Cell Phones

[Harkoliar]

try living in the philippines then! you cant live here without cellphones... practically everyone of my friends have at LEAST 1 cellphone... and we are still in college [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Irongrinder]

At nights I usually leave it on to see who called yes, but it's always my choice if I call back or not

There are a lot of calls that I neglect, I just let them talk into the voicemail if it's urgent and otherwise they won't if it's not [img]smile.gif[/img]

I do have to say I'm interested in one with a camera, seeing as how many times I wished I had a camera with me to take a picture of a special moment. I have a phoneplan and usually stick to it, but my telephone is kind off dying on me so I need a new one. I'll just harass my company and try to get a new one for free

[Cloudbringer]

Attalus, you can always turn the ringer off or down on your regular phone!

I guess I'm going to look into one of these here new fangled con-traptions.... LOL! You've all made some very good points!

[Cloudbringer]

So nobody ever has had trouble with bad connections or plans that ended up costing more to change or that you couldn't change so you paid extra for going over the 'allowed' minutes?

My parents had a cellphone that the company swore would reach certain areas and they found that it not only didn't do THAT it didn't do much good anywhere. The reception was lousy! Then ended up with another company and out a lot of money... stuff like that is one reason I've hesitated over getting one!

[ 02-19-2003, 11:33 AM: Message edited by: Cloudbringer ]

[harleyquinn]

The only company I've had a problem with is the now non-existent Cellular One (at least I haven't seen them anywhere). They kept billing me even though I wanted to cancel my plan after the 1 year mark and they kept telling me my account needed to be paid off first, and kept adding to it. Well, I just chose to ignore them. They eventually gave up on trying to collect and it never appeared on my credit report. Sorry, but I refuse to pay for service I don't want. You go ahead and bill me, I still won't pay it.
I think now adays there's so much competition, that phone providers are offering all kinds of good deals to get/keep your business. Shop around, and even after you've got service, keep on top of what the company you go with is offering so that if they come up with something better, you can switch to it (most I've found don't charge you for changing plans as long as you're staying with them). For example, I have Sprint, and through searching they're site, I found that they now have a plan for $5 less than what I'd been paying with 50 more weekday minutes and unlimited nights and weekends (as opposed to the 1250 I had), so I switched. The only catch was that I had to agree to sign another 1 year agreement, which was fine with me.
My advice, search what everyone's offering, and ask your friends who they use and what they like, and you'll probably be able to find something good.
WARNING:
Make sure you fully understand everything with the contract before you sign. My best friend also has sprint, but I gotta question how bad the contract was she gave her. She gets charged for calling customer support and if she's more than a day late on her bill, the phone goes off (I don't have either of those, free calls to CS and 2 month leeway on bills, even though she has a bigger plan then me).

[ 02-19-2003, 11:44 AM: Message edited by: harleyquinn ]

[Cloudbringer]

Thanks harleyquin! That's exactly the sort of thing I was interested in. Seems the salespersons can make up contracts as they go, sometimes! Good advice and I'll be careful before signing anything, believe me! Nacht will check it over too.

[realbinky]

I have had cell phones in the past, but ONLY when my company supplied and paid for it. I never even used all the minutes. I used to be able to sleep on the commuter train in the morning and/or at night, now I can't cause someone is ALWAYS yacking on their cell or getting a call. And they talk WAY too loud, like they forget they are not alone. But, when the train stops dead, and it looks like we'll be late, out come 150 cell phones and I *almost* wish I had one. I don't need one, and I have nothing against anyone having one if they use it RESPONSIBLY. Not in the theater, not when driving, not in a class, etc.

[Gammit]

My life was fine before cell phones, and will continue to be without one. I say if you go on long trips, or drive at night alot, then having one for emergencies isn't a bad idea. I myself will probably break down and get one eventually, but will probably do what my fiance does: leave it off until you're ready to make a call.

[Cloudbringer]

Originally posted by Gammit: My life was fine before cell phones, and will continue to be without one. I say if you go on long trips, or drive at night alot, then having one for emergencies isn't a bad idea. I myself will probably break down and get one eventually, but will probably do what my fiance does: leave it off until you're ready to make a call.

That's about how I was feeling til now. I hate driving alone on long trips or even just around here at night so I'd feel better if I had a phone handy in emergencies and I'm thinking of getting one.

[Sir Krustin]

Originally posted by Cloudbringer: So nobody ever has had trouble with bad connections or plans that ended up costing more to change or that you couldn't change so you paid extra for going over the 'allowed' minutes? My parents had a cellphone that the company swore would reach certain areas and they found that it not only didn't do THAT it didn't do much good anywhere. The reception was lousy! Then ended up with another company and out a lot of money... stuff like that is one reason I've hesitated over getting one!

Rception is always a bugaboo...but if you plan to use it in a major metropolitan area, you shouldn't have any concerns.

Legally, speaking you have a "cooling off" period, I believe, (yoohooooo, TL can you advise? [img]tongue.gif[/img] ). Here in Canada, a company called Telus (who I'm with, not sure if they have any presence in the USA) gives you 60 days to decide whether or not you want to sign a contract. This same company also uses tri-mode technology, so the phones work on three different networks - if digital service isn't available on Telus's own network, it has roaming access to Bell Canada's digital and analog networks. Very convenient.

If you decide to go prepay, I'm 99% certain that the same phones will work on all the commercial providers so switching providers is very easy.

edit> a suggestion to anyone who plans to use their phone in the car - get a handsfree kit. WORTH IT'S WEIGHT IN GOLD! Keep both hands on the wheel when talking on the phone.

[ 02-20-2003, 06:13 PM: Message edited by: Sir Krustin ]