Charlie D. wrote:
Not to get off topic too far but does the cell phone play a role in reception? Type of phone, built in antenna, etc.?
That very question is why we ended up leaving AT&T. At a Colorado campground we could not get AT&T service on our phones. But another couple nearby both could get AT&T, weak but fairly reliable. This was before phones became very "smart". One had a very basic flip phone. The other had a slightly more advanced phone. Our phones were different from either of theirs. We could drive about 2-3 miles closer to a town and get good AT&T service.
Upon returning home, I called AT&T and explained our issue with no service while these other people did have service. And I specifically asked if they could recommend a phone model to allow us to get service there. Sure, they said. And recommended a model I now forget. We both bought new phones. Next time at the campground, still no service. That same couple was there again, and they still had service. Returning home, I called AT&T again and explained the problem of no service while others did have it. I told them the phones they recommended did not help and we would like a better option. "We can send you new phones" they said, but it would simply be exact same phones as the phones they had already sold us. "Will those work better than the same ones you already sold us?", I asked. "Not likely, we don't have service to that area", they said. So I ask, if they don't service to that area, how were others getting AT&T service at the campground, and we could get good AT&T service if we drove 2-3 miles away. They said "don't know, we don't service that area". I ask if we could return the phones that still did not work, and they said no, we bought them, we were stuck with them.
Upon arriving home, we cancelled our AT&T service (with penalty) and went to Verizon. And it has worked well every where we have been.
So don't expect a new phone to work in an area your old one doesn't.
