I was reviewing some of the old posts on cell phones and was wondering if Nextel is still the prefered way to go. Do any of the other carriers have phones that will handle a job site environment? I have been with Cingular and have the V557 phone. The phone is OK but is not very compatable with anything outside an office environment! My current contract ends in about a month or so an dwant to check my options
Discussion Forum
Discussion Forum
Up Next
Video Shorts
Featured Story
Old masonry may look tough, but the wrong mortar can destroy it—here's how to choose the right mix for lasting repairs.
Featured Video
Highlights
"I have learned so much thanks to the searchable articles on the FHB website. I can confidently say that I expect to be a life-long subscriber." - M.K.
Fine Homebuilding Magazine
Fine Home Building
Follow
-
Fine Homebuilding
Dig into cutting-edge approaches and decades of proven solutions with total access to our experts and tradespeople.
Start Free Trial Now -
GBA Prime
Get instant access to the latest developments in green building, research, and reports from the field.
Start Free Trial Now
Replies
woodchuckwannabe,
I used to have Nextel and recently switched over to Cingular keeping my old number.. The reason I did so was there was sooooo much of my state where the signal from Nextel couldn't reach me.. It was like I'd leave in the morning and 45 minutes later was out of range only to get back in range that evening as a neared the house.
I liked many of the features of Nextel and the bills were cheaper and easier to resolve..
I got NEXTEL and SOUTHERN LINC
We have Nextels here at work. The radio thing is great, but their coverage sucks. Get a few miles from an interstate and there's no signal.
I do wish cingular offered more indestructible phones. They're the only company in this area that has any covereage in most of the small towns.
I have Sprint with a Sanyo SCP 7300 It's Sprint's answer to the nextel heavy duty phones. It has only been 7 months but it seems to work well. I've also had other Sanyo phones which weren't "protected" or heavy duty and they took a lot of abuse before dying.
I have cingular. Best coverage here. Have heard people recommend nokia 5140 phone as being durable. When my phone gets too old I buy a cheap pay as you go phone on the same network and put my card in it so it uses my phone number and keeps all my stored info. Cheaper than insurance for me.
Check the Nextel coverage map in your area. I use Nextel for 2-way only, and use T-Mobile for cell service. Two phones is a pain, but Nextel's phone plans are not going to save you money. The T-Moble plan is 3000 minutes for about $50.00 and the 2-way is $40.00. I never go over this amount each month...
I buy the cheapest phone that Cingular has available. My current Samsung is about 7 months old, and still going.
I make sure to save all my numbers to the SIM card, so if my phone dies, it's just a matter of swapping the card into a new phone.
I've had all the services. Nextell, Sprint, Verizon, T-mobile and Cingular. Cingular seems to be the best provider.
Trying to catch me riding dirty.
We have Nextell for work and can't stand it, for the same reason as the others.. I'm like some of the other guys I carry two. Cingular is my other. much better coverage.
"Enjoy every sandwich." Warren Zevon.
Edited 6/8/2006 7:32 pm ET by Gunner
wcwb,
Dont know where you are located, but I have Verizon and have not found a place yet that I dont have at least three bars. I live in Maryland, about 20 miles south of Washington DC. Have been on trips up and down the east coast and out as far as Indy and never have lost a signal.
Bill Koustenis
Advanced Automotive Machine
Waldorf Md
I started out with Sprint and, after reading several recommendations (the most credible of which was from Consumer Reports) I switched to Verizon.
Before I switched, I frequently found myself unable to receive signals (most notably, at home!); with Verizon, I have had no problems anywhere I've traveled in California, Oregon, or south-western Washington.
I'm using an LG vx 4500, and my only problem has been very fine sawdust finding its way underneath the display screen.
By the way, I find it extremely annoying that cell phone carriers have a de facto monopoly by virtue of their ability to require users to buy hardware of their choosing. I don't believe I should have to buy a new phone if I switch carriers unless there's a genuine incompatability problem between their software or distribution network and the phones themsleves.
Maybe it's just me, but I don't like it when businesses, whether it's a cell provider or cable television, tell me to bend over and take it simply because they have the power to do so. Does this bug anyone else?
