Cell Phones Networks - who do you have?

[surgtech1956]

Who do you have for a cell phone provider/network and are you satisfied with it? We've had Verizon for probably 10 years and thinking about switching to something else, maybe Alltel. Our contact isn't up until next month, but Verizon's been sending me a letter every other month to upgrade/renew and every Verizon store I've gone into I can't get any good customer service and they either have just a basic phone or one can do just about everything except cook a meal.

[greycoral]

Who do you have for a cell phone provider/network and are you satisfied with it? We've had Verizon for probably 10 years and thinking about switching to something else, maybe Alltel. Our contact isn't up until next month, but Verizon's been sending me a letter every other month to upgrade/renew and every Verizon store I've gone into I can't get any good customer service and they either have just a basic phone or one can do just about everything except cook a meal.

Can't help you there, I've also had Verizon for a really long time. My husband, before we started dating, tried several different services (ATT, Sprint, T-mobile, Cingular), and he has said that Verizon's coverage has been the best out of all of them. A lot of the coverage issues I think have to do with where you live in particular though.

Verizon is pretty expensive, but I'm happy. I use my cell as my primary phone, we don't even have a landline, so the cost doesn't bother me all that much. It's $100 for two of us, with a ton of minutes, we never even use half of them.

[Blueberry]

We were with Alltel (which btw is now owned by Verizon) and had terrible service. I got no reception in my office, and couldn't drive 3 miles without dropping a call. Near downtown Raleigh. They were much less than helpful. When we canceled, they required that we pay the bill (even though it was for the next month that we wouldn't use because we canceled), we got a statement with a credit, and they "erased" the credit. It took well over 10 HOURS on the phone with them to get a refund check. Bad business practices in my book.

Verizon has good coverage, and we're fairly happy with them. Once in a while, I think about switching to AT&T.

CA

[wnyrider]

My husband and I have those pay as you go phones. I have been with Virgin Mobile for over 3 years and he started with T-Mobile a year ago. I don't use my phone much and pay 25 cents for the first 10 minutes then 10 cents after that. The service has been really good. My husband got in on the Gold plan the first year... Target had a sale which included a $100 card and free phone for only $88. It gives 10 cents a minute good for a year and if you purchase additional minutes, even as little as $5, it will extend your minutes for another year. His reception doesn't seem as sensitive as mine, but it is still acceptable. We have different phones, so I don't know if it is the plans or phones that makes a difference in signal strength. I bought a T-Mobile Gold plan for my elderly Mom too. Works for us!

[IFjane]

My DH and I both have ATT phones and do not have a land line. We live in the boonies and our service is great. However, as someone previously said, it all depends on your location and your carrier. (Coincidentally, my DH works for a company that analyzes cell phone signal strength from one competitor to another, all over the US.)

[OakLeaf]

I switched to Verizon 3 years ago because Cingular (now AT&T) no longer offered phones that had analog service. I'd been really happy with Cingular, but I needed a new phone. Verizon still offers a VX5400. It's a pretty basic phone, but that's how I am - I prefer another device to do everything else, so I can take notes when I'm on the phone. (Yeah I know I could do that with a Bluetooth headset, but that's still another device I'd have to carry.)

It's much less of an issue now than it was even 2 years ago, out east anyway - I think there still isn't digital coverage in a lot of places in the west? But anyway I don't want to reduce my ability to get help in an emergency by going with a digital-only phone, when I spend a lot of time in the boonies.

[TsPoet]

I had Verizon for years and was happy. My family all switched from Sprint to AT&T, so I switched, too.
We are all terribly unhappy. So unhappy we are considering eating the early cancellation fee and going back to Verizon.
We got Razr phones, cause that's what AT&T were pushing really hard. Two of us have re-charging issues and have had to buy new batteries. and we all three hate the phones.
AT&T reception stinks, dropped calls are the norm. I can't tell you how often my phone beeps to tell me I just missed a call when I am not moving, totally can't understand why it can get through to tell me it couldn't get through. If you accidentally talk at the same time as the person on the other end, the signal goes silent for a second.
Their customer service seems good, but doesn't do anything.
Can't wait to get back to Verizon. My mom and brother can't decide between Verizon and Sprint, they were happy with Sprint.

[pardes]

I have Virgin Mobile since I get totally rabid about companies that demand two year contracts.

The Virgin company is fine to deal with and very helpful. Coverage is fine for my area but then I probably only make a dozen calls a year so it rarely becomes an issue.

I have a cell phone for emergencies only. Talking on a phone for anything longer than a minute or two has never been a pastime of mine. Naturally this inflames anyone trying to reach me since I rarely answer the phone. Shrug.

[Aggie_Ama]

I have T-Mobile because it was where I landed on my mom's contract in college. Now my parents, brother, husband and I are all on a big family share plan. We write a check to my mom and it stays cheap for us all. I am pretty happy with the phone service (though not motorola phones!), my mom says customer service is great. The coverage is spotty in some areas (far hill country, Dallas Metro) but otherwise great. I get 4-5 bars all over my house so I don't need a landline. Makes me happy as a clam to not have that bill! You can check the coverage area at t-mobile.com if you want to consider them.