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On Call: Answers for your cell phone questions.
Which cell phone offers the best reception?
By Kent German 
August 9, 2005

Kent German, CNET's cell phone guru, wants to answer your questions about cell phones, services, and accessories. Send him a question!

A Siemens on Cingular

Siemens SL65
Siemens SL65
Q: I've been looking at purchasing the new Siemens SF65 and SL65 phones, but I don't know how to tell if they will be compatible with my network (Cingular). Also, how can I tell if my SIM card will be compatible with the phone?
--Matt

A: Unfortunately, we haven't been able to get our hands on the SL65, which is an upgrade to the SL56 (a favorite of our departed cell phone diva). The Siemens SL65 is sold primarily in Europe and Asia, but that doesn't mean you won't be able to use it stateside. Since the SL65 is a GSM triband cell phone (GSM 900/1800/1900), it should be relatively operable on Cingular's network. That said, Cingular uses mainly the 850 band so that coverage will be spotty in some places, especially in buildings. There's one caveat, though: make sure that you buy an unlocked version that's not tied to any specific carrier. That way, all you'll need to do is pop in your SIM card to get started. You'll be able to tell if your SIM card is compatible as soon as you put it in the phone. If you see Cingular displayed on the screen and are able to make calls, then you're good to go. You'll still have to get the correct data settings from Cingular, however, to use the wireless Web browser and some of the messaging features.

A syncing feeling
Q: I purchased a cell phone data-cable kit on eBay so that I can transfer photos from my Audiovox CDM-8910 on to my PC. There is a cable driver all right, but there's no application that allows me to do anything. When I asked the vendor, they only said their supplier didn't give them the software and that I should look around on the Net. I have done a search and cannot come up with any source. Do you know where I can get help? Obviously, some freeware would be appreciated.
--Jacques

Audiovox CDM-8910
Audiovox CDM-8910

A: Sadly, Jacques, it sounds like you might have been scammed--a frequent problem with purchasing tech on eBay. That's why we typically caution readers against purchasing a used cell phone on auction sites. Unfortunately, it's hard to give you recommendations without knowing your carrier or the product you purchased. But your question about freeware intrigues me. While the data kits I've used are not free, I haven't tested any, so I can't recommend one product over another. But I wouldn't be surprised if there were some out there. If there are readers who know of any options, I'd love to hear about them.

Souvenir cell phones
Q: I have a phone that I bought in Asia, and I would like to use it in the States. Is it possible to use the phone here with a prepaid card?
--chaochi

A: In theory, using an imported phone in the States shouldn't be a problem, but you need to do your research first. If the phone is unlocked, you'll be able to use almost any SIM card, whether it's prepaid or from a carrier. Yet there's a more important issue to consider: The primary GSM bands used in the United States are 850 and 1900, so it's important to make sure your phone supports those bands. The bands are listed in the phone's user manual. Many Asian cellular networks have already moved on to 3G CDMA2000 networks, which is a more advanced network. If that's the case with the phone you want to use, you may end up with a very showy but unusable gadget.

Finding a signal

Which brand of cell phone has the most reliable reception?
Q: Are some phones better at receiving low-strength signals than others?
--Meryl

A: Cellular reception is a two-part equation. The first factor is the strength of the carrier's network. Without a doubt, signal strength plays a huge role, so if you're having trouble getting a signal in a specific area, I'd blame the network first. But the cell phones themselves also have an effect. Since no two phone models are the same, they will differ in the strength and the accuracy of their antennas and receivers. In my experience, Nokia phones tend to offer solid reception, but there's not an industry consensus by any means. I'd be interested in hearing your opinions. TalkBack to me.

On hold...

Using your words 
In many ways, camera phones are currently the must-have feature in cell phones, despite the fact that they're not terribly practical. But instead of these fancy multimedia offerings, I wish manufacturers would do more to develop voice-recognition features, which I think have a lot of potential. We've seen voice dialing and voice-command functionality for a couple of years now, but this year, we saw two new Samsung cell phones with speech-to-text dictation: the SGH-P207 for Cingular and the MM-A800 for Sprint. These two handsets let you dictate your text messages to your phone rather than pecking on the tiny keyboard. Sure, it doesn't work perfectly yet, but I hope it's a sign of things to come.

If you don't have a cell phone with voice recognition, there are some services that get you some voice-recognition functionality. I recently tested a service from Voice Genesis called Vemail, which allows you to record voice messages and send them to any e-mail address. I tried it out and found it to be practical and easy to use. After downloading the software to your phone, you can record messages up to 20 minutes in length and send them off with the press of a couple of buttons. Recipients then click a link to hear the recording, which they respond to in the form of a text message to the phone. There are limitations, of course: Vemail works only with select phones from Verizon, Alltel, and some smaller carriers. And while the initial download is free, there's a $5 monthly fee for unlimited use, which appears on your phone bill. To check it out, go to the Voice Genesis Web site.

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TalkBack
129 messages

Article discussion: On call: Which cell phone offers the best reception?


Latest post:

"Nextel Sprint Service & BAD Reception Must read<"
by dlw0861 (See profile) - June 29, 2008 11:19 AM PDT
Nextel has the very worst reception of any company I have ever had. The customer support is very very bad out of the 20 people I have talked to about my service and reception only ... (Read more).
Sort by: Title |
Date
| Most helpful

Wish I knew what to get next

I can report that every day I drive the same path and make the same calls to my ... (Read more)
by jwright617 (See profile) - June 13, 2008 6:51 PM PDT

Dito, Percepolis!! YOU RULE!

"Nope can not hear",
As Posted by percepolis is Right-On!
Any of you self-... (Read more)
by cellhell (See profile) - June 4, 2008 8:14 PM PDT

Nope can not hear

SonnyEricsson phones seem to work well but not very long, Nokia phones have
... (Read more)
by percepolis (See profile) - March 29, 2008 9:40 PM PDT

Disappointment with the RAZR2

I had a Samsung E317 which was about 4 years old. Decided to upgrade in part be... (Read more)
by Sparty01 (See profile) - January 29, 2008 7:00 AM PST
1 out of 1 users found this comment helpful

Get Sprint and Have Dropped calls

I have a Samsung 900A cell phone. I have had nothing but dropped calls in the pa... (Read more)
by Noservice (See profile) - October 31, 2007 3:19 PM PDT
0 out of 5 users found this comment helpful

1. Nokia (1100i!!!) 2. Sony Ericsson

I'm a Sony Ericsson fan (I love my k790!), I've also had a couple of Motorola Ra... (Read more)
by mexjox (See profile) - October 25, 2007 4:48 PM PDT
13 out of 13 users found this comment helpful

RAZR V3--Poor reception

I have a recently purchased cabin in Maine that is off the beaten track and in a... (Read more)
by ki7wh (See profile) - September 15, 2007 4:28 PM PDT
10 out of 10 users found this comment helpful

siemens kicked some butt

I know that siemens isn't a very popular brand but I just had an experience that... (Read more)
by mangofn (See profile) - August 27, 2007 5:35 PM PDT
17 out of 17 users found this comment helpful

Motorola sucks!

I own a Motorola V555 and my boyfriend owns an older Nokia cell phone and he alw... (Read more)
by jaimejoy7657 (See profile) - March 24, 2007 6:53 PM PDT
15 out of 20 users found this comment helpful


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