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Cingular as a replacement for Verizon (Bluetooth)

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by mikepaul, Sep 14, 2004.

  1. mikepaul

    mikepaul Senior Member

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    OK, I'm not just sitting around until Verizon does or doesn't fix the
    problems with the V710. I've been looking into switching to Cingular
    and found a couple of decent phones are or soon will be available.

    Motorola MPx220
    http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=478

    Nokia 6620
    http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=453

    My only important question is about Cingular's coverage and signal
    strength.

    The coverage map on the Internet looks more filled in than the one in the
    local Cingular store:
    http://onlinestore.cingular.com/html/Maps/...ion_GSM_map.htm

    The map for Verizon has a lot fewer holes:
    http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/store/c...;sm</sup>

    So, does anybody know what the merger with AT&T will do for Cingular's
    coverage holes? Does their online map reflect the addition already?

    How about signal strength? My Samsung A310 has a beep when service is
    gained or lost, and I turned it off when I realized it beeped every few
    minutes. This could be a phone problem, but my old StartTac had trouble
    with dropped calls at home, so I don't want to get into a service that
    might be worse.

    Any input would be appreciated...
     
  2. jfschultz

    jfschultz Active Member

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    I am happy with my ATT Nokia 6820. I only wish it would work with Apple's iSync.

    The Cingular web site's coverage map may well show both Cingular and ATT. I find that my phone will show both AT&T Wireless and Cingular as the service provider depending on which has the better signal where I am at the time.
     
  3. KathyY

    KathyY Member

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    I have the Ericcson T616 with Cingular. I have run into a few holes with Cingular--my daughter's house but her AT&T works fine there and my parents' house and Dad's AT&T only works in the living room. I have travelled to Chicago and Reno recently with the phone and had good coverage in both places and all airports. I can actually lose my signal while sitting on my sofa and then it comes back but I think that is the nature of cellular unfortunately.
     
  4. macreative

    macreative New Member

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    I love cingular - I have the T616 Sony Ericsson and I love the service. the rollover plan is awesome.

    -Rob
     
  5. Mitchla

    Mitchla New Member

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    I find Cingular accepatble though not spectatcular. I think it's probably average. I have a T616 and it's completely unusable in the Prius. It connects fine and transfers addresses fine. Only problem is that no one can undersatnd what I'm saying. So I'm diconnecting it and am just going to use my BT headset.
     
  6. Speedracer

    Speedracer New Member

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    For past experiace opinion about Motorola.. I dont like'n
    Always Motorola introduced new phone, it died with in 2month :guns: and need to replace the phone by service contract....
    I'm Nokia guy and I love Nokia phone... I would love to get Nokia 6620 its nice phone (but I dont need that many future)...
    BTW I'm using AT&T Wireless, TDMA service in U.S, & Vodafone in Japan
     
  7. cfusion

    cfusion Junior Member

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    I have a T616 with Cingular. I'm quite happy with the quality. No complaints from listeners like I used to get with a Sprint/Samsung/Jabra setup. I do try to keep interior noise to a minimum (i.e. windows up, fan on low) and I set the volume to about 3 bars. Cingular's coverage has some gaps here in Ohio, but not where I generally travel around central Ohio.
     
  8. hdrygas

    hdrygas New Member

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    I decided on Verizon because of their coverage for Montana. NOT a major issue for most, but my son now lives there and I visit often now. I don't know if he will move away but I don't think it will be soon. I think he might go to Grad school there. On the good side the fishing is great. I have developed a killer fly. The Newfie Bugger. Made from Newf fir!! Fish can not resist.
     
  9. Rickster

    Rickster Junior Member

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    I'm on AT&T (for a little longer -- in the process of switching to T-Mobile). They and Cingular have been sharing networks since this spring, even though the corporate merger won't be finished for some time yet. I don't have any complaints about signal (well, except for the odd "cell hole" in this or that building, but all providers have that problem).

    I had AT&T because it was a benefit from my employer, but when they recently dropped that benefit I decided not to stay -- I use so few minutes per month, and AT&T's smallest/cheapest national plan has more minutes and more cost than the low-end plans available from T-Mobile and Cingular. Went with T-Mobile because their network is 900/1800/1900 MHz (unlike the other two who use 850/1800/9000 MHz), which means you can get the cool gadget-geek European phones sooner. :) And more importantly, because their plans offer unlimited GPRS data for cheap.

    Was recently discussing Verizon vs GSM with some family members who were thinking about switching... conclusion was to the effect of, "If you just want a phone to hold to your ear and talk on, Verizon has the best network and prices. If you want any more advanced features, go with a GSM carrier."
     
  10. Wolfman

    Wolfman New Member

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    I work for Verizon, so naturally, I looked at them first for cell phone service, as I would have gotten a hefty discount through the company. When I got home, I could not maintain a viable signal around the house. As I intended to replace the wireline with it, I returned it as unusable. I then tried Cingular. Their service works at my house, and I surely cannot complain about their rollover plan either.
     
  11. mikepaul

    mikepaul Senior Member

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    Couldn't you ask around for a schedule when another tower was going to go up near you, or did you do that and get a bad answer?...
     
  12. Wolfman

    Wolfman New Member

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    Well, I live out in the stix. The only cell towers out here are up primarily to service the nearby town of Bridgeport. What we get out here, is what we get, and they consider us "fortuante" to get anything. We have no cable TV service out here, and the only form of broadband internet that is available to us, is direcway satellite.

    At the time, I was also looking to immediately hand sprint their walking papers regarding my wireline telephone service. Their service to the area was horrible, and their attitude to their customers worse. I was about beside myself when they flat out told me verbatim that they were the only game in town, and they couldn't give a damn what I thought of their service. A few months after having to threaten them with a complaint to the PUC over my continual service outages, I changed long distance carriers from AT&T to IDT. IDT does independent billing, so sprint saw this as me not having a long distance carrier. Right on cue, they called me to "offer" their LD service. Their telemarketer got rude over the phone at me (VERY bad idea), when I tried to tell him no. A month later, they called me again, where they were denied a second time, with a less than pleasant reminder that they were supposed to remove me from their calling list last month. 72 hours after this, I started getting bombarded with 50 to 60 telemarketer calls a day - on an unlisted number with specific instructions to not "sell" the number to anyone.
     
  13. mikepaul

    mikepaul Senior Member

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