Best Cell Phone Provider?

[CSMRX7]

Ok,

So some of you may know by now from my other posts that I am moving to Calgary in about a month.

Anyways I am wondering if anyone could recomend a good inexpensive cell phone provider.

If anything I would prefer not to have a home phone # but just a cell phone, so I am looking for something with a lot of daytime minutes and free nights and weekends if possible.

Thanks for the help guys,

[sputnik]

Rogers

- Best Canadian Coverage
- GSM Service
- Good Selection of Phones
- Decent Rates
- Free Evenings (after 6pm)
- Free Weekends

www.rogers.com

[BebeAphrodite]

The best networks to be on in Canada is the CDMA - which means either Bell or Telus.

IMO, Telus would be the best to go on. They have the lowest turn over rates. They have the hardest contracts to break but you'll have the least amount of dropped calls.

When Bell first came over to the West, they ran off of Calgary's Telus towers... now they've started building their own so their coverage is still not as good as Telus' coverage.

As for rates... a promo plan going on at the moment which would probably be sufficient for a "home line" would be the Talk 40 plus.
It's $40/month
350 daytime
Evenings and weekends unlimited starting from (8 pm to 7 am)... if you want to extend the clock by two hours it's $5 more.

[ZorroAMG]

Telus, Bell and Rogers all have their pros and cons. I have been with Rogers since 1996 and have had no reason to change..

Any of the three will have a plan right for you...

[roopi]

Originally posted by sputnik

- Free Evenings (after 6pm)
- Free Weekends


Those are dependant on the plan you take and they have changed the time from 6 to 8 unless you pay an additional fee on all new plans. All providers offer this same service as well.

Try running a search. This topic has been covered many, many, many times. (Go FIDO! :D )

[Weapon_R]

You'll find a million differing viewpoints.

Rogers has great price plans, evenings start at 6pm, and they have Canada-wide coverage. Plus, they have awesome phones.

Telus - simply the best coverage around Alberta. Great network, shittiest phones i've ever seen. Most expensive plans.

Fido - Good city coverage, shitty coverage outside Alberta. Well-priced, crappy plans. Nice phones, plus you can get unlocked phones since they use the same GSM network as Rogers.

[Shaolin]

i've been with telus, the only reason i switched was because i didn't get to use world phones.. other than that, i would've stuck with telus.

[xkon]

Ive been on both Rogers and Telus in the last few months, and after using both Ive chosen to stay with Rogers, who I was with originally. Telus has a great network, however after prolonged use I found that using the phone gave me a headache!!! I tried EVERY telus phone available currently and a lot of older ones and had the same issue.... the sound quality is nowhere near as good as Rogers/Fido and their GSM networks... and very hard to understand the caller in a loud environment!

I wasnt too concerned with costs with the carriers, but rogers offers better plans IMO... Telus tends to 'nickle and dime'

Early cancellation with Rogers is $20/month for every remaining month or $200, whichever is LESS... so never more than $200... TELUS is $20/month for every remaining month or $200, whichever is GREATER... on a new 3 year thats $720!!

Now that Rogers has coverted their 800 spectrum over to GSM all my former reception problems have pretty much disappeared, and I am, and have been for almost 10 years, a happy Rogers customer... and depending on where you work, if its a larger company they have awesome plans that cant be beat... I dont qualify for thes plans :( i wish i did!!

summary: go ROGERS!!! just make sure the phone you with rogers is 1900/850... it really is night and day!

[dogmaiwli]

I've been with them all the major ones (rogers, telus, bell)
and Rogers AT&T is by far the best in everything, Coverage, Price, Service.

When I was with Bell or is it Hell it sucked.
Telus was OK, But definitely rogers takes the cake.

[roopi]

Originally posted by Weapon_R
Fido - Good city coverage, shitty coverage outside Alberta. Well-priced, crappy plans. Nice phones, plus you can get unlocked phones since they use the same GSM network as Rogers.

Crappy plans??? They have the best plans out of all the providers.

[sputnik]

Originally posted by CuteAsianAngel
The best networks to be on in Canada is the CDMA - which means either Bell or Telus.

Why do you say that CDMA is better than GSM?

[Gonthro]

gsm is the future....


ask anyone in any asian country

[Weapon_R]

Originally posted by roopi


Crappy plans??? They have the best plans out of all the providers.

Explain.

For $40/month, I get unlimited evenings and weekends at 6pm, caller ID and voicemail, and 375 mins daytime. Can't be beat, or else I would have left. Rogers family plans are also great. I have a plan for my mom and sister and they get 300 mins to share, unlimited evenings and weekends, and caller ID for 60/month.

[Xtrema]

Originally posted by Gonthro
gsm is the future....


ask anyone in any asian country

The world runs on GSM. Only NA still stuck on CDMA.

