More UN-reaction

Monday, Sprint climbed onto their soap box and crowed "Our Unlimited is better than their Unlimited." A few weeks ago we panned Sprint for bringing a knife to a gun fight by not matching the other carriers' Unlimited Talk to any number at the $69.99 price level. Sprint hung their hat on the "Any Mobile Anytime" and stood their ground. They have a point.

Now that we have looked at the big players' Unlimited plans, we have seen way too many limitations for Unlimited service. You can have more features and better phones, but you'll pay for them. Sprint reminded us that their flavor of all-you-can-eat wireless includes everything but wireline numbers. You get all the Text, Web, and other goodies you'd like, and you get it with virtually all of Sprint's phones. It once was, "Who talks that much?", now it's "Who just talks?" For a large number of users, Sprint's Unlimited everything-but-wirelines fits much better.

There have been many examples of carriers hanging a great plan in the window of their store, but when you go in to buy, it's not what you hoped for...at least not at the price you hoped for. Is it wait and switch?

Unlimited Limitations

We have been following the "Unlimited Wars" and have seen some hurdles that makes the choice difficult. Choosing one of the flat-rate carriers like Cricket or MetroPCS has been pretty straightforward...Unlimited is their main business. It's the other Unlimited offers that give us concern. When Page Plus introduced Unlimited at $40, it added new challenges to their already overburdened customer service. So we looked at paying a few bucks more and recommended Straight Talk. At $45 they offered Unlimited Talk, Text, Web and 411 on the entire Verizon network. It was a good choice until last month they suspended online shopping for all but a few promotions. While they are available at some Wal-Marts, we can't find the selection we would hope for. What's a big talker to do now?

As much as it hurts cheapskates like us, we feel going up the to $50 level for Unlimited (almost)everything from Boost Mobile is a good choice. And, surprisingly, we also like the service that uses the Nextel network better than the Sprint network. They also have good customer service, and phones are available online.

If they serve your market, Cricket has improved their network, their roaming and their offers with the price of their Talk, Text, Web, 411 and more, at only $40. And Cricket's customer service is reachable. At least their phone rings. Sadly, the quality of all the choices seems to be changing weekly.

Cricket & Boost as top recommendations? Whoda thunkit! Then there's the rest of us who just don't talk/text/surf that much. Happiness is the status quo.

There's a Cricket in Your Pocket

Our Texas readers have been observing the hot competition between Pocket Wireless and Cricket Wireless which has resulted in consistently low prices for Unlimited cellular service in the area. Pocket prices in Texas started as low as $25 per month, and Cricket almost always matched that price in common areas.

Today, Leap Wireless, the parent of Cricket, announced a new Leap-operated joint venture between the two companies. This probably signals the end of the Pocket brand in south Texas, and the Lone Star state price war. Pocket will continue to operate in New England but with plan prices that don't seem to concern Cricket.

It's always bad for consumers to lose a choice in a market, but this particular move will probably help keep Cricket afloat by removing a thorn in their side. I'm surprised that Pocket makes that much difference to a semi-national company like Cricket, but then it's only a "joint venture", right? Leap Wireless should be working a deal with MetroPCS or another large carrier instead of dealing with small potatoes. I guess you do the deals you can do. San Antonio region customers will get slightly better service, but you'll pay for it.

Choosing a Phone

All of our web sites focus on specific cellular features like coverage, plans and service. But one of the most important decisions you need to make is which phone model to choose. It shouldn't be your first decision because you need to establish whether a wireless carrier is available in your area before you can look at any phone. Once you have determined which carriers serve your area and which plans fit your usage, the handset is next. Today's choices can be overwhelming.

If you wanted, say, an iPhone, then you only need to determine whether AT&T serves your area. Choosing a Blackberry widens your possibilities greatly. And if any nice, small flip-phone fills your needs, the whole spectrum of carriers and plans become available. How do you take that next step?

We recommend that you start searching for your next phone at a wireless store that features multiple carriers. Best Buy and Radio Shack come to mind ("No thanks, I'm just looking"), but you also have some great online choices like Let's Talk and Wirefly who usually offer better prices than brick & mortar stores. Don't buy right away. Step back, review your notes, and then go for it. Our family usually chooses the cheapest (free?) model that fills our minimum needs. We caution you not to over-analyze your choices in Don't Sweat Your Phone Choice.

