| Cell phone coverage when boondocking. [message #174471] |
Sun, 24 June 2012 19:31  |
GMCNUSA
Messages: 283
Registered: August 2006
Location: Indianapolis, IN
Karma: 0
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I have sprint cell phones and an old plan at a very good rate. The problem is when off the main roads and towns we quite often don't have Sprint service. The phone usually says roaming available but my old plan does not have free roaming. We need new phones and I can switch carriers. Sprint will sell me free roaming for $5 per month. Which is cheaper than new plans with Verizon.
Does anyone know for sure that the free roaming upgrade will give me access to all of Verizon's remote area towers. Sprint does say yes but it is qualifed with some doubletalk about agreements with some tower owners. I don't want another 2 yrs of bad remote area coverage. Changing carriers will cost me over $360 a year. That's a couple tanks of gas for the TZE.
Larry Dilk
Indianapolis, IN
76 Eleganza II
Patterson 455,Turbo City TBI,
Just LOVE It!
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| Re: Cell phone coverage when boondocking. [message #174479 is a reply to message #174471] |
Sun, 24 June 2012 20:12  |
C Boyd
Messages: 2629
Registered: April 2006
Karma: 18
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Sir: with Sprint you should be able to change plans without A new contract. We have Sprint family unlimited data and have no roaming charges and no complaints with coverage.
| GMCNUSA wrote on Sun, 24 June 2012 20:31 |
I have sprint cell phones and an old plan at a very good rate. The problem is when off the main roads and towns we quite often don't have Sprint service. The phone usually says roaming available but my old plan does not have free roaming. We need new phones and I can switch carriers. Sprint will sell me free roaming for $5 per month. Which is cheaper than new plans with Verizon.
Does anyone know for sure that the free roaming upgrade will give me access to all of Verizon's remote area towers. Sprint does say yes but it is qualifed with some doubletalk about agreements with some tower owners. I don't want another 2 yrs of bad remote area coverage. Changing carriers will cost me over $360 a year. That's a couple tanks of gas for the TZE.
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C. Boyd
76 Crestmont
East Tennessee
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| Re: Cell phone coverage when boondocking. [message #174480 is a reply to message #174471] |
Sun, 24 June 2012 20:14 |
tphipps
Messages: 3005
Registered: August 2004
Location: Spanish Fort, AL
Karma: 9
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Frankly, I use a pre-paid Trakfone. If you only need cell connection, this has worked well all over the place. When I don't use it, it does not cost any money. True, that the cost of individual minutes is high, but watch your usage, and it is responsible. I spend less than $150 on cell coverage a year, and that is all I use.
Tom, MS II
2012 Phoenix Cruiser model 2552
KA4CSG
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| Re: Cell phone coverage when boondocking. [message #174481 is a reply to message #174479] |
Sun, 24 June 2012 20:19 |
GMCNUSA
Messages: 283
Registered: August 2006
Location: Indianapolis, IN
Karma: 0
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| C Boyd wrote on Sun, 24 June 2012 21:12 |
Sir: with Sprint you should be able to change plans without A new contract. We have Sprint family unlimited data and have no roaming charges and no complaints with coverage.
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Thanks for the the reply Chuck. we need new phones ours our 5 ys old and the batteries are very weak. Sprint wants a new contract to give us new phones.
Larry Dilk
Indianapolis, IN
76 Eleganza II
Patterson 455,Turbo City TBI,
Just LOVE It!
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| Re: Cell phone coverage when boondocking. [message #174485 is a reply to message #174481] |
Sun, 24 June 2012 20:25 |
C Boyd
Messages: 2629
Registered: April 2006
Karma: 18
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Yes Sir, however if you take out insurance on the phones, $7 a month, and something unforseen happens like dropping it off the roof or accidently running over it you get a new phone with no new contract.
| GMCNUSA wrote on Sun, 24 June 2012 21:19 |
| C Boyd wrote on Sun, 24 June 2012 21:12 |
Sir: with Sprint you should be able to change plans without A new contract. We have Sprint family unlimited data and have no roaming charges and no complaints with coverage.
