View Full Version : t-mobile
the_iceman
12-13-2006, 08:22
I don't want to start a war on the merits of a cell phone. I need to carry one to check-in occasionally for a number of reasons. No one else will know I have it or hear me speaking on it.
The question for former thru-hikers is has anyone carried a t-mobile phone and how was the coverage?
Also, any experiences with a Treo versus Pocketmail? Comments on other carriers
floyd242
12-13-2006, 10:25
T-mobile is crap. I havent thru-hiked but I can tell you right now you wont get any service in GA on the AT.
floyd242
12-13-2006, 10:26
I'm thinking about switching to verizon and getting an LG enV
http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=988
T-mobile is crap. I havent thru-hiked but I can tell you right now you wont get any service in GA on the AT.
with T-Mobile when you get off the interstate you have a good chance of losing service :eek:
floyd242
12-13-2006, 10:29
with T-Mobile when you get off the interstate you have a good chance of losing service :eek:
So very true!
JimSproul
12-13-2006, 10:42
Make sure you check out the coverage maps. I had been using T-mobile phones for my kids but coverage is spotty outside of major metro areas.
I have a daughter who goes to college in a little town away from everything. Verizon coverage is listed for the area but stinks.
The best bet is one of the carriers that built their net work by agreement, like Allnet. My duaghter's roommate is from South Carolina, has Allnet, and her phone worked everywhere betweem SC and Texas.
Make sure your phone is a "Tri Band" or something that you can set to analog.
Treo is high tech but Pocketmail really works well ANY phone you come across. Plus you don't burn alot of battery for a pretty screen. Battery life of pocketmail is hard to believe.
See ya' up the trail..............
micromega
12-13-2006, 10:59
Only time I've ever used a cell phone on the trail (my hikes being an attempt to escape the infernal things, in part), was atop Bear Mountain in CT. Using T-Mobile, I had a full strength signal there.
max patch
12-13-2006, 11:05
T-mobile is crap. I havent thru-hiked but I can tell you right now you wont get any service in GA on the AT.
I don't take my cell on the trail, but I know for a fact that t-mobile has service at Cooper Gap in GA because I got a call while parked there.
Friends and familys forced me to take a cell phone. I never found a signal in the 300 miles I hiked in Virginia. Get a phone card and call from pay phones. It's cheaper, lighter and always works.
QHShowoman
12-13-2006, 11:31
I've had T-Mobile for 5 years now (and still do) and the coverage sucks once you are outside of any metro area. I seriously doubt T-Mobile will have coverage for most areas of the AT that aren't within relatively close proximity to a large city or town.
Chicken Feathers
12-13-2006, 13:59
I used a T-Mobile an got limited service on the trail in Georgia and weak signal in N C
FWIW, my Verizon service worked flawlessly from Bear Mtn. (NY) to Lehigh Gap. There was only one case where I was unable to place a call. I carry the phone to keep contact with my wife. The phone is turned off except for that once-a-day call.
Cant comment on TMobile, but my Cingular service worked on Springer and thru out most of the BMT from Springer to Hwy 60. I have had great service w/ Cingular (I have 5 phones with them and an air card for my laptop)
LongIslandBob
12-13-2006, 15:20
I thruhiked with a T-Mobile phone in '05 and at best, had very spotty reception. Very, very occasional in GA/NC/TN/VA/WV, got better in PA/NJ/NY. Very little in MA, none whatsoever in VT, Extremely little in NH/ME. Likely wouldn't be much help in any emergency. Pretty much universally Verizon seemed to have the best coverage on the trail route from talking with other hikers, but even then, it is only sporadic. In hindsight, better off just using phone cards in town, but it WAS pretty cool talking to close friends from a mountaintop in the Smokies...
In hindsight, better off just using phone cards in town, but it WAS pretty cool talking to close friends from a mountaintop in the Smokies...
On my last section I only got to share a shelter exactly once. The rest of the nights I was either alone at a shelter or alone in the woods. It was great being able to chat with my wife for a few minutes each evening. I was eager to to tell her all about the day's hike, and she was happy for the daily updates. At the end of the section she helped arrange my "escape route" from Palmerton back home, since the original plan had me returning from DWG.
greentick
12-13-2006, 16:35
My Bro in law (Banana Dan here on WB) used to own a cell store. When we started sectioning he ran the maps and Tmobil has about the worst coverage. He uses Tmobil so I would trust him to not be biased on it. We used my phone, a Sprint, when we used one. You can pretty much make a commo shot from any high ground and a lot of the other terrain. We were fairly impressed. Make sure your phone will do analog tho as sometimes you have to "force" it into analog only.
AFA other services I ran into others on the GA section who use cingular with success.
Checking in once a day with Mrs Greentick helps me hike another day.
I used my Brother-in-law's T-mobil phone while setting up camp on Bly Gap, back in October. He checked for a signal to call and see about his kids. We were shocked that he got a signal. Like most other's have said, if you get far off the beaten path with a T-Mobel phone, you don't get much reception. My entire family has T-mobil and we like the service other wise. We just figure that it is nice to get to the back roads, and get out of touch every once and a while.
Check out the current (or last month's, I'm not sure) issue of Consumer Reports. They compare the various carriers in different parts of the country.
the_iceman
12-13-2006, 19:53
I am pretty comitted to T-mobile. We have had them for several years the whole family is in and out of Europe at lot and you can answer your calls there. They also unlock your phone for you so you can use a local chip in say France for those freee incoming calls. I have tried them all in the last 15 years and T-Mobile is no worse and their customer server is the absolute best.
That said, I know their coverage can be spotty but there are spot on honest with their coverage map. The problem is they do not show the AT on their map.
They do roam on other networks for free (mostly) but they are a pure GSM network -- probably ahead of their time since that seems to be what the big guys are converting to now. That means their roaming ability is limited to GSM towers. I have a quad band but it is all GSM.
The irony is I live in Eastern MA and in Nothern Florida and the T-Mobile gets better coverage than verizon.
The thing weighs 3.5 ounces so I am debating. I know I get good coverage on the trail in most of New England with the exception of Northern Maine.
I will probably go with PocketMail but that is 8.2 ounces
the_iceman
12-13-2006, 19:56
ALHikerGal is your Cingular a GSM phone? I know T-Mobile roams on their network.
Undershaft
12-17-2006, 16:10
Iceman: T-mobile has invested in quite a few new towers here in Eastern Mass. over the last few years. Their coverage was pretty bad about 6 years ago, but is now way better, at least in our area. As far as the trail is concerned I can tell you that N. VA has decent coverage when you are on the ridge line. I made several calls from the trail when I hiked near Harpers Ferry a few years ago, but thats the only place I'm familiar with using T-mobile. I switched to Verizon in 2004 and will never go back. This past summer I got a signal w/ verizon from both ends of Mahoosuc Notch. Not analog either, the full verizon extended network. I sent several pics and text msgs from the east end of the notch with no problems.