Cell phone frustration

[P95Carry]

Frequently we refer to ''calling in'' if present at a situation - trying to be a good witness etc if we are able to avoid direct involvement.

But hey - how many here get real good signal most places? I sure don't! "Patchy" is a kind word. Does not seem either to matter too much which provider either round here.

Admittedly - I am semi rural re home location and area is I guess quite heavily rural - lots of ridges and mountains as obstacles - so hardly surprising in one respect. Heck - I cannot even use my cell from home - this is a dead zone!

I believe we are for most part still analog based - correct or not? Digital seems slow to come into use tho in UK IIRC digital is now the prime system.

So - do you guys all get good results where you are - or do you also suffer very annoying ''holes'' in the network?

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Bud White]

The only places i get holes in my cell area is way way out or up north by my cabin where nothing works


Also i use Cingular and it works better than anything ive had


Work phone is a sprint its crap works less than 45% of the time Nextel is just as bad now so i dumped them

Version was lot better but so far cingular is the best works 97% of the time for me

[rstickle]

I've had pretty good luck with my Sprint phone. I seem to get a signal, either theirs or another companies better than about 85% of the time.

[Zundfolge]

I live a few blocks southwest of down town Colorado Springs ... I can't get a cell phone signal in my living room.


I blame NORAD (which I can see from my front porch).

[rocky]

Good around town, but out in the woods , nothing at all in most places. Unless I find a high hill to climb.

[CLASS3NH]

I use Sprint, and it's pretty well covered where I am, except for waaaay up north, then the Canadian towers will take over ...and I never want that to happen LOL

[hawkeye680]

I use Verizon, and from my experience and a lot others that I know it is the best so far. I also stick with Motorola phones, because I believe they give better reception. My phone is clearer in spots where friends of mine with different brands aren't as clear.

[Sheldon J]

I've had pretty good luck with my Sprint phone. I seem to get a signal, either theirs or another companies better than about 85% of the time.

I've had real good luck with Sprint too, been all over the US heck it even worked in the Arizona desert, and in the middle of Petrified National.

[firefighter4884]

I switched up to a Nextel Phone just over a year ago because I use the 2 way radio in the phone as much or more then I use the actual phone. After my trip to Mississippi last week, I was seriously impressed with the service that Nextel had for the whole trip.

--Jim

P.S. - I get service around campus where most people don't. Including campus buildings that block most other providers.

[JT]

I use Verizon, and from my experience and a lot others that I know it is the best so far. I also stick with Motorola phones, because I believe they give better reception. My phone is clearer in spots where friends of mine with different brands aren't as clear.

I agree on Verizon for service and Motorola for phones.

[Bumper]

I have Alltell and got service about 10 miles off the beaten track (and in the middle of nowhere, Arizona) between Kingman and the Hoover Dam on Saturday afternoon. One of the guys with Sprint could not get one bar of signal, my Alltell had three bars. There are very few places I can't get an Alltell signal.....

[joe/OH]

I live in a fairly rural area as well and get VERY spotty signals with Nextel (company phone). In fact - you can pretty much count on it not getting any signal at all in most places. Verizon in my neck of the woods is better - but still not perfect.

[P95Carry]

Joe - seems to me somehow - we here in NE are possibly worse for reception than many - tho as I said initially the preponderance of small ridges as well as the mountains does play a part.

What really frustrates the heck outa me is just a few miles away (line of sight) is a tower on Babcock Ridge (Allagheny Range) - elev'n 2770 or so - and yet it does not as yet seem to be in use as my whole ''basin'' area is crap signal - seemingly for most services.

My phone is a basic Nokia but IIRC plugs in to Sprint system.

[LenS]

Although I live in the Boston area, there are towns that absolutely prohibit cell towers (sometimes they allow it on their high-lines near highways, doesn't help residents or those doing business in towns). My town is one of those.

I've tried the old Cell One (analog), Verizon (both analog and digital), AT&T (digital PCS) and now SprintPCS. AT&T could make a call, mostly missed incoming calls and would frequently drop a call at least once. ONLY SprintPCS allowed us to receive and make calls without dropping out here (drop a call once in a great while). Then SprintPCS won a Fed lawsuit against the town and installed a tower nearby last December, now we are balls-to-the-wall signal strength even in the cellar! Cell One and Verizon were totally useless here back when I had them and they still are (we had a grioup of friends over for dinner recently and asked them to check their phones . . . no signals on anything but Sprint). Our contract has expired, so we can move to any service without penalty, so the test was useful info . . . we must stay with Sprint.

When we vacationed in FL Sprint had great reception all around W. Palm Beach to Ft. Lauderdale are.

When we travel to Sunapee NH area, Sprint service is spotty (true for all providers). When we were in the North Conway/Mt. Washington area, Sprint service was poor to spotty (for all providers).

The real answer is what works in one area may not work in another area. Best phones/plans are useless if they don't have adequate coverage.

Boston area has excellent Verizon coverage, with Sprint probably just below that. T-Mobile here is the absolute worst for coverage area.

"One size does NOT fit all!"

[joe/OH]

Chris,

They figure us appalachian hillbillies don't know what a cell phone looks like - why have cell towers? That's one of dem der moe-bile phones.

Funny thing - I get better reception on the Upper Peninsula than in my backyard.