[lam-boy]

rogers rule!

[Ajay]

In Western Canada Telus has the best coverage hands down. Their plans are a little more expensive when compared to others but you essentially get what you pay for.

I work for a Telus Mobility dealership and I'll be the FIRST to admit that Telus phones aren't the nicest or flashiest out there but they serve their purpose. While the CDMA doesn't have the portability that the GSM network provides you have to ask yourself one thing.....are you really gonna take your phone overseas with you? It's nice to be able to do something like that but c'mon how often are you actually gonna do that?! I know if I'm going to Bali or something the last thing I'm going to do is bring my cell phone with me.

I use my phone a fair amount (anywhere from 1000-1700 mins a month) and I can tell you on one hand how many times I've dropped phone calls ever since they launched their 1X CDMA network.

Rogers has amazing phones and really good rate plans but if you plan on travelling their coverage isn't going to be as good as Telus. Fido has wicked phones as well but good luck trying to use it as soon as you leave the city. Bell has their own towers within the city but definetly not as many as Telus and if you're a Bell customer and go out to say Lethbridge or Red Deer you are working off a Telus tower and not a Bell tower.

I'm also guessing that in the US the cell phone providers work the same as in Canada. They approve you for a phone based on your credit history. If you're moving from the US and have no established credit history in Canada you may be required to pay a deposit with Telus. I know Telus has probably the most extreme credit criteria to get approved for a cell phone compared to some others. I once had a person try to activate a phone and Telus required a $1000 deposit....she went across to Rogers and paid less than half that for a deposit.

[BebeAphrodite]

Originally posted by sputnik


Why do you say that CDMA is better than GSM?

I said CDMA is better in Canada. GSM may be a better overall network but it's simply still quite new in the Canadian market. Wasn't it only about 4 or so years ago that they switched? GSM and TDMA don't run the same way and therefore towers that aren't available need to be erected to provide coverage that existing CDMA networks already have.

Reading through the posts - it's true.. Telus has probably the most expensive plans and expensive phones but it's the reception that you're paying for.

As for inexpensive plans I would go with FIDO. On my Fido phone I have 350 Daytime, 250 LD, evenings weekends, caller id, voicemail for $57/month.

In my Edgemont house, I've found that Fido is better than Rogers but Telus is the best of them all. I have the v60 on all three networks.
Rogers: I will have no reception sitting in my bed, I turn in the other direction and I'll have full bars. Mind you the conversation will cut in and out. There is this one turn that ALWAYS cuts out when you drive there. And no reception at all in the basement and half of the main floor.
Fido: Low reception but available everywhere.
Telus: Reception everywhere at full strength.

[BebeAphrodite]

Originally posted by Xtrema


The world runs on GSM. Only NA still stuck on CDMA.
And part of Australia is also on CDMA. From my understanding though, they are working on a 'world wide version'. Maybe it's just a rumor.. anyone know anything about this?


Originally posted by Ajay
In Western Canada Telus has the best coverage hands down. Their plans are a little more expensive when compared to others but you essentially get what you pay for.

I work for a Telus Mobility dealership and I'll be the FIRST to admit that Telus phones aren't the nicest or flashiest out there but they serve their purpose. While the CDMA doesn't have the portability that the GSM network provides you have to ask yourself one thing.....are you really gonna take your phone overseas with you? It's nice to be able to do something like that but c'mon how often are you actually gonna do that?! I know if I'm going to Bali or something the last thing I'm going to do is bring my cell phone with me.

I use my phone a fair amount (anywhere from 1000-1700 mins a month) and I can tell you on one hand how many times I've dropped phone calls ever since they launched their 1X CDMA network.

Rogers has amazing phones and really good rate plans but if you plan on travelling their coverage isn't going to be as good as Telus. Fido has wicked phones as well but good luck trying to use it as soon as you leave the city. Bell has their own towers within the city but definetly not as many as Telus and if you're a Bell customer and go out to say Lethbridge or Red Deer you are working off a Telus tower and not a Bell tower.

I'm also guessing that in the US the cell phone providers work the same as in Canada. They approve you for a phone based on your credit history. If you're moving from the US and have no established credit history in Canada you may be required to pay a deposit with Telus. I know Telus has probably the most extreme credit criteria to get approved for a cell phone compared to some others. I once had a person try to activate a phone and Telus required a $1000 deposit....she went across to Rogers and paid less than half that for a deposit.

lol, I get tons of ppl who have $1000 deposits. The first time I saw it I was super surprised because it was so high. I work for Telus as well and I chose to work for Telus because I knew their reception would be a good selling point. A lot of the customers know that too.. if it wasn't for the reliable coverage (altho, there have been a lot of 'the server is busy' lately) then they wouldn't be with Telus.

