<p>From what I have read on this forum, it look slike Plebes are allowed tohave cell phones during the school year. Is that correct? Can any current mids comment on cell phone service? Do certain cell phone carriers get much better signal strength at the Academy than others?</p>
<p>Yes, and yes.</p>
<p>Plebes get their cell phones back after Plebe Summer.</p>
<p>Some carriers get better reception than others, and I understand it depends on where you are in Bancroft. Jaedler can comment better than I as to which carriers have better signals than others.
CM</p>
<p>Cingular is the best service for around the annapolis area. That's what my brother had and he could make phone calls from inside his room (some of you may know that this is very rare seeing as B is made of solid granite).</p>
<p>My son has Verizon service. It works quite well in Bancroft. They also have the plan that you do not get charged for calling another Verizon number. It has worked quite well for us in terms of service and economics.</p>
<p>One thing to remember is that the use of cell phones varies from company to company. In my son's company they were able to have to them for their 3 summer phone calls, but then once Academic Year started, there were restrictions on their use for a while. Every room has a phone which was nice. At least we could still talk to him even without the cell phone.</p>
<p>my ex boyfriend used to have to go stand under a certain particluar tree near some archway in order to get service w/ verizon..... and my at&t service didn't work very well in bancroft hall...</p>
<p>I have been told that service varies depending on the particular location in Bancroft. It is best to wait before beginning new service until one knows the company to which one will be assigned. That tells the area of Bancroft that will be your home for the next 4 years.</p>
<p>And yes, I have heard the horror stories of mids hanging out the window or standing outside in the rain/snow trying to get a decent signal.
CM</p>
<p>I have nextel and it works much better inside bancroft than verizon did.</p>
<p>Yes, Plebes do get their cell phones back after plebe summer. </p>
<p>As far as getting a signal, it depends where you are in B. I've stayed in a few different wings while attending the sports camps, and each time I would get a different signal quality (Verizon). So it depends.</p>
<p>I don't know about midshipmen hanging out the windows, but (if I remember correctly) the room I stayed in recently had the screens bolted down. Not quite sure what that was all about.</p>
<p>Evanescentglory;
They bolted down the screens after a fall out of a window in 2002 I believe. Unfortunately, that didn't work too well since a midshipman recently also fell to their tragic death. So, I wouldn't be hanging out of any windows in Bancroft. So sad.</p>