<p>are cell phones allowed at the academy for first-years? and if they are allowed, are there any restrictions? also, would it be more wise to buy a cell phone in colorado or bring one from home? i really want to know! thanks.</p>
<p>BBShorty yes four degrees will be allowed to have cell phones with some restrictions. You will not be able to have it during basic training. After Parents weekend you will probably have access to it on the weekends, After the first prog (grade report) you will be allowed to have it unless you find yourself on somekind of restriction. Just before recognition it may be taken back for the week. Doesnt matter where you get it, and reception depends on what dorm and service provider you have.</p>
<p>prog = 9ish weeks through the first semester.. early-mid october. </p>
<p>it ALL depends on squadron; they have the ultimate decision when it comes to nearly everything. but, for the most part, it's goes by that ^</p>
<p>some lose them again early in 2nd semester, sometimes beginning with 40 days (the 40 days leading up to Recognition). but again, timse are changing as are squads, so no one knows.</p>
<p>i brought mine to absic, left it in storage over basic, then got it back after the acceptance parade and that worked great for me. other people had parents ship them out, or just waited until parent's weekend. whatever you want really.</p>
<p>I left mine at my sponsors, so i had it for doolie day out, and then since my squad didn't let us have them for almost another month, whenever i went over there, i always had it. this way, i never needed to learn any phone numbers. the crappy part is when we did first get them back, mine wasn't here, so i had to wait. but it didn't matter because they were just taken away again. you also don't have much free time to talk on the phone anyway.</p>
<p>Which service provider gets best reception out there? Do you use phones for just calling, or do lots of people have Blackberrys, etc.? Basically, my plan runs up pretty soon, and I'd like to get one suited for the Academy.</p>
<p>I've been happy with T-mobile and my Crackberry. Keep in mind you won't be able to really use your phone until October next year (minor use between Parent's weekend and October)</p>
<p>yep, i'm getting t-mobile this week, right before i go home for thanksgiving. kinda expensive for the blackberry plans (~$60 a month) especially for what we make, it's almost half a paycheck. but it does get better, and i hear that the service is pretty good</p>
<p>some people i know still don't have their phones. but the majority do. in my squad, they let us have our stuff back after basic, and didn't collect phones for a couple of days, so it helped if you had left your phone in storage. it really depends on your squad.</p>
<p>i opted to take a prepaid so i could talk to my parents before i gave up my stuff on I-day, and after Basic, and my dad brought out my "real" phone on Acceptance day (parents' weekend would've been fine, since we couldn't use it 'til then anyway)</p>
<p>i've had really good luck with my sprint coverage and palm centro (that syncs with outlook. w00t!), but i hear at&t is the best. i'm pretty sure potter has sprint and hates it, so it really depends on where you are, i guess. my roommate has verizon and has to stand in the window to get reception.</p>
<p>My D has Sprint and has had no problems with connectivity or signals. Her only boo-boo was after having her phone taken away for so long she forgot the specifics of our plan. She thought we had unlimited texting --when we didn't.... Let me just say she does now! yikes!$$$ Texting must be the primary mode of communication out there! :)</p>
<p>Thought I warned you about that :)</p>
<p>You know, ds, you probably did! Thanks for being such a great source of info. LOL, jk, idk, .....dunno....just a few of the new text lingo I'm learning... ;)</p>
<p>i have verizon and it works perfectly fine where im at :)</p>
<p>We have ATT and it seems to work well there. Buckaroo has had no problems that I know of with cell phone service.</p>
<p>Hmmm... I have Alltel, and I guess Alltel is being absorbed by Verizon sometime soon, so I'll probably just stick with that for now.</p>
<p>i wouldn't renew my contract if i were you. stay with it, that's fine, but wait 'til you get here to renew. from <em>almost</em> everyone i know with verizon, coverage here is awful.
that's my advice anyway :)</p>
<p>i'm on the sixth (top) floor, and it still doesn't work anywhere in our squadron.</p>
<p>Over here at the P school, which is closer to town, verizon was so bad that I actually had my call dropped three times while trying to talk to customer service to get out of my contract. They eventually did since this area is reported as being an area of bad coverage but as the cadets have said it really depends on what squad you end up in. I did switch to AT&T and have had no complaints and full coverage everywhere near the springs.</p>
<p>i have at&t and i like it a lot. my two roommates have two other different companies, and they drop calls all the time. so they use mine a lot!</p>
<p>Okay, thanks for the advice. I believe that Verizon is acquiring the Alltel towers, too, so their coverage should improve, but I'll probably switch anyway. Never was a huge fan.</p>
<p>alright, thanks a lot you guys! i have at&t right now, so i guess i am just going to stick with that. And another question, should I bring my iPod to the academy? or do they not allow ipods?</p>