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Thanks for the the reply Chuck. we need new phones ours our 5 ys old and the batteries are very weak. Sprint wants a new contract to give us new phones.[/quote]
C. Boyd
76 Crestmont
East Tennessee
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| Re: Cell phone coverage when boondocking. [message #174486 is a reply to message #174480] |
Sun, 24 June 2012 20:25 |
GMCNUSA
Messages: 283
Registered: August 2006
Location: Indianapolis, IN
Karma: 0
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| tphipps wrote on Sun, 24 June 2012 21:14 |
Frankly, I use a pre-paid Trakfone. If you only need cell connection, this has worked well all over the place. When I don't use it, it does not cost any money. True, that the cost of individual minutes is high, but watch your usage, and it is responsible. I spend less than $150 on cell coverage a year, and that is all I use.
Tom, MS II
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Tom we unfortunattely average over 700 minutes per month so it seems my best deal is stay with Sprint if I really will have the use of Verizon towers when camping and in small towns. We just spent 3 days in Spring Green, Wisconsin with no coverage except roaming which I now have to pay roaming charges to use.
Larry Dilk
Indianapolis, IN
76 Eleganza II
Patterson 455,Turbo City TBI,
Just LOVE It!
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| Re: Cell phone coverage when boondocking. [message #174507 is a reply to message #174486] |
Mon, 25 June 2012 02:34 |
Ken Burton
Messages: 10030
Registered: January 2004
Location: Hebron, Indiana
Karma: 10
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Larry,
I think this is what you are running into. While Verizon has the widest coverage, in some areas (like most of Michigan) they use another provider which they have an agreement with and you really are not on the Verizon network. The average user has no clue that someone else is handling their call since it is free and transparent to them. I run into this all the time on Verizon as they do not hand off an "in progress" call when you cross the border into Michigan. Your Sprint / Verizon roaming agreement is probably good is real Verizon areas but not in the Verizon "extended network" (Verizon agreement / other carrier) areas. If you live up here and use Sprint you definitely will need the agreement as Sprint coverage is very spotty at best.
You might look into some of the Verizon discounts. I know they have one for Veterans. I haven't researched them because I'm using a corporate plan that I have had for years. My daughter is on a prepaid unlimited use plan that uses the Verizon network.
Ken Burton - N9KB
76 Palm Beach
Hebron, Indiana
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| Re: Cell phone coverage when boondocking. [message #174526 is a reply to message #174507] |
Mon, 25 June 2012 11:27 |
idrob
Messages: 645
Registered: January 2005
Location: Central Idaho
Karma: 0
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| Ken Burton wrote on Mon, 25 June 2012 00:34 |
Larry,
I think this is what you are running into. While Verizon has the widest coverage, in some areas (like most of Michigan) they use another provider which they have an agreement with and you really are not on the Verizon network. The average user has no clue that someone else is handling their call since it is free and transparent to them. I run into this all the time on Verizon as they do not hand off an "in progress" call when you cross the border into Michigan. Your Sprint / Verizon roaming agreement is probably good is real Verizon areas but not in the Verizon "extended network" (Verizon agreement / other carrier) areas. If you live up here and use Sprint you definitely will need the agreement as Sprint coverage is very spotty at best.
You might look into some of the Verizon discounts. I know they have one for Veterans. I haven't researched them because I'm using a corporate plan that I have had for years. My daughter is on a prepaid unlimited use plan that uses the Verizon network.
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I concur with Ken, some areas of Verizon coverage are actually another carrier. I live in one of those areas. Verizon has a contract with Inland Cellular for example and my calls go through their network. Now, the question is, if Sprint has a contract with Verizon, and Verizon a contract with Inland Cellular, will the call go through? I really don't know.
I do know that Verizon's contract with Inland Cellular does not cover data service, and so if I want to use my Verizon Air card USB modem to connect to the net, it will not work, even though my Verizon cell phone does work fine in the same spot.
For voice service only, I believe Verizon has the very best coverage overall. And usually my USB Modem works even in remote areas of the West, other than areas like I mention above.
BTW, new batteries for your phone should be pretty inexpensive if you don't want to change anything else. I paid $15 for mine at a battery center in a large ACE hardware store. And online they are very inexpensive, but the shipping is not.
Rob Allen
former owner of '76 x-PB
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