<p>So I'm thinking of getting an iPhone.
But then I realized that AT&T might not work so well out in Iowa.
Anybody know the deal on cell reception? Which providers are the best, which are the worst? I figure whatever cell phone I buy/service provider I choose should work at the place I about spend half my time at.</p>
<p>I use a prepaid phone that I believe uses the Verizon Network, I have reception everywhere in Grinnell. A bunch of my friends have an iPhone, they never have any big problems with reception. As far as I am aware all bigger providers work well in Grinnell.</p>
<p>First, AT&T does not offer 3G in Grinnell - the market is probably not big enough for them - so you won’t be able to run all those cool apps without the help of WiFi (which I’m guessing is all over campus). Next, despite what the AT&T coverage map says about Grinnell having “good” coverage, we had 3 iPhones on campus for our spring visit and we all had 1 bar most of the time. If I remember correctly, I also had a dropped call, which I’ve come to expect from AT&T regardless of geography (in stark contrast to the always-solid Verizon service we used to have).</p>
<p>Still, if you really want an iPhone, I’d wait for the iPhone 4 and live with a little bit of bandwidth/coverage frustration in Grinnell. (Afterall, there’s no denying the phones are way cool and WiFi will help compensate for some shortcomings.) If you want really solid voice performance, in addition to 3G with less WiFi dependence, I’d go with a DROID-based phone on Verizon.</p>
<p>D had a Verizon phone on her visit in April, and had great reception. I had a Droid and had no problem with any of the apps or functions. I think Verizon is the way to go, and the Droid (or the Ally, which my other D has) are both great. That said, it’s not like you are commuting long distances or will be far away from your laptop at any given time. I would consider saving the money and just getting a phone (not a 3G monster).</p>
<p>We visited in April. Our family has T-Mobile, which doesn’t seem big in the Midwest, but we were pleasantly surprised that all our calls went through.</p>
<p>aha, ok, thanks everyone. wow it seems like verizon is always reliable no matter where you go.
anybody know about sprint or virgin mobile? virgin has really reasonable plans but I’m worried the coverage might not be so good…</p>