Cell Phones... what company?

[majic]

Well, I'm finally gonna break down and get one and was wondering what comapny to go see.  I don't spend alot of time on the phone and I don't need trendy features like walkie-talkie or text messaging. Just phone service, probably nation wide.

Anyway, who do you recommend and why?  (I have heard good things about Verizon.)


Oooh... I also gonna swith from dsl to cable!

[Maniac]

Buy a Ericsson.

[Nilsen]

Sony-Ericsson

[Mickey1992]

I have had no problems with Verizon.  They even replaced a phone for free that was out of warranty.

Stay away from Kyocera phones.  I have had no problems with LG or Samsung.

[Estes]

I'm using a Motorola. Using CellularOne for service.

Even though CellularOne works for my needs, I wouldn't reccomend it.

[Boroda]

Originally posted by Mickey1992
Stay away from Kyocera phones.  I have had no problems with LG or Samsung.

I have a Kyocera 2255. The only thing I didn't do to it was to throw it into a campfire. I think i need another one now, because after 1.5 years mine doesn't show almost anything on a display (I use voice dial, but it doesn't recognise me after first 300ml of vodka), battery is attached by a nylon tie (after 120th drop I lost a back cover), but it still works. Among CDMA phones Kyocera have the best sensitivity and best voice quality.

Kyocera bought CDMA department from Quallcom, so it's now the only REAL CDMA phone manufacturer.

LGs, Samsungs and other Koreans are chick's phones. Get a Kyocera if you want a heavy-duty model.

[Maverick]

Verizon and a Samsung flip phone. Got this company as they have the best full time RV support. You can find a verizon store just about anywhere in the country.

[narsus]

I have verizon and the LG model great phone good reception.

I had nothing but problems with Nextel and AT&T

[sling322]

I have had Cingular for about 4 yrs now with no problems.  Change phones every 2 yrs or so for free basically and they have that rollover stuff thats pretty nice so you dont lose any of your minutes if you dont use the phone much one month.

[phookat]

Guys... if you want a snazzy phone, get a Sony Ericsson or Samsung.  If you want a phone that actually works and doesn't cut off on you, get something else.

Verizon is by far the best coverage, for providers.  Sprint sucks.  T-mobil is even worse.  Cingular *might* be OK, if you get a *really* good phone with awesome reception.  But independent of phone, Verizon is the best.

As far as which phone to get.  Remember that, in general, brand names are not a good indication of reception quality (except for Samsung, which pretty much universally sucks in this regard).  Visit http://arcx.com/sites/PhoneReviews.htm for some objective reviews of a variety of phones.  Pay particular attention to the sections on reception quality (RF performance).

Edit: also remember that the phone makes a huge difference in reception quality (dropped calls, blocked calls, etc), even with the same provider.  For example, a Sony Ericsson T610 can maintain a call down to -75 db signal strength, while a Motorola P280 can hold it all the way down to -98 db.  This translates into being 3 times as far from the cell tower!  So you can see your choice of phone can completely change your coverage map, for better or worse.

[JB73]

USCellular has given me good reception almost everywhere.

not sure where you live, and what service providers are in the area.

my nokia phone was awsome, untill i fried the battery on the 3 hour call on hold (on and off the charger). cell phones just arent made for that type of call.

good luck finding a nokia though, they are pulling out of the US market from what im told.

DONT get an audiovox phone, stupid tones sound like a childs game on nintendo, reception is garbage, features are not intuitive, overall the worst phone i have owned. trading it in for an LG this week (30 day free trial to exchange).

[CyranoAH]

Sony-Ericsson

[SOB]

Which company?  It really depends on where you live.  The first thing to do is ask around, and see what service your friends and acquaintances have, and how they like it for signal quality and problem resolution when they have to call customer service.

When you figure out a couple of candidates, shop around and find out what kind of deals you can get.  I'd recommend going into the provider-owned stores, since if a problem arises or you're misinformed about something, you're just dealing with one company.  If you do go with an independent retailer, I'd stick to stores you know that have decent return policies and good customer service after the sale.  

Ask lots of questions.  Find out what your plan includes and what you're charged extra for: overage, roaming (on-network and off-network), long distance, directory assistance, ect.  Find out what the free cancellation period is - this is the time frame (usually 14 - 30 days) in which you can cancel the service and not pay a fee for terminating the contract with the service provider.  If you go with an independent retailer, find out if they have their own contract with you, and if so what the terms are.

Whichever way you go, after you've made your purchase, I'd call customer service and confirm everything your rate plan has, just to double-check what the sales person tells you.  That way you won't have any suprises on your first bill.

Generically, I'd recommend either T-Mobile or Verizon.  Both generally have good customer service and good coverage where they offer service.  I wouldn't recommend AT&T, and I'll tell you to stay the hell away from Sprint, as their customer service is ass.  But really, check with friends and family locally to see who they use and how they like them.

[Furball]

i have a sony-ericsson k700i.

Awesome little phone.  + it has mp3 playback, radio, digital camera, video clips with sound and big colour display.

The only 2 phones worthwhile atm in my opinion are the Sony Ericsson K700i  and the Nokia 6230

[Harppa]

Nokia !

Way to go...