cell phone service

Alright...this can be like arguing religions, but im looking for feedback on cell phone service.  Currently I have ATT, and have had them for a few years, but since I moved to flagstaff, their service hasnt been that great.  I have since upgraded the sim card in my RAZR (shouldbe called a POS), and it seems to have improved.  However, I am off contract and month to month right now, so I am a free agent.  I have been comparing ATT, Verizon, Tmobile, and Sprint.  I tend to talk aroun 500 min/month and text between 200-300 / month.  my synopses:

ATT - really good prices on phones, especially since I am a returning customer, but their texting plans suck, unless you are a total junkie.  Rate plansor ok.  Moving up night and weekends is expensive.  Service ok it seems.

Verizon - Expensive phones, decent rate plans, early night and weekends not too bad.  Texting plans better than ATT it seems.  Service supposedly pretty good in my area.

Tmobile - Cheap rate plans, very cheap texting.  Phones about avg price.  Service unknown.  Have heard bad things about the service.

Sprint - Avg rate plans, early night and weekends inc.  Text plans reasonable as well.  Phone prices a little steep.  Service quality unknown in my area.

your input?

I have sprint and i have hated it for the 4 years that ive been iwth them. I havent bothered to change because i dont really use my phone. My mom and sister have tmobil and they hate it, id ont really know why there still with it. I havent heard anything but good things about verizon. Then again im in NY so our coverage may be a little different.

yeah...

t-mobile = ?

yea they def get the used one

I can't really recommend any of those because the only service that is worth a crap here in Mississippi is Cellular South.  I get service anywhere.  It's a crapshoot if you will get any service with the other providers.  My plan is unlimited nationwide free anytime calls for $59.99 plus unlimited text messaging for $7 extra.  I added another line with the same things for my wife for $29.99.  So for about $100/month I don't ever have to worry about using up my minutes, roaming, or long distance calls.  Plus I can text all I want.  That could just be something to compare to.  I think it is so funny when those big companies advertize some "new" service that Cellular South has been offering for years. 

Hi, Ive had both TMobile..4rs with TMobile last 2yrs was a fight with mystery charges..Sprint plan sucks mystery charges,POOR customer service,and WAY to many dropped calls....I now have Pre Pay with NET10..NO troubles what so ever!!! I pay $30 for 300mins n serves me fine..I bought the cell (Nokia) for $43 or so with 300 mins right off the bat...

net10?  is that a local service?  I ahve not heard of them....

They are nationwide, I got mine from a local Wal Mart...google Net10 they will give u all info u need 

go with verizon,,  they run specials at times when you can get phone real cheap..
Go online on  their home site and look around for specials ..

I have US Cellular.  Not many complaints.  Just remember that the service isnt always the satellite..it may be the phone.
 
Oh and btw, when we get cell phones my mom always refuses to pay the activation fee.  Guess what?  She always gets it free.  They arent going to lose comission/ a customer over a $30 charge.  Trust me it works!  They'll be like well...you have to and after awhile they will eventually call headquarters and youll save some dough!

You are a professor correct?  See if any of those companies have some type of deals for people in your profession.  Don't know if they do, but it might be worth a shot. 

Stay away from t mobile.  I have had att/cingular for the last 6 or so years and don't have any complaints.

nau gets 10% off plans for sprint...15% off plans for verizon.  ATT website said i didnt get anything...but I should probably check the local stores...

I'm with 19Accord97... I've got U.S. Cellular, and haven't had a complaint for the 5 or so years I've been with them. It works great in the northeast, not sure about the rest of the country. And smaglik... you're getting kinda liberal with your usage of that dirty teabag, eh?

if you've got it, show it!

i havent looked into us-cell.  I'll see what they have to offer.

just checked.  no us-cell service in flag.  thanks though.  their coverage looks pretty good around here.  kinda surprising.

My $0.02

I have T-Mobile.  They have the cheapest rates and their customer service is the best, but their coverage and dropped calls suck.

I had ATT/Cingular/Suncom.  Their customer service sucks and they've put wrongful charges on my credit report because they screwed up in their accounting.  Also, when I moved back up north, rather than transfer the entire account to the parent company of Suncom which was ATT/Cingular, they closed my phone account, but kept billing me for service.  This was corrected after about 20 hrs on hold and then they charged me a contract termination fee after the agreement was that if I went to their parent company, this would not happen .... this is what lead to the credit dispute (furthermore, Suncom cannot offer service in NJ, so they cannot charge this fee since my legal address had changed). 

Verizon is the best cell service, but they are expensive.

I've heard that Sprint is excellent in NYC, but not elsewhere.

Good luck, because IMO, this is a decision of which suck the least!


BTW - A big part of my decision was based on the phone features that I wanted (QWERTY, Wi-Fi, Outlook).

quote:

ORIGINAL: falkore24



Good luck, because IMO, this is a decision of which suck the least!

very true.  just like voting.

That sucks about US cellular not in your area.  They are the cheapest here.
 
Let us know what you find, and if I were you, I would wait until Thanksgiving and Christmas...dont forget about that b/c they have great deals around then.

i have had AT&T/Cingular for about 4 yrs. no complaints and every phone that i have gotten has been great, and service is basically everywhere except for my house, but thats why there are house phones!
 
btw, you can get the iPhone with AT&T! (if interested)

you should be able to get ATT 550 minutes and unlimited texting for 65 bucks. and if you already know you have service with them, not much need to change. unless you know someone that has another company and better service

where do you see 550?  their plans are 450 and 900.
 
since they replaced the sim card on my razr, all seems to be well.  I am leaning towards sticking with cingular/att, and just waiting for a good deal on a good phone. 
 
not sure i want the iphone...just dont have much use for that...

Holy crap I hope you're kidding about that price!!! 65 bucks for 550 minutes?! With U.S. Cellular I get 1000 anytime minutes for $40 a month... Unlimited texting is only 10 bucks more...

I have the lowest T-Mobile MyFaves plan (300min/mo) and I love it. I get full bars just about everywhere even though I'm in sh*tty Iowa for now. I use all 300 minutes a month on random people and then about 1000 - 2000 minutes on my MyFaves for free... and unlimited texting for $10/mo so it works out. $50/mo is not a bad deal and I haven't had problems with them yet, but they just charged me again for a game I bought on my last bil and paid for already. He we go mystery charges I guess.

my T-Mobile plan is $40 for 1000 minutes, unlimited N/WE, and $10 for 1000 messages (txt, pics, flix)

Yep, the guy threw in unlimited messaging for $10. Sweet deal