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cell phones...

cell phones...

Old Jan 27th 2009, 5:57 pm
  #16  
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Duncan Roberts
Unless you're on the phone for something like 1000 minutes per month and send a few hundred texts. I know people who would use your years service (2000 minutes for $200) in less than 2 weeks, some in less than a week. Not good value for money I think you'll agree when they can get unlimited minutes on a contract for half the price.
The exeption rather than the rule. I think we all know people who talk all day on cell phones but, for many (normal people with a life) a prepaid phone works.

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Old Jan 27th 2009, 6:07 pm
  #17  
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Happy in NC
I've travelled extensively within the us and taken my Net10 phone to Puerto Rico and it works everywhere I've been.
The proof of the pudding is in the eating . I would expect your result to be the case most of the time. But - some day you could be driving in some unfamiliar territory and need to make a call and find yourself without service ... you just never know.

To add to my earlier post - ATT and T-Mo share technology and roam on each other's networks; Verizon and Sprint do likewise. The more subtle stuff comes in some of the more obscure regional markets, where you still have some of the old 'independent' network operators.

Another factor is the phone itself; T-Mo recently started using additional bands, and a lot of their earlier phones did not have that 'band' in the phone. So make sure you get a phone that supports the latest frequencies.
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Old Jan 27th 2009, 6:11 pm
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Steerpike
The proof of the pudding is in the eating . I would expect your result to be the case most of the time. But - some day you could be driving in some unfamiliar territory and need to make a call and find yourself without service ... you just never know.
HUH? Doesn't that apply to ALL providers?
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Old Jan 27th 2009, 6:20 pm
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by j1983m
hi there.
im looking into getting my first cell phone here in the us. i know i should probably go into see at&t for help on this but hoped someone here could help.

looking at the at&t nation 450 plan(not sure if this makes any difference)... my questions are...

1. if i get a phone & number now i will want it to have a dialing code of where i am at the moment, what if i move to a new city how do i get a local dialing number? do i need to end my cancel my plan and start again in the new city? do i just get a new number through the same plan?... how does this work.

2. is a toll free number free from a cell phone in the US(i know some in the UK arent).

3. to receive a call from an international number - do i need to pay international charges on this or does it just come out of my standard minutes?

4. and lastly... how easy is it to cancel my plan without finishing the contract? (can you pay a get out fee as in the UK?)

any help on these would be great, i know i should be asking at&t but there website doesn't allow you to email them and i really dont want to have to go into the store with all these questions and have them try and sign me up to stuff i dont need or want.
Go on the AT&T site, you'll get a chance to speak to live help operator via a chat window. They've always seemed pretty helpful when I used it.

Someone else mentioned that you can get a 1 year contract, I'll second that. When I was looking into switch providers, T-Mobile and AT&T both offered me a 1 year contract, and T mobile even offered a free phone with that too. You'll have tell them you won't sign up for 2 years though, but if you keep on negotiating, they'll probably agree to it.


AT&T apparently now do a pro-rated cancellation fee too, but mathematically it doesn't always work out to cancel. It used to be $200 pretty well anywhere, but after a year now a lot of providers go down (pro-rate).

My international calls (incoming) come out of my standard minutes, I think most providers work the same.

If you text a lot, get the unblimited text package, those extra 10 cents per message for each message sent and received adds up fast.

NB. Coverage is all important here, doesn't matter how many minutes you have if the phone is always out of the network area.
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Old Jan 27th 2009, 6:20 pm
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Happy in NC
HUH? Doesn't that apply to ALL providers?
My point is this - for a given carrier - say ATT - you could be driving in an area where an ATT Contract phone works, while an ATT pre-paid does not, for the reasons given above; namely, ATT does not have their own network there, but has a roaming agreement with another carrier and they don't allow their pre-paid phones to roam. You can look at the ATT coverage maps and you'll see this is a reality.
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Old Jan 27th 2009, 6:22 pm
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Happy in NC
HUH? Doesn't that apply to ALL providers?
Basically - yes.
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Old Jan 27th 2009, 6:23 pm
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Happy in NC
The exeption rather than the rule. I think we all know people who talk all day on cell phones but, for many (normal people with a life) a prepaid phone works.

