Ok, this phone.

At the sox game, people tried to call and didn't get through.

Later on...on the el (above ground), in this one bar where my other phone worked, etc.

All last night, a couple people tried to call me and didn't get through.

This phone is so far much worse than the other one.

What do I do?

Poor signal in Chicago? Unbelievable. Same carrier? Phone set to GSM network?

Same carrier.

Where is the GSM network setup? It's not under "network".

I work in Chicago and have a Nokia 3390--6 yrs old...good reception. A few of my employees have Razrs and live in hi rises--no reception. They have to use their land lines. I haven't tried my phone at Cellular field...maybe a lot of interference there. When driving in the heart of the city, though, my phone sometimes says no signal...all the buildings? But then my clients from NY come in and they spend all day on their cells. I'll see what phones they're using.
Christian

Call a couple of independent cell phone stores and ask them who has the best coverage where you need it. Out here Cingular sucks and Verizon is the best. If another carrier has better coverage, you should be able to transfer your phone number to them.

GSM is the network used in most of the world. If you want to travel to europe and use your phone, you need GSM. The traditional US network is TDMA. In many US cities, TDMA still has better coverage.

In Chicago, T-Mobile and Verizon are rated as having better cell coverage that the competetors. T-Mobile is GSM, Verizon is TDMA.

Here is a great website; be sure to click on the "TOWERS" tab to see a map of the cell towers in your area.

http://www.cellreception.com/search.php?zip=60623&page=1

Forgot to mention that I have T-Mobile...

Are you SURE? :cool:

Look again. -- Motorola packages a mini CD in the in the back of one of the instruction books. (easy to miss, Miss)

Motorola "Phone tools" does not come with any phone, AFAIK. I have a copy I can send, but it's for my phone (V3), so I don't know if it will work with yours... Even then, you would need to buy the USB-to-phone cable.

I didn't say it would be a useful CD . . .just that it likely came with a CD. ;)

Speaking of phones, Eric, did you get a new one? (your last # took me to someone else)

Hey Eric, where were you at the engine pull yesterday here in Phoenix???!!!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/239564-phoenix-east-mesa-actually-area-engine-drop-september-10th-you-know-you-want.html
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/240363-phx-engine-drop-what-more-could-guy-ask.html

Yeah, if you want "useful", that'll be extra, hehe. :p
Oh, and yes, I did get a new phone new phone a while back (this one) so the 0703 # is not mine anymore. I'll emial/PM ya my new one.

SmileWavy

Joe,

Was at the (Rolex/Grand Am) race here at PIR all day. Man the race officials really stunk up the place too.

Ok everyone, am about ready to take the plunge and get a new phone as well. Am overseas and they sell the unlocked versions that will work with anyone's chip.

What is everyone happy with? The Motorola that CC is using (hows it working???) or the RAZR that Eric and some of the others have?

Joe A

I found the Razr or V3 to be a wonderful phone. I tried a Nokia first and it was a total POS. I drop my phones a lot and my V3 has endured a lot of really good impacts. My Nokia was dropped once and the screen shattered. Plus my Nokia had horrible reception.

I have not had any battery related problems either. I find I can go 3 days between charges, admittedly though, it seems more like 2 days now. Once I see the bayyery loose a bar I charge it.

The bluetooth is awesome. I love my wireless earpiece, especially when driving. It also connects up with the wifes Audi and works through the car speakers which is pretty trick as well.

My wife has a Razr too and has not had any problems either. She loves it, especially after having a Nokia like mine and she generally dislikes flip phones.

Jim,

Reception descent as well? Sounds like its a good phone but well worth carrying an extra battery.

Joe A

Compared to the Nokia? Much better. Its hard to say though, since the Hurricanes of 2004 here Cel phones have been sketchy. Nextel is unusable here and has been for over a year now.

My Razr has been satisfactory. Aside from locking up while charging the second night I had it, it hasn't given me trouble. Sound and mic quality are good. Service around my house isn't great, but Cingular claims on their coverage map that they don't have service for my house. I can get 1-2 bars in weird spots. Aside from my house, I really haven't found a place where there's no service.

However, I have 4-5 bars wherever I am in Providence. At times, I've had a good 3 bars of service where my dad's Verizon service has cut out.

Battery life has not been as promised by Motorola, but still good. I find I can do fine with 3 charges a week. The major upshot is that the battery takes about an hour to charge. If you plug it into a car charger and drive enough, you should actually be set.

I hear Cingular's customer service is awful. I haven't had to deal with them yet, though.

Good phone, get it at Best Buy, if you decide on it. I found it advertised for $70 with a contract, as opposed to $200 at my local Cingular store.