| When selecting a cell phone service, there are generally three types of cell phone service providers to choose from. The large wireless cell phone service providers, the smaller cell phone service providers, and prepaid cell phone services.
The large cell phone service providers are the ones like AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, and T-Mobile. These companies are the result of mergers and acquisitions of other wireless providers, such as AT&T acquiring Cingular and Sprint buying Nextel. As a result, these large wireless providers own their own cell phone towers, offer virtually unlimited nation-wide coverage, and have access to the latest in cell phone technology for their customers. Of course, large companies do have their drawbacks. There is little room for customization of a cell phone service plan with any of the large companies. Also, customer service is often times handled by a voice activated menu and the chance of actually having a conversation with a customer service representative is minimal. If you are able to talk to someone, they are governed by corporate policy as to what they are allowed to say and don�t have much authority to correct problems.
In contrast to the big companies, smaller cell phone service providers are beginning to emerge in the marketplace. They are commonly thought to be cheap cell phone service providers, but their popularity is growing amongst consumers. Examples of these smaller networks include Virgin Mobile and Metro PCS. These smaller companies do not own their own cell phone towers, opting instead to lease their use from the larger companies. Leasing can be expensive so some of these smaller operations do not provide service in certain locations. Other times, using the phone outside of the service area can result in roaming and additional long distance charges. Smaller companies do offer lower prices at times and have shown to be more flexible in building custom plans for small companies. Another area where they may be better than a large service provider is in customer service. This is not a blanket statement, however the one edge that smaller companies generally have is in the field of customer service. It is more likely that you will be able to bring immediate closure to a problem when dealing with a smaller company.
The third type of provider is the prepaid cell phone service provider. Prepaid, or pay as you go, services do not require a length service commitment, and often do not incur overage charges. Instead, the customer chooses a certain amount of money to put in their phone�s account. Customers then pay by the minute for phone use. Unlike most other service plans, prepaid plans do not offer anytime minutes, and most do not offer free nights and weekends or free mobile-to-mobile calling. Features are generally limited with these plans and often times, the phones themselves are not the top of the line models.
There are many companies that participate in prepaid wireless calling plans from the larger companies like AT&T and Verizon to smaller companies like Virgin Mobile and Cricket.
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