Don’t fall in love with a certain phone model. Narrow your choice to certain carriers and plans first, then choose among their handsets. We recommend Phonescoop.com where you can check specifications, side-by-side, and Moose Wireless for the best online deals. Unfortunately, the larger carriers have exclusive access to certain phone models, but even the greatest phone in the world will be disappointing on an inadequate network. If a smaller network has the best combination of coverage and features, you’d be foolish to ignore them.

There is always the possibility of using a favorite handset on a different network, but the carriers fight that as best they can. Switching a SIM among GSM phones is an effective method in some cases, but not always. This opens the possibility of buying a phone on eBay or elsewhere, but you’re on your own for support. OK, let's review: service first, handset second. Then, don't look back.

Page Plus Reaction

After our recent article about the Rise of Page Plus, we heard from Page Plus users who have not been so happy with their service. We already knew about the inability to reach Customer Service in a timely matter, but the mysterious loss of minutes and service and the failing of their number porting abilities are a new twist. Let me share what we know about Page Plus.

First, we became a "dealer" to see what the inner workings were about, and we found competent, hard-working people. They admit, though, they are growing faster that they can really handle. Among other concerns, they're having trouble keeping enough phones in stock and have cancelled some marketing programs until they can catch up. However, in our opinion, the improvements they have made in their plans and fees, have only made their problems worse. It chokes me up to say this, but they shouldn't lower their prices until they're ready to handle more customers. However, if I were sitting in the Page Plus office and a better deal became available, why would I want to hold the business back? It's a tough decision.

It's really easy to become a Page Plus dealer, and while that may put some unqualified people into their marketing stream, these dealers have actually been a lot more helpful and accessible than Page Plus itself. Last year I switched over a family member to Page Plus and he has been a very happy user, except for the idiosyncrasies of prepaid. I wanted to switch over my wife, but she didn't want to be limited to Page Plus's fewer choices of phone models.

More than one reader uses their cellular phone for business exclusively, and probably shouldn't depend on Page Plus, or any wireless reseller. There's no one to complain to when there are problems beyond your own handset. Mobile professionals need someone to go to bat for them, and Page Plus currently can't do that. But we still feel Page Plus is a great choice for less critical uses and as a 2nd or 3rd phone in the family. This is why we said we were considering bringing Page Plus to the top of our recommendations. Not yet. We actually dropped their Rating on our PayAsYouGo pages.

For the time being, Page Plus isn't quite our Top choice. I'd also like to address how Net10, TracFone and Straight Talk compare, later. Just let the buyer beware.

Alltel Comes to the Unlimited Party

Even as they shrink into a smaller carrier, Alltel Wireless has finally come up with some nice Unlimited plans. They matched the major carriers with their own $70 Unlimited Talk plan with matching Family Plans. Then they went one step further and introduced a Prepaid version of their Unlimited plan for $45, which may be a real winner.

For now, the Prepaid Unlimited coverage map looks like both the Alltel and Verizon Wireless networks are included, which is larger than the coverage offered by the other $45 Unlimited plan offered by Straight Talk which is limited to the Verizon Wireless network. However, if you call Alltel, they claim Prepaid Unlimited does not roam off the Alltel network even though their maps show otherwise. We believe the map since it looks like a very new and unique map with huge holes in the middle of Minnesota and Oregon.

You do need to be in their own service area to sign up and they still only require a 1-year contract for their postpaid plans. At least Alltel has come to the Unlimited knife fight with competitive plans which keeps them at the top of our Reviews. Better late than never.

We have Unlimited plan reviews by Price, and by Carrier.

The Rise of Page Plus

Page Plus Cellular has risen to become, in our opinion, one of the most desirable alternative cellular services, and this week they got even better. Their rise has followed the expansion of the Verizon Wireless network to the point where Page Plus, like Verizon, now offers service in most of the country. Page Plus uses the Verizon network, and does it at a very competitive rate that you can pay as you go. You can also pick up their $40 Unlimited Talk & Text plan. A recent rate adjustment lowered their per minute rate to as low as .04 a minute and this week they cut their Roaming fees in half, to .29 per minute.

