Comments on: AT&T what am I going to do with you? http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/ #1 Source for iPad, iPhone, iPod, Mac and AppleTV Thu, 27 May 2010 20:18:35 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.4.6 By: Peter S Kastner http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-23664 Thu, 27 May 2010 20:18:35 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-23664 Good news and bad news: the Microcell really does provide five-bar reception around a large house. Great for at-home business users. Bad news is it's a 3G radio-only device. My wife's older Samsung phone won't work because it does not support 3G, enen with a 3G SIM card. So qualify your phone first. Also, the Microcell will only hand off to a cell tower (think leaving home in the morning). It will not switch to the home Microcell from a tower if a call is in process.

Moreover, be aware that if you do not buy the $19.95 minutes plan, you'll be using your plan's minutes while using the Microcell. And finally, minutes are minutes; you'll have to have a data plan to surf the web. In that case, you should buy a WiFi-capable phone.

]]> By: FrankCatalano http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21516 Sat, 27 Mar 2010 14:22:28 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21516 In reply to rand.

Well I agree with you on that one. I hope it helps out your coverage. Let us know if you get one and if you see an improvement. Good luck , I hope it works for you. That must be frustrating.

]]> By: rand http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21512 Sat, 27 Mar 2010 03:37:28 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21512 I'll be getting one. There are situations where it ISN"T AT&Ts fault that a phone won't work. For example……my house. It's located in a neighborhood that is in a small valley. On three sides there are hills….effectively blocking reception from 3 sides. My house is constructed of 6 inch thick limestone blocks attached to solar board. For those not familiar solar board is plywood with a insulating foil on one side. So….hills on three sides. Foil covered plywood behind 6 inch thick limestone blocks and to top it off…..a metal roof. My house is terrible for reception from any of the providers.

]]> By: Rand http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21511 Sat, 27 Mar 2010 03:34:32 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21511 I'll be getting one. There are situations where it ISN"T AT&Ts fault that a phone won't work. For example……my house. It's located in a neighborhood that is in a small valley. On three sides there are hills….effectively blocking reception from 3 sides. My house is constructed of 6 inch thick limestone blocks attached to solar board. For those not familiar solar board is plywood with a insulating foil on one side. So….hills on three sides, foil covered plywood and stone, all topped off with…a metal roof. None of the cell providers get a decent signal inside my house. Its worth it to me to cough up $150 to not have my phone's battery discharge itself as it turns up the juice trying to contact the mothership. Many is the time I have unplugged my phone…..done some work around the house for a few hours only to find when I leave the house the phone has burned through half its charge.
I don't live in a rural setting. I live in the middle of the city in Austin Texas. It's just the way my house is constructed and frankly a lot of buildings are very good at blocking cell reception.

Now this disclaimer……I used to think folks in NYC were just whining about their coverage by AT&T……then I went there. Sorry for doubting you New York….coverage does indeed suck there.

]]> By: FrankCatalano http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21482 Fri, 26 Mar 2010 15:07:40 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21482 In reply to John Steele.

If you do end up getting the MicroCell, let us know how it works out for you. Thanks for reading!

]]> By: FrankCatalano http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21479 Fri, 26 Mar 2010 14:16:29 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21479 In reply to Keith Tomlin.

None of this is really a solution. The main problem is AT&T's lack of coverage and their solution to charge customers for their bad coverage. I would have no problem with the MicroCell if AT&T would give it to customers for free that are affected by their horrible coverage. I just think charging people for something we pay for every month to begin with is crazy… Yes, Skype will provide you with a different number but it beats paying AT&T's $19.99 every month considering Skype only charges $2.95 for the same service. The fact is AT&T needs to fix the problem and a solution would be to give us the MicroCell for free.

]]> By: John Steele http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21477 Fri, 26 Mar 2010 13:59:37 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21477 If I bought this I could go from 1400 minutes to 700 minutes. I get discounts so this would save me $18 a month. On the plus side, I should enjoy better call quality at home. I may bite… I'd be willing to pay slightly more for improved service.

]]> By: Keith Tomlin http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21460 Fri, 26 Mar 2010 03:20:34 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21460 Great Review – I would love one of these because like you, my voice coverage at my home is terrible. I like how this works by routing calls through WiFi. I'm going to check out AT&T's site to see how this is configured so that my neighbors cannot tap into it – also, I'm curious how the phone knows how to use it. Is it basically a mini 3G tower? Skype is cool, but not really a solution to this problem as the whole idea is making your one number work well in a location that your regular service is lacking – adding Skype is just another number to keep track of and such – but I guess if you forward your calls to your Skype account it would make it a little easier.. I wonder if AT&T would be willing to lower the price to keep a customer on their network. When I moved into my new apartment I learned that cell carriers will sometimes let you out of your contract without penalties if they move to a home that doesn't have good coverage. Maybe this leverage to get a free MicroCell!

]]> By: FrankCatalano http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21433 Fri, 26 Mar 2010 01:07:42 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21433 In reply to Corey.

If you have WiFi at home you should use Skype for making calls. It's essentially the same thing. Skype only charges $2.95 per month for unlimited calling compared to AT&T's $19.99 a month.

]]> By: FrankCatalano http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21437 Thu, 25 Mar 2010 19:44:01 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21437 In reply to AndyM.

Hey Andy, Yes it will eat up your monthly minutes unless you buy the $19.99 unlimited plan AT&T is offering. Yes there is potential but for doing the same thing, Skype will only charge you $2.95 per month for unlimited calling… Check it out, http://www.skype.com/prices/

]]> By: AndyM http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21436 Thu, 25 Mar 2010 19:33:34 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21436 Total joke!

I'm curious, does using this device eat up your minutes? If not, there is potential for lowering the number of minutes purchased in the monthly plan.

]]> By: Corey http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21424 Thu, 25 Mar 2010 18:50:47 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21424 Ya…but what am I going to do? I need the service to work at home

]]> By: Tito Salgado http://isource.com/2010/03/25/att-what-am-i-going-to-do-with-you/#comment-21420 Thu, 25 Mar 2010 18:08:20 +0000 http://isource.com/?p=15777#comment-21420 $149.99 for this? WTF?

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