Well, a few years ago I would have agreed with you. However since people are abandoning land lines and just using cell phones the minutes tick up quite quickly. Me and my wife don't use the phone that much but we still end up with 800-1000 total minutes and 20-40 text messages used in a usual month. That's only about 30-35 minutes a day between two people, far from being on the phone all day. You call up a helpline, maybe Time Warner you can be on the phone with them for 90 minutes, call home once a week for half an hour, it all starts to add up. On the contract they're all covered but pay as you go it's not. I think the people who use under 1000 total minutes per month are getting fewer and fewer and will soon be in the minority.
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Old Jan 27th 2009, 7:00 pm
  #23  
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Default Re: cell phones...

Quick note on AT&T, they do roll-over mins.

I've actually cut back on our plan since we had actually accumulated over 4000 roll over mins which seemed a bit excessive and suggested we were not using anywhere near enough of our quota of mins per month!
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Old Jan 27th 2009, 7:54 pm
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Happy in NC
HUH? Doesn't that apply to ALL providers?
OK, here we go. Visit this page: http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/

and compare the maps presented when you click on 'Voice' (that's the network they provide to their 'contract' users), to the map presented when you click on 'GoPhone' (that's what they call their pre-paid service). Significantly different.

Sample, Contract:

Sample, Pre-Pay:

Note that the whole of North and South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, etc is devoid of coverage with the pre-pay. The color-coding key for the 'contract' map shows that these areas are served by 'Partners' (light diagonal shading) - which is not charged to the contract consumer. Look at Iowa - only the major transport corridors and metro areas are covered on the pre-paid, while most of the state is covered on 'contract'. If you zoom in and move around, you'll see this applies to most states. Now, as I said - you may not be affected, and, 'your' carrier may not implement this 'two-tiered' service the way ATT do; I'm just presenting facts so you can make an informed decision.

It's my job to provide cell phone service to about 30 employees, and for various obscure reasons, we currently have users with service from Sprint, Verizon, ATT, and T-Mo, and the ATT service is provided with both contract phones and pre-paid phones. I'm not making this up, I'm talking from specific experience ...
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Old Jan 27th 2009, 7:58 pm
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Default Re: cell phones...

I'm not talking about GO phone. It's Net10 I have experience with and it's worked everywhere I've needed it in the US.
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Old Jan 27th 2009, 8:31 pm
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Happy in NC
I'm not talking about GO phone. It's Net10 I have experience with and it's worked everywhere I've needed it in the US.
Not the best coverage if you are in the west.

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Old Jan 27th 2009, 8:37 pm
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Default Re: cell phones...

It works for me.
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Old Jan 27th 2009, 8:54 pm
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Happy in NC
It works for me.
LoL Is this just turning into an argument now?
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Old Jan 29th 2009, 12:10 am
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Duncan Roberts
Not the best coverage if you are in the west.

http://www.net10.com/images/covmaps2..._NATIONMAP.jpg
Hey,.... there I am!

Can you see me now?? (I'm the one mooning peeps).
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Old Jan 29th 2009, 12:50 am
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Default Re: cell phones...

Originally Posted by Happy in NC
The exeption rather than the rule. I think we all know people who talk all day on cell phones but, for many (normal people with a life) a prepaid phone works.

I'm always amused by how some folks consider their own behavior to be 'normal' and infer that others who don't behave in a similar way are somehow freaks / nerds / people 'without a life' ... showing a complete lack of understanding of 'why' other people may do things differently. As the IT guy for a company, I spend a LOT of my time on the phone. None of it is by choice - I'd much rather type than talk, as my voice gets tired. On my last cell phone bill, I see that I used 2,198 minutes in December (and a staggering 3,274 minutes in November!). 2198 minutes divided by ~22 working days per month = 100 minutes per working day (I hardly use the phone on weekends). 100 minutes is 1hr, 40 mins. A couple of 'support calls' where you sit on hold for 30 minutes, or 1hr conference calls, can easily add up to that. Trust me, I'd rather be doing something else ... I don't use my 'desk phone' for these calls because I need to get on with other stuff while on these endless calls.
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