<p>Class of 2009 babe!!!
planning to sign up for a plan, but I don't know which one is best in the area
of Ithaca. Thanks alot!</p>
<p>In a previous thread the current students almost unanimously agreed that Verizon provided the most reliable service in Ithaca. (So I guess I'll keep my plan even though it gives me some trouble in NJ..)</p>
<p>i have verizon and when i went up to visit it worked really well</p>
<p>does anyone have Nextel?</p>
<p>good! more characters</p>
<p>Also, when people move to Ithaca from out of state, do they get new New York numbers or do they keep their old numbers?</p>
<p>Good service is essential in college because your cell becomes you're primary phone. People dont use dorm phones unless you know the person you're calling is in their room AND you know their extention. </p>
<p>Spanks: nextel will suck. It can't roam since its on a completely different networkfrom everyone else. Cornell is in the middle of nowhere, so if you leave ithaca, you will find lots of dead spots. GSM companies like Cingular, ATT, Tmobile cant go on analog signal, which will also have the same effect. </p>
<p>Verizon and Sprint can go analog which will give you maximum coverage area in general, proven by their superior (by comparison only) marks in a Consumer Reports survey.</p>
<p>Verizon and Cincular have the best service on campus; verizon is a bit better I hear. </p>
<p>Overall verizon is your best bet, especially with their good nationwide plans that let you call anywhere US at no extra cost. Thats advantageous for college because your cell becomes your primary phone, and you will be calling A.) home, which for many is out of the "calling area" and B.) your friends who are all over the country at other colleges.</p>
<p>Iggy, not only can you keep your cell number when you move, but you can also keep it if you choose to switch to a different provider. (like cingular->verizon)</p>
<p>Thanks Sparticus...looks like I will have to part with my Nextel :(...do you know if I can take my number to verizon?</p>
<p>from my last post:
[quote]
Iggy, not only can you keep your cell number when you move, but you can also keep it if you choose to switch to a different provider. (like cingular->verizon)
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Nextel's main market nitch is their "Direct Connect" feature, which lets you use you're phone like a walkie talkie. Other than that, you won't notice a difference, other than getting better service with verizon, which wont hurt. Verizon even offers a walkie talkie service for some of their phones (motorola v60p) called Push2Talk.</p>
<p>Plus with verizon, which I think most people will have, you'll be able to call anyone else on verizon without costing yourself any minutes. That should possibly reduce the number of minutes you need to buy.</p>
<p>ooops, didn't see that</p>
<p>cool, thanks a lot for the info</p>
<p>I sound like such a sales person, don't I?</p>
<p>exactly what I was thinking lol</p>
<p>I have Cingular and I can get a signal anywhere on campus except like underground- go with them, they're much cheaper</p>
<p>Verizon Sales pich: that girls on crack dont listen to her! no, if she says so then I believe her, but you still have the analog signal issue.</p>
<p>explain the analog signal issue. im currently using tmobile on a plan which i get 400 minutes a month (800 for the first two months) and three family lines for only like 20 bucks a month. anyone else have tmobile, or have they all left for verizon/sprint.</p>
<p>Analog lets phones get better (even just some) reception in rural areas where theres no signal. Analog means you cant send txt messages and pix, but you can at least use your phone, albeit some static. GSM phones like tmobile and cingular can't go analog. CDMAs like verizon and sprint can.</p>
<p>If you hear good things about tmobile there (i'm not a student, i'm just combining statistics, facts, and things i've heard) keep it. If you have a problem with it, you can always switch and keep your number.</p>
<p>what makes analog services have better reception. i mean, do you know the details? im totally at a lost. i got my phone in nyc and the reception was flawless, but in my school, i dont even get a signal. could it be a rural vs urban setting thing, like the number of tall buildings to reflect signals?</p>
<p>Analog is not better reception than digital. It is in fact poorer. Both types CDMA, and GSM, can get digital signals. Only CDMA can get analog. Analog signals are of lower quality, drain battery less, and can give your phone service where there is no digital service. </p>
<p>Is your school in a rural area? If so, there might be no towers giving you a signal nearby. The city vs. country issue is probably exactly why you dont get service if you go to school in a rural area.</p>
<p>i have tmobile, it's okay since I live on west, and reception there is great for ANY phone company (and tmobile is cheap and 3 day weekend deal). I get sketchy service for it up on north. if i become an RA up there, i will switch.</p>
<p>it's really only on north campus that reception for everything (except verizon, and even then...low bars) is drastically reduced. But, everywhere else on campus and collegetown, it doesn't matter what service you have, most likely you will get FULL bars.</p>
<p>correct me if I'm wrong since I've only ever had Tmobile</p>
<p>kewl, thanks for the tips</p>