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General discussion

ATT Wireless & Cingular Merge A Done Deal?

Oct 19, 2004 4:55AM PDT

I am in need of a new GSM phone, and really like the 1000 nationwide, anytime, w/rollover minutes/$39.99 month plan with Cingular.

My problem is that Cingular has really poor reception at my home site (I tried a friend's brand new Motorola V400) where I need to use the phone for the main number for my business. I am in a little window of really bad reception. Cingular constantly drops and 3 of 4 calls do not go through.

I currently have AT&T which is too expensive and does not offer a comparable plan. I would like to drop it and get Cingular.
>>> Does anyone know how I can find out if AT&T's GSM reception is any better at my home site than Cingular is? >>> AND if it is an irrevocable done deal with the Merge, then I could sign up for the great plan with Cingular and drop the older more expensive plan with AT&T which is up in a month.

>>> Does anyone know if AT&T has a coverage scale that shows if there is poor reception for the area like Cingular does? I called a rep with AT&T and he was snotty and no help.

Discussion is locked

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Re: ATT Wireless & Cingular Merge A Done Deal?
Oct 19, 2004 11:59AM PDT

Threason AT&T is giving you the cold shoulder is because they don't care about the service anymore. They're being sold and could care less. But I don't expect Cingular to be any better with their coverage and customer service are just as bad as AT&T. But the coverage will improve in some areas as Cingular will likely acquire towers that AT&T owns right now. Cingular will also enter markets that they're not currently in, but it's mostly overlap. As for the contract you have now, Cingular is supposed to honor the existing contract until it's up. But if it ends before the merger is complete, you can just cancel your service with AT&T and sign up for Cingular. As for finding out if Cingular works better in your area, the best thing to do is ask your neighbors if they have Cingular and how well it works. Right now in many areas, GSM coverage among all GSM carriers is about the same as they're sharing towers in order to make the coverage area as large as possible, at least until GSM is built up in the United States.

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Re: ATT Wireless & Cingular Merge A Done Deal?
Nov 13, 2004 2:47AM PST

So they have to honor our contrancts but do we have to honor them? I signed up with ATT, not Cingular. I don't want Cingular as my provider. Can I cancel my service with them and not get slammed with the cancelation fee since ATT wireless no longer exists???

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Re: ATT Wireless & Cingular Merge A Done Deal?
Nov 13, 2004 12:11PM PST

If you're in one of the markets where Cingular will acquire AT&T, then your contract will transfer to Cingular and if you cancel with Cingular, then you have to pay the cancellation fee to Cingular. I wish I knew which markets Cingular couldn't acquire AT&T, but all I know is the FCC raised the number of markets they couldn't acquire to 26 markets in 15 states. I just wished Chicago and Milwaukee would have been those markets, but not so. But when Cingular was Cellular One, parent company SBC wasn't allow to buyout Ameritech Cellular when they bought the Ameritech Phone Company because then Celular One served every market Ameritech Cellular was in.

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Re: ATT Wireless & Cingular Merge A Done Deal?
Nov 15, 2004 2:24AM PST

One of the key things to consider when operating in the AT&T and Cingular markets is if your hardware (cellphone) operates in the 850 MHz band in addition to the normal 1900 MHz. It makes a huge difference in coverage. My previous phone didn't have it and I was constantly dropping callsSad.

Also just a heads up that as an AT&T customer you will have an opportunity to convert to a Cingular plan soon. When you do you may be charged a one time fee. You might want to see if you can negotiate a dealHappy

As for service, I must agree that my experience has been poor, but recently I have seen improvements. I'm also told things are likely to improve, which I can only hope is true. Keep in mind you may still start with an "off-shore" rep, so be prepared to be transfered if your problem is complex enough.