Sooner or later, you'll end up with Verizon.
Written: Dec 27 '03 (Updated Apr 12 '09)
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Pros: Most functional cell phone service across the country.
Cons: Generally good customer service but some reps get a bit arrogant at times.
The Bottom Line: Best signal coverage.
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| kfor's Full Review: Verizon Mobile Phone Service in Seattle/Tacoma/Eve... |
I live in the Tacoma area but travel often. One critical factor for cell phone service is the amount of towers. With Verizon, I have had a good signal where the other carriers failed.
In the Tacoma area, the signal strength has been great. Even when you roam out into the boonies (Yelm, Rainer, etc.) I still have a good signal. There have been many places that I've been with friends who had other services (Sprint, AT&T, T-mobile) and my phone was the only one that could dial out.
I've been all over Washington and across the country and can only recall one time that I was absolutely without a signal. That was deep in a canyon in Eastern Washington, on a dirt road.
On the other hand, there were times like in North Dakota that I couldn't see a single piece of civilization other than the paved road I was on but I still got a solid "4 bars" signal.
I got a great signal strength all over Oahu, Puerto Rico, across the country, up and down the east coast.
I tell all my friends that sooner or later, you'll get tired of all the problems with the other carriers and end up with Verizon.
UPDATE (April 12, 2009): The signal strength continues to be a strong point of Verizon. Since my initial review, I've been on quite a few more roadtrips and can only recall one instance of not having a signal while someone else did. It's usually the other way around. Without a signal, what good is the phone? Oh, good signal strength in Anchorage. Even an hour south of Anchorage I was getting 3 solid bars of signal.
One issue did just occur. In an attempt to impose restrictions on my child, I activated the Parental Control feature on her phone. I wanted her phone calls and text messages to be restricted during certain hours of the day and night. I set the initial restricion from 7 PM to 7 AM. Imagine my surprise when she continued talking on the phone past 7. I immediately called Verizon and spoke to a customer service rep. She assured me that it was working but if the call began before 7, it would not block calls until that call ended. Okay, I can live with that. Imagine my chagrin when I checked her usage a week later and could see calls at all hours of the day. I called Verizon again just about 15 minutes ago and the rep checked everything out. He assured me that it looked good and should be working. He the made a test call and it went through. What the h**l? After careful reading, he discovered that the restrictions only stop text messages. Once I reread the description, yeah, that's what it says.
I apologized to the rep for misreading the description and asked him to cancel the feature. He, in turn, apologized for making the same mistake I did. He cancelled the Parental Controls and credited my account so I would not pay for it. I think that's pretty decent customer service.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 100
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Epinions.com ID:
kfor
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Member: R
Location: Tacoma, WA
Reviews written: 23
Trusted by: 0 members
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