The top in the NYC tru-state area!!!!

That's a rather interesting view. Many posters here (old forum) rated Voicestream very poorly. Seeing as ATT and Verizon are the two national companies and Voicestream is not even available here in Calif., I am surprised about your ranking.

Addendum: I need to qualify why I take exception to a company like Voicestream being at top. They are not a national company (or barely so), which is why I mention California. Though subscribers to Voicestream can roam, I can't help but wonder if this vendor is really helping their clients with the best solution. If a subscriber is someone that will only be in Voicestream's network, then maybe that might be a good solution. But people who travel would be much better served by ATT or Verizon. In New York, Verizon subscribers are much happier with their service than ATT customers. Based on posts I read here for the past several months, the readers' choice of your list would probably be:

1. Verizon (Reason: best coverage for area, national coverage for roaming.)
2. ATT (Reason: national coverage)
3. Sprint (Reason: J.D.Power award for New York)
4. Nextel (Reason: posters indicate they like it in New York.)
5. Voicestream (Reason: Posters don't like it. Spotty coverage. Poor customer service.)
6. MCI Worldcom (which does nothing more than resell Verizon and uses Verizon's network.) (Reason: Poor customer service. Why deal with a reseller when you can go straight to the horse's mouth?)

Kev

 

I'm surprised at that list as well. I wouldn't take that seriously. VoiceStream doesn't belong at the top. Verizon and Sprint are the top two for NYC and Nextel could be up there as well. As far as AT&T in NY just go to the web site www.epinions.com and look up how consumers have rated it in NYC. Behind Sprint, Verizon, and Nextel.

 

Hi Dobby,

Thanks for the further input. Of course you are aware that GSM in the USA does not tranmit on the same frequency as does Europe and <u>most</u> people with GSM phones in the USA need to rent a European GSM phone in order to use it oversees. Now I have heard that Voicestream does indeed market phones that &quot;do&quot; both the USA and European standards. I think Ericsson is one of them.

Cingular is already (has always been) GSM in California. The mid-west (and East??) markets will indeed be converting due to the technical limits of TDMA and the requirements of 3G.

I disagree that GSM is the best technology. It is Europe's 2G technology. Articles on cdg.com help us to see that GSM is a transitional technology that will eventually yield to w-CDMA. The reason for the interim implementation/deployment of GSM is because it is an easier path, allowing vendors to slowly transition the customer-base without alienating them because of the change. There are other technical and business reasons for this as well.

Thanks for joining this forum. We need strong contributors.

Take care,

Kevin

 

Here is another link about 3G

http://www.3gnewsroom.com/html/network/index.shtml )

Here at WA, if you look at the Phones and Accessories forum, you'll find a post I made about 3G handsets that may interest you. Personally, I am waiting for the LG TM520 (which is 3G).

Kev

PS. Check out my website (http://whitehare.topcities.com/WirelessPhones.htm) and my public access UReach account: UReach Account. For the pertinent UReach info, click on Filing Cabinet and see the Bookmarks and Wireless folders.

 

in reply to dobby 10:

I disagree that VoiceStream has roaming everywhere unless you're on a dual band phone which I don't think they offer. Examples of no GSM coverage: Bishop, CA, Little Rock, Ark, Lubbock, TX, St. George, UT, Sioux City, IA.

 

A few comments....

Cingular is currently GSM in Cali, NV, the Carolinas, Seattle and Spokane WA. TDMA everywhere else (not CDMA)

There's a difference between dual-band and dual-mode. VoiceStream offers a number of dual- and tri-band phones....at least one from Nokia (8890) two from Ericsson I think and one or two from Motorola. They operate on some combination of 1900 MHz for US and the two frequencies for Europe. Dual mode phones are phones that operate in both a digital and an analog mode. As a rule, VS doesn't offer them - but they do offer analog roaming in some markets.

