Right now I have Sprint PCS and, despite the occasional dropped calls, etc., customer service is pretty good and have never had any "issues." Except the fact that I heard the Sprint network is pretty s.hitty for Bluetooth phones and the fact that they have a pretty lame selection of phones to choose from.

So, with the new Treo 700w available only from Verizon Wireless, I've been thinking about switching. The original Treo has been pretty well reviewed but included the pretty crappy Palm OS; this one runs on the much more stable Windows Mobile 5.0 platform and, from what I've read about it, seems pretty solid.



I've read up reviews on Verizon Wireless (Consumer Reports, etc.) and they seem to be pretty good. I'm pretty ticked about their nights/weekends time table (6a - 9p M-F at Verizon, vs. 7a - 9p w/ Sprint, which will lower it to 7p if you ask and threaten to leave once you're off contract) but aside from that, everything looks pretty good. Their most basic plan w/ 450 anytime mins and unlimited wireless is $80/mo, but you can send/receive email and surf the web at "broadband-like speeds" on any Verizon digital network across the U.S. And unlike Sprint, they won't charge you to take and send pix if you send them as attachments thru email.

The ability to record your voicemail as mp3's and save them as attachments/future reference


Photo Speed-Dial and the ability to take pictures of your contacts


But what I really like is the bluetooth part - being able to send/receive calls through your car's audio system even if your phone's in your gym bag in the trunk. Sprint's bluetooth support is near null and Verizon is the only CDMA carrier that has pretty good support of bluetooth, aside from the GSM providers. I heard Cingular is hell and T-Mobile's a joke - their parent company, Deutsche Telekom AG, is looking to sell the unit and they're not investing in any new technologies/hardware or network upgrades. So T-Mobile is essentially the "K-Mart" of cell phone companies - that's why they're so cheap.

Anyone like their Verizon Wireless phones? Anyone like the bluetooth capability?

 

Yes, please tell who has the best cell phone service in Hawaii. I too have Sprint who suck by the way with there dropped calls all the time.

 

I've been through VoiceStream, Sprint, Nextel, Verizon and back to Nextel. I have experienced dropped calls through all of them...so it doesnt really matter on the type of service you get...it's just the location you're in. As far as customer service, I think sprint/nextel has the best - locally. In my experience from sprint before switching to nextel...the local reps were really helpful.

 

I haven't had any problems with Verizon and Bluetooth here I purchased my phone on the mainland before I came out here. Sprint is the most popular on island depends on who you plan on calling the most if you know a lot of folks with Verizon stick with them but if not go for Sprint since it seems they are the most popular on island.

 

I've had Verizon for the past 14 years and recently switched to Nextel. Verizon is just not competitive with their rate plans. The customer on the mainland is OUTSTANDING with Verizon but the local customer service (in Hawaii) is REALLY BAD. As far as phone reception..I've had zero problems with Verizon. I get dropped calls and dead spots here and there with Nextel but I think the good rate plan (number of minutes for the buck) out weighs the minor problem spots by far. I don't think I'll ever switch back to Verizon...just my opinion.

 

Hmmm...I think I can give some input on this subject. I am currently a verizon wireless employee, and I have previously been employeed by T-Mobile for 3 years.

For Hawaii, Verizon has the best coverage. Hands down. Fewest dropped calls and dead spots throughout ALL of the Hawaiian islands. As for their customer service, Verizon can handle most issues in their communication stores. Warranty exchanges, suspending accounts, handset upgrades, phone repairs, price plan changes, change of billing responsibilities, and ESN changes can all be done in store. Their price plans are not as agressive as T-Mobile's or Cingulars, but is very competitive with Sprint/Nextel. As far as handsets, they are a market leader in PDA and data features. (Treo 700 is a dope a.ss phone!, but already has some known issues.) This company is very big on LG, UT Starcom (Audiovox) Samsung, and Motorola. Most of the newer handsets have Bluetooth, 1.3 mp cameras, and speakerphone.

As for the negatives on verizon...
-price plan are a lot more expensive
-data is charged by KB if you don't have the unlimited plan (priced at 45.99 for add on, 79.99 stand alone)
-mobile web 2.0 charges airtime for browsing
-You can only upgade every 22 months with a discount.
-customer care is not 24 hours.
-not very "international use" friendly (compared to GSM)
-National Access Internet is dial up speed. No EVDO (broadband) or VCast in Hawaii yet.
-No longer being sold in Radio Shack. (don't know if this is a negative or positive. haha)
-two year contracts

Basically, I'd like to think of Verizon as your "Parents" wireless provider. A little more aimed to the Young Proffessional/Adult/Business proffessional market.

As for T-Mobile, they are more concentrated on giving you the "Right" coverage. Where you use your phone the most. Their customer service has won numerous JD Power awards, and their reps do more than just sell their. The do almost everything. Some things can't be done in store. You either have to call Customer Service, and they don't do repairs. Pricing is the most aggresive in the market. (1500 min w/ n&w for 49.99) Data is unlimited and does not use airtime. (29.99 add on, 49.99 unlimited stand alone) Triband or quad band phones can be unlocked and used internationally. IMO, T-Mobile is very big in Oahu. Most people I know have Tmobile here from when it used to be Voicestream a few years back. As for neighbor islands, their coverage is not up to par as the competition. Other than that, the service is good, and voice quality is awesome. Big on Samsung, Motorola, Nokia, and RIM Blackberry.

