cell reception in puna :)

[macuu222]

When we signed up with Cingular in March, they informed us that they will be building some sort of relay tower in HPP by the end of this year that will completely cover the entire park and increaase signal strength. Can't wait!

With regard to Cingular customer service....I will have to agree that their only interest seems to be selling you the most expensive phone in the longest contract period. And once you have it...they don't want to hear from you again.

Beware of cingulars booth in Prince Kuhio. They are sharks and will try to talk you into buying more than you need. Downtown office people on Kilaua avenue were very polite and didn't push you to make a decision.

[jdirgo]

I had Verizon for years and the reception was not good. I switched to Cingular and it was much better. msurf, my Verizon in Fern Acres was sketchy at best -- Cingular was better.

John Dirgo, RA, ABR, e-PRO
Island Trust Properties, LLC
808-987-9243 cell

[Nate SC]

My Cingular fone works all the way to the back of Orchidland and I read in the Associations news letter a Cingular/ Verizon tower is going up in Orchidland at the Church on Orchidland dr.

[Nate SC]

My Cingular fone works all the way to the back of Orchidland and I read in the Associations news letter a Cingular/ Verizon tower is going up in Orchidland at the Church on Orchidland dr.

[Royall]

We’ve been using Cingular on two phones. Cathie’s is a flip phone and mine is the cheapest Nokia they sell. My phone has the best reception of the two. When I ordered my phone I told them I wanted a phone that got the best reception and they sent me the ugly Nokia but I wouldn’t trade it for any other phone out there. I did order one of those add on antennas “as seen on TV” from eBay. A friend said it worked on his phone and when I get it I’ll let everyone if I got ripped or not. I got two coming from eBay for $.01 plus $1.95 shipping. If it doesn’t work I’m not out much!

Royall

What goes around comes around!

[Nalu]

I have Verizon and love it. They have great customer service, never had another company so can't compare, but they have taken charges off when I made accidental calls, no questions asked. My sister has cingular, and it seems I had more bars than her in most places. But as a rep on the phone told me it has a lot to do with the phone model you have. I live in HPP and usually have 3 bars. Aloha, angela

[Carolann R]

I am bringing this forward because we're about to get our cells (with an 808 area code Whooo-Hooo!)

It seems like the concensus is that: 1)Cingular is very good but customer service sucks; and 2)Verizon is good in most places.

So - are really these the only two choices for Puna that would be feasible? I know Verizon is big in the Islands (used to work for them) and perhaps there are more towers that have been erected since June or maybe some on the way. We have Alltel and it worked great while we were there in June, but they are not established there.

Mahalo for any leads



Carrie

"The opportunities to reach into the lives of others in an inspiring way arise in countless ways every single day..." Dr. Wayne W. Dyer

http://www.hellophoenix.com/art

[Kapohocat]

I will cheer for Cingular - as I only have two spots with issues (red road between Green lake and Kapoho Kai Rd) and down around 6th and Paradise Drive.....

I had the ugly Nokia too and it got the best reception... but now it died and Cingular nicely replaced it @ n/C since it was just before warranty expired. So I am just finding out how well the new Nokia will work.

Cingular has been great with changing around our phone plan, adding minutes/lowering minutes. Adding lines/Deleting lines... I woudl say if you work through the Push 2, press 3, press 2 - you will be pleasently surprised. Now if only Hawaiian tel could get it together with their DSL...

Catherine Dumond
Blue Water Project Management
http://kmastudios.125mb.com/bluewaterpm/...rhome.html
808 217-7578
"We help make building your dream home a reality"

[mella l]

Aloha Carrie,

We have a Motorola V170 and use track phone prepaid service. It is a prepaid 808 number for when we are on island. It worked every where I went, but I really don't use it for huge conversations except every evening or calling home to CA. I use it primarily for safety. The track phone uses Cingular and T Mobile towers. Edited out Verizon.

I'm not the smartest tool in the shed when it comes to understanding or even reading about cell phones, but this one worked also! Mella

mella l

Edited by - mella l on 08/31/2006 12:41:42

[Hazen]

Hi Hopefeather,

I had been a Verizon customer for several years. I just switched to Cingular.

Verizon: Excellent customer service, kind of expensive if you use more than 600 min/month
Their coverage is getting better thought there are large holes in Hamakua, Kapoho, Orchidland, HPP, and Kalapana. Verizon by far has the best coverage anywhere else in the US. Their phone selection is limited IMHO.

Cingular: Much better coverage, though more dropped calls. I guess I rarely connected or got dropped when i was w/ verizon in a spotty area. Cingular you nearly always connect, just get dropped a lot. I get dropped driving form Keaau to Pahoa w/ Cingular, this never happened w/ Verizon. But i do get more coverage. It seems like it will save me some moeny switching to Cingular also. You can sign on to a big plan for a month or two, build up roll-over minutes and then downgrade your plan and keep the minutes for the rest of the year.

Nokia candybar-style phones are the toughest and cheapest, and w/o a doubt get the best reception. They also have excellent battery life. Make sure to get a tri or quad-mode phone. They offer more types of connectivity thus allowing more reception in remote areas and worldwide.

freecyclebigisland@yahoogroups.com

is a website here where people are often disposing of unwanted or needed Nokia phones. I'm sure if you posted a need, one or twenty would show up. Make sure torecycle your old phones, they have crazy materials in them that are rare, expensive, and often toxic.

Aloha.

Hazen