come to you with lots of questions and if I know anything about Kossacks, it is that you are not shy about sharing advice!

So my Samsung SPH-A400 has finally crapped out on me.  The battery terminals are getting green with corrosion, and it shuts itself off everytime I flip it closed.  I have had Sprint as my provider which has dropped more calls than a bingo worker.

My needs are simple.  I make about 25 calls a week, mostly personal.  One peak month for work I make or take 400 calls in a week.  This makes "rollover minutes" alluring, since I could bank a bunch of time all year long then not get stuck with a $150 for one heavy week of use.  Scandalous!  But is rollover legit?  Are there restrictions?  

I want a plan rather than the buying phone cards or a prepaid phone.  I don't like to shop, and would not be very good at buying additional minutes on a regular basis.  If I ran out of time while on the road and my car broke down for instance, I would be pissed.  So I choose to pay a monthly fee for reliability and in case of an emergency.

Are there any red or blue service providers?  I am leaning towards Verizon since they offer an employee discount that may put them ahead as far as cost.  Again, rollover with Cingular is appealing.

What about where to buy it and subscribe?  Internet?  Best Buy?  Again, red or blue companies?

Since my needs are simple, I could certainly get by with a "free" phone.  I might look at the Razr or Chocolate, but only with the bored curiosity of a teenager in an art gallery.  No blue tooth, MP3, or even a camera is necessary.  I may "have" to get one with a camera, since that may be the only thing on the market right now, but I vow only to use it for pootie pics or protest thugery in action.

Treo, Palm, Blackberry?  No.  I don't want to take yet another class just to learn how to use it.  Plus, $200 to $400 or more is much more than I care to invest in.  Hell, I don't even text message, and I have never ever even downloaded a ring tone.

And as a disclaimer, I vow:

Not to hold anyone here responsible for my decision with retributive troll ratings.

**NOTICE TO NSA**Just because I live in Michigan, have photographed the Mackinaw Bridge, and am looking to buy a cell phone, it doesn't mean that I am a terrorist.  Really.

•  Stinguler

  I was using T-Mobile, because their customer support is GREAT. However, their signal was not, and I was forced to switch to Cingular, which, I have to admit, has a very good signal.

  Their customer support is...okay, but nowhere near as good as T-Mobile's was.

  If T-Mobile had signals to compete with Cingular, I would shitcan my Stinkular in a minute.

  by Heronymous Cowherd on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:32:17 AM PDT

  •  isn't cingular

    blue, though?  employee-owned or union or some such?  that's worth a lot.

    by Cedwyn on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:43:12 AM PDT

    •  Is it the ONLY blue? nt

      by spartan68 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:46:48 AM PDT

      •  i have t-mobile

        love the service, love the support, love the price, and if i dont have a tmobile signal, i jump on cingular...no roaming.

        i sold cingular for over a year, and honestly, i'd stay away from them. their customer service sucks...period. T-Mobile is the way to go if you want post-paid GSM service, which is pretty much the world standard now

        by Craig Burnham on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:49:29 AM PDT

    •  Cingular is ATT

      by TarheelDem on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:48:45 AM PDT

    •  Cingular has the only union workforce

      in cell phone companies. But it is (today) jointly owned by BellSouth and AT&T (formerly SBC). Soon, AT&T will complete their purchase of BellSouth and it will all be one big happy company.

      This is what is known in college-level economics as "a natural monopoly", as are all utilities. (That is, the cost of duplicating distribution never can be covered by the profits available to be made, therefore, a single company always ends up - via Market Forces - the owner. These companies should be REGULATED. This is the fallacy of "de-regulation": what is promised is not possible (you can't get cheaper electricity from 10 providers than you can from one properly regulated single provider.).

      Ooops... I disgressed.  So... Cingular is not employee owned, but they do have union employees (Communication Workers of America) as does AT&T.  Whether AT&T is a "true blue" company is up for debate, but at least you can support union jobs with Cingular.

      by YucatanMan on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:05:29 AM PDT

  •  Stingular indeed!

