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CDMA or GSM, HELP!

CRCinOklnd

Nov 29, 2003, 1:29 AM
Hi All!
I am a current Verizon user in the S.F.-Bay area, and have excellent service with them for 4 years now. But I have been intrigued for a long time with GSM service and the phones connected with it. I need peoples input and opinions here. Is GSM better than CDMA and why? I heard the voice quality is better, but is it by much? A year or two ago, I heard GSM was terrible here(as far as signal strength, dropped calls, etc)...has it improved? From what I've seen on the maps and from what co-workers and friends say, it is yes. Now if I decide to go GSM's way, I've decided to go with either AT&T or Cingular, because they have the upcoming 850 frequency besides the already existing 1900. T-Mobile only has 1900 from what I've seen.
So betwe...
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avita81

Nov 29, 2003, 6:15 PM
Hey Chris! Hope I can help out a bit...
tdma- has solid coverage in the US.. well most of north america... works seamless with amps (analog networks) slow data working on cdpd.
gsm - good voice quality and data... neat-o phones.. battery life is alittle better.
cdma -good voice quality ( better than tdma and gsm in most areas)

if you are looking for all out best coverage... id recommend the the sony ericsson t62u with att wireless. this device will work on all tdma, amps and gsm. its definately not a flashy phone though. ~mms isnt supported, no color display... etc.

im not sure about cingular coverage specifically in san francisco, but almost every tdma cell site is over-laid with gsm. coverage is pretty solid.

Good luc...
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mycool

Nov 29, 2003, 8:46 PM
I heard the T62u is a bit buggy though from both AT&T and Cingular versions....

To the original poster:

Comparaing CDMA to GSM is something someone locally to you would have to do... overall I like GSM, but I don't live in SF, I live in Detroit, MI. I also give the advice to stick to Nokia phones, they always seem to perform the best.

AT&T: NEC515 - Internal Antenna placed at the bottom has issues with it. The siemens line of phones aren't the greatest, and personally SE seems to always get terrible reception no matter which unit! The best phone I have ever used turns out to be the simple Nokia 6310i. It has features like Bluetooth, InfraRed and Java, but no color or polyphonic ringtones or etc.

Cingular: My brother works for the...
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CRCinOklnd

Nov 30, 2003, 2:51 AM
Thanks! I'm appreciating all the help and suggestions/advise so far!! 🙂
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pentode

Dec 1, 2003, 1:32 PM
If you're happy with your Verizon service, I'd stay with it. Most important criteria to me is local coverage in the areas I travel in.

In the very long run, it appears all systems will eventually be CDMA - either CDMA2000 or UMTS, so the only thing that is certain is further changes in the future.
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avita81

Nov 30, 2003, 7:45 AM
i work with wireless devices all the time, practically in my sleep. the t62u, just like almost any other phone, has some issues. in early version, i know people were advised to not manually switch between networks... and still i hear the same thing with the new versions. IF the phone is working properly you really shouldnt need to manually switch between tdma/amps and gsm. it would just do it automatically-- in a perfect world. ive used the phone in my area... central pennsylvania... and it works just as good as my other phones, nokia 7210, 3650 and t68i. since my area, for att, is all tdma 850mhz, the gsm was spotty at first. but not any longer. CA is the same way... but it should def be better than what it was a year ago.. even 6 m...
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