Michelle My Bell Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 I live in a large city, and am without a cell phone at present. My husband and I are going to get one each this week, but I don't know what kind to get. I am not going to be texting or anything fancy. I want to pay as little as possible, but not the pre-pay type of phones. Does anyone have any advise or cautions to share? Thanks for your help. If you know of any great plans to look for, please let me know that as well. God Bless, Michelle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EarleneW Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 Not sure where you are located, but I love TMobile. Have had them for 8 years and never had a problem! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skaterbabs Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 I've had Virginmobile since 2005 and have been nothing but pleased both with the quality of the service & equipment and with the value offered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G5052 Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 (edited) I'm always amazed at how variable cell service is in this country. Even the plans vary by region, which is why many cell phone web sites ask for your zip/state. In my metropolitan area, it really doesn't matter what company you go with. The coverage is about the same, and you pay about the same unless you go with a package deal with your land phoneline/cable/Internet company. I'd start by calling your current providers that way to see what they offer. However...ah however. If you travel to different parts of the country, different providers have different coverage. My cell phone fizzled right away while I was out west on family business in April, and I bought a new one there with the same plan so I could keep my minutes. Two years ago I got great coverage there, and even let several people use my phone when theirs didn't work. Now I have almost no coverage there once I get off the interstate. At home I have zero gaps. Arg! Edited August 10, 2009 by GVA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WTMCassandra Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 When I move to a new area, I tend to ask around and see what people have and whether they like it (e.g., do they have good coverage, few dropped calls, reasonable bill, etc.). But since I've gotten an iPhone I've had to be monogamous with AT&T. The good news is that they have good coverage in the area I live in now (praying I don't have to move anytime soon!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegGuheert Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 Not sure where you are located, but I love TMobile. Have had them for 8 years and never had a problem!We've also had T-Mobile for 8 years and love them! They are behind in deploying their next-generation (3G) data services, so you may find they are a little cheaper than Verizon and AT&T. For instance, MomsintheGarden and I get UNLIMITED minutes for TWO phones for $90/mo. I don't think any of the other large carrier offers such a deal. (This deal is only available to loyal customers, so newcomers cannot get it.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 I would really recommend checking websites for cell phone coverage for the area you live in and any areas you plan to visit. We chose Verizon because we got the service when we were living on a Florida island. THe other carriers didn't have good service at all. In fact, I would have to laugh about the cell phone commercial where the lady has to go out by the trashcans to get service since that was us with our first service. Fortunately for us, Verizon still works and we don't have a contract and hope not to get one in case we move to an area it doesn't work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafiki Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TCoppock Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 We live in an area where most cellphones have no coverage. We chose Sprint/Nextel and have been overall pleased with the phone service. However, it is much more expensive and there customer service people leave much to be desired. I had a cheapo Metro PCS prior to living here and it worked just fine for my needs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LynneMcCormick Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 Cell phone service really depends on where you live and the coverage you will receive. We had TMobile and hated every min we had them. Horrible customer service and horrible cell phone coverage. We are currently on verizon and have awesome customer service and coverage. We even have coverage way out in the boonies! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cindie2dds Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 We live in a place where there is no cell phone service unless you have AT&T or Verizon. We had T-mobile for a while and used (UMA ~ over the internet for unlimited minutes) but it wasn't reliable. When my company offered a discount with AT&T we switched. It's really nice being able to actually use my cell phone in my house, especially since we are here most of the time. I agree with other posters, coverage is key. Most companies have a 30 "trial" to see if you like their service. This is a great idea to check out because T-mobile's computer said we had service, but we didn't. Although, since T-mobile has UMA, it wasn't a big deal to us at the time. If you are going to get just a phone to talk on, I'd say go for the coverage and cheapest package. 3G makes a big difference if you are going to get a smart phone (we did). We had a Blackberry Curve with T-Mobile and now we have an iPhone 3G with AT&T. I know the iPhone is faster because of the faster processor in it; but it is lightning fast compared with how fast our Blackberry was on T-mobile's network, just something else to ponder. :tongue_smilie: Good Luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TN Mama Posted August 11, 2009 Share Posted August 11, 2009 Another thing to consider is who your family/friends have as their service provider. If you're trying to decide between AT&T or Verizon (for example), calls between others on the same network do not count against your minutes. We've had AT&T for many years and I've been very pleased. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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