    Cingular strung me out for seven months trying to port my land line number to the cell phone. Every time I asked a question, they poo-pooed me assured me that their "experts" knew better. IN the end, it turned out that the distinctive ring service was causing the problem. Not only did I ask whether the distinctive ring service would create a problem, each time they failed to fix the problem I brought it up again and they simply dismissed me. During the transition at one point both my land line and cell phone (with the same telephone number) would ring depending on where the call was coming from! They kept tell me that porting numbers was new so there were kinks to be worked.

    The only good thing they did for me (and it was done at the local office, not national) was let me out of my 2-year contract a year early so I could switch to T-Mobile. I have been enjoying good service ever since.

    by onig on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:00:00 AM PDT

  •  I've got Cingular

    They don't suck.

    by kismet on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:26:23 AM PDT

    •  I had cingular

      And I liked them.  But they do not service my home area (middle of the country, just not a local service area) so they dumped me finally.  I have sprint and so far it has been fine (two months).  They matched my international calling plan from Cingular, and I never used up my minutes for the US (400) so I had huge rollover.  Would still be with Cingular if they had let me.  It has a better roaming plan than sprint.

      by annetteboardman on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:53:18 AM PDT

      •  yeah I had cingular

        and it was fine.

        But I switched to Verizon because of employee discount. I make alot of calls.

        I think that working assets uses cingular though
        http://www.workingassetswireless.com...

        I might switch to them when my contract is up.

        Working assets donates to progressive causes.

        by biscobosco on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 09:41:54 AM PDT

        •  Whats employee discount?

          Is it only for Verizon employees?

          by Observer on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 10:47:39 AM PDT

          •  no -

            verizon teams up with some employers to offer a discount to employees of that company. Verizon offers a discount to anyone who works for my company, but (I dont think anyway) cingular does.

            I should probably check it out before I sign up next time though. I would like to switch to working assets.

            if they can meet verizons price.

            by biscobosco on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 10:57:46 AM PDT

        •  Working Assets uses Sprint's network. (n/t)

          by willy mugobeer on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 04:37:07 PM PDT

•  other

  Alltel.  And they suck.  But then so has every other wireless provider I've used.  I'd be so happy if they spent more effort improving reliability and sound quality and less effort adding bells and whistles.  

  by ThirstyGator on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:33:06 AM PDT

  •  I hear ya!

    Good, cheap, relaible service is all I really care about.

    by spartan68 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:35:52 AM PDT

  •  What?

    You mean you don't want the latest phone/camera/mp3-player/PDA/GPS/walkie-talkie/phaser?

    by bluerevolt on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:49:20 AM PDT

    •  All I want

      is a good signal and decent battery.  And a grilled-cheese sandwich.  

      Yes, a grilled-cheese sandwich would be nice.

      by ThirstyGator on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:07:29 AM PDT

•  Virgin - Pay as you Go

  Forget the contracts.  If you only make a few calls every month then I'd suggest you go with a pay as you go plan.

  No contract.

  No monthly fee.

  You just top-up your phone ahead of time and with our plan - you pay about a quarter a minute for the first ten per day, then it drops down to a dime a minute.

  As long as you top up with $20 every 90 days, your phone stays active.

  We switched to this after we got tired of paying $80 a month for service that had waaaaaaaaaaaay more minutes than we needed.  And no one offered a family package with less than 400 minutes a month - or cost under $80 per month.

  Screw that shit - we went with a top-up service and we love it!

  by Alegre on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:34:54 AM PDT

  •  Hm.

    a very good argument.  Do you ever forget and run out of minutes?  What do you mean top-up?  Can you add minutes over the internet, or do you have to go into a store?

    by spartan68 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:37:52 AM PDT

    •  Top-Up (adding $ to your account) is Easy

      It's like buying extra minutes - I do it on-line or you can buy cards at a lot of different shops (convenience stores and the like).

      And we rarely run out of minutes.

      You can check your balance right on the phone for free. Send a request and it's sent to you within a minute or two - so you can keep on top of what's avaialable.

      I think we got each of our phones for $20 or $30.  Here's a link to the web-site...

      http://virginmobileusa.com/

      by Alegre on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:48:26 AM PDT

    •  By The Way

      We go to see my inlaws in Ireland and the top-up type of cell phone is very popular in Europe.

      We add minutes when we're over - or can do it before each trip from our computer here in the states.  The minutes never expire as they do with several monthly plans here.

