has anyone been charged roaming by cingular in central wi

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has anyone with cingular perferred nation coverage been charged a roaming charge in cingular's extended coverage area in central wisconsin?[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-confused.gif[/img]

[Shizam76]

Well....I'm on the NATION plan, so I don't pay roaming regardless, but it all depends on what your phone says when you made the calls. If it said "Cingular Extend" or in case your phone hasn't been updated, it may still say "Cingular Roam", you will pay roaming charges. Now, maybe someone can help me out with the maps as well. I know from experience that a little past Madison, there are no Cingular towers, as the local maps show, and you will roam. I was in Wisconsin Dells and my phone kept switching from Extend back to regular, as it is right on the border of coverage, depending on which direction we went.

Also accoring to the home maps, Milwaukee and Madison are included in Cingular coverage, but the rest of the state is not. On the Preferred Nation map, Central Wisconsin is not included, but very northern Wisconsin is. I don't understand how this is. If they don't sell service up there, they have no towers, which means you will roam there. The preferred nation map is orange in northern Wisconsin, but if you go there, your phone will say "Extend" or "Roam", and you will pay out the rear....so I don't get why they color the map that way and tell people they won't be roaming, when in reality they will be.

It's the same over in Indiana and southwest lower Michigan. I watched my phone on I80/94 then to I94 as soon as I left Porter county, going into La Porte county, my phone switched to "Extend." It was like this from that point up to where I was going, which was New Buffalo Michigan. According to the Preferred Nation map, all of Indiana and all of the lower half of lower Michigan is included in coverage, but really it isn't. I made calls, and if I wasn't on the NATION plan, I would have been charged roaming.

As quoted from the bottom "Disclaimer" on the map:

"Maps depict rate areas only, not coverage areas. Actual coverage areas differ substantially from map graphics, and coverage may be affected by such things as terrain, weather, foliage, buildings and other construction, signal strength, customer equipment and other factors. Cingular does not guarantee coverage. Charges will be billed based on the location of the site receiving and transmitting the call, not on the location of the subscriber."

If this is the case, then it is saying that the rate area of the orange color is a "Home" charged rate? But some of the orange area is not the rate area (Home-non roaming) that it is appearing to be.

So, to answer your question after all that babbling, I have never been charged roaming. But I tried to answer (or get answerd) some things I'm sure you question. You probably should get charged roaming in Central Wisconsin, the map shows the green "Extend" area (depending on where you are), but I would fight 'em on Northern Wisconsin. I don't know why they mislead with those crazy maps