[pct-l] Verizon coverage on trail/towns/etc

[Brian Lewis]

Phil asked: "What would be your gadget of choice if you "walked" again this
year?  Smartphone (model please)"


A not-helpful response first --- my gadget of choice would be the one I
already own!  :-)

A (perhaps ...) helpful response is a little complicated as it depends on
whether you already have a cell phone contract, who you have it with, and
how much time you have on it if you do have one.   If you're starting from
scratch, i.e., don't have a contract, then I'd look at the smartphone
offerings by Verizon and AT&T that they offer at a reduced price (vs. an
"unlocked" phone) to people who sign a service contract.
You could opt to go with one of the pay-as-you-go plans in lieu of a
contract; do the math and see if that makes more sense for you, but then
factor in the cost of the phone you want, and make sure you factor in the
cost and availability of internet service, should you want that.   Note that
AT&T's "Gophone" pay-as-you-go service offers a more limited coverage map
than does their contract service.  If I understand correctly, Verizon's is
the same coverage map for any type of customer.

Bottom line, if you are inclined to go with a contract with one of those two
"seem to be best on the overall PCT" carriers, look at smartphones available
at http://www.verizonwireless.com and at http://www.wireless.att.com.  For
thoughts on what to look for in a particular phone, I wrote up some of my
ideas on this and Scott Parks has kindly hosted it as his site, at
http://postholer.com/smartPhone.html

I've not done the recent homework to see just what model I'd pick if I were
going today; I think if you look through the last link above and think for
yourself about what the most important constraints are for you, you can pick
out the device that is best based what *you* think is most important.

If for some reason you don't want to get your phone via a contract with one
of the major providers --- perhaps you recently signed a contract, or you're
willing to spend a lot more on the phone to get a wider selection ... then
indeed your selection options are wide.   New phones are coming out all the
time.  I'm sure that folks (me at least) would be happy to suggest some
places to look for ideas, but a little web groping will probably turn up a
lot without any help.


Brian Lewis / Gadget '08
http://postholer.com/brianle