      Our phones with Virgin are similar in that the minutes - or the money in your account - don't expire either.  Once you add money it's there to use - as long as you top-up with $20 every 90 days.  And it sounds like you'd have no problem going through $20 every 3 months.

      by Alegre on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:55:04 AM PDT

    •  I love my Virgin phone, and using auto Top Up

      means that you never have to worry about adding minutes. I use it very little so my minutes accumulate, but I have it set so that if I did use them all up, the account would automatically be topped up with a set increment.

      They have three ( ?  four) pricing plans, depending upon how heavy your usage is, and you can switch between them without penalty.

      by Wee Mama on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:29:48 AM PDT

  •  I use Net10

    Only 10¢ per minute from the start, no matter where you call. Purchase at least 300 minutes for $30 every two months means that in the past 5-6 months I've only paid $90 and still have over 650 minutes left to 'spend' (It's not used as my main phone). I paid around $40 for the phone at Target. Tech support has been great.
    Works for me.

    by Clember on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:21:12 AM PDT

  •  T-mobile network?

    I have a VM phone and IIRC they use T-Mobile's network. Sometimes my signal is weaker than people with different providers. However, it is a very reasonable option for those who don't use their cell phones very often.

    by jrm78 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 09:12:03 AM PDT

•  Cingular here, satisfied so far.

  I was an ATT customer back when and got good service, so when I recently celled up again, I went with its current owner, Cingular.  Its $40-a-month plan, with a free Nokia 5160 -- pretty good phone, no photo capacity, small enough to be convenient -- provides 450 minutes, free long distance and free calling after 9 p.m. -- plus the minutes roll over month to month.

  I never use all those minutes, but, like you, I wanted a plan.  My son urged me to go with a T-Mobile pay-as-you-go, but I'm more comfortable with a regular monthly bill.

  by Vico on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:35:59 AM PDT

  •  Oh, and. . .

    I recently had my first reason to deal with customer service.  Though the reason suggests less-than-ethical business practice -- I got a $2.99 roadside assistance service tacked on that I didn't ask for -- the customer service was great -- efficient and friendly.

    Also, if I'm remembering correctly, Cingular's nose is clean on the telespying issue.

    by Vico on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:53:03 AM PDT

    •  I was alerted to road assistance

      automatically charged on the bill when I signed up with Cingular. Warned that I had 30 days to drop the service if I so desired, I did so with no problems.

      I am satisfied with Cingular. I discovered that if one or even two Customer Service reps can't solve a technical problem, keep calling until you get someone who can. I had a real run-around between Cingular and Motorola about one problem. Then about a month later I tried again and latched onto a real techno whiz who straighted the whole thing out in 3 minutes. Of course, this was not a problem intrinsic to the operation of the basic phone.

      My dealings with all of these long-distance customer reps tell me that there are varying degrees of expertise within any one company.

      Compared to the horrendous experience I had with Trac Phone when I actually had to deal with customer service on the phone -- as opposed to adding minutes via Internet -- Cingular is a blessing.

      by Caneel on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:19:45 AM PDT

    •  Cingular is AT&T -- They spy.

      Cingular's nose is clean on the telespying issue.

      Nope.  Cingular's a part of AT&T, who has been in collusion with NSA, et al for years.  AT&T is also horrible on the net neutrality issue.

      by willy mugobeer on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:58:08 AM PDT

•  Machinac Bridge - Beautiful

  Especially at night.

  My grandparents used to have a cottage on Machinac Island and I have very fond memories of spending a week each summer up there.  It's so quiet and relaxing!

  by Alegre on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:37:00 AM PDT

  •  Oh wow.

    There is a little camp site where we pitched a tent, just to the East on Lake Huron.  I think it was Saw Mill Campground or something.  Breathtaking views, nightly and in the morning too!

    by spartan68 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:40:03 AM PDT

    •  Ever Been To Bios Blanc Island?

      It's right accross the straights from Machinac Island - near the little light house there.

      I've heard it's beautiful but we never made it over in all those years.  Passed right by it on the ferry but never ventured over.

      by Alegre on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:50:34 AM PDT

      •  Nope.