As far as what phones people buy - I would submit that most people who know they will travel frequently overseas will buy a tri-band or dual-band phone and then bring it with them. But with GSM, you can if you prefer just take your SIM and rent a phone over there, and keep your number. Or, you can buy pre-paid service there too.

GSM is not a &quot;transitional&quot; technology. It is the worldwide 2G standard. Over 570 million users as compared to about 100 million for CDMA. It is actually still gaining worldwide parket share (from 65 to 70% of all digital users in the last year). It is correct that the 3G path for GSM will eventually be W-CDMA, which differs from the CDMA 3G solution of cdma2000, although they will be similar. The reason for continuing GSM deployment is that most people use it worldwide.

 

Hi Matt,

Great to have you join us. Just a small clarification in my post about GSM being a &quot;transitional&quot; technology. I was referring to it that way in reference to the path that current TDMA carriers are going. (Just as you noted in your post.) Interesting reading at: http://www.3gnewsroom.com/html/network/index.shtml See the graphic on the 2nd page.

Looking forward to more of you posts,
Kevin

 

Kevin - true. GSM will be a transition for TDMA to w-CDMA. They key for the TDMA operators is that they need the 2.5G/GRPS option which is only available via GSM.....3G is too far off in the US for competitive reasons for TDMA operators to go directly to w-CDMA.

 

Yap, and for those of you interested in more reading about GPRS, I have an article saved (that I downloaded from some website).

1. http://www.ureach.com/yoda2u

2. On the left panel, click on Filing Cabinet.

3. When the center panel opens, click the Wireless folder.

4. When the right panel opens, click the article: <u>GPRS What is it</u>

 

Roaming is only available for voice stream if you purchase a separate &quot;analog sleeve&quot; for the phone. It has limited availability too. (It's only usable on certain phones.)

 

Voicestream has the best voice quality that's why it's on top compared to other standard. Does Verizon Have GLOBAL ROAMING? Voicestream does..

 

I'd much rather have US roaming that works everywhere instead of global roaming. But for someone who travels out of the country often then I suppose VoiceStream would be the best choice. Sprint offers digital roaming in Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the US Virgin Islands but nothing in Europe or asia. Not sure about Verizon.

 

Or, you could say...

Voice Stream has the best voice quality in digital areas. (I'd disagree with that, I've tried Verizon, Sprint, and Voice Stream, and if you're getting a digital signal I can't detect a difference.) It has the worst voice quality outside of digital areas. (As in, no voice quality at all, since you can't use the phone.)

Voice Stream advertises that thier phones are great for traveling to Europe, though thier format is only supported there in major cities. You still have to rent a phone in each country you go to, to get the right frequency, you just switch the sim cards out. the only advantage really is you get to keep your number while there. You don't really save any money. (Correct me if I am wrong, of course.)
And no one tells you WHERE in Europe you can use your phone. This is the most complete list of countries that provide the option somewhere of using your Voice Stream globe trotter phone I have

Autralia
Austria
Belgium
Czech Republic
Denmark
Finland
France
Geramany (Of course)
Hong Kong
Iceland
Ireland
Indonesia
Israel
Italy
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
UK

(You'll have to call 18009378997 for cities in those countries that have service. You can't exactly roam freely.)

And roaming with a sim card can get expensive. (Anyone know how expensive?)

I don't think much of Voice Stream as a company. I think there is a very limited group of people whos needs are met by thier service, and they don't market themselves to that group.

Oh, and Vodaphone, nearly half of Verizon Wireless, is the largest cellular company in Europe, not just Germany.

 

I'm glad to see a loyal VoiceStream supporter on this site.

 

Actually, I think Orange is the biggest now over there.

 

Perhaps Voicestream might have better voice quality in NYC but not from what I noticed in Chicago. I tried Voicestream's Nokia 3300 series phone in suburban Chicago and the voice quality was worse than my AT&amp;T Nokia.
By no means am I saying that Voicestream service is bad but just wanted to make a point. Sprint PCS is actually very clear when you're in a good service area. About a year ago I had Sprint PCS and actually had no problems using it on the upper floors of the World Trade Center - Marriott Hotel. But you're right in that Voicestream and AT&amp;T have a better ability to &quot;hang on&quot; to a call when the signal is weakened, whereas Sprint PCS will drop the call.

