Comparing Wireless Carriers 

Evaluating the service areas and pricing of the major carriers!

Auction dangers- There are a number of scams to watch out for if you plan on buying or selling on an online auction, like eBay.  Here are some of them to be aware of:

Misrepresentation: One of the oldest tricks in business. Just what it sounds like. Or more accurately, the merchandise ISN'T what it sounds like. Value, authenticity or condition may be overstated, sometimes wildly.
Failure to ship merchandise: The merchant takes your money and runs, leaving you nothing but a lighter wallet for your troubles.
Failure to pay: Through the use of fake money orders, bounced checks, stolen credit cards, or a number of other techniques, the buyer gets the goods and leaves the merchant with nothing in return.
Shilling: Artificially inflating the price on an item by use of fake bids from phony user IDs or accomplices.
Bid Shielding: Using high bids from phony accounts to run up the price and scare off potential buyers, the actual bidder then retracts the higher bids, getting the item at a much lower price than he would have otherwise.
Piracy and counterfeiting: The sale of pirated music and software or counterfeit art, phony jewelry or gems, and forged collectibles.
Internet Fencing: Selling stolen goods through the auction.
Triangulation: The seller offers to send you the item (usually new, brand name goods) on approval. They then use stolen credit cards to order the item shipped to you. You pay for the goods (in cash) after receiving them, and get a visit shortly thereafter from the police. Credit card fraud and theft.
The "Buy and Switch": The buyer gets the merchandise and returns a similar item that has been damaged, or a fake, with the claim, "It isn't what I expected." The seller refunds their money, and is left with broken and unresellable product.
Fee stacking: Fees, usually "related" to shipping costs, are added to the cost after the sale has been made.
Shell Auctions: No merchandise exists. The sole purpose of the auction is to get money or credit card numbers from unwary buyers.

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Recently we have had merchants either with no wireless carrier, dissatisfied with their existing carrier, or using a "baby" carrier that does not have PDA phones. Helping someone evaluate all the offerings out there is a large and complex task, so we decided to devote an issue of our newsletter to it, and look at each major carrier one by one.  These reviews are our OPINIONS, and any pricing information is taken from their respective web sites as of 05/25/2005.

Verizon- generally has the best coverage of all the carriers: See their coverage map here, but they just don't "get it" when it comes to PDA data.  PDA's don't gobble data, they "sip" it.  A credit card transaction is only 2.5 Kilobytes, and how much browsing can you do on a 2 inch screen?  Still, they push their "Unlimited Data Usage" plan at $49.99 per month.  Even their