        I've looked at it and wondered about it.  I guess I just assumed it was privately owned or for the rich folk...

        by spartan68 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:56:12 AM PDT

        •  Mackinac Bridge at Night in the Winter

          Just found this picture at the web-site...

          http://www.mackinacbridge.org/...

          by Alegre on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:27:38 AM PDT

      •  Michigan spelling and more

        As an MI native, I must point out that it's "Mackinaw" (with "k" and "w", for city, straits and bridge, I think) or "Mackinac" (with "k" and "c" for Island), both pronounced "Mackinaw."  

        Also, that's Bois Blanc ("White Woods" in French).

        All lovely and beautiful, of course.  Was back there this summer for the first time in years.

        About 10 years ago, I was up there with family and we were returning to the lower peninsula across the bridge in our NY-plated car, when we pulled up to the toll booth.  The dark-skinned guy with a mustache put his head out:  "Where you from?"  "New York City."  "Where in the City?"  "Brooklyn."  "Where in Brooklyn?"  "Flatbush."  "[Thumb up.] Hey, me, I'm from Union Street and 5th Avenue."  "How do you like it here?"  "It's great."  "Bye."

        by David in NY on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:01:18 AM PDT

        •  Michigan Typos

          I just realized I got the o and the i mixed up in Bois Blanc.  Doh!  And how the hell did I put an h in Mackinac?  I've been up there enough times to know better!

          And yeah I think you can camp out on the island - far as I know it's not private.

          As for that gorgious bridge - it's Mackinac Bridge - the city's spelled with a w.

          Here's a link to the web-site for the bridge...

          http://www.mackinacbridge.org/

          by Alegre on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:25:44 AM PDT

•  One point

  about the pre-paid service:  you don't have to go shopping to renew your minutes, you can do it over the internet.  Tracphone is always sending me offers for more minutes, and reminders when mine are about to expire, so I can just click to the site and renew with a minimum of hassle.

  by curmudgiana on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:38:34 AM PDT

  •  True

    You do get reminders.  Very helpful.

    by Alegre on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:51:11 AM PDT

  •  Not only that

    with tracfone, you always know exactly how many minutes you have.  It's right on your phone.

    by Kitty on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:16:52 AM PDT

•  Cingular

  No question--they are the only unionized cell company. I think they've had an ad to that effect on this site. I'm not a heavy user but I have a family plan that I share with my two sons and I've had no complaints. My son lost his phone and we had no trouble suspending the service. My husband has a seperate account, paid for by his employer, for his Cingular Blackberry. His only complaint is the number of emails that he gets (not spam, it's his office following him everywhere).

  by yellowdog on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:42:24 AM PDT

  •  Great!

    Thanks for the tip.  I knew the collective would come through!

    by spartan68 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:45:54 AM PDT

•  Working Assets wireless.

  Had them for about 4 years now -- service is fine (although, unfortunately they don't have the latest Palm Pilot/Treo thingys) and customer service is great (live humans -- not on another continent -- who usually have the authority to fix what needs to be fixed).  

  In terms of supporting a company that supports us -- you can't do better.  Apart from the 1% of revenue donated to progressive nonprofits every year (that customers get to vote on), they also sponsor so many cool political causes and projects I can't even count them all.  

  Here's a link.

  by willy mugobeer on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:46:55 AM PDT

  •  Had Working Assets

    I had Working Assets for years and loved the same things.  But they use Sprint as their service (or did - if this has changed, I'll go back) and Sprint is terrible.  I finally had to change just to get sufficient coverage.

    by nudger on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:17:56 AM PDT

    •  How terrible is the coverage?

      I'd love to switch phone companies when I'm free of my contract, but I travel a lot, to some very remote areas of the US.

      by random6x7 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:46:56 AM PDT

  •  went back through my email box...

    to see if I could find all the cool things Working Assets has done recently...here's a partial list:

    • helped register more than million voters, and mobilized thousands of election protection volunteers, in 2004
    • paid for a mobile billboard (photo of flooded New Orleans plus Grover Norquist "drown it in the bathtub" quote, design by dkos'er highacidity) and held a protest outside Norquist's Wednesday meeting
    • raised money to send something like 3,000 flowers to Camp Casey last summer
    • a lot of work (mobile billboard, flying airplane banners, etc.) on the California special election last fall (I really appreciated that one)
    • raised money to rebuild girls' schools in Pakistan/Afghanistan after the earthquake there last year
    • gone carbon-neutral, company-wide
    • tree-planting grants equivalent to all the paper used for bills
    • free long-distance for customers in the Katrina-affected area last year
    • set up VolunteerforChange.org, a free volunteer management tool for nonprofits
    • also set up GoVote.org, a new voter registration site
    • sent tens of thousands of minutes in phone cards to wounded veterans at Walter Reed last christmas, in honor of Jack Murtha's courage in speaking out.

