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General discussion

Bad Cingular Service or Bad Phone?

Jun 2, 2005 12:56PM PDT

I have had a Motorola V400 for about a year. Since I switched to this phone, I have had a ton of dropped calls. Anytime I get into a sketchy reception area and the phone drops to 3 or less bars, bye-bye call. It has only gotten worse over time and it seems like any call over 10 min will be dropped at least 1x. At my house I generally get perfect reception, but at times the phone will randomly drop to one bar and drop my call.

Is it Cingular or Motorola? I have two other friends who have this phone and have the exact same problem (both on Cingular). My roommate has a Nokia (Cingular) and does have some dropped calls occasionally but nothing too major. Cingular blames Motorola and Motorola blames Cingular.

To add to the confusion, now my phone is cutting off to a white screen just randomly (like when I open it, or am trying to open a game).

I am looking to upgrade; I can't decide whether I want to try again w/the Motorola Razr or go with the Sony-Ericsson S710a. Any suggestions? I prefer a phone with a camera and want video (though I know the Razr can't take video). Please help this technologically limited girl!

Discussion is locked

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suggestion
Jun 2, 2005 9:34PM PDT

Call customer service from another phone but have the cell phone with you. Ask if the IRDB (Roaming Data Base) is current. Also inquire about coverage based on either city or zip code for areas you use your phone. If all else fails, you might need additional technical or possibly warranty assistance.

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Cingular (customer) and reception service poor
Jun 6, 2005 1:52PM PDT

Type "ATT to CINGULAR" in your browser and you'll see what kind of company CINGULAR is. Also, check out "complaints.com" and type in cingular in their search box. You'll get an idea of how many of us are being mislaid, delayed, inlaid, and filleted by this company. Contact your media outlet and let the business editor know about these forums. Perhaps you can get into a Verizon plan, which seems to be a) the best reception but, b) the most expensive. Believe me, the cost may be worth it, given my disdain for the way I was treated by CINGULAR.

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Is it the phone or your calling habits?
Jun 6, 2005 7:31PM PDT

It's been my experience that most people get dropped calls when they are in a moving vehicle. I have
Cingular and the Motorola Rzr V3 and I have never lost even one call. I simply stand on a corner where I get good reception and stay there unitl I'm done talking. The only time I walk is if I see antenna's directly in front of me as getting closer can only make the sound better. The best service I got was from Sprint, they use the same transmission method that Verizon uses, I think verizon is highly over rated.

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phone or calling habits
Jun 7, 2005 11:29AM PDT

i am a cingular customer and i make my calls from my home and my calls are droped. verizon wireless here i come

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Re
Aug 15, 2005 5:27PM PDT

Yes well I'll bet if you go to a place called complaints.com, you'll see a lot of complaints there. That's because people who aren't happy are a lot more vocal. Cingular gets a lot more orders right than they do wrong.