Guest getwired Posted December 17, 2003 Report Share Posted December 17, 2003 Hi All, I have now had my MPx200 for about 2 weeks. I LOVE the phone, but absolutely HATE AT&T. They have the worse customer service I have ever seen, and hold times over 1 hour to just be transferred to someone else and hold again. What I find mind boggling is that they can't handle their current customers, yet they seem to be on a massive advertising campaign to acquire more. Even more interesting is that placing an order gets you a live rep immediately; however customer service places you on hold for a LONG LONG time... Bad sign... Anyhow, I have about a week to decide to return my phone before my 1 year contract kicks in. I paid $137 US for the phone. Here are my options: 1. I can return the phone and wait for another service provider to offer it. 2. I can keep the phone, cancel my contract for $175, and get a SIM chip from for cingular. Total cost for the phone $312 3. Buy a phone somewhere online (Ebay) and get a SIM from cingular. What are everyone’s thoughts? Anyone using this phone on Cingulars network? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mhartman Posted December 17, 2003 Report Share Posted December 17, 2003 I bought an MPx200 off of eBay and tried to use it here in Atlanta, GA and I didn't get any signal. Cingular is 850 here, which is not supported by the phone. I have switched to T-Mobile, which is 1900, and I have been very pleased. BTW, T-Mobile offers unlimited WAP internet for free. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest getwired Posted December 17, 2003 Report Share Posted December 17, 2003 Hi Mike, Thanks for posting... I will look into T-Mobile... I have found here in NC that I get better signal from Cingular than AT&T. A good example of this is when I am at work. When I enter the building, I loose my AT&T signal, but my phone is able to get a clear Cingular signal. When I first got the phone, I had to call AT&T and ask them how to block it from using Cingular since it's all my phone ever displayed and I didn't want to pay for roaming. I now force it to use AT&T, but I am guessing that the cingular signal had to be stronger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest D-rated Posted December 18, 2003 Report Share Posted December 18, 2003 I'd agree on t-mobile as well. I bought the phone on amazon (SIM locked for ATT). I bought an unlock code and took it to t-mobile and have been happy for the week and a half that I have had it. There's only been one time I couldn't get a signal, and that was in a store in the mall. T-mo's coverage is much better in St. Louis than ATT. From what I've read / heard, ATT is still in the process of starting to switch to GSM, whereas T-mo is way ahead of them. Not sure about the unlimited WAP internet for free, but I pay 4.99 for the low end ulimited T-zones and get unlimited GPRS internet through pocket IE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gsr264 Posted December 18, 2003 Report Share Posted December 18, 2003 I dont know, I kept mine on at&t and i get great reception all over st. louis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest getwired Posted December 18, 2003 Report Share Posted December 18, 2003 hmmm... Not a bad idea.... I can return this phone, and purchase one on Amazon for free with rebates. Then just pay the contract cancellation fee of $175 and bring the phone to T-Mobile. Hovewer, I am getting conflicting information about the AT&T MPx200 phone being locked down. Is it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest D-rated Posted December 18, 2003 Report Share Posted December 18, 2003 gsr264's opinions on ATT should definitely be noted, since he/she actually has the phone on ATT service. My opinions on ATT are based on the horror stories I have read and heard regarding theier services and customer support. However I can say that t-mobile provides great reception as well. A lot of this depends on how many features you plan to use. ATT has, if I remember correctly, no unlimited internet and their data fees were outrageous compared to other companies. Maybe gsr264 could elaborate on this. I can confirm, though, that the phone from amazon was SIM Locked for ATT. I threw in the t-mo SIM card and powered up the phone and it asked me for my unlock (subsidy) code. The phone is not, however, application locked, meaning you can install any applications on it that you wish. Hope this helps. Let me know if you have more questions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest getwired Posted December 18, 2003 Report Share Posted December 18, 2003 Hello D-rated I have read on this forumn about unlocking phone, but I believe it was for applications. Is it possible to unlock this phone for it to be used with other providers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest D-rated Posted December 18, 2003 Report Share Posted December 18, 2003 Hello D-rated I have read on this forumn about unlocking phone, but I believe it was for applications. Is it possible to unlock this phone for it to be used with other providers? Yes, as I mentioned the phone from amazon will be locked for ATT. Once you have an unlock code you can use the phone with any service provider you want. I purchased my code from www.unlockitnow.com, it was $14 and within an hour or two I had my code via email. The site also gives you instructions on how to enter the code (it's simple). One thing to keep in mind with purchasing from amazon, they expect you to sign a contract with ATT. If you take the phone to another service provider, I'm not sure what happens to the phone's warranty / replacement options if it goes bad. I asked the t-mo representative at the store if I could purchase insurance for the phone, even though t-mo doesn't offer the phone. He said he didn't know and told me to call customer service. As of yet I haven't called so I don't know the answer to this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest getwired Posted December 18, 2003 Report Share Posted December 18, 2003 I just visited T-Mobile's website, and unfortunately, it