    Those were just the emails I could find in my archive box...there's probably more.

    Yep, this is a company that supports my values.

    by willy mugobeer on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 09:15:20 AM PDT

•  Verizon for me

  I've had them for about 4 years, and other than a few f-ups that Skippy the "retail communications consultant" did when he set up the account it's been pretty good service. I've haven't had any problems with calls being dropped. The rates for 800 minutes, free long distance, three phones, two with text messaging is about $90 a month. And that seems consistant with all the other plans out there.

  On the other hand, the worst part of my job involves coordinating the cell phones for about 60 users. We had AT&T, then Cingular bought them out, and several years later they still have their head up their ass and can't seem to combine the operations. Every call to cingular results in being transferred between people who "can't do that" because it was originally AT&T. When I upgrade the account to Cingular, they screw it up 90% of the time.

  And then there's Nextel/Sprint. Another merger that only serves the shareholders and execs. It's a festival of frustration to get an employee who can figure out how to help both Sprint and NExtel users. Plan on repeating your request several times before you are transferred to someone who can actually fullfill your request.

  So, basically I'd stay away from any companies that have merged. They just can't seem to get it together.

  by Many Dogs Barking on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:46:59 AM PDT

•  Verizon, for better or worse

  I've got Verizon, like a ton of people. I have to say they've been very good customer-service wise (I once got a HUUUUUGE overage taken off my bill), and the store employees are friendly (they've charged my phone in the store for free when it's run out of batteries during the day).

  Plus, the IN-calling means that any calls to other Verizon customers don't count towards your monthly minute allotment. Since getting IN, I've never gone over my monthly minutes.

  by kath25 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:47:49 AM PDT

  •  I've got Verizon

    and I hate their customer service.  I once had a huge phone bill that was completely my fault, but it came right before Christmas.  I asked, very nicely, if I could pay it in installments, and they told me that would be fine.  Which it was until my phone was shut off for nonpayment of bill.  When I talked to the financial office, the guy told me that Customer Service can't promise things like that and I should have talked to financial (and I would know this how?).  He pretended to be flexible about when I could give him money, perhaps because I finally got through to him about direct deposit and just not having money in the account until a certain day, but he still made me pay the reconnect fee.  Grrrrrrrrr.

    Verizon is fine, for the most part.  I travel a lot and I can usually get a signal, even if I have to glue myself to a window in some apartment buildings to do so.  They are an evil corporate conglomerate, and, since a family member works for them, I know a little too much about their in-company policies (more "we don't give a fuck", it seems).  I've had them for five years, and only one or two instances of their evilness stand out in my mind, but, boy, do they stand out.  Oh, yeah, and they spy on Americans.

    by random6x7 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:41:31 AM PDT

•  Fucking cell phones

  I new that cell phones were adding more and more features, but I hadn't heard of this one.  Maybe I'll finally get one!

  by pkjnew on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:49:27 AM PDT

  •  Ha!

    Yup, but they have really little penis's.

    by spartan68 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:59:03 AM PDT

    •  Oh

      Maybe I don't need one after all, as I'm not looking for a penis of any size whatsoever.

      by pkjnew on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:11:31 AM PDT

  •  Nah, they just vibrate. NT

    by latts on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:43:27 AM PDT

•  T-Mobile here

  Great coverage, except inside my work. No roaming everywhere I've gone, including from Philly to Ohio. Customer service is great, except when they screw up.

  My girlfriend recently went back to Cingular. She gets a discount because we ported her number from my account to a Cingular account and it automatically sets up in my name and I get a discount through my employer. I have to say, though, that at least in Philly, reception and call quality is shitty, at best.

