Price (& Phone) Are Right
Written: Dec 14 '99 (Updated Dec 14 '99)
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Pros: Good pricing, fair coverage
Cons: Poor customer service, middling sound quality
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| Girlina's Full Review: Sprint Mobile Phone Service in New York |
As much as I hate to admit it, I am more or less satisfied with my Sprint plan, despite customer service that ranks amongst the lowest of low. Coverage is adequate; calls get through fairly successfully, even in crowded Manhattan; and sound quality is okay. Consider this a grudging (not glowing) recommendation.
When it comes to choosing a cell phone plan these days, the words "lesser of a few evils" come to mind. My own strategy went like this: As Gadgetgrrl, I had to have a cool phone; as someone who travels fairly often on business, I needed a nationwide plan; and as someone who has a life, I wanted an unlimited evenings and weekends option.
Doesn't sound too unreasonable, does it? Unfortunately, these demands leave you with a list of choices that's shorter than the latest Dolce & Gabbana mini. Bell Atlantic (my former plan) and Omnipoint don't have nationwide networks - due to stratospheric pricing, roaming on Bell is apparently the exclusive sport of millionaires, and Omnipoint doesn't even have coverage in Fort Lee, NJ (yes, I have been to Fort Lee).
Then there's Nextel - which admittedly scores big in the "cool phone" department with the beauteous Motorola i1000. However, without analog roaming, its nationwide reach is limited; and there's no such thing as a free evenings and weekends. Ninety bucks for anything close to my usage rate is no bargain in my book.
So that leaves us down to two none-too-pretty contenders: AT&T and Sprint. I'd already cursed AT&T many times because I could never get through while SIMPLY CALLING friends who have this gnarly plan. Plus, the only truly cool phone that AT&T offers is the - ouch - $799 "Nikki Taylor" Nokia. That left me with Sprint and the much cheaper (and equally comely) Samsung SCH-3500 (also reviewed by me on this site).
When it comes to pricing, I can't complain; for around $45 per month (with taxes, etc.) I get 180 minutes per month peak and 500 minutes per month on evenings and weekends (defined as 8PM-7AM M-TH and 7PM F-7AM M). Coverage has certainly been fine: Over the last month, I was in Vegas, Wilmington DE, Los Angeles, and Utah, and except in the more rural areas was always on plan.
Of course, navigating the jam-packed cells of midtown Manhattan is always the biggest challenge, and in this department I would say Sprint is only slightly better than average. I get through much more often than my unhappy AT&T friends, but have a tendency to get cut off when travelling between cells. I also have noticed a weird echoing effect on many of my calls.
And finally, there's the customer service issue. Strike 1: A confusing set of phone recordings that act as a virtual "gatekeeper" designed to keep you from every speaking with anyone. Strike 2: A confusing bill that doesn't fully explain charges. Strike 3: Sprint charged me twice for my phone but told me there was nothing they could do to get the second charge off my bill apart from telling me to call Amex!
Nevertheless, since I seem to have finally found a plan that's perfectly tailored to my needs I guess there's nothing I can do but grin and bear it - a familiar posture to all of us fighting the cell phone wars.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 39.99
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Epinions.com ID:
Girlina
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Reviews written: 27
Trusted by: 247 members
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