Cell Phone Service

[bokelley]

Dh and I are getting ready to switch cell phone service or upgrade. I really love the iPhone4, and I am leaning that way. But DH had the concern that during residency he will need a ton of minutes, text and data. So if that is the case then the phone service is cheaper through another service. How many minutes does your spouse need for work related calls, messages and data. The plan we are looking at is like 700 min, 200 text, and some data. Which sounds like plenty to me, but I told him I would ask before we decided? Any input would be wonderful!!

[radwife]

My DH hasn't used his cell phone too much during residency thus far (only 1 yr) they mostly rely on pagers. I can't imagine that he'll use it too often during the next four years either since he'll likely be in the basement of the hospital and won't be getting much service. It probably varies based on the program. However, I will say that he used his blackberry a TON during 4th year of med school for responding to residency interview invites and traveling to interviews. If you DH plans to do a lot of traveling for interviews, you might want to consider a phone with GPS or google navigation. I love that my phone doubles as a GPS.

[ladymoreta]

Last month, DH used 632 text messages and 1,435,000 KB of data. For reference, I used 597 texts (most of those are to/from each other) and 257,000 KB of data.

I would check with other residents to see what service they have before you decide on a carrier. We went with one company our first year here, but DH couldn't get service at the hospital they are at for years 2-4, so we ended up having to break our contract and switch to AT&T, which gets great service there. Kind of unusual, but it can happen.

[Vanquisher]

Love my iphone; on the list for the iphone 4. We don't have a texting plan because we are old dinosaurs. We have less than 10 texts a month. We are super heavy data users though, but I think that's not as common. We have unlimited data - they only recently started capping it. We have some months where we go over 700, but not many. Mostly we talk to each other, which is unlimited, but when we have gone over, we've been fine because of rollover minutes.

[SoonerTexan]

This could be total crap, but I thought I read somewhere AT&T is changing the "unlimited" data plans for the new iPhone--just something to be aware of if it is true

[Vanquisher]

This could be total crap, but I thought I read somewhere AT&T is changing the "unlimited" data plans for the new iPhone--just something to be aware of if it is true

It is true. I am able to keep the unlimited plan though as I have had it for a few years, but new customers will not be able to get it.

[Laker]

DW just got the Incredible from Verizon. Everyone in her practice had the iphone, but we aren't fans of the coverage provided by AT&T. The Incredible is pretty amazing. I am stuck with a blackberry until February, but will be getting a smart phone from Verizon.

Be careful with the iPhone 4 since they are having problems with the antenna.

[GreyhoundsRUs]

Didn't read any of the other responses - but DH and I switched from our iPhones last year because we got no reception in our house - at all. The thing that really pushed him over the edge was that there was also no push email. I guess there is a way to do it now with the iPhone, but it supposedly eats battery. With residency interviews coming up, I would recommend going with the company that you have the best reception and a way to get emails right away - you want first dibs on those interview dates!

[Michele]

Re: Cell Phone Service

Grrr. We have been having a lot of problems with dropped calls and spotty reception with ATT. I so wish Apple had made a deal with another carrier. And now Russ is having issues w his iPhone. I just want to talk to my husband!!!! What shouldve been a fun 10 minute call to hear about our new house ended up being a 20 min grumpy frustrated patchy conversation. At least I know he made it with most of our stuff.


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[Michele]

Re: Cell Phone Service

Oh I guess i couldve commented on your question about texting etc. His program did everything by text so we had to upgrade our phones/plan to keep up. Of course he also really wanted an iPhone. I have my email set to push every hour and I don't think it's that bad on my battery life. I also check my email in between frequently. I use all our minutes calling my mom and sister. I dont think we use a lot of data, though I might now that I have an ipad but it's a separate plan/cost anyway.


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[Pollyanna]

Hate hate hate AT&T service (wth was Apple thinking?). Sometimes dh and I would be 25 feet from each other and our calls would get dropped. If you like the iphone buy and itouch (pretty much the same thing minus the phone part) and then get a phone from a carrier that actually has good service. We have been on T-mobile for a long time now and LOVE it. We pay 125/month for 4 lines, unlimited text, 700 call min, and unlimited data for dh.

[Deebs]

I would never give up my iPhone, but it functions as everything else much better than the actual phone. I use my landline for most of my calls, my iPhone for a bunch of other stuff. DH has an iTouch and a phone that is designed to be a phone. He is on call 24/7 as med dir of a fire department, and has to be reachable wherever he may be. His phone works great. We have been on the phone next to each other (we both have AT&T). My call will get dropped, and his will continue.

[v-girl]

I love AT&T, but I don't have an iPhone. I hate my LG Incite and plan to get a Palm Pre in October when I'm due for a new phone. I've had AT&T since before they were AT&T. I started with Southwestern Bell, then it was Cingular, now AT&T. Same cell phone number since 1997. ha ha!

[Ravenclaw]

DH actually uses his phone quite a bit for work-related calls. But most of the time they are when he's signing out in the evenings when we have unlimited mins.

[medpedspouse]

I think it depends on where you are located. I, too, have been withAT&T since before they were AT&T and have not had a problem. Now the phone is another story. I am still mourning my BBerry. WTH was I thinking going to the Iphone?