Which cellphone network offers the best service for you? Simple question. The answer is a lot more complicated. When we walk out of the house each morning, we make sure we take our wallet, our keys and our wireless phone. We don’t leave home without them. Our phone is our connection to our world. However, all networks are not equal. Some are better and some are worse… Consumer Reports publishes an annual report that tries to help us answer this question. It looks at individual carriers in indidivual states, and it also offers a big-picture ranking on a nationwide basis.
I find it interesting how little notice the big carriers have given to prepaid until now, missing out on a huge sector of the market. Prepaid is by far the better choice with today's economy, coming in cheaper than contracts, and allowing you the freedom to switch plans depending on (uncertain) circumstances. As far as handsets go, the basic and cheap ones are still available, but mostly marketed towards the tweens and seniors, who need something user-friendly and affordable(my dad's SVC phone only costing him $15, and his monthly minutes even less). There are now a number of feature and smartphones available to prepaid, but still affordable, with unlimited plans to accompany them. In my opinion, prepaid is the way to go, offering most of what the big carriers offer, at a fraction of the price. Time for AT&T and Verizon to play catch-up with the likes of Tracfone and Boost!
For a senior who really doesn't want much from a phone, it certainly does only boil down to US Cellular, and Tracfone's SVC brand. US Cellular might have the better on service (apparently, as I've not had to revert to mine), but at the end of the day, tracfone remains slightly cheaper, and has by far better coverage than the US Cell...if you stay within range of their towers.
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The Best Cellphone Network for You Is ...
Posted by: Jeff Kagan September 15, 2011 05:00 AMWhich cellphone network offers the best service for you? Simple question. The answer is a lot more complicated. When we walk out of the house each morning, we make sure we take our wallet, our keys and our wireless phone. We don’t leave home without them. Our phone is our connection to our world. However, all networks are not equal. Some are better and some are worse… Consumer Reports publishes an annual report that tries to help us answer this question. It looks at individual carriers in indidivual states, and it also offers a big-picture ranking on a nationwide basis.