  Fewest dropped calls or not, voice reception sucks.

  Personally, I'm looking to change phones at least. I want a data device like a Blackberry Pearl, an MDA/8125(T-Mobile/Cingular), or a 3125 Smartphone (Cingular).

  Something that will let me get online anywhere I'm at, but that also has a built in WiFi radio to connect to open networks for increased speeds when available.

  Verizon has a nice data device, the XV6700. Their network is the fastest but also the most expensive. T-Mobile the cheapest, but also the slowest with lwoer level EDGE network speeds. And Cingular? Well, their voice quality sucks but they're unrolling the next type of network, a U-something, I forget. But they don't have any devices for it just yet so I might wait a little longer.

  Not sure what I'm gonna do. Just rambling right now.

  by Stand Strong on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:52:39 AM PDT

•  Blue Service

  Am very happy with my Working Assets Wireless Service - you can round up bill pmt and the extra goes to blue causes which are listed on their website (noticed a link above)...also monthly statements come with calls to action on current legislation.  I'm not sure whose technology they use, Sprint perhaps?  Better range than when I had Cingular.

  by wahine13 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:53:28 AM PDT

•  I have a cell phone b/c I have to

  but I also have no land lines.  I hate talking on the phone.  I use Metro PCS, unlimited local and long dist. for $54 a month.  No contracts.  It's perfect for me.

  by JessicaDrewSW on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:54:53 AM PDT

•  I am very happy with Cingular

  and, as noted below, they are union. My father has Cingular also and really likes it verses his former cell service. I'm not a big cell phone user and found Cingular to have the best lower cost, low minutes deal.

  Tip - figure out the minutes that you average per month and crunch the numbers for a provider from there. Be sure to consider calling area and service coverage for your calls too.

  Drink shade grown coffee!

  by mad ramblings of a sane woman on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:55:01 AM PDT

•  Let's not forget

  that both Verizon and AT&T (a part of Cingular now)  freely gave our data to the NSA.

  by johne on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:55:15 AM PDT

  •  I did forget.

    Thanks!

    by spartan68 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:01:36 AM PDT

    •  Sprint explicitly stated that they do not,

      absent a court order.

      You might want to find out what medium-sized provider is in your area as they will generally have the best coverage & service; for the upper midwest, US Cellular is the best.  Most providers have good off-network plans if you do much traveling.

      by skrekk on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 10:50:07 AM PDT

•  I Detest Cell Phones

  They are part of the decline of humanity.

  by Mr X on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:56:00 AM PDT

•  Verizon and the RZR and blue tooth

  We don't have a home phone. My daughter broke my last phone, a Samsung.

  In a binde to hurry up and pick out a new phone (free  every two years) my husband suggested I get a RZR.  Why? Because it had a lot of features that I liked and looked good. Most important, was hooking up to my PC so I could download MY OWN pictures (using a real camera), MY OWN ringtones, and synching up with my Outlook contacts.

  Well low and behold.

  Verizon changed the software on the RZR and does not allow you to hook this up with your PC.

  If you want to download pix, that's $0.25 a pop (or you can buy a plan.)  You want a new ringtone.  That's  $3.95 a pop (or you can buy a unit of several tones.)  Except their tones may not be what you had in mind, no matter how long you search. (And it takes a lot of time since the interface is slow.)

  No way to synch up with your address book.

  PLUS, the software is quirky. It hangs-up spontaneously, powers-down and reboots etc.

  I don't think this is a Motorola problem. I think it is a Verizon fudging with the software issue.  

  I'm talking about the RZR V3.c.  I'm not sure about other models.

  Re: Bluetooth.... This technology is not ready for primetime.  You can use this in a quiet car, but I don't recommend using it anywhere else.

  by roseba on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 07:59:33 AM PDT

  •  Want to mention about Verizon

    I have always had good service.  I just am very unhappy with what they did to the RZR.  

    My service is clear and reliable.  I think the lack of roll-over minutes does stink.

    Pre-paid plans are great, except that the cost per minute for these things is rather high.

    One last thing: Network quality has much to do with where you live.  My extended family has other carriers and are perfectly satisifed with those carriers. But when we go on vacation together, we Verizon carriers are the only people who get a signal.  

