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I need a cell phone!!

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Helga The Viking

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Ok guys, I need your input... since I am the only person on the PLANET who does not have a cell phone, I am clueless in these matters.. WHO are the best companies and where can I get the CHEAPEST phone/plan. Thanks for your input!!
 
Helga, since you're in NY, check out Bell Atlantic. I've had no problems with their service, and they're running a special for the next few days only. 300 minutes for $29.95/month, local calling area is Boston to DC.

I've had my phone for a few months, and no problems, even on NJ Transit trains. My girlfriend had AT&T, and it was horrible. Constantly dropping connections, lousy quality. My company's BA rep said that AT&T vastly oversold their network and couldn't provide service steady enough to meet the demand. My girlfriend's service with AT&T corroborates what he said.

Yesterday, she switched to BA with the special they're running (they've been advertising in all of the big NY papers), and she loves it so far. Marked difference in the sound quality, and no more dropped connections.

A few of my friends have Sprint also, and they like it. I heard some not so great things about Sprint a while back, but my friends have reported no problems recently.



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From another BBS:
"hmm... Cyrix III, huh? You can put syrup on sh*t, but that don't make it pancakes."
 
Thanks for the advice Double D! I was already going in that direction. Heard some good things about BA from a friend and decided to check them out, I just wish I could find a plan for $19.00 bucks/mo! Thanks again for the input!
 
I don't know too much about Bell Atlantic, but so far a friend of mine is pretty pleased with it. Sprint has the best deals. 1000 minutes free including weekends for $25 I believe (could be $30 but no more than that) and I believe they have a deal for $19.99 as well. The connection is not as good but no Sprint has no contracts to sign as Bell Atlantic does. Because Sprint won't hold you to a contract, you can try them out first and and switch if you are not happy.

:)

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"I've been around the world and found that only stupid people are breeding..."
 
BA does have a $19.95 plan, but I don't know the details of it. The usage restrictions are pretty severe though. Local calling area is miniscule, only something like 30 minutes a month.
As stated, BA does have a 1-year contract for the plan that I'm on, but once that's done, you're month-to-month and can cancel anytime after the year is up.
I've been on about 4 months, and only have problems in very specific areas on the train on my way home.




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From another BBS:
"hmm... Cyrix III, huh? You can put syrup on sh*t, but that don't make it pancakes."
 
My friend just switched from Bell Atlantic to AT&T cause she thought the service from Bell Atlantic wasn't so good. So far she is happy. I think it also has to do with the phone. If you get a cheap phone the connection isn't as good as using a good mid-priced to high-priced phone.

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"I've been around the world and found that only stupid people are breeding..."
 
My girlfriend had nothing but problems through 3 different phones with AT&T.
She got the cheapest phone BA was selling with this promotion, the Audiovox, and it's light-years ahead of the quality she was getting with AT&T.

I have BA and a StarTac, and so far, no issues.

YMMV, of course.


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From another BBS:
"hmm... Cyrix III, huh? You can put syrup on sh*t, but that don't make it pancakes."
 
this is good to hear. I'm looking for a phone right now. I have omnipoint and am using a nokia 5100 series. I know the phone has some great qualities but omnipoint does not offer so many settings. I love getting the news and the option to get more sent to me but they cut out on me alot and I can't set the ear peice volume. People are so quiet on it and it is hard to hear them sometimes.

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Are you my mother?
 
Just found out that the BA offer has expired. Now, their new offer is for 200 minutes and free nights and weekends.
They're also offering the Audiovox phone my gf got for $39.99 after $30 mail-in rebate.


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From another BBS:
"hmm... Cyrix III, huh? You can put syrup on sh*t, but that don't make it pancakes."
 
I'm another NYer without a cell. Who the heck wants to be reachable no matter where you are? ick.
 
liltaz> I don't think of it as being reachable no matter where you are, especially since the only people that have my number are my girlfriend and my parents.
I think of it as being able to place a call from wherever I am, and being able to be in touch when I want to be.


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From another BBS:
"hmm... Cyrix III, huh? You can put syrup on sh*t, but that don't make it pancakes."
 
Hi Guys!! Thanks again for all the input... I'm checking it all out... it seems like this is going to involve some serious dollars though - between the cost of the contract and the phone purchase itself - hubby thinks it's a good idea, I still want something for NOTHING!! HA!! Thanks again to all!
 
It's funny...so many people I see go crazy when their phone breaks or something goes wrong, but what did they do a few years back when there weren't cell phones (or they weren't used by 90% of America)?

The only reason I plan to get one is because I plan to get a car and will need something in emergencies.
 
Helga> if you are concerned with contracts, Sprint doesn't have one. So, you don't need to pay for one. You just pay for the phone and the program (like the other companies but minus the contract.)That can save you hassle if you don't like the service. I personally hated being trapped in a service for a year or so and not being happy with it.
supergrin.gif


Hope that helps :)

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Are you my mother?

[Edited by Anaka @ June 06, 2000 (edited 1 time)]
 
dont they have those things at mcdonalds where you donate some money and they give you a free phone then you just pay for service?
 
Didn't Bell Atlantic get bought out recently? A few buddies got ammendments to their contracts. Tread with caution:)
 
Bell Atlantic Mobile didn't get bought out. They merged with about 6 other companies and are now known as Verizon Wireless.
Nothing at all changed about my contract or my service so far. This happened about a month ago.



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From another BBS:
"hmm... Cyrix III, huh? You can put syrup on sh*t, but that don't make it pancakes."
 
You can also check out www.point.com to compare available plans in your area. They also sell phones, new & refurb. I got a phone and a plan there, and I was happy with them.
 
i'm really interested in getting a Nextel phone.. the website geekzboy posted says that there's no contract or cancellation fee...

ok.. so this means that if i cancel w/ nextel after 2-3months of usage.. i won't get penalized at all???

need someone to confirm my assumption before i make an **** of myself...
 
We used Nextel phones at work, and they were HORRIBLE!!!!!
I can't even stress to you how useless the **** things were. I work in New York City, the largest metropolitan area in the nation, and I live within sight of the World Trade Center (my building is right across the street).

Knowing that, here are some things to consider:

  • I can't get a signal in my house. Doesn't matter where I am in the house, there just isn't a signal. The signal light on the phone just stays red when I'm home.
  • I work in LAN support, yet people in my own building couldn't reach me when I was in the LAN rooms. No signals in there, yet my cell phone worked perfectly and my Skytel 2-way pager had no problems in the LAN rooms.
  • The Nextel system went down for periods of 16 hours at a time in the past 2 months. Not once, not twice, but 4 times!. I have yet for my cell phone provider (Bell Atlantic) to have an outage that significant, nor have I heard of any of the other major cellular providers to have that significant an outage even once in recent months.

My personal advice: Stay as far away from Nextel as humanly possible.


------------------
From another BBS:
"hmm... Cyrix III, huh? You can put syrup on sh*t, but that don't make it pancakes."
 
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