Dimsie

Shock horror! - I don't possess a cellphone, nor does my husband !! Main reason is that we would not use them sufficiently to be worth the cost.
However, when we go on the road, often in quite remote areas, I sometimes feel a bit nervous about the possibility of having car trouble, with no means of contact for assistance.

We wonder whether CB radio might be suitable for this purpose. Has anyone any experience of this please?

dunroving

Have you thought about pay as you go mobile phone service? There have been a few threads on them in the past 6 months. From my recollection, Tracfone, Virgin, and T-Mobile came up best for people who only need a back-up/emergency phone. You'd need to check coverage (where I am, for instance, T-Mobile would be useless). I've decided to get one because I have internet phone (so I couldn't call or email if the service went down), plus I ride my bike a lot in redneck country by myself. I'm going with Tracfone because they have a one-year service deal.

Dimsie

Thanks, dunroving. Pay-as-you-go was our first thought, but on investigation, what's on offer in this area just didn't seem to fit our need. It's nothing like the pay-as-you-go in the UK, unfortunately.

I've just googled Tracfone, and it does look more like what we need - many thanks. We'll investigate it further.

NC Penguin

If you're considering a "pay as you go plan" for cellphones, have you looked at the service area of cellphone providers in your area?

There may be at least one that has coverage in the remote areas where you travel.

I know for a fact that in my area Verizon has very good coverage but Alltel does not.



NC Penguin

Bob

Long piece of string and yoghurt cups?


Seriously though, CB radio...you'd need a license to use, and there pretty expensive initial set up apparantly, plus you get a right bunch of random weirdo's out there *lol* but FIL use's it a lot, but then he's out in the boonies of maine.


Thing with those pay as go systems, check to see how long the mintutes will stay valid as they often expire after a couple months, and also roaming charges can be a ball buster, depending on how well out there you'd want to be using them, so definately check area coverage.

Cingular is supposed to be pretty good, but then as I'm in a 3rd world state, it's hard to say, t-mobile is also good, but only works in a couple cities....then there's US Cellular which seems to be the big one in the state, but that again sucks anywhere out of a city.

Dimsie

Thanks, NC Penguin and Bob.

I'm searching the web once again on pre-paid. We'd given up on it after talking to the assistants in local stores, and asking relatives locally - there just didn't seem to be an option to suit us.

It does look as though Tracfone is OK on every point - and minutes/units do not expire as long as it's kept activated, from what I can glean on-line.

I checked on the "groups" section of google to see what comments I could find about Tracfone and there are a few gripes about activation difficulties, and phones breaking down. Some bad and some good comments.

I'll search a bit further before we decide finally. Otherwise, Bob - yep, it'll be the 2 yoghurt pots and a bit of string!
Thanks again.

Pimpbot

If you get a CB, try calling for the "Rubber Duck"

Dimsie

Hope that's not cockney rhyming slang for anything!!!


We'll have to learn these lyrics, then - can't wait to get into that convoy !

Was the dark of the moon on the sixth of June
In a Kenworth pullin' logs
Cab-over Pete with a reefer on
And a Jimmy haulin' hogs
We is headin' for bear on I-one-oh
'Bout a mile outta Shaky Town
I says, "Pig Pen, this here's the Rubber Duck.
"And I'm about to put the hammer down."

[Chorus]
'Cause we got a little convoy
Rockin' through the night.
Yeah, we got a little convoy,
Ain't she a beautiful sight?
Come on and join our convoy
Ain't nothin' gonna get in our way.
We gonna roll this truckin' convoy
'Cross the U-S-A.
Convoy!

rincewind

I use Tracfone and I like the service. Coverage is State-wide so no problems there.

Pay-as-you-go has finally taken off here. When I first arrived in the States I was met with blank looks about them.

If you do decide to use Tracfone, PM me your e-mail address and I'll refer you. It will give us both 100 free units when you set it up

Tip. Always Google for TracFone promotional codes. There are always plenty around online plus I got a book full of them with the phone.

Dimsie

Thanks Rincewind - I'll take you up on your kind offer! PM to follow .

ScotsmanInTexas

Yes superb idea, providing you want to attract weirdos who won't believe you anyway even if you are broken down. Get a cheap cell phone. They don't have to cost the earth really. Ultra cheap ones in some stores like Randals can be had without contract for about $10-20! I've seen them, only draw back is the $10 top up cards do expire periodicaly, so keep one(top up card) unused in the glove compartment for emergencies you can't go wrong and it can't expire!

Ray

No licence is required for your standard CB ...
A licence is required for the GMRS, the General Mobile Radio Service
Not that anybody actually gets one ...
And a big 10-4 good buddy ...

ScotsmanInTexas

GMRS is pretty cool. I've been into 2 way radios for a long time. In the beginning I had the Uniden FRS 420 - 14 channel set. They weren't bad for short distance - certainly had as much as a mile in built up area - 2 miles along the beach at North Padres with new batteries so the 2km they claim is fairly accurate, but well that was along a beach so take that on board!

The GMRS/FRS sets are a lot better although who wants on the FRS channels when the GMRS go a lot further. I've had 2-3 miles out of my Uniden 540 - 22 Channel set in a mixed environment (slightly built up) with fresh batteries.

I have another set though that I bought from Circuit City for just $10 each and I've had about 5 miles from them! Further than the Unidens! Name of those ones, escapes me right now and I've lent them to somone so can't check - silver and black with rubber grips. Very cool and robust. There are 8 and 10 mile ones available now of course. Naturally like CB they all work on the same channels so it doesn't matter that they are by different manufacturers.

Great toy and great fun for camping and keeping track of the party in shopping malls, but I wouldn't trust my survival and recovery of my car and passengers to one! Invaluable though if you are in a small group and they go their own way in a place like the San Marcos shopping Mall!

Being a techie and a radio fan, I was thinking of buying one of the cheap $10 ones in order to take it apart and make it into a base station. Previously I'd have worried about the FCC but as the distance increases with each new model it becomes less important I imagine. The law is probably changing constantly right now to accomodate the newer ones or maybe the whole thing isn't going to be as great an issue as it used to.

Anyway I figure that with the set of frequencies we are dealing with for GMRS - it almost equates to a radio amateur band - therefore there is a dedicated whip antenna suitable for that particular amateur band would work a treat. The new case for it would have an antenna jack that suits the whip, and the use of a power supply (instead of batteries) would improve the overall performance and reach of the radio. I think it's safe today that a 5 mile radio would reach double that in such a home base. The whip antenna placed at a little height would make an incredible difference to reach! Similarly a 12 Volt jack would offer the same from a mobile set up. The box would need one or two new controls, easy to get hold of. CB mike/base station type of mic/headset with real hands free capabilites, decent speaker and volume control, mic and headphone outputs. I've costed the whole project to about $30 per set including the whip! Cheap communications where two of these (about $60) could take our communications across Houston. Only problem is state of play with the FCC!?

DDL

Ann, I cast a vote for Tracphone, as well. I've used it in the past with no real problems. Bear in mind that coverage in some "remote areas" - whether on a Tracphone or regular mobile - can be non-existent.


Denise

rincewind

Denise,

Heading your way on the 11th for my final finger printing session (hopefully) for my AOS interview. Got to go to the Charleston office this time.

Gonna make me a cuppa