I’m just wondering what the best plan is. I’ve already decided to go for a set number of minutes plan, but I have trouble getting the amount of minutes I want for a decent price. Another problem is that I go to school for most of the year near Albany, NY, but do go home to Vermont for holidays and summer. No plan I’ve seen yet has coverage in Vermont (at least for the digital plans, I could get a pay-by-the-minute analog phone and have no problem, but I want to avoid that.)
Anyways, I’m just seeing what plans other Dopers have, and how well they work for them.
I managed to get a “ye olde huge pile o minutes” for about $30 a month. I also got a “home coverage area” that included both home (flint MI) and school (Pittsburgh, PA)
I’m happy and satisfied. My phone is even reasonably cute and small.
I will tell you this, shop around and think carefully. find a place that will meet a competitor’s advertised phone price, then find said phone online for as cheap as possible. Make sure you are getting exactly what you want and that once you sign, if something better within that company comes along, they will swap it up for you. Get a short time plan (one year as opposed to three) things are imporoving fast and you want to be able to change direction quickly.
bouv, I personally endorse Sprint. It’s been extremely reliable for me, customer service is very responsive, but it doesn’t look like they cover Vermont. Battleboro and Vernon are the only cities listed. So unless you live there, you’ll be racking up some roaming charges, which isn’t good.
However, if you’re currently near a Sprint store, go on in. They’ll tell you when they plan for your area to get coverage, or if they are working on a deal to gain access to other companies’ cells. My Samsung 3500 is a beauty. He’s small enough for my pocket, but since it folds out, it feels like an actual phone when you use it. I can’t stand those little bitty things that everyone screams into, because the receiver is so far away from your mouth.
Good luck! I’m spending $35 for 2500 minutes (500 anytime, 2000 weekend and nights). I’ve never gone over my limit, and I use it as my primary phone.
I have had Sprint as my cell phone service provider for more than 4 years now…and truthfully I don’t know why. Their coverage sucks and it’s expensive. I get a few miles from my house (where I board my horse, or at the State Park nearby, or at my brother’s house) and I can’t get any signal…I’m outside the corridor of coverage. When I’m in the area of coverage it’s great, but I’m often just over the line. I should change providers, but it’s so much hassle…
I have a cell phone because it is much cheaper than a land line. Plus, I get have all the convenience of a land line that I can take with me wherever I go: I have caller ID, so I can screen my calls wherever I am. I can turn it off if when I want to be left alone. I have voice mail. I can call anyone from anywhere. And I can use it if I ever get lost in he woods. I am even buying a solar battery that can be charged with a power cord but can also be charged by the sun(perfect for the “lost in the woods” scenario.)
bouv, when you go home for the summer, go to the local Voicestream(my carrier) or whoever and buy a new SIM card for the Vermont area. It costs $25 bucks and you can still have the bill sent to your home adress. It is very handy. You might have to change the phone number which could be a pain but you might be able to keep the number. I suggest you just forget about your cell phone or just use it for emergencies.
Using your search engine of choice, type in “cellular plan comparison” or some such. There are a number of comprehensive pages giving side by side comparisons, links to various providers, coverage maps, who is running specials, etc.