wireless service opinions

[whitepilot]

I am currently a sprint customer but am considering switching over to Cingular since they have rollover minutes, as well as adding a second line for only 9.99 compared to the $20 (I think 20$) sprint charges. anyone have any experience with Cingular, sprint has never really impresed me, I still often miss calls, and sometimes never get any voicemail.

P.S. and with Cingular I can go back to a motorolla phone

thanks in advance

[jay]

I can't tell you about your area, but here in Northern Virginia Cingular regularly ranks last in service and last or next to last in customer support, behind Verizon Wireless, AT&T Wireless, Sprint PCS, and T-Mobile. Their rates and rollover minutes are tempting, though.

[Alexandra242628]

I have had Cingular for about 9 years (before they were Cingular) and have never had any problems. They have good customer service. I use the Rollover plan, as well as their mobile to mobile plan (where you can talk to Cingular customers for free). This gives me plenty of rollover minutes since almost everyone I know uses them. The only thing I am not crazy about is their phone selection. I think T-Mobile and Sprint have a better selection.

[ramirami]

Originally posted by whitepilot

P.S. and with Cingular I can go back to a motorolla phone

thats the spirit.... always buy Motorola phones

[Ziploc]

Originally posted by whitepilot
~snip~anyone have any experience with Cingular, thanks in advance ~snip~

All I can say is that Cingular does not seem to be favored in my area (greater VA/DC/MD). They do have an appealing rollover of unused minutes, unlike my plan with Verizon Wireless. However, I've been very happy with Verizon's service--call quality is fine, very few weak areas, only had 2 dropped calls in 2 years. Also, mobile-to mobile (both Verizon) minutes are free.

[whitepilot]

Yeah Rami, my sister used to work for motorolla in Chicago, and my Brother in law still does, I cought a lot of crap when my startac died and sprint replaced it with a samsung....

[RocketMan]

I used to have Cingular for many years until I got fed up with their reception and crappy customer service. I live in the SF Bay Area, and a lot of folks are not too happy with Cingular. They suck big time!!!

I switched to T-Mobile and have been happy ever since.

[guitarman]

The best service for you really depends a lot on the coverage in your specific area. In the MD/DC/VA region, Cingular ranks last with regards to dropped calls, poor reception, and customer service. I've had Verizon, AT&T, and now Nextel. For me, Nextel has been the best. And the walkie talkie feature with Nextel is great for quick calls to my wife. The walkie talkie time is billed by the second, rather than by the minute like cellular calls. So, you get more for your money.

As far as phones go, I agree that Motorola is the way to go. They are built like Mack trucks.

[iivtecracerii]

Originally posted by RocketMan
I used to have Cingular for many years until I got fed up with their reception and crappy customer service. I live in the SF Bay Area, and a lot of folks are not too happy with Cingular. They suck big time!!!

I switched to T-Mobile and have been happy ever since.

thats odd....dont T-Mobile and Cingular share networks? (at least thats what i heard.. )

my dad has cingular....had it since they were pac bell wireless. here in CA its GSM, but im sure its still TDMA in most other parts of the country, which may or may not be better. coverage is kind of spotty here, but where my friend's phones (AT&T) dont work, mine works beautifully . i think thats just a coincidence. as for rollover... SUPER COOL
we have 600 anytime rollover / 5000 N&WE / Unlim. M2M with a total of 3 lines. got 1199 rollover mins to use up. thats about 1800 mins next month . i better start talking more

that being said, just go try it out and test how coverage is in your area. cingular has a 15 day trial period, AT&T has a 30 day, not sure about other companies.

[AlH]

Originally posted by ramirami
thats the spirit.... always buy Motorola phones

Well maybe except for the T720 and to some degree the V60. Some problems with garbled audio in the V60. If you are like me and never turn it off, a battery removal about once a week stops that.
Sortof a hard reset.
Lots of problems in the T720, a worse performer than the V60 and worse battery life, expecially in analog.

Someone mentioned Samsung. It has the highest dropped call rate of all phones in my system.

[Phil_D]

Originally posted by AlH
Well maybe except for the T720 and to some degree the V60. Some problems with garbled audio in the V60. If you are like me and never turn it off, a battery removal about once a week stops that.
Sortof a hard reset.
Lots of problems in the T720, a worse performer than the V60 and worse battery life, expecially in analog.

Someone mentioned Samsung. It has the highest dropped call rate of all phones in my system.

Re the T720 issue, I would suggest taking the phone into your local Verizon store and ask them to upgrade the software to the T730 version (I just did this last week and saw an improvement in reception and reduced failures).

Re Service opinions, the best bet is to talk with folks you know using different providers in your area. Service varies wildly among different areas.

I've had both Cingular and Verizon in the DC/MD/VA area. Here Verizon has better coverage over a wider area. The Cingular "home area" does not cover much. Last week in Central-by-God-Nowhere Pennsylvania, I was able to pick up the Verizon phone and make calls with no problem. My sisters Sprint and brothers Cingular were both "roaming", with Cingular actually charging extra for the roam.

--Phil

[ramirami]

Originally posted by AlH

Lots of problems in the T720, a worse performer than the V60 and worse battery life, expecially in analog.

I have the T720i fromT-mobile...no problems at all..love the phone....do you need a S/W upgrade??

[jay]

Verizon Wireless ranks tops in 5 of 6 regions, if you believe the J.D. Power study here.

[AlH]

Originally posted by ramirami
I have the T720i fromT-mobile...no problems at all..love the phone....do you need a S/W upgrade??

Yep sure do. Motorola released the 720 before it was ready apparently. Verizon actually quit selling them for awhile I'm told, so many problems. I work for a cellular company in the network side of things....we tell the salepeople to not sell a 720 unless a customer really really really wants one. Many of the 720s also have problems with beeps and warbles on headsets too. Motorola has come out with a fix for that but it requires swapping the phone out! Amazing, apparently no one at Motorola ever tried a headset before they started selling them. Wonder why Motorola is rapidly losing market share? Not me, not anymore. Batwings ain 't what they used to be.

[robrecht]

Verizon sells the tiny LG black & white 1x phone for $50--great battery life and the best audio reception of any cell phone I have ever used. Currently, I'm trying the Samsung A530, but I'm thinking of going back to that little black and white LG phone.

Verizon & Motorola used to be a marriage made in heaven, but the CDMA v60 phones had that AWEFUL breakaway antenna and the T720s were horrible. Supposedly the software upgrade has helped and the 730s are better, but in the meantime so many of have lost confidence in Motorola CDMA.

A B&W v60 with a good antenna, 1x, and bluetooth would bring me back in a heartbeat, but Verizon won't even sell a nonbluetooth v60x because they want to use the v60p to push their push-to-talk plans (a Verizon store manager told me this). Sorry, I need battery life more than I need push to talk.

I'm sorry to say that Motorola will be studied in business school soon.