Cingular 1900 TDMA

[andyourdone]

Does Cingular actually use the 1900Mhz frequency for TDMA?? If so, where? I am contemplating getting a Tracfone (as a gift) and it is my understanding that they use the Cingular network (correct me if I'm wrong)...I am decided between the Nokia 1221 and the Motorola 120t. I know:

Moto 120t is 800 AMPS/800 TDMA/1900 TDMA
Nokia 1221 is 800 AMPS/800 TDMA

Would getting the Nokia limit my service area...at all??
(I am in upstate New York)

[Yahoo!Man]

First off i would NOT get tracfone

I would get AT&T Wireless they have much better rates @ .25 cents per minute and unlimited incoming text messages and .10 cents for outgoing text messages. AT&T has Nationwide Coverage and currently I have AT&T and are almost always on the AT&T Wireless Network except in the Suncom area mostly in Northern Georgia and Central North Carolina but in AT&T in South Carolina and Virginia.

If Tracfone does use Cingular Wireless's TDMA network they would only use it for states east of the Mississippi River giving that Cingular only has TDMA east of the MS River and then for west coast tracfone could have multiple carrier support

Cingular does have coverage in Upstate New York

Tracfone is soooo expensive

if you do not have AT&T Wirelss the second best thing is to go with Alltel but currently Alltel does NOT serve your area so go with Cingular Wireless

Cingular has .35 cents per minute peak
.10 cents per minute night and weekends
start at 7 pm and end at 7am
weekends saturday 7pm - sunday 7pm

AT&T Wireless does not have coverage in Upstate New York but does in south central NY near PA

If Tracfone does run on Cingular Wireless's TDMA Network I would not get it because i had Cingular Wireless in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic and got HORRIBLE coverage in Florida (where i live) and in Georgia about 2 - 3 bars and usually on extended coverage which cost extra but it gets worse all the way from south carolina thru north carolina to virginia and once in virginia i had roam mostly from AT&T and Suncom and they do not allow you to make calls on roam (with exception of 911)

So make the right decision and go with AT&T Wireless they have great TDMA coverage thru out the Continental US

[Yahoo!Man]

No it would not

Get the Moto 120t because it can receive more frequency therefore giving you better service

[andyourdone]

But does anyone know if Cingular uses 1900 TDMA AT ALL??

[Yahoo!Man]

Call Cingular Costumer Service and ask them

1866-Cingular

[Gamer03]

Originally Posted by Yahoo!Man No it would not Get the Moto 120t because it can receive more frequency therefore giving you better service

I agree.

I had the Motorola 120t before I switched to Sprint (due to lousy service in my area) and the Motorola picked up signals in areas where my sister's Nokia 3360 would not ...but the Nokia 3360 held onto a Cingular signal longer than the Motorola 120t did (it would pick up the stronger signal, which in my case, was AT&T TDMA).

Also, I am not positive, but I think New Orleans has 1900 Mhz TDMA, but I am not sure.

It just depends on how well Cingular TDMA covers your area, and it depends if there are any TDMA carriers in your area for your phone to pick up, in case you get a stronger signal on another carrier's network.

[COtech]

Originally Posted by andyourdone Does Cingular actually use the 1900Mhz frequency for TDMA?? If so, where? I am contemplating getting a Tracfone (as a gift) and it is my understanding that they use the Cingular network (correct me if I'm wrong)...I am decided between the Nokia 1221 and the Motorola 120t. I know: Moto 120t is 800 AMPS/800 TDMA/1900 TDMA Nokia 1221 is 800 AMPS/800 TDMA Would getting the Nokia limit my service area...at all?? (I am in upstate New York)

You'll find Cingular 1900 MHz TDMA on Gulf coast Florida (Fort Myers, Tampa, Gainesville, Tallahassee, Panama City, Pensacola) and Mississippi (and inland to Hatiesburg and Vicksburg). Montgomery and Enterprise-Dothan, Alabama markets. Greenville to Starkville, MS (along US-82). Along I-20 and US-49 in Louisiana (Alexandria, Shreveport, Monroe markets). Tulsa, Oklahoma market.