seems that they do not have service in North Carolina :roll: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest D-rated Posted December 18, 2003 Report Share Posted December 18, 2003 Well, that narrows the choices, doesn't it. I'd recommend ordering from Amazon, selecting a service plan through ATT. When the phone comes the service may or may not already be activated (mine wasn't and ATT had no record of me, which is why I took it to t-mobile). If you like the phone and ATT service, great, you'll get the phone free with rebates. If you don't like the phone at all send it back, ATT has a 30-day return policy (most others are 14). If you like the phone but not the service, unlock it and switch it. As always, YMMV. What happened to me (with the phone coming without service and ATT having no record of me) made it easy for me to switch carriers. You may have different experiences, so take this advice as information only and don't bank on your experiences matching mine or anyone elses. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gsr264 Posted December 19, 2003 Report Share Posted December 19, 2003 I believe I pay either 14.99 for 8mb of data per month. I dont think they have an unlimited package. I honestly dont know where all the horror stories with at&t came from but my experience with them has been excellent. (now compusa is another story...) I honestly had a customer service rep on the phone for 2 hours straight helping me set up my email accounts and trouble shoot other issues. Guy was fantastic and knew his sh*t. No complaints at all here. ( I do firmly believe however, that because of an over saturated market and the similarity between their GSM networks, at&t and t-mobile will merge within a year. The US market simply will not support 5 major carriers.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest actionj Posted December 22, 2003 Report Share Posted December 22, 2003 I used to have a TDMA phone on AT&T and it had amazing reception *everywhere* I have had the mpx200 for a little while now which is GSM and the reception is not nearly is good as the TDMA had but still is better than t-mobile. I am in Utah though and I think t-mobile is better out east. As far as AT&T customer service, everything that has been said is right. If you are new or are calling up for simple things, they treat you great. But try migrating from TDMA to GSM and it's a nightmare. It took around 3 days and 10 hold hours to finally get my mpx200 live. Also data is free for the first month then between $4-$15 a month extra which will probably go down soon because that is ridiculous. Once AT&T works out it's GSM problems, I too think they will buy T-mobile. AT&T is much more profitable than T-mobile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gsr264 Posted December 23, 2003 Report Share Posted December 23, 2003 we will have to wait and see... last year T-mobile actually performed MUCH better than at&t, with the name change and sudden splurge of new, quality phones. Recently at&t has increased their advertising budget by almost 50%, pushing their gsm phones (namely the mpx200) very hard. Analysts see them making a huge comeback this year. (As long as america latches on to smartphones instead of pda/phone combos) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest hanya Posted December 23, 2003 Report Share Posted December 23, 2003 I LOVE the phone, but absolutely HATE AT&T. AT&T sucks ass. I switched to T-mobile and the service is 10 times better, at least their customer serivce are avilable 24/7. ATT cust. Ser. is from 8 am to 11pm EST. T-mobile offers good service. BTW, if you plan to use GPRS, then T-mobile is the way to go. T-mobile $4.99/month/unlimited. ATT $0.03/KB (Again ATT sucks) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest actionj Posted January 3, 2004 Report Share Posted January 3, 2004 I have found that AT&T GSM reception inside of buildings is very poor. I have a friend that works for AT&T and he confirmed this and said that in 2004, they are going to be able to use the 1850 band and get better building penetration. Sometimes I miss my TDMA reception, as I could use my phone even in elevators Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest McHale Posted January 3, 2004 Report Share Posted January 3, 2004 Cingular has roaming agreements with AT&T and T-Mobile to give them maximum GSM coverage (for home area). AT&T and T-Mobile do not have the agreements that give them the same large footprint. BUT, if you haven't purchased the phone yet, why not wait until the MPx220 hits so it will cover the 850 band that both AT&T and Cingular use all over and maximize the possible coverage of your phone? If at that point you have decided to go T-Mobile (who doesn't use 850) or you find yourself in an area that is 1900, you can still get the MPx200 (at a much cheaper price plus have the advantage of probably getting the 2003 OS on it). What I did was went to Cingular and bought a GAIT phone (has Analog, both TDMA bands and both GSM bands). It works ANYPLACE that Cingular has any type of tower, not just GSM so you will still get the TDMA coverage you were used to. When you feel like using your smartphone, which may be 100% of the time, put your SIM in that. When I go on vacation, I toss the 6340i phone in my bag just to ensure I have coverage in case they don't have GSM. There is a risk of getting an MPx200 and having it *NOT* work with Cingular is a great possibility. In some areas, they have blocked T-Mobile and AT&T as being roaming partners. So, in an area where Cingular *IS* 850, you would have nobody to roam to and the phone will not work. This isn't the case yet in Illinois (I am still using a VERY old Timeport Tri-band at times) I know it is in some areas. I got my MPx200 for free from a guy I did some work for so I was out nothing if it didn't work. Had I not gotten it for free, I'd have patiently waited for one of the upcoming quad bands (which I will buy when it comes out). Just my .02 -Mc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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