How many still use a pager?

[Daniella]

I found out that a pager must be better then a cell phone..so i was just curious, how many does still use a pager? Is it still possible for a private to buy a pager?

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[rstickle]

I went the other way, from pager to cell. When you are paged, you usually have to call in......... I decided to eliminate the middle man.

You should still be able to buy/rent a pager as an individual.

[goldshellback]

We were "issued" them for work.....mine 'accidently' came off my belt and 'fell' into the comode after finishing my 'paperwork'.


I'm told I'll get 'issued' another next quarter.

I'm married so I'm on a short enough leash as it is!

[ccw9mm]

I found out that a pager must be better then a cell phone.

Must be? How's that?

I think of a cell phone as a pager, as the phone can perform that function. It also has the added ability to place/receive calls, which can be useful in a security situation. Depending what you want the one device you carry to do, I'd think a cell phone the "better" of the two choices.

[SIXTO]

They are still out there, but hard to find. I finally switched to a phone when I had trouble finding a pager service.

My wife still uses one, work gives her one when she is on call for the O.R. I hate the thing, it goes off without fail at 4am.

[LenS]

I found out that a pager must be better then a cell phone..so i was just curious, how many does still use a pager? Is it still possible for a private to buy a pager?

Pager "reception" is more reliable than cell calls. Text messages on a cell phone are also more reliable than actual cell calls.

I used a pager for many years. Gave out the pager number and used the cell phone (when reception allowed) to return calls. Medical folks still use pagers but most other folks seem to have abandoned them.

I always purchased mine, don't believe in paying "rent".

As cell service in this area became more reliable, I terminated my pager service. I still have 2 or 3 Motorola pagers in excellent condition, if anyone is interested.

Caution if you use Arch Wireless for your service. Even though I bought my pagers outright from them, they dunned me a few times for "not returning rental equipment". They fixed it a few times, but when I terminated the contract, they ignored my letters (with proof of purchase) and put the "failure to return equipment" (that I owned) out for collection. I ended up threatening the collection company with charges of consumer fraud and Arch corporate offices ignored my letter on the matter (they also moved to parts unknown). The letters stopped but I wouldn't be surprised if they reported it to the credit bureaus.

[DrLewall]

I would much rather have a pager than a cell. I am all for recieving a text on my pager, I do hate having to make a call and talk to anyone tho. So after a few heated arguments with the "little woman", I had to terminate my pager service and get one of those damned cell phones..my cell has on several occasions come real close to going to cell phone heaven..anyway, I donated my pager to a local search and rescue team..I sure miss it tho..much more reliable than a damn cell phone!

[packinnova]

Pager "reception" is more reliable than cell calls. Text messages on a cell phone are also more reliable than actual cell calls.

I used a pager for many years. Gave out the pager number and used the cell phone (when reception allowed) to return calls. Medical folks still use pagers but most other folks seem to have abandoned them.

I always purchased mine, don't believe in paying "rent".

As cell service in this area became more reliable, I terminated my pager service. I still have 2 or 3 Motorola pagers in excellent condition, if anyone is interested.

Caution if you use Arch Wireless for your service. Even though I bought my pagers outright from them, they dunned me a few times for "not returning rental equipment". They fixed it a few times, but when I terminated the contract, they ignored my letters (with proof of purchase) and put the "failure to return equipment" (that I owned) out for collection. I ended up threatening the collection company with charges of consumer fraud and Arch corporate offices ignored my letter on the matter (they also moved to parts unknown). The letters stopped but I wouldn't be surprised if they reported it to the credit bureaus.

umm...I could be wrong, but if they already sent the collection hounds after you, they probably dinged your credit too. I would keep on them to make sure. That's all you need is some other bozo somewhere else that screwed up, to screw up YOUR credit and good name...just a thought

[Cupcake]

Work forces me to carry one (only during working hours). They keep talking about giving us walkies...I hope that never happens.

[obxned]

With a pager, you still usually have to call someone to get the details of what the page is all about. Working pay phones get harder to find every day, and you have to keep a pocket-full of change at all times.

[Bark'n]

I haven't carried a pager in ages... I actually went without anything for a long time before finally getting a cell phone.

Cell phone is really convenient. I make more calls then I receive because I don't give out cell phone number to a lot of people which makes it not too annoying.

You can also opt not to answer the cell phone if you don't feel like talking.

[David in FL]

Not in 10 years. There's nothing that a pager can do that a cell phone cannot. You can't say the same for the pager.

I go so far as to say that most people who still carry pagers do so because their jobs require it......and I'll bet that most of them also carry a cell phone so they can return a call if they're paged.

[rodc13]

A pager? That's sooo 80's . . .

[LenS]

umm...I could be wrong, but if they already sent the collection hounds after you, they probably dinged your credit too. I would keep on them to make sure. That's all you need is some other bozo somewhere else that screwed up, to screw up YOUR credit and good name...just a thought

When I first got the erroneous bill, I mailed Arch's billing office, with copies of my purchase invoice.

When the collection agency came after me, I again mailed Arch (HQ this time) and the collection agency.

Yup, they probably did. This was 4-5 years ago and it will roll off on its own before I'll care. I don't accept any more credit offers (get tons of them and shred them almost daily), got plenty of credit now and pay all my bills on time. So whatever they did won't really effect me.

[jarhead79]

This is a strange thread.

There aren't many places left in this country of ours where reception is bad. I live near mountains and never have trouble. I guess if you live in Podunk, Arkansas or somewhere else remote, you might have issues. More commonly, there are a few cell providers in an area, but only one actually has "good" service coverage. I've seen that several times, even in big cities.

Nate