Cell phones

[sandra]

This is totally off the cycling topic. I have a Razr phone and love the size, but the phone is pathetic. When people call me, half the time my phone never rings. It goes straight to voice mail. When DH dislocated his shoulder he tried to call me three times before he finally got me. My phone never rang until his third attempt.

It's getting more and more frequent. Do any of you have a Razr and have this problem? I would consider a new phone, but I don't know what would be any better. Most of the phones now are way more than I need. I just need a phone and like the camera, but don't need data.

[surgtech1956]

I have a Razr v3 - like the phone. I have the same probably too sometimes. The only time I don't get a call and it goes straight to my voicemail is when I'm inside certain places/certain areas. I work at a hospital and all my calls usually go to my voicemail , but this has happened with my past 3 phones. I like a basic phone - don't need all the extras either. but they're becoming harder to find.

[Zen]

I have a $20 Nokia phone from Tracfone. Works just fine.

[blueskies]

Are you sure the problem is your phone and not your service? Just a thought... If your service wasn't working in the area that you were in, the call would go straight to voice mail.

[sandra]

Are you sure the problem is your phone and not your service? Just a thought... If your service wasn't working in the area that you were in, the call would go straight to voice mail.

No, I'm not sure. The cell phone company has reset the phone several times. It is inside my house and a lot of the time it works, so I really don't know.

[KnottedYet]

I get that problem when my tower is weak. People call me, go straight to voice mail, and later I hear the phone beep the little message alert.

I have an older LG phone that is JUST a phone. Believe me, I wanna keep this phone running for as long as I can!

(and then, maybe an iPhone?)

[OakLeaf]

Depending on where you are in Mississippi, you may just not get on well with "modern" phones. Most new phones these days are digital only, but there are still a LOT of rural areas that have only analog service.

That's why I switched carriers, actually. I'd been a happy Cingular customer for like 10 years, but I really needed a new phone, and Cingular doesn't offer any phones with analog service. I went to Verizon and got an LG VX5300, which may be the only analog phone they offer, if they even still do. It isn't nearly as convenient as the Nokia phones I've had, but I didn't *lose* coverage by getting a new phone, and that was my main criterion.

Plus, I finally got the next level of digital speed plus Bluetooth... infrared dial-up Internet connection was just a PITA.

[KnottedYet]

Ooh, yeah, my LG is one of the last analog/digital phones I could find. (I think it was called a "trimodal" phone?) Another reason to keep it!

[Zen]

I've got one of those "bag phones" around somewhere. I bet it works great!

[Mr. Bloom]

I have two Razr's (one for each personality ). I agree that the problem is probably the service and not the phone.

Silver had this problem with her non-Razr and cingular indicated that there were some downloads needed to update the programing...or something like that (my other personality has the better memory )

[Tuckervill]

I have a V3, and I've never had a minute's trouble with it in about a year. I could even use it in Vermont where I never had service with my old phones. And, even if there's only one blip on the signal, I can still hear and be heard just fine.

I'm not sure but I thought I saw where my V3 had a setting for analog/digital or automatic. I can't remember when I got mine, maybe a year ago...but I feel like people who have had one for a long time, since they were out, have more trouble with batteries, etc. Mine may be second generation or something.

Karen

[PscyclePath]

I've been using a Razr for around a year and a half now... the problem is most likely with the service rather than the phone. I was a faithful Alltel customer for around 10 years, until it got to the point that the phone (an LG) could never get signal inside the house or the office buildng, and I could go out in the yard where I could see five different cell towers, and still get maybe one bar... I switched to Cingular and the Razr, and reception improved enormously, though I still do most of my cell phoning from the lawn chair along the back fence ;-)

Tom

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I have a $20 Nokia phone from Tracfone. Works just fine.

Another happy Tracfone user here. I got the $50 LG flip phone though, and i LOVE it. After buying the phone itself- the total usage only costs me about 5 dollars a month. No contracts or monthly fees, and it piggybacks onto whatever local towers there are near you. Cool.

[Trek420]

I have an LG, LG3000 I think. My only criteria was battery life. Of the phones Cingular had this and the Razor had the longest standby and talk time.

I just don't like the look and feel of the Razor, too hard edged. I know it is on the leading edge of the whole smaller, thinner, lighter thang. I just don't find it visually pleasing. Yeah, that stuff's important to me.

I've found models Nokias reliable, still have my first one circa '97 and believe if I pop the chip in it would work so my old Nokias are in the earthquake supply kit.

Motorollas I have had and loved work great ..... for about a year

[Hub]

Who's your provider?
Cellular South, Cingular? that is more likely to be the difference- unless you've recently dropped the phone lately.
Cell towers are supposed to be a semi-permanent part of the landscape, but they have issue from time to time and need service themselves.

I have a new Razr v-3- and really like it.- and I'use cellular south