Cellular Telephone Service, aka Cell Mobile Phone

[Sonic_Spork]

I have been with AT&T for ten years. My (informal) opinion is that while some carriers might have "more 4G coverage" AT&T does well when it comes to less dead zones. In other words, they might not have upgraded all of their speed offerings everywhere, but if you're driving through the Mojave, or some similarly remote locale, you are less likely to lose signal completely. My husband can back this up, being military he has been in remote training locations where he is the only one with a signal.

My main complaint, which I think is quite possibly the case with all or most carriers, is that their support isn't prepared to handle the complexities of the devices. Smartphones are like little computers. In fact I recall a recent Facebook quip that stated that we went to the moon with computers far less sophisticated than the average smartphone. And the customer service and tech support staff that takes calls...they don't really know how to properly troubleshoot issues. So far my best solution for hardware problems has been to upgrade whenever possible under my contract, and keep all old cell phones as backups in case a new one breaks or doesn't work out. And just try getting any kind of geeky comparisons when comparison shopping, on your carrier's website...no, you need to do google research to get a real idea of the nuts and bolts and benchmarking...

So yeah, a phone company trying to support computer devices is like bringing a butter knife to a gun fight.

I'm considering also seeking a provider with better unlimited data options.

[lurtsman]

Has anyone on here had experience with Virgin Mobile?

My wife was looking for a new cell phone option for us and they appeared to be the cheapest, but we didn't have any prior experience with them.

[Vision67]

I don't use Virgin, but I use Tracfone. They are a prepaid cell phone supplier and they use Verizon as a carrier. The total cost is about $100 per year. I use a cell phone only as an occasional phone so I can be reached easily and I use it just to call infrequently. I've had this since 2006 and am totally satisfied. Look on Amazon.com for the phones offered. Mine is just a Nokia candy bar dumb phone. It is totally satisfactory.

[Terytee]

Lurts,

It's a tough one to answer, because it totally depends on what part of town you live/work in.

My folks had T-mobile and moved to the Fountain/Widefield area, which is just South past the Airport, straight down Powers Blvd., and they had very little useable signal with T-mobile in that area. North of their home, in my neighborhood, it was fine.

I would often try to get in touch with them via cell, and it would go straight to voice-mail. In the meantime, they would both be at home, and the phone wouldn't even ring, because it had no signal at their home.

I've used Sprint, with a work provided phone and service, and it worked great at home and around town, but it had very little signal at the very North side of town, which ironically where I work. I couldn't use it during work!

I've recently switched to AT&T, and it seems to work fine for me, no matter where I am. I believe Verizon is also very widespread in this area.

I know it's annoying, but it totally depends on where you are.

[beezle1]

FYI - I have Verizon service. I live in one of those areas up on the Palmer Divide where I don't get a signal unless I climb up the hill. I finally bought one of those network extenders from Verizon and I am able to actually use my cell phone from home now! It was a bit pricey (I think $200-300 if I recall), but it has made all the difference in getting coverage here at home where I could not before. The only complaint is that when I use the cell phone here at home, it has that slight delay that make conversations a little annoying. I would expect other carriers have similar network extenders which may help you with coverage at you home too.

[lalahartma]

I have T-Mobile and the coverage is not great.

[vnodak]

I am presently with Verizon and have had At@t before but they both are expensive. Would I be shooting myself in the foot to change to something cheaper?? What about reception?? Are their good options out there or do you just get what you pay for? Thanks

[colobill]

After several years with Verizon, we just switched to T-Mobile. We were looking to get 5 smart phones. Verizon would have been $270 per month, T-Mobile is about $135 per month. The T-Mobile network isn't as good, but as long as you are in populated areas, or on a major road you should have a signal. The only way to make Verizon a reasonable value is to do a 2 year contract and get a discount on the phones, but it is still more expensive than T-Mobile. We are happy with the move to T-Mobile. Wendy at the Southgate store was very helpful.