the air

It’s that time of year now where I have to decide whether to stick to my current wireless carrier or migrate to another carrier. Currently, I am with Cingular, now known as AT&T, and I am pleased with the service so far. However, I am not thrilled with the amount of money I am spending with them every month. Here’s a breakdown of my current plan:

• Family Plan 700 for $69.99 with two phone lines
• Plan includes 700 minutes with Rollover
• $9.99 for an additional line
• $9.99 for 400 text/video/picture messaging with 1 MB internet
• $14.99 for 1000 text/video/picture messaging with 5 MB internet and unlimited messaging to any Cingular customer

If you add up the costs, I am paying about $105 before taxes and close to $130 after all applicable taxes and fees. So what exactly do I use my phone for? Let’s break it down:

• Calls!
• Browsing web
• Texting
• Photos & Video

As you can see, I use my phone for very popular reasons. I don’t text as much, roughly 100 per month. Alternatively, I tend to use the internet quite a bit on my cell phone to check email, weather, traffic reports, news, and killing time. Not surprisingly, Cingular’s measly 1 MB internet plan is not enough and I can easily see the 5 MB option being too small and pricey at the same time. To balance out the high prices, Cingular does offer exceptional coverage in numerous places. So my next question would be who offers the best coverage?

Both Verizon and Cingular boast large coverage areas and either one works for me since I tend to stick to mostly metropolitan areas. However, I am not really interested in CDMA/TDMA technologies since I already have an unlocked GSM phone. In fact, my mom and brother also have unlocked GSM phones so we have no need to purchase new phones when selecting a new carrier. Hence, it is our desire to stick with a carrier that relies on GSM technology. Since my brother and I are the only ones who use the internet on our phones, we don’t really need high speed internet since the current EDGE speeds are quire reliable and satisfactory. Knowing all that, we can eliminate Verizon, Sprint-Nextel, and any other CDMA/TDMA carrier.

My only choices now are to either migrate to T-Mobile or remain with Cingular. I have had experience with both carriers now, but it has been two years since being with T-Mobile. I am not willing to sign a two-year contract. So who do I go with? I live in the Chicago-land area, so those of you who have experience with T-mobile in the area, can you tell me your thoughs? And what about all of you in general, what are your opinions about Cingular and T-mobile? In fact, do you think I should skip both and go to Verizon or Sprint and why? Help a college student out and help me save tons of money on my wireless service.

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