[sputnik]

Originally posted by CuteAsianAngel


I said CDMA is better in Canada. GSM may be a better overall network but it's simply still quite new in the Canadian market. Wasn't it only about 4 or so years ago that they switched? GSM and TDMA don't run the same way and therefore towers that aren't available need to be erected to provide coverage that existing CDMA networks already have.

Reading through the posts - it's true.. Telus has probably the most expensive plans and expensive phones but it's the reception that you're paying for.


I've never had any problems with reception with Rogers. However the Telus "floater" phones at work have had problems in the downtown core. I also wasnt able to use the Telus phones in Winnipeg when visiting family.

Also, Telus doesnt work at the lake (Little Bow) but Rogers GSM works fine.

CDMA phones are slowly disappearing and so is the service. There is no point in defending Telus because their CDMA service will be going the way of the dinosaurs soon and they will be like every other service running GSM (except more expensive).

Getting a cell phone with Telus is like buying a Beta VCR.

[Ben]

I use Telus purly out of service quality. I have full service everywhere. Sure they dont have the wild and crazy phones that rogers pumps out, but when you grow out of that phase where having a flashy phone and having something new every month and just want a phone that works, Telus has never let me down. Far too many people I know have these fancy rogers phones and they always get dropped calls, and no reception, what good is your phone then? Yes, Telus has Expensive plans, People need to realize that being the first one in here to pioneer the wireless world it costs a lot of money to build that much infrastructure. That and the Customer service on Mobility is far better than Rogers from what has been reported in the industry. Telus does however need to expand their wireless data platorms however.

If you want Cheap Phones and lots of bells and whistles, get Rogers, if you want reliable service and integrity, get Telus. There is a reason why most big businesses use Telus (like the police and the Government)


Every Company has it's + and -, but for what is important to me, Telus has the best to offer, your thoughts and opinions may disagree.

[BebeAphrodite]

Originally posted by sputnik


I've never had any problems with reception with Rogers. However the Telus "floater" phones at work have had problems in the downtown core. I also wasnt able to use the Telus phones in Winnipeg when visiting family.

Also, Telus doesnt work at the lake (Little Bow) but Rogers GSM works fine.

CDMA phones are slowly disappearing and so is the service. There is no point in defending Telus because their CDMA service will be going the way of the dinosaurs soon and they will be like every other service running GSM (except more expensive).

Getting a cell phone with Telus is like buying a Beta VCR.

Telus has the lowest turnover rates out of all the services. There's a reason for that. Hands down best reception overall. As for Telus phones in the downtown core, Telus phones are the only phones I can use in my elevator and in the underground parkade. I lose reception as soon as I enter the metal garage with Fido.

[Ajay]

Originally posted by CuteAsianAngel


lol, I get tons of ppl who have $1000 deposits. The first time I saw it I was super surprised because it was so high. I work for Telus as well and I chose to work for Telus because I knew their reception would be a good selling point. A lot of the customers know that too.. if it wasn't for the reliable coverage (altho, there have been a lot of 'the server is busy' lately) then they wouldn't be with Telus.

I've been working for a Mobility dealership for the last three years. Back in the day when I first started $1000 wasn't even the maximum deposit Telus would ask for. The deposit would vary according to your credit rating. On my first or second day of work I had one person require a $3500 deposit because their credit was so poor. Kinda felt sorry for the dude!

Shortly after they instituted a minimum of $200 and a maximum of $1000 which is more fair. Still have people pay $1000 deposits to get cell phones which I think is insane!


Originally posted by sputnik


I've never had any problems with reception with Rogers. However the Telus "floater" phones at work have had problems in the downtown core. I also wasnt able to use the Telus phones in Winnipeg when visiting family.

Also, Telus doesnt work at the lake (Little Bow) but Rogers GSM works fine.

CDMA phones are slowly disappearing and so is the service. There is no point in defending Telus because their CDMA service will be going the way of the dinosaurs soon and they will be like every other service running GSM (except more expensive).

Getting a cell phone with Telus is like buying a Beta VCR.

I've never had any issues with my phone downtown and the reason why your phone may not have worked in Winnipeg is because of the PRL that was loaded into the phone originally. A software upgrade of the PRL would fix that problem.

The CDMA network is here to stay in my opinion. Bell has spent vast amounts of money expanding westwards and Telus has also put millions upon millions of dollars in their 1X network. There's no way a company would invest in this type of network if it was comparable to a "Beta VCR". Plus the major carriers in the US (Verizon and Sprint) have partnership agreements with Telus as well. Not to mention that Verizon has an interest economically in Telus Mobility.


Originally posted by Ben
I use Telus purly out of service quality. I have full service everywhere. Sure they dont have the wild and crazy phones that rogers pumps out, but when you grow out of that phase where having a flashy phone and having something new every month and just want a phone that works, Telus has never let me down. Far too many people I know have these fancy rogers phones and they always get dropped calls, and no reception, what good is your phone then?