    It might be good to mention what city you live in. That may make a difference, and whether nationwide would be an issue to you as well.

    by roseba on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:03:44 AM PDT

    •  Location, location, location.

      I live in Lansing.

      by spartan68 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:10:07 AM PDT

      •  Never been there

        I'm in NY. My extended are along the Eastern Seaboard, South of Mason Dixon.

        by roseba on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:19:33 AM PDT

•  I have Cingular. No problems with them at all

  and they roll over your unused minutes which I never use.

  by txbirdman on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:00:15 AM PDT

•  Cingular fan here

  We switched to Verizon for an ill-fated 25 days because my husband had a good offer at work. Bad experience with billing, lots of time on hold to cancel the service. But their customer service reps were very very good.

  Cingular is a union shop, and I'm happy with our family plan. They also have some really good free phones. Easy to pay online and track usage online. Only problem with any of them is the contract - but I can live with that.

  by Lisa in Bama on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:01:05 AM PDT

•  other provider

  As a West Coaster from the Portland/Vancouver Metro area, I choose my cell provider based on the fact that I don't travel (well, almost never).

  I use Qwest Wireless.  They are almalgamated with Sprint PCS now, and have added some services.

  I (luckily) have a grandfathered plan from over five years ago, and get a substantially better plan rate than is available to most (4 phones, 1200 weekday and 3000 evening & weekend minutes for just under $100 a month).

  The phone service itself is pretty good, but the customer service varies, depending on who you get on the phone when you call them - oh well, at least they're still using americans for customer service reps, and that's more than you can say for most of the other cell providers.

  Plus, they told the government to f**k off, when they wanted our customer records.  That has to count for something, too.

  by Angie in WA State on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:03:46 AM PDT

•  Verizon is best in terms of dropped calls/signal

  Best place to buy is amazon.com.  Just have to be careful with the rebate process, sometimes bad customer service.

  by robokos on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:16:56 AM PDT

•  Can you hear them now?

  An article from Alternet on what else to consider about what goes into your cell phone.

  by ilyana on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:19:56 AM PDT

  •  Wow. That was sad.

    Maybe I don't really need a new cell phone after all...

    by spartan68 on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:36:41 AM PDT

    •  I received a newsletter

      a little over a year ago... (I think  it was Amnesty International) about the mines, the life of miners and the pollution in the Main water source for the Congo from the mines...
      I remember the average life span for these people was 47 years old.  It stuck in my head because I thought... Gee, by that life span,  I'd be dead already and I  don't feel that old!...

      by ilyana on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:54:25 AM PDT

    •  then there's the issue of

      child labor in the mines...

      In the Democratic Republic of Congo, thousands people and children earn their living from digging with bare hands and simple shovels to extract ore- coltan mud mines of the eastern Congo. They live with the constant risk of exposure to toxic and radioactive substances. Moreover they run a high risk of being buried by a collapsing tunnel, security measures being almost non-existent. Coltan is fuelling Congo's civil war, the UN recently warned that this black eastern Congolese mud -- ($80 per kilo, refined into tantalum for cell phones and laptops) -- had already created a new African slave trade. The United Nations reports child labor in Africa has significantly increased in coltan and diamond mines. In some regions of the Congo, about 30 percent of schoolchildren are now forced to work in the mines.

      by ilyana on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 09:04:56 AM PDT

•  I use a local provider

  but I would recommend cingular because the employees get to unionize. I'm sure this was mentioned already :)

  by PhantomFly on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:21:27 AM PDT

•  Most important thing to know ...

  ... about mobile phones (the devices, not the service providers):

  Take it in to the shop for a routine annual check-up ... which means getting them to update/upgrade your software.  Crucial to your reception, since you're old handset may not be properly alligned with all the new towers, for example.

  Also, if you handset is more than 2 years old, get a new one.

  And, by "get a new one", I do not mean get a "freebie".  All those freebies (whether via rebates or whatever) are already old, which is why they're givin' 'em away!

  Good luck!

  by dobie on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:27:19 AM PDT

•  My Samsung SGH-X497 failed THIS MORNING!!!

