So right now my family is with Alltell, on a family plan. My dad has nextel for his business, but is possibly wanting to switch and get on a family plan with us.

The question is is what carrier to go with. My dad and I will both be getting smart phones, blackberrys or something like that. He's heard that Verizon has better coverage for smart phones. Also, my sister and I are both in Raleigh, while the rest of my family is in Charlotte.

Also, I read somewhere that Verizon gives state employees better deals, I am a state employee, so that might be a deciding factor.

What carrier does TWW recommend for us?

11/7/2007 11:50:03 AM

I like alltell except their phone selection sucks.

If you live in a populated area then Cingular is probably decent as well.

11/7/2007 11:54:44 AM

Had Alltel, US Cellular, and Verizon. Currently had Verizon for a year and been to 5 states with it and had no issues whatsoever. Alltel was okay, and my work phone is that. US Cellulars was good in rural areas, but that was in large part a reliance on analog towers.

I can't say about Cingular as in Eastern NC there coverage is shit at best. No tower within 20+ miles of my home. And in the country Sprint blows too.

11/7/2007 11:57:33 AM

I've really had no problems with Alltel, been up and down the east coast, into Kentucky, etc. no problems. Also, the smart phones they have are pretty up to date. I guess it's just going to boil down to who offers the best deal.

11/7/2007 12:07:16 PM

I have always had good service with Alltel but they kinda fucked over my parents on a few bills.

My dad and I are on AT&T and my mom/sister will convert when their contract is up. AT&T is a better phone selection imho.

btw if you go AT&T i heard the Sony Ericsson W580a is a great phone; the W750a about to hit market looks pretty cool; and the W310a is good for entry level.

I am not a big fan of Nokia or Samsung

11/7/2007 12:23:45 PM

I like my sprint service, but I suspect it is only because I was lucky enough to avoid all the pitfalls which catch so many other people.

11/7/2007 12:56:11 PM

I think verizon is too fucking expensive.

Sprint pretty much sucks just by virtue of the inept customer service. Sprint used to be cheaper but that is no longer the case. They still have not caught on that you cant have the shittiest customers service in the industry without having lower rates. It is also 2007 and they have not figured out how to get the fucking voicemail indicator to work right on their handsets. That in itself should tell you to stay away.

Nextel was great until merging with sprint. Nextel actually has awesome coverage now pretty much anywhere I go, even more so than sprint. I love the direct connect but if it was not for that I would switch.

I would defintely consider Alltel just because its cheaper and you get that my circle thing. A lot of people I know have switched to Alltel so they would be in network too. At my company's corporate office it is the ONLY phone that will work inside the building and it works perfectly, I don't go in there often so this is not much of an issue for me.

AT&T seems to have some kick ass phones but other than that I am not sure. I don't think their coverage is anything special either.

11/7/2007 4:09:02 PM