* In a message originally sent to All, Carl Owens stated:
-CO> Have any of you had any experience with units from the
-CO> Nextel company. I
-CO> am aware of the fact that the network isn't quite the same
-CO> as the
-CO> standard cellular system. I am happy about some of the
-CO> features I hear
-CO> about. I hear that there are no roaming charges and that
-CO> the air time is
-CO> the same price day and night. I am further aware that the
-CO> long distance
-CO> rate is the same cost 24 hours a day. I like the dispatch
-CO> feature this
-CO> unit offers. It sounds nice to have paging and voice mail.
-CO> I like the
-CO> idea of the all in one communicator. I shall see the unit
-CO> later today.
-CO> Thank you for your commentary.
Nextel in the Boston market is a 1900 mHz TDMA system. I've talked to someone 
on it and it sounded ok. The rates are flat, 24 hours a day like you say. 
Depending on how you use the phone, you may be able to save money with them.
What I would be on the lookout for is the coverage, they're fairly new, the 
frequency is very high and there are going to be holes. On the main roads 
you'll probably be fine but if you deviate much I would expect holes, dropped 
calls, and a lot of areas of no-service.
You're not under contract with them, you buy the phone outright. If I were in 
your shoes I would be tempted to see if you could use their system for a 
month, pay for whatever airtime you use but if you're not happy be able to 
return the phone.
I don't like them because they don't have any free airtime, in my opinion 
calls made at night and on the weekends should be free. Both cellular 
carriers in this market offer plans with that but Nextel doesn't.
Otoh, neither of those companies matches Nextel's 24 cents a minute during 
the day.
What is your usage like? ARe you going to use the phone heavily during the 
day? What about roaming?
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