  Going to the store to spend another X-hundred on a new one.  Sadly, my social life would grind to a halt without my cell phone.

  by Five of Diamonds on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:27:37 AM PDT

•  Cingular

  I use ti for long distance calls. My sibling, I have four, live all over. The rollover minutes are wonderful. I have had them since they took of Southern New England Telephone. The oldest telephone company in the US. Their service was fantastic. Cingular service seems to be improving.

  by Hamish in CT on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:28:48 AM PDT

•  Cingular complaint record - LINKS

  I had AT&T whose service was great but then they were sold to Cingular and my service tanked and they messed up my final accounting and several other months during the switch over.  Now it is being sold back to AT&T but they already lost my business.  Any my family's because several of us were on with the same companies and expereinced the same things - poor signals, bad service, incorrect bills, spending more (new phones, more expensive plans) for the switch from one company to the other.

  I am not proud of the company I use now - service is fine the but company is not a progressive as I'd like, so I am not advertising them.

  I really wanted Working Assets, but they could not confirm I would get cell service in the areas I travel through until after signing up.

  HERE ARE LINKS TO CINGULARS POOR CUSTORMER SERVICE

  http://www.engadget.com/...

  http://www.consumersunion.org/...

  In my experience/advise - use Cingular only if you do not want a signal nor customer service but do want only the model phone they choose and an increasing monthly bill.  They solution was always buy more - upgrade this, try this plan yada yada, but never worked plain a simple.  But do not do it until after they (re)sale is complete to AT&T.  \

  Can anyone confirm for me that Cingular's complaint department is unionized?  Do they farm out that portion of it's "service."

  by Aunt Susan on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:32:28 AM PDT

•  US Cellular

  I switched from Cingular to US Cellular a year or so ago.  I went from 1 phone to 3 and my overall expense dropped FOR THE relatively SAME plan.  Cingular had great recpetion everywhere as does US Cellular.  You can't get Sprint/Nextel/Verison at my house because thier towers are on the other side of a hill near my home! Har!

  by eAddict on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:41:54 AM PDT

•  cingular-- the only union option!!

  For tons more info on Cingular and why its the better option then Verizon, check this link out.

  http://www.americanrightsatwork.org/...

  by BeckyW on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:52:00 AM PDT

•  T-Mobile: Never a Problem

  I started using T-Mobile when I lived in Europe and took up a contract with them when I came back for sentimental reasons.  Service is reliable and fine.  They seem to have the least expensive plans, at least where I live.  And I've made several road trips in the past couple of years, covering America from coast to coast (literally: DC to Oregon) and been out of service only a few times: western Wyoming, southern Colorado and eastern Oregon/western Idaho.  I did have service all through the midwest and Great Plains.  I think it's a lot easier to cover more ground with fewer towers in the flatlands.

  I've recommended T-Mobile before and I'll do it again.  Good luck.

  by mam rad pivo on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:52:45 AM PDT

•  asdf

  Well don't use Verizon.  I am on a family plan with my 3 college children.  My bill was running $350 a month and I went in to see what I could to do get it lower (two of the kids have web access phones).  Anyway, I thought I had gotten it to maybe under $300.  Today I got the bill and it was $950!!  So now I have to go in and argue with them - and of course I will lose and have to pay it even though they said I had the best calling plan I could get with the types of phones we had.  I had a feeling the woman that I was talking to did not know what she was doing.  These phone companies are a big rip off.

  by BDA in VA on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 08:56:09 AM PDT

•  Questions about contract duration, plans, phones

  Some questions:

  • Does anyone offer 1-year contract with a new phone directly? Amazon offers 1-year contract with Verizon but not sure whether one can transfer the old number with this contract.
  • Can you get out of the contract without penalty if one is going out of the country for few months due to the job requirements?
  • Whats Verizon's "employee discount"? Is it for Verizon's employees only?
  • Whats the best phone deal with MP3 and camera?

  T-Mobil's $29.99 plan for 300 anytime minutes is real good but it does not offer "free night" minutes during weekdays (weekends are free though).

  by Observer on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 09:19:13 AM PDT

•  Check out Working Assets...

  although you may want to ask someone about how the network is...I think they use SprintPCS's network...I don't know if that means your calls will be dropped...or if it just means that the area of service is the same as Sprint's.

  by Elise on Thu Sep 14, 2006 at 09:59:26 AM PDT