We've had cellular service for quite some time now and know lots of folks who have it also. We've compared the plans and rates and services of many companies and find Verizon Wireless to be among the very best.

This is not to say we haven't had problems or complaints. You're going to have that with just about every service there is. However, Verizon is quick to handle complaints and does their best to solve problems quickly.

For example, we changed our service from analog to digital and purchased a new phone. It took quite a bit of haggling around since we had just missed a special they had been running. When we finally settled on the service we wanted it offered 400 anytime minutes and 2000 nites and weekend minutes with no long distance nationwide.
Well, the bill arrived the next month and we nearly fainted. They had charged us all sorts of fees and long distance charges and it was astronomical. I called up customer service and they were most apologetic but fixed the problem and credited our bill. At least, they thought they fixed it. Actually, when the next bill arrived, there were still a lot of long distance charges and the plan was not listed correctly. Another call, another apologetic customer service representative and another fix and credit. Whoa, next bill, another error with the plan listed wrong and I was beginning to think I'd never get things straight. Another call, and another apologetic representative.

This time, I made it "crystal" clear what I was upset about. I made sure the representative knew why I was mad and what I expected. In her behalf, she handled my call very professionally, and never lost her cool even though I had lost mine before I ever started dialing. Sure enough, we went through the billing line by line, and she removed all of the charges that were in error, made sure the plan got listed correctly and when the next bill arrived it had the exact right amount on it and another credit which she had found after we finished talking.

Sometimes the problem is in communication. We as consumers just don't know how to put something into the terms that the employee understands. I'm sure this same scenario has played out at almost every major cellular company there is.

Back to the service. Other than occasional problems when we're on the road, losing signals when we get into heavily wooded areas (to be expected), we get outstanding service. Clear connections that have gotten compliments from relatives who don't use cellular themselves, but get calls from several folks on different cellular services and know how much better ours sounds to them. Every now and again we get a system busy signal when the system is getting a lot of traffic. This has even happened on our regular phone at home so we can't really complain much about that.

I've got internet service on this cellular phone as well and it's very handy to be able to call up my stock reports, get quick messages or send them, make stock trades, or just find a piece of info when it's needed. Sure would be nice if I could figure out how to hook up to a printer directly from the phone and have it print a map of a specific location. Now that would be a feature that would be terrific.

All in all, I'd say that Verizon has one of the best services around.
They need to improve it though, and keep improving it. The minutes apply from within a home area only and there are extra charges when you're outside it. In that respect they are being beaten out by another company. They should make this service truly nationwide, with no home areas, no long distance charges, and cheaper minutes than anyone else can offer. They are the largest company in the business and should set the standard for others rather than be behind them.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 40.00