There could be other areas that I am unaware of. Some of these areas have insufficient bandwidth to run GSM alongside of TDMA, and will have a "flash" cutover (some night) and be GSM the next day.

COtech

[bobolito]

Cingular also has TDMA 1900 service in east PA, south NJ, and some parts of CT. It is very limited and some of these areas may have been converted to GSM. Out of curiosity, why are you so interested in TDMA 1900 anyway? All TDMA phones that support 1900 also support 800Mhz including the T120. Therefore, I'm curious to know why you are interested in TDMA 1900Mhz.

[andyourdone]

The reason I am curious is because I am about to buy a someone a Tracfone (as a gift) and I can get a new Nokia 1221 with 120 minutes for $55...or I can get a refurbished Motorola 120t with a 1 year activation 150 card for $100. The only thing about the Nokia 1221 is that it is only TDMA 800/AMPS 800, where as the Moto 120t also supports TDMA 1900. I was just wondering if that will really make much of a difference coveragewise (not having TDMA 1900).


Also, another question. Does Tracfone ever use AMPS..like where there is no TDMA signal, and if they do does it qualify as roaming (costing 2 units/minute)?

[Gamer03]

Originally Posted by andyourdone The reason I am curious is because I am about to buy a someone a Tracfone (as a gift) and I can get a new Nokia 1221 with 120 minutes for $55...or I can get a refurbished Motorola 120t with a 1 year activation 150 card for $100. The only thing about the Nokia 1221 is that it is only TDMA 800/AMPS 800, where as the Moto 120t also supports TDMA 1900. I was just wondering if that will really make much of a difference coveragewise (not having TDMA 1900). Also, another question. Does Tracfone ever use AMPS..like where there is no TDMA signal, and if they do does it qualify as roaming (costing 2 units/minute)?

It depends on where you want to use it. For example, before we switched to Sprint, we had Cingular Nation (tdma), which included all of the 50 states with no roaming or no long distance charges.

So if you get a plan that includes roaming and no distance, then there shouldn't be a problem.

Maybe someone else can chime in with their expertise.

[BillRadio]

Originally Posted by andyourdone I was just wondering if that will really make much of a difference coveragewise (not having TDMA 1900).

The answer is Cingular does have several markets where they use 1900 MHz TDMA. Cleveland and Chicago come to mind first. Additionally, there are markets where there is no Cingular coverage, and AT&T would be the TDMA carrier and they have many areas of 1900 MHz TDAM coverage.

Also, another question. Does Tracfone ever use AMPS..like where there is no TDMA signal, and if they do does it qualify as roaming (costing 2 units/minute)?

Yes, TDMA Tracfones use AMPS and it may or may not cause additional charges. Some AMPS systems are included. If Tracfone lets you sign up with that dual-mode phone, then you'll use a lot of AMPS, more of which I would guess is not included.

[bobolito]

I would not recommend the 800Mhz Nokia phone. I'm surprised such "dinasours" still exist. There are certain areas where Cingular will prefer you to use TDMA 1900 and 800Mhz analog is blocked.

By the way, what do you think about AT&T prepaid or GoPhone? Wouldn't that be better than Tracfone? I am just not sure if you explored all options. I am sure many things are better than Tracfone, especially in pricing.

[andyourdone]

I actually have researched this quite a bit...apparently AT&T doesn't sell service in the area this phone would be used (even though my friend's T-Mobile phone gets a strong AT&T GSM 1900 signal even where there is no T-Mobile signal which is more or less everywhere-->AT&T says they "have not obtained licenses to sell service in our market, but wouldn't they need to have obtained a lincense to build cell sites and activate them?!?) And anyway, this friend of mine who I'm getting it for is not the brightest...as far as electronics go and I thikn Tracfone's Airtime Balace Display would just make her life a lot easier, it's not like she's going to by using her phone THAT much anyway, only for directions, emergencies, "Where are you" etc. That said, if an emergency comes up, I would want the phone to get service hence my TDMA 1900 concerns.

Thanks for all the help, I really appriciate it!