Negatives:
-Coverage not as big, network not as reliable.
-no in store techs
-can't handle a lot of issues in store
-not as much users (for mobile to mobile calling)
-EDGE (broadband) is out, but not yet launched in HI
-higher early termination fee, but only one year contract.
-coverage not as good on neighbor islands.

So yes, hope this helped. I honestly have both services. I have a T-Mobile Sidekick and a Verizon LG-VX8100. I like different features on both, but I can't go back to just having a regular phone ever since I was a sidekick user for the past 2 years. haha! Good luck on your decision! Treo 700 is mean!

 

^ Jude, where you at mang? I know you gots an opinion on this one! haha!

 

^hahaha, im here… how did I know you were going to drag me in… hahaha. I haven’t had much experience with verizon or sprint so I can’t really speak for those companies regarding coverage & customer service. But I do know that sprint got some bad a.ss phones. It really comes down to what’s important to you and what your needs are. IMO all cellular companies have their strengths and weaknesses, whether its phone selections, rate plans, coverage, customer service, etc.

 

It's great that the Treo finally came with WM2005 there's so many applications available for it. I stopped carring around my palm os clie such a long time ago. That's what it's all about now a days, intergration.

If your interested in WM2005 products you might want to take a look at the Motorola Q. It's like a Razr style casing on a WM2005 based product.
http://www.motorola.com/motoinfo/pro...0,,113,00.html

I'm carring around a Moto MPX 220 which is a WM2003SE based unit and it's great. I bought this one because I wanted PDA features on standard phone casing. But i've been meaning to look around for another PDA phone in the comming months.

 

Sorry for the late reply... I was in LA and San Diego until recently (3 trips in the past 4 weeks) and my wi-fi card (pda or laptop) didn't work.

Thanks for the detailed write-up. I was reading your review on VZ and was thinking "gee, the service must be pretty good" until I read the "employee" part - you work there? So much for being impartial j/k lol. I agree that VZ is more "adult" and "business" oriented than pretty much anything, but if that's true then Sprint is going after the "teenage" market that seems more interested in photo-swapping and ringtone choices.

I heard Cingular is horrible and T-Mobile is more of a "K-Mart" of cell phone companies. I was actually seriously thinking of switching to T-Mobile about a year ago so I went into the store and was going to sign up. The guy asked me for my ID and then said, "Hmm, you already have an account with us. I was like "WTF?" and he said that the account was past due like $1,300. Apparently, someone had my ssn and opened up the account like 3 months prior and had actually PAID the first month's charges and then rang up about $300 the 2nd month, never paid it, and rang up another $1,000 or whatever calling Africa the 3rd month and never paid it. So then this guy gets on the phone and calls the "Fraud Department" - and remember, I'm still in the store all shocked and there's people everywhere - and this dumb f.uck starts reading my ssn OUTLOUD for "verification." I was so mad I never went back. As far as the "K-mart" contention, T-Mobile's owned by Deutsche Telekom AG and because they want to get rid of T-Mobile, they're not upgrading any of their network into newer technologies, etc. I read this in the Wall Street Journal about a year ago. That probably explains why they're discounting their services so much.

I actually like the Sprint service and aside from having s.hitty handsets (esp. Samsung - Sanyos are ok) and s.hitty handheld choices (no bluetooth), overall it's pretty good. prices are competitive and if you're out of contract and bitch and threaten to cancel, they'll down your "free night and weekends" from 9p to 8p or even 7p if you really threaten to take your biz elsewhere. (VZ won't do any of this.) Bitch some more and you can get free Internet upgrades, etc., etc. But the one thing that really pissed me off about Sprint was how they quietly changed their voicemail archive from a capacity-based system to a rolling-30-day system where it purges even your one saved voicemail after 30 days. (It used to be unlimted.) Lost an important client voicemail once and there's no way to "download" it to anything (the VZ Treo 700w has this ability to save your voicemails to mp3s, etc.).

 

isn't nextel now part of sprint? i'm wondering how they're going to handle the combined networks...

 

looks pretty cool and thin as hell! think it's gsm-based so probably available thru cingular/"hell-mobile."

too bad the clie was only palm-based and discontinued. dunno what the hell sony was thinking when they based it off of the creaky palm-os. the clie in japan has an oled screen (organic LED) which is supposed to be super-high res. i went to best buy around xmas and they had this $400 treo 600 or 650 palm-based and the device was on and it said "fatal reset error." lol.

 

Isnt GSM what T-mobile and Cingular is based on(simcards)? CDMA is the other standard I think...

The Moto Q will be released on Verizon first i think then the other networks in the following months. Last I head it was slated for release later this year still.

Samsung just announced a similar product to the Q that even thinner and smaller. lol...

 

Yaps...read about that samsung phone on www.phonescoop.com. It looks pretty dope.

T-Mobile/Cingular = GSM
Verizon = CDMA
Sprint = TDMA (I think)
Nextel = GSM (iDen)

yeah, I work for Verizon, but I'm not partial. As a matter of fact, I rock a sidekick II everyday, and I'm thinking of picking up T-mobile's MDA pocket PC. haha!