[carpetbagger]

Hi there, folks. I'm getting very close to a deal that will bring myself, my wife, and son back home to Arkansas with a quickness. I'm trying to get all my ducks in a row here, because this thing is likely to happen, and fast. We're going to Batesville so i would like to fish for some opinions, if I may, on cell service and internet service in the area, as I will be lucky enough to work out of the home, so both will be pretty important to me. I'm hoping there are some people in or around Batesville that might read this and help me out.

Cell service: Which carrier has the best coverage? I assume it's Verizon, since I am aware that they bought Alltel not too long ago. How's the coverage there? Anybody using data, because I'm a fairly heavy user of data and would like to know if availabilty is good. Personally, I am partial to Sprint, as it's hard to beat their prices for data, but I know the network isn't as vast as Verizon's. Anybody using that there?

Broadband internet: I do my homework, and what I'm coming up with is Suddenlink. Are there other providers I'm overlooking? Does anybody have any numbers as far as download/upload speeds? Is the service good/consistent? Lots of outages or is it pretty stable? Is true broadband availability limited to certain areas of town, or does availability extend to any areas outside of town?

Thank you so much in advance for any information anyone has on this. I'll owe you a beer at the local watering hole. Even though there's a breathtaking amount of beauty out west here, I'm very much looking forward to getting us back to the Natural State.


WOOOOOOOOO...... PIG! SOOIE!

[RogMar]

Originally Posted by carpetbagger

Hi there, folks. I'm getting very close to a deal that will bring myself, my wife, and son back home to Arkansas with a quickness. I'm trying to get all my ducks in a row here, because this thing is likely to happen, and fast. We're going to Batesville so i would like to fish for some opinions, if I may, on cell service and internet service in the area, as I will be lucky enough to work out of the home, so both will be pretty important to me. I'm hoping there are some people in or around Batesville that might read this and help me out.

Cell service: Which carrier has the best coverage? I assume it's Verizon, since I am aware that they bought Alltel not too long ago. How's the coverage there? Anybody using data, because I'm a fairly heavy user of data and would like to know if availabilty is good. Personally, I am partial to Sprint, as it's hard to beat their prices for data, but I know the network isn't as vast as Verizon's. Anybody using that there?

Broadband internet: I do my homework, and what I'm coming up with is Suddenlink. Are there other providers I'm overlooking? Does anybody have any numbers as far as download/upload speeds? Is the service good/consistent? Lots of outages or is it pretty stable? Is true broadband availability limited to certain areas of town, or does availability extend to any areas outside of town?

Thank you so much in advance for any information anyone has on this. I'll owe you a beer at the local watering hole. Even though there's a breathtaking amount of beauty out west here, I'm very much looking forward to getting us back to the Natural State.


WOOOOOOOOO...... PIG! SOOIE!

Whew.....

I live near Batesville, as such, and I'm over there frequently.

I have Verizon, and over all, it's the absolute least problems and best coverage around here. I have neighbors on other services that have problems.

I use Verizon wireless for internet, and it's a pretty good 1400kbs connection, at times wavering down around 600, then popping back up.

I believe Century Tel, which is called something else now, offers DSL service there, which I've heard no complaints about. That should be available all over, as in the last 1 1/2 years they have even offered it in my area, and we're lucky to even have electricity.

I don't think you'll have any broadband problems at all in Batesville, there's a ton of medical facilities and businesses that depend on it.

Hope that helps.

[carpetbagger]

Thank, you for the feedback, RogMar! Exactly the kind of info I'm looking for. I suspected as much re: cell service. I certainly plan to talk to different providers of both cellular and internet service about their offerings, but I want to make sure I'm getting the straight dope, so to speak, from them, and the only way to do that is to try and talk to their customers!

[RogMar]

Originally Posted by carpetbagger

Thank, you for the feedback, RogMar! Exactly the kind of info I'm looking for. I suspected as much re: cell service. I certainly plan to talk to different providers of both cellular and internet service about their offerings, but I want to make sure I'm getting the straight dope, so to speak, from them, and the only way to do that is to try and talk to their customers!

You're welcome.

Batesville is the second oldest city in Arkansas, and I find it a nice balance of charm, progress (Arkansas style...no monorails), scenerey and services.

I have sat in the nice little park area, complete with a pavillion, west of Josie's & not far from the dam, and surfed effortlessley on the laptop.

Hope you enjoy the environs.

BTW, you might want to change the nic.....carpetbagger season is getting tantalizingly close!!

[Dr. Foosball]

The only thing I know about Batesville is that they get a plug on national tv every Sunday because of Mark Martin. I bet Mark probably spends less than a few days per year there though.

[johngpt]

We were in Batesville in April for my son's orientation at Lyon. We were told that the only consistent service comes from Verizon or AT&T. I guess the iPhone is pretty popular there. We have T-mobile currently, and had zero service in the area. T-mobile is actually going to let our son out of our contract because of that lack of service.

[johngpt]

One year ago this month, when my son began school there, we switched from T-mobile to Verizon. There's been no problem with service. Text messages and calls go through without a problem.