-Jazzdogg-
"Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive." Gil Bailie
Edited 6/9/2006 2:54 pm by jazzdogg
"By the way, I find it extremely annoying that cell phone carriers have a de facto monopoly by virtue of their ability to require users to buy hardware of their choosing. I don't believe I should have to buy a new phone if I switch carriers unless there's a genuine incompatability problem between their software or distribution network and the phones themsleves."I really hated having to sign up for a new plan with the same company when buying a new phone as I did with Verizon last year. The batteries on the old phones (wifes and mine) were useless and it was cheaper to buy a new phone than to buy batteries. Except that I was stunned to learn that Verizon won't sell you a new phone unless you sign up for a new calling package. Of course the calling plan we had for the past three years was no longer available, only more expensive ones were offered. Talk about a "BOGYAAS".
You're right: as far as I'm concerned, the practices of the cell phone companies amount to legal extortion. Until a lot of us DEMAND change, nothing is going to change.
Unfortunately, demand for cell phones contijnues to increase, especially with kids creating inordinate demand for units with lots of bells & whistles.
When I look at the way congress has allowed cable television and hard-wired telephone monopolies to flourish for decades, I'm not sure it would be realistic for us to expect much in the way of meaningful legislation to curtail or limit monopolies and anti-trust practices.
Meaningful competition will increase when demand slows down, but until then consumers will continue to be abused unless a large percentage of us decide to reprise a saying made poplular several decades ago and say "We're mad as hell, and we're not going to take it any more!"
-Jazzdogg-
"Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive." Gil Bailie
Or we could start our own cell phone companies...
Treat every person you meet like you will know them the rest of your life - you just might!
> I find it extremely annoying that cell phone carriers have a de facto monopoly by virtue of their ability to require users to buy hardware of their choosing.
I came at it from the other direction. I started by figuring out which phone I wanted (Moto i530), then chose Nextel because they serve that hardware. Their IDEN system isn't compatible with other providers' networks.
-- J.S.
Where I live and work now, Nextel has the best coverage. The i530 is the phone to go with, rugged enough to last a while, and cheap enough to not be so painful when it gets lost or broken.
-- J.S.
get the nextel, but keep your present phone too.
You'll need two phones, because when you set one down somewhere, and forget where you put it, you have the other one to call it, and just follow the ring.
In my area, Nextel is "the contractor's network". Even all the building inspectors have it. For those of you who may not be familiar with Nextel, there are 2 modes - cell phone and 2-way radio. That said, with regard to the radio portion of Nextel, comparing a radio to a cell phone is like comparing a car to a motorcycle. Both get you there, but totally different. I probably make about 30 mobile calls a day to different subs, etc, so the "free" radio really does save money. Between the unreliable connections and the difficulty understanding people who are driving, running machinery, etc, It really gets on my nerves though, and when I have an important call to make I often ask - "can I call you on the cell"? About 90% of the people I deal with have Nextel. BTW - we get mobile to mobile (Nextel cell) and all incoming cell minutes free.
In my area, Nextel has a monopoly on this radio thing. You have to have a Nextel to talk on the Nextel radio network, and at $60 per subscriber, someone is making some serious $$$.
A two edged sword about Nextel is that there is no voice mail on the radio portion - sometimes I hate voice mail, as I'd rather just call back and try and get a real person, rather than leave a message and wait for a few days wondering if anyone got it. Likewise, I'd usually rather just get a call than have to take the time to check voice mail. With the radio, If on initiating a radio call I get "user unavailable" which either means that the person has their phone off or is out of range, I can call back every 5 minutes if I want as the network doesn't keep track of missed radio calls so the guy on the other end doesn't know. On the other hand when a radio call goes through, if the person on the other end doesn't answer, you have no way of knowing if the other guy is ignoring you, is too busy to answer, left his phone in the truck or home that day, etc. The radio has an alert mode where when I alert another subscriber, he sees your call record on his phone the next time he looks at it, and theoretically, when he knows another subscriber alerted him it is important.
