The Online Insider Makes the Switch To Verizon Wireless
Written: Jun 15 '04
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Pros: Better service, better phones! No more dropped calls on 95.
Cons: Unclear on who you can call free. Is everyone on the InNetwork plan?
The Bottom Line: Better coverage, better plan, better phone, happier wife
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| bhweb22's Full Review: Verizon Mobile Phone Service in New York |
Can you hear me now?
If you live in the Northeast, you've seen countless wireless ads about the new Verizon Wireless service. I'm sure people across the country are saying -- "Can you hear me now?" and then chuckling about it.
I was a former AT&T Wireless subscriber for about 5 years. I hung on for a long time because I know that cell service is one of those things that pretty much uniformly underperforms no matter which provider you use. It's one of those "the evil you know is better than the evil you don't" problems.
I know that the cell phone service in my area of the country is not great because of the wooded areas that line the roads. The signal from NY to Boston drops out numerous times. Since I drive that for work pretty frequently, it became a nuisance that was simply costing me time and my company money. Mrs. Insider was very happy, as she had wanted to get off of AT&T for some time now.
Also, the ability to seamlessly switch my number was a great thing. Let's face it - once you have a number that all your friends have, it's hard to change without disruption.
Making the Move to Verizon
Once number switching was available in my area, I decided to make the switch. We went to the Verizon Wireless store in a mall near my house. The gentleman behind the counter was excellent and the porting process literally took 30 minutes from chosing the phone, to filling out the forms to the first call being dialed!
The Service
There are two geographical areas where I've often cursed AT&T. I'm happy to say that in both of these former dead spots, Verizon holds a signal and does not drop the call. One of the spots is a 2 mile stretch of i-95 that I take everyday on my way home from work. Much of the time I Use this ride to catch up with my family or old friends. The dead spot would kill almost every call or at least render several miles completely useless. Now I can talk my way through that area, which is excellent.
In addition, I've driven to Boston with the new service and was able to work all the way up and back... no dropped calls on the way! The gain in productivity will not go unnoticed. I haven't tried this service through the tunnels or the subway yet, but will in the next few weeks. I'll update this epinion after that.
Other than that, the plan seems to be pretty good. Nights and weekends are free. We got a $70 refund on the switch, which we applied to LG VX6000 camera phones. With our new baby, we use them all the time. We get free calls to everyone else on the In network plan -- many of my friends are on Verizon as well, so things look good!
And a bonus... Mrs. Insider is happy with Verizon, too.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 69
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Epinions.com ID:
bhweb22
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 - Top 500 |
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Member: Brian H
Location: Northeast
Reviews written: 297
Trusted by: 110 members
About Me:
I'm an Internet GEEK.
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