Yes Voicestream has International Roaming capabilities in Europe and Asia, which is a good advantage but not it's not something that's a plus point for the majority of cell phone users here. What's more important first is coverage within your region and then nationwide coverage. Voicestream is probably great if you're staying within the local regions of a major US city. Again, people would have to decide what their needs are.

 

Also, what's up with Voicestream's policy of giving only 2 days for testing out their service??? AT&amp;T gives 30 days.

 

Yeah Info!

Now all we need are people that really know Cingular and Nextel, and we'll have a pretty complete little forum going.

I'm really curious to know more about Nextel. I don't understand thier network at all.

 

Informative post Dobby. I fielded a question from a poster months ago asking about Southern LINC. I think it turned out that they were a power company that &quot;spun off&quot; a communications firm (yes/no?). Up until that post I had no idea that other firms, unrelated to Nextel, were using that technology. Motorola must have sold it to firms like railway and power companies to allow then to build their own communications network. Later it grew into a public venture.

 

Huh? GSM coverge is nearly ubiquitous in Europe. Almost like analog in the USA. Go to GSM world and click on coverage and pick your country.

And as mentioned by someone else, just get a tri-band phone and you'll have GSM coverage throughout the world.

 

Kenny - just to clarify, VoiceStream gives three business days for returns. Not excellent, I agree. But if you sign up on Friday you get until Wednesday.

 

Matt, about your statement above concerning the prevalence of GSM throughout Europe...this is a no-brainer as already mentioned in previous postings above, so what's your point?

Yes we all understand the beauty of using GSM worldwide but what I was alluding to was the fact that a small minority of American users have a need for this and thus there is a small market for it. The more pressing concern is the maturity of the GSM market here in the US which is way behind. That's what the majority of the people here in the US are interested in -- how good and how much coverage is available with GSM right here in the US.

 

I dont think I can form an &quot;Educated&quot; opinion on VoiceStream as I personally have never had the service, and we only have ONE VS agent in Clarksville, TN. However, my hubby was a manager for Powertel, which became VS, and he liked the features, and the phones, and they had some good rateplans..but coverage was VERY LIMITED. I mean when we travelled to Ohio, his phone was nothing more than excess baggage! When he was in Nashville, it worked great, but that was about as Great as it got.

But, that WAS Powertel, so......maybe it got better. Wonder how much they are paying Ms. Jamie Lee Curtis to do all those ads???

 

Kenny,

My point about GSM in Europe was from a coverage perspective. Tony posted this above &quot;Voice Stream advertises that their phones are great for traveling to Europe, though thier format is only supported there in major cities.&quot; The part about only in major cities is untrue....the coverage there is nearly as good as analog here.

The GSM market, in terms of the cities it covers, is behind others here in the US. They are quickly catching up. GSM, as I'm sure you know, is all-digital. As an investor, I've followed the coverage areas (digital) of the major carriers. Right now, in terms of PoPs covered by digital service, AT&amp;T is first, followed by Sprint and then VoiceStream. I believe Verizon is 4th and Cingular 5th, but I'm not sure. And, VS does not offer their own service in CA, NV, and a number of other cities. In all of VS markets except the East Coast markets, you can get an analog sleeve for a couple of their phones if you need analog roaming capability. Many people who live in metro areas don't need it (I travel along the NE Corridor, and the digital service s great).

Leah, FYI, VoiceStream just launched service in Cincy/Dayton. There has been coverage in the Columbus area for some time. Cleveland, however, still does not have service - they will have roaming service available by 1/1/02, but will not launch a marketing campaign until later in 2002 when they complete their buildout there.

 

Don't forget about the new Cingular/Voicestream deal...see the Central Forum.