Cellphones, Providers, and Plans → Nokia 6340 through Cingular

Has anyone had any experience with this phone? I see it will do GSM/TDMA/Analog. It is the only one I have found that will do all three.

Would be nice though if AT&T offered this phone. I want a phone that will do all three but would rather not go with Cingular.

I believe that is the only GAIT phone offered, that includes Analog(AMPS). AT&T has the Siemens S46 with GSM/TDMA, you might want to check that out, it does NOT have Analog(AMPS).

Yeah. Thanks. That is my problem. I frequent areas where I am doing good to get an analog signal. So I would need all three. Doesn't sound like I am going to find a solution though.

But I bet if I weren't in the U.S., the land of opportunity and all that, I would have a ton of choices!!!

Well if you weren't in the US, GSM coverage would be everywhere. AT&T seems to have a lot of FL covered with their GSM service, and T-Mobile is getting there too.

I am waiting for these dispossible analog phones that are coming out, for those areas where CDMA/TDMA/GSM dont cover.

My problem at this point is that I am sick of Horizon. I want to move back to AT&T but cannot find a phone that I like. Unfortunately, as stated earlier, Cingular is the ONLY one that has a phone like this available.

Actually Cingular wouldn't be a bad choice, they are overlaying their AMPS area with GSM800, if they dont have a liscense for GSM1900. Their coverage should be very good.

You could always get T-Mobile and get a GSM 1900/800 phone and roam onto the new GSM800 network.

said by ropeguru:

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Has anyone had any experience with this phone? I see it will do GSM/TDMA/Analog. It is the only one I have found that will do all three.

Would be nice though if AT&T offered this phone. I want a phone that will do all three but would rather not go with Cingular.

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Do you mean you use analog because there isn't ample coverage in Homestead, or because you travel to other places?

AT&T's GSM network practically every corner of Miami covered, and with good signals.

I never go down to Homestead, so I don't know how the situation is down there...

But for all the other places, it works fine.

-- Elias

Just hearing the brand Cingular makes my skin curl...

What I would do right now is buy an AT&T Wireless Siemens S46 if the coverage isn't too good in your area, and after they finish upgrading, I would get a new phone.

The Siemens S46 uses a normal GSM SIM card, so you can change phones easily. That is what I do right now, I like to switch between the phones I like and the ones that I need for a particular area.

Elias,
Yes, the problem is that where I travel to a lot of the times there is barely even an analog signal. One of the problems with fighting fires in the forests. They usually aren't near very populated areas.

That was the main reason I like the phone from cingular. Was that it actually did all three. It is a shame in this country that all the cell phone availability is based on cash.

said by ropeguru:

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One of the problems with fighting fires in the forests.

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But don't you guys use radios or walkie-talkies or something of that sort?

It seems that if you're going to be in such a remote area, satellite phone might be better-suited.

-- Elias

Yeah we have radios and walkie talkies. But they do not reach back home to talk to the family when gone for 14 days or more.

This is for personal use. So a satellite phone is definitely out of the question.

said by ropeguru:

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This is for personal use. So a satellite phone is definitely out of the question.

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Because of pricing and what not?

-- Elias

said by ropeguru:

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So a satellite phone is definitely out of the question.

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Actually I would suggest you at least look into it!

You may be pleasantly surprised, as the service is not as expensive as you might think.

The phone will cost a lot of money, around the $600-1000 range or so for the latest & smallest phones, but maybe it is different depending on the resellers, etc. You should be able to pickup older handsets for a lot cheaper.

Per minute charges are around $0.50-1.50 to/from anywhere in the world (I don't remember mine off the top of my head). Prices seem to be dependent on the dealer you get them from. I've seen some charge $2-10 per minute. Also, you must pay a base monthly fee of around $25-35 (or more) for service on top of the calls. Another downside is that if someone calls you from a landline, the long-distance is very expensive... I think ATT charges me around $6-7 per minute for calling an Iridium phone. Much cheaper to call home from the satellite phone. Iridium to Iridium calls are quite cheap, BTW. I wouldn't suggest ever calling someone with an Inmarsat or Globalstar phone, you will pay dearly (like $12 a minute)!

I'm sure you aren't the only firefighter that wants to call home when you are out battling the fires and you might want to check with higher ups, perhaps the department can get a deal for cheaper service if you are a government agency and buy bulk minutes?

Just letting you know a little bit about satellite phones... it isn't totally invalid

You got it. Plus I do not want to have to be paying for two services. I certainly could not afford to use it all the time as my normal portable phone. ANd to pay for two phones would certainly put me way over budget.

Unless there is something I am missing about satellite phones these days.

ropeguru!

I just realized something... it's very simple and very inexpensive...

You ready?

Pre-paid!

If you want, get ATT Wireless GSM for use in Miami.

And when you travel, you just buy a pre-paid card for a TDMA/AMPS phone, and there you have it.

You can get a good phone for cheap from half.com, or from someoen here, or even eBay.

What do you think?

-- Elias

Hmmmm... I never thought about that. But will the pre-paids work on anyones system?? Also, I guess I need to checkout the GSM coverage down here in Homestead. I know things between Miami and Key LArgo tend to lack a lot in most cases.

said by ropeguru:

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Hmmmm... I never thought about that. But will the pre-paids work on anyones system?? Also, I guess I need to checkout the GSM coverage down here in Homestead. I know things between Miami and Key LArgo tend to lack a lot in most cases.

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Well, but what I'm saying is, get any carrier you want for Miami.

Then, get any carrier you want in pre-paid form.

-- Elias

Ahhh. I got ya. I have never had to deal with the prepaid before. I have always just had national plans so I could use anyones system with no roaming.

Thanks for the tip...

Hey, and don't you work for that ISP??
[text was edited by author 2002-11-25 21:45:07]

If you really need service, I would suggest getting an old Motorola bagphone, one that you can hook an external antenna up to.

One of my friends has a son that is a ranger and frequently is out on an airboat going around the Everglades as part of his work. Of course he has a radio, but sometimes needs to call and report things.

He has an old bagphone, a big external antenna, and a modern battery for the phone. The phone is setup for ATT and is analog, but he can get a great signal where nothing else can work. Of course you won't be walking around with this setup. In fringe areas, the older phone picks up a signal better than any of the modern phones today (even without the external antenna)... there is something to be said about older stuff

Also, the prices ATT charges for a simple analog account are pretty high, around $20-30 a month for service plus your airtime, which runs about $.30 a minute. I have no idea if ATT will even setup an analog account anymore, the phone this guy is using has been on the same acount for about the past 10 years as he was migrated from CellularOne to ATT when the South Florida market was bought out in the early 90s.

said by ropeguru:

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Hey, and don't you work for that ISP??

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Yup... www.DSLi.com ...

-- Elias