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Technology Stocks : Qualcomm Incorporated (QCOM) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: abstract who wrote (115823)	3/20/2002 10:24:20 AM
From: Dexter Lives On	Respond to of 152472

My best advice would be to ask Eric L. Message 17206315 He's unbiased, knowledgeable and seems to have lots of hands-on experience... -g Rob

To: abstract who wrote (115823)	3/20/2002 10:30:24 AM
From: LarsA	Respond to of 152472

I would forget all about technology and buy one that is supported by the provider with the best coverage in the areas where you are going to use it. Technology means nothing if coverage is poor.

To: abstract who wrote (115823)	3/20/2002 12:08:54 PM
From: Eric L	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 152472

Paul, << The time has come for me to buy a new cell phone ... I am partial to Qualcomm technology ... I can't tell which providers use which technologies ... I am particularly concerned about good reception inside concrete buildings and convention centers. I doubt that I will log over two hours a month, so I don't want an expensive plan, nor an expensive phone, but I definitely need reliability. >> Lars gave some good advice: I would forget all about technology and buy one that is supported by the provider with the best coverage in the areas where you are going to use it. Technology means nothing if coverage is poor. ... but since you are partial to Qualcomm technology the major providers are Verizon & Sprint PCS with the smaller players being Quest and Leap and several others. Rob called me "unbiased". I'm really not. As a user I have a strong bias for CDMA supplemented by AMPS (for coverage) and I have a strong bias for Verizon as a carrier because they go virtually everywhere I go, and I go a lot of places, in town (metro) through the suburbs, onto the highways and byways, and occasionally into the hinterlands - and they have good customer support. Best bets on Verizon are their tri-mode models and their new Americas Choice Plan gets you 5 hours/mo. anywhere in the US with no roaming and long distance charges for $35/mo. and also gives you an additional bonus 50 hours off peak and weekends. With Verizon you can change rate plans anytime with no penalty if your usage increases or decreases (But that extends the contract period). There are cheaper plans out their but you could get nicked for roaming or long distance charges. stay away from contracts over 12 months. << good reception inside concrete buildings and convention centers >> Convention centers would indicate you travel a bit, which is a good reason to look at a national carrier Verizon (CDMA/AMPS), AT&T Wireless TDMA/AMPS, and Sprint PCS (CDMA). Since you are interested in "good reception) in-building and convention centers I'll warn that there are some old concrete and (thick) steel buildings that nothing will permeate, but that is increasingly rare. Take a look at the websites of each of the major carriers to get an idea of equipment offerings, rate plans, and coverage areas: verizonwireless.com sprintpcs.com attws.com After initial screening best bet is to visit a retail outlet and ask a salesman what models give best reception for conditions you are looking at. Also ask them what models have a low return rate. wander around to the service department and ask for the service manager if your not satisfied with the answers. Best, - Eric -

To: abstract who wrote (115823)	3/20/2002 1:21:44 PM
From: ggamer	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 152472

I was window shopping in Palo Alto, CA last night. Went to a Sprint store to ask a few questions. The store had 7 or 8 employees working and there were about 20 customers. You have to get a number from a little machine and then wait for your number to be called. The smaller Verizon store two doors down had 3 employees and five customers. The Cingular store across the street was very very small and it had only one employee and no customers. By the way, there was another PDA and phone specialty store in the same block with few customers inside. GGamer

To: abstract who wrote (115823)	3/21/2002 9:32:59 AM
From: saukriver	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 152472

abstract, Eric L.'s advice was bang on. Except I would note that ATTWS' billing is a royal nightmare. When I was an ATTWS customer, I charged the monthly bill to my credit card. When I canceled service, they continued to charge my credit card for about 1 year! Each month I wrote ATTWS and said, hey, I am not longer a customer. I would get a credit the next month. Third month, they charged my credit card again. This went on for about 14 months. I probably lost 15 hours waiting on the phone, writing letters, and then repeating the process several months later. While I was an ATTWS customer (for 4 years), I had the following basic discussion with their billing about 20 times: "You screwed up my account." "I didn't screw up anything. I have never spoken to you." "You are part of ATT, aren't you? You screwed up my account. Fix it." On the rare occassion I had had any dispute with Verizon, the conversation goes as follows: "I am sorry to say that you screwed up my account." "Oh, sorry. We will fix it." Verizon is very, very customer service oriented. I have had nothing but good luck with VZ. Another big difference is that with VZ they will tell you how many minutes of varying types you have used in a month. That way, if you are approaching the end of your anytime minute allotment, you can slow the pace of cellphone calls and possibly avoid gover over your bucket. If you have gobs of extra minutes, you can call family, people you knew in third grade, etc. etc. When I was with ATTWS, it would not tell you how many minutes you had used. Finally, give some thought to whether you should wait--since you have waited 13 years--just a few more months to get a CDMA phone with 1xrtt capability. I would defer to Eric L.'s thoughts on that since he is a techno-toy junkie. saukriver