If you want Cheap Phones and lots of bells and whistles, get Rogers, if you want reliable service and integrity, get Telus. There is a reason why most big businesses use Telus (like the police and the Government)



:werd:

I need a phone to be able to talk to people not to take pictures or even download games. I'm still using the old school Samsung A540. I've beat it to shit so I'm going to have to get something else but for the amount I've used it and the abuse it's taken it's definetly one of the best phones I've owned.

When a company pumps out a new phone once every three months that's great for diversity in their lineup but you gotta wonder when they put most of their money in phones and not their network...plus...I change my phone once in awhile not all the time.

[xkon]

Originally posted by CuteAsianAngel

In my Edgemont house, I've found that Fido is better than Rogers but Telus is the best of them all. I have the v60 on all three networks.
Rogers: I will have no reception sitting in my bed, I turn in the other direction and I'll have full bars. Mind you the conversation will cut in and out. There is this one turn that ALWAYS cuts out when you drive there. And no reception at all in the basement and half of the main floor.

Your V60 GSM on Rogers doenst receive their newly deployed 850 band... it is NIGHT and DAY

i have a nokia 3590 lying around, let me know if you want to try it on rogers sometime... my V300 on rogers in testmode shows me that i am on 850 now 80% of the time, and that makes a big difference!

[kaput]

.

[xkon]

Originally posted by sputnik


I've never had any problems with reception with Rogers. However the Telus "floater" phones at work have had problems in the downtown core. I also wasnt able to use the Telus phones in Winnipeg when visiting family.

Also, Telus doesnt work at the lake (Little Bow) but Rogers GSM works fine.

CDMA phones are slowly disappearing and so is the service. There is no point in defending Telus because their CDMA service will be going the way of the dinosaurs soon and they will be like every other service running GSM (except more expensive).

Getting a cell phone with Telus is like buying a Beta VCR.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

that is EXACTLY how i see it!!! I say that all the time

Qualcomm has licensed CDMA much like Sony did with BETA.... We all know where beta went!! I do think that CDMA is a better technology, (users per channel is higher than GSM, but at the expense of poor and tinny voice quality) but the way it was implemented in NA negates that... users locked to handsets, poor CODEC...

[lam-boy]

Originally posted by xkon


Your V60 GSM on Rogers doenst receive their newly deployed 850 band... it is NIGHT and DAY

i have a nokia 3590 lying around, let me know if you want to try it on rogers sometime... my V300 on rogers in testmode shows me that i am on 850 now 80% of the time, and that makes a big difference!


how do you go on test mode?
i got a V525 if it matters..i wanan see which band im on most of the time.

[Akagi Redsuns]

Originally posted by xkon


Your V60 GSM on Rogers doenst receive their newly deployed 850 band... it is NIGHT and DAY

i have a nokia 3590 lying around, let me know if you want to try it on rogers sometime... my V300 on rogers in testmode shows me that i am on 850 now 80% of the time, and that makes a big difference!

I agree with xkon's statements. If you are using Rogers without a phone that has 850Mhz support.....reception is decent, but nothing compared to a phone that does support both bands.

My phone loves to camp on 850Mhz, but does switch to a 1900 Mhz channel when a call is made if signal is strong enough. In my basement, only 850 is used. When making a call it tries to use 1900... dBm drops to -98 from -86 and then it's back to a 850 channel within seconds. Odd.

[RiCE-DaDDy]

Originally posted by CuteAsianAngel

And part of Australia is also on CDMA. From my understanding though, they are working on a 'world wide version'. Maybe it's just a rumor.. anyone know anything about this?


Japan has CDMA2000 and WCDMA which are 3G and way ahead of the world hehe. The also have other stuff be whateva

Current CDMA (N.A.) would likely migrate to CDMA2000 and current GSM tech might become WCDMA. So far in Japan, CDMA2000 has the bigger market share.

[xkon]

Originally posted by lam-boy



how do you go on test mode?
i got a V525 if it matters..i wanan see which band im on most of the time.

if you want to meet up some time i can enable it for you, it needs to be done with moto service software

danger though, now that i understand what it says im always checking it, its addictive!!

[xkon]

Originally posted by Akagi Redsuns


I agree with xkon's statements. If you are using Rogers without a phone that has 850Mhz support.....reception is decent, but nothing compared to a phone that does support both bands.

My phone loves to camp on 850Mhz, but does switch to a 1900 Mhz channel when a call is made if signal is strong enough. In my basement, only 850 is used. When making a call it tries to use 1900... dBm drops to -98 from -86 and then it's back to a 850 channel within seconds. Odd.

LOL before 850 in my basement, good luck!! it would drop the call before i got past hello!

now... i cant go anywhere without signal!!

[DJ Lazy]

Nokia....