On the other side of the hill, you can pretty much get whatever cell phone service offers you the best deal or the coolest phone.
Here in paradise, it’s little more complicated. Cell phone coverage is really bad in unpredictable ways. Please share your experiences with cell phone service on the coast and make your recommendations.
Illustration: Sprint’s tower map for the midpeninsula shows just a handful of towers west of Skyline.
I’ve also noticed that in the last few weeks, message notification has broken down for me. I don’t get notified of new voice mail messages until 24 hours after they’re left in many cases. I’m not sure if this is an AT&T or Cingular problem, but it’s a big issue.
You wrote ” AT&T has two networks, TDMA (“analog”) and GSM (“digital”).
Sorry to be picky but this is confusing enough already. TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access) is AT&T’s older network but it is a digital service, not analog, their newer service is GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) also digital and actually using TDMA technology “under the hood”.
Analog was AMPS (Analog Mobile Phone Service), I don’t know if anyone still sells AMPS.
Coastal Commission approves MWSD public works plan, Nov 20 5:07pm, Leonard Woren — Ken, you are comparing tangerines with rotten apples. A private industry company in a government-enforced monopoly position cannot be compared…
Coastal Commission approves MWSD public works plan, Nov 20 3:37pm, Carl May — Mr. Gardner, Did you bother to read the information sent to ratepayers about these system improvements? Your answer is in…
Coastal Commission approves MWSD public works plan, Nov 20 8:59am, Charlie Gardner — Paul, Can you explain why one of the conditions of approval was that it would not allow lifting of the…
Coastal Commission approves MWSD public works plan, Nov 18 9:38pm, Paul Perkovic — The Public Works Plan includes three major components: (1) additional water supply; (2) additional water storage; and (3) additional treatment…
Mountain lion sighted at Ocean and Bernal in Moss Beach, Nov 18 5:54pm, Barry Parr — Another reader notes that: If you call 911 from a cell phone, you are routed to CHP in Richmond and…
Mountain lion sighted at Ocean and Bernal in Moss Beach, Nov 18 5:51pm, Barry Parr — Darin Boville says that it could be a bobcat that he filmed in the same area recently: http://www.montarafog.com/On-the-Coast/video-bobcat-on-the-midcoast.html
Mountain lion sighted at Ocean and Bernal in Moss Beach, Nov 18 12:03pm, Maureen Anderson — I'm not a cougar expert by any stretch of the imagination, but from my limited understanding of their behavior my…
Recommendations for Housecleaning Service?, post 3, Nov 19 1:30pm, Anneliese Agren — Thank you Gael!
History of Cunha Intermediate School, post 5, Nov 17 7:49am, Ken Johnson — Katharine Weber, If this morning at work, you walk over to the Kelly and Church Street entrance of the original…
Proposition 8, post 3, Nov 6 10:20am, Kevin Stokes — Seems most of the signs have been collected, thank you everyone.
Advanced technology ride sharing using the HMB purchased park lands on Highway 92, post 4, Nov 1 2:58pm, Terri Schoenrock Reece — What an interesting idea! Sort of a match.com, without the speed dating. Sounds like a great project for a budding…
What's happening to Coastside real estate prices?, post 41, Oct 20 5:51pm, Kevin Barron — Some random thoughts/points: - Let’s just hope LIBOR stays in check, otherwise the impact from ARMs..... would be like Hurricane…
Today: Sunny, with a high near 60. NNW wind around 7 mph.
Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 46. NW wind between 9 and 11 mph.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 59. NNW wind between 7 and 9 mph.
Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 47. WNW wind between 7 and 13 mph.
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 60. Calm wind becoming WNW around 6 mph.
Sunday Night: Patchy fog after 10pm. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 49.
Monday: A 20% chance of rain after 10am. Patchy fog before 10am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a high near 61.
Monday Night: A slight chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49.
Tuesday: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 60.
Tuesday Night: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49.
Wednesday: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 59.
Wednesday Night: A slight chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49.
Thanksgiving Day: A chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 58.
PFC: 2:22am; AFD: 3:45am
AT&T is in a state of flux right now. They’re in the process of being bought by Cingular. All AT&T customers are moving to Cingular’s network. T-Mobile is buying AT&T’s tower network, so historical experiences with AT&T’s network more properly reflect what T-Mobile will offer. AT&T has two networks, TDMA (“analog”) and GSM (“digital”). Generally, AT&T’s analog network performs better than their digital network, but I think the analog network is going away and the digital network is being improved.
T-Mobile traditionally has had lousy service in the Bay Area, especially on the coast. But AT&T’s network should improve this. T-Mobile is the only service that currently offers the seriously cool Danger Hiptop PDA/phone.
In my experience, Sprint and AT&T’s digital (now T-Mobile’s) coverage areas are comparable. They’re both pretty good, but not great. There are dropouts around Miramar and Moss Beach. There is little or no service inland from Main Street in Montara. South of downtown Half Moon Bay, service gets really bad really quickly.
Your phone also matters. Cell phones vary in their sensitivity. My tiny Sony Ericsson T616 doesn’t get as good reception as my wife’s clunky Nokia.
My best advice: Get a trial period and to use it with the phone you plan to buy. The last time I went to the mobile phone store of North Main Street in Half Moon Bay, they gave me frank advice on what works on the coast and offered to loan me a phone to try it out.