T-Mobile's Prepaid has been our favorite low-cost plan for several years, but these new Page Plus plans have us considering them as the new leader in low-cost wireless. Their only downside is their 120-day expiration vs. T-Mobile's 365-day reset. Their Customer Service isn't growing as fast as the number of subscribers, so that may also be considered a reason for caution.

One of the considerations in Page Plus's favor is their lower acquisition cost. Their Activation fee is $10, but it can be had for less than $1 if you look around. The cheapest way to start service is to use an old, non-active Verizon Wireless phone. There are a lot of those around. That might include one you may be using now. While T-Mobile Prepaid can be used in any old T-Mobile or unlocked GSM phone, we need to cross the $100 of refills threshold before enjoying their Gold Rewards 1-year expiration time. T-Mobile allows no-cost roaming off their network, but with Page Plus there's little chance of losing your home network. And even when you do, Text Messages are still .08 each, Roaming or not. T-Mobile's .10 a minute voice rate is beginning to look expensive. Ain't competition grand?

Finding Cell Sites

One of our most popular web sites helps you Find Cell Sites. Recently when updating the site we found several wireless companies that reveal their own cell sites, either on a map or a list. We re-arranged the link categories to show cell site information categorized by carrier, tower companies, the FCC and others.

That there is enough data to need to break it up into categories is good news. As we face fewer carriers each year, it's nice to know this information is still available. The best maps come from the smallest carriers.

KGI Wireless, one of the "tower" companies, was a good source of Alltel tower locations and now identifies most of those locations as belonging to Verizon Wireless. The reality is that more towers are adding more carriers, and many of those towers credited to Verizon may eventually be transferred to AT&T or ATN. So, it's still takes some detective work to find your sites.

Carriers: "We're Here to Help"

I received an email from one of the major carriers who claimed "we're here for you" and listed several links to "helpful" pages on their web site. One of the links tells me I can "find the phone and plan that fits your needs." Visiting that page I can only find 3 plans listed, with 450, 900 and Unlimited minutes. What about their less expensive plans, like the $35/350 minute plan, or the $30 Senior plan? What if one of those plans "fits my needs"?

We're not bashing any carrier for showing only selected plans, we are cautioning consumers to either do your homework when selecting plans, or get your data from independent sources. An example is the site dedicated just to comparing Unlimited Wireless Plans, or our own Unlimited Plans Page.

What a concept: 'Buyer Beware.' I'm surprised there aren't more cellular users choosing to Pay-as-you-go. Fortunately, readers in this forum are leading the way there.

Tennessee Carrier Reviews

Unless you live in the Volunteer State, there isn't much interest in Tennessee cellular service. With the addition of our Mountain Wireless Tennessee Cellular Reviews the big news is that with this state, we have finally completed our carrier reviews for all 50 states. It's a big deal to us, and to those living in the area.

We started these reviews almost 10 years ago, and Tennessee certainly wasn't the hardest place to review, but quite often we added a state after the contribution of a knowledgeable local who knew which carriers served their state and how well. We salute those contributors, some of whom have slipped into the unknown. If you know of a carrier we missed, let us know. Some of them just change their name.

There have been a few difficult choices as to which carriers to include in a state. Like in Tennessee, Alltel now only serves one county, and the network in that area will soon be turned over to AT&T. Should we include them? We do. Or how about those carriers that have 1 or 2 cell sites just over the state line from their home area? We include them too. Sadly, some larger carriers don't offer a unique enough service that justifies a state-specific review for them. We do, however, provide carrier-specific reviews in the "general observations" entry at the top of the pages where we have enough opinion supplied for that state. I think it's time to update our Hawaii Reviews...personally!

Add US Cellular to the Unlimited List

Whew! It's good to see US Cellular jump on the lower Unlimited Plans bandwagon. It may not help their bottom line, but it keeps them in the game and that makes us happy. US Cellular is a great competitor and we like their alternatives to the other carriers. While Free incoming calls is of less value in the face of now more desirable unlimited plans, they are still the leader in family plan pricing for 3 lines and more. They only add $50 for each member after the first 2. US Cellular customers still get free roaming and don't overlook their free battery exchange.

Sprint appears to want to keep hanging their hat on their "Any Mobile Any Time" plan at the same $70 price point, hoping that nobody cares that calls to land lines and calls while roaming off the Sprint network are not included. C'Mon guys, just toss in Free Texts and you're golden!

Follow the changes on our Unlimited Plan Comparison Page.