Return-Path: Received: from GS20.SP.CS.CMU.EDU by ux4.sp.cs.cmu.edu id aa26789; 28 Feb 2000 12:35 EST To: bovik@cs.cmu.edu Subject: [cmu.cs.general] Cell-phone service in Pittsburgh From: ralucav@gs20.sp.cs.cmu.edu Date: 28 Feb 2000 12:34:27 -0500 Message-ID: Lines: 91 X-Mailer: Gnus v5.3/Emacs 19.34 Sender: ralucav@gs20.sp.cs.cmu.edu Source-Info: Sender is really ralucav+@gs20.sp.cs.cmu.edu X-UIDL: 1c0d3ebf730b13aeccfd19a96f533541 ------- Start of forwarded message ------- From: sef@cs.cmu.edu (Scott E. Fahlman) Newsgroups: cmu.cs.general Subject: Cell-phone service in Pittsburgh Date: 28 Feb 2000 10:47:45 -0500 Organization: Carnegie Mellon Univ. -- Computer Science Dept. Message-ID: First, let me thank all the people who responded to my query about cell phone service. It's great to be part of a community that is so helpful. I promised to post a summary of information I collected, so here it is. Since most people did not indicate whether it was OK to quote them directly, I'll just summarize what was said and not the sources. * The whole cellular industry is in a state of flux right now, so it is probably unwise to go for a long-term contract or spend a huge amount for a phone that is tied to one system. * Everyone seems to agree that the Bell Atlantic analog service has deteriorated badly. Apparently BA has decided that digital is the future and are letting this service rot, at least in Pittsburgh. That's a bit slimy, since BA insists on locking people into 1-year or 2-year service plans. Even though the service is now unusable much of the time, they won't let you cancel the contract without a big penalty. They may let you upgrade to a BA digital plan, but this re-starts the contract plan and requires a new phone. * Digital coverage is still mostly urban, and is spotty even within some cities. So it makes sense to get a dual-band phone that also can use analog when necessary. When listening on analog, the battery drains quicker, and apparently some phones are stupid about not reverting to digital as soon as you re-enter the digital coverage area. * Apparently nobody yet provides a worldwide service, except for huge and expensive satellite receivers. There is now a 3-band GSM phone that works on Aerial and most foreign systems, but that's just the phone, not a service plan. Aerial coverage in the U.S> is spotty, and this phone doesn't have analog. * Apparently nobody will let you use multiple phones on one account. They claim that this restriction is necessary for fraud prevention. Whatever... AT&T and maybe some others offer a sort of family plan that allows you to talk for free to other family members within the local area, but each person has to buy their own AT&T service plan. * BA *digital* apparently has excellent coverage and quality locally, but one respondent said it was terrible for roaming. One report of occasional busy signals in Squirrel Hill at rush hour, when everyone is locked in traffic around the tunnels. CMU has negotiated an excellent price for a low-usage service plan -- a bit different depending on whether you pay personally or through a CMU account. It's about $12/month with no minutes. For details, see http://www.telecom.cc.cmu.edu/telecom_serv/cellular/ * AT&T seems to be the clear choice for heavy roamers, especially if they spend lots of time in rural areas. But their price and terms of service are not very good, and one respondent said that the signal quality locally was not as good at BA. (He uses AT&T anyway, however.) * One respondent had very positive things to say about Sprint PCS, which is an attractive option if you split time between major cities in the U.S. There are no roaming charges if you stay on their system, which is mostly urban. He reported no connection problems within Pittsburgh, but others have had a *lot* of trouble. So, mixed reviews on this one. They don't require a contract, which is nice, but the PCS phone may lock you in. * One user spoke up for Aerial, in part because he likes their GSM system (This is the same basic system as most of Europe, but on a different frequency band -- some phones are multi-band, however.) Coverage in Pittsburgh is said to be fine, but they are very spotty nationwide. * Several votes for POINT.COM as the best way to find a service plan and/or phone that fits your needs. (The BA/CMU deal is not on there, of course.) * I've heard a few gripes about the reliability of the newer Startac phones. Apparently they turn themselves off without warning while in your pocket, maybe due to loose battery connections. And the antenna is quite vulnerable. The plastic holster seems to work better for them, if you can wear that without whacking the phone against obstacles all the time. Much as I have come to despise Bell Atlantic, it seems that the CMU sponsored BA digital plan is probably the best bet for me. Cheap enough to get two accounts (one for my wife) and still pay less than some of the other plans. That's all for now. Thanks again to all who helped out with this. -- Scott ------- End of forwarded message -------