It all depends on whether Nextel is very popular where you live and the coverage available. If you really needed Nextel, I think you would know it, simply based on the number of "do you have Nextel?" quarries you would be getting.
In the area I work, Nextel radio coverage is very complete, but there are drop-outs, etc, which I believe are more due to network instability than incomplete coverage. Also, at least in my area, Spring bought Nextel and here Sprint has always been known for their crappy service.
Edited 6/9/2006 6:41 am ET by Matt
I like Nextel, but one caveat: With the walkie talkie feature you are on "speakerphone" by default and don't know who might be standing around - watch what you say...
We drove from Seattle to MD via Wyoming etc and our friend with Verizon never lost signal the entire way. Nextel didn't do so well - but its great where I live.
Treat every person you meet like you will know them the rest of your life - you just might!
I have Verizon and an LG vx4500 phone. The phone is in a leather holder that absorbs shock if dropped. It has had tons of job site exposure and no problems. The phone is not rated for rough handling, but the leather holder takes the sting out of dropping it.
Verizon coverage has been great. East coast no problem.Constructing in metric...
every inch of the way.
Thanks all for the input! I'll continue to weigh my options. I like the ruggedness of the Nextels (phones that still work after being dunked in water sound great!) but I also like to coverage of the Cingular. I might follow the suggestion to get a better case for the phone!
The co. I work for had nextel, and the radio feature is nice
but the coverage sucked. And the price is twice what we are
now paying for cingular...
With cingular you get
free cingular to cingular, works great for us, has we have like
15 phones so we hardly ever use package minutes.
No roaming, ever....nada....zilch...period.
No long distance....even outside your calling area.
Matter of fact the u.s.a. is your calling area.
And the biggest thing I like about cingular is the roll over
minutes. That has got to be the best thing going.....I have
cingular for my personel phone and I've accumalated close to
4000 minutes and I use my phone all the time. Matter of fact
I don't even use my home phone anymore because of the roll
over minutes. Is that more than you wanted to know?
One other thing is like other companys is that you can add up
to 3 phones to your main phone for like $10.00 more per phone.
So for 3 phones I'm paying 100 a month w/800 package minutes.
Edited 6/9/2006 5:40 am ET by butch
Nextel in my area is what almost all contractors have. If a guy has something else most guys make fun of him for being a rookie. But......when we travel we take the wifes Verizon as it has far better over all coverage.
One thing Nextel now offers is a multi phone business package. We had 3 phones and just added a fourth. Using this plan I buy a plan for my phone with bulk minutes and the other phones are added on for $20 each. I ended up adding a phone and saving $10 a month on my bill for all my phones. DanT
Bill-
Consider yourself lucky. I work in Columbia and live in Northern MD and there are 3 GINORMOUS holes in Verizon Coverage in Howard County. Thing is- they don't seem to care. Howard County is practically a DC Suburb and the Verizon coverage here could be MUCH better.
I sold Nextel for awhile when I was between jobs. They are the cats meow. But expensive as everyone has said. Coverage here in Northern MD for NExtel is great - but the national coverage map has a lot of holes in it (or at least it used to).
When i chose verizon I rated on the following criteria (in order). Nextel was out due to cost:
1) Coverage
2) CUSTOMER SERVICE
3) Cost (Since all the Cell Carriers are pretty close Nextel/Sprint Excluded)
I am happy with Verizon coverage (except for the three holes already mentioned). I had a phone replaced and their service was so-so. But I do give them credit- on billing issues their service has been first rate. And live people are always available. I don't personally have experience with Cingular Customer Service but have heard bad things. Cost is not too bad- I have 4 phones on the family share plan and 500 minutes. I have never gone over and my bill runs ~ $90 / month. If I could keep my wife from using the 411 at $1.50 a pop it would be a few bucks less.
We all have the basic LG phone. Not bad considering it was free but I'm not overly enamoured with it.
All in all I would rate VZW 8/10. Their website is nice too for paying online. I pay online and get a printed confirmation and within 20 seconds a text msg confirmation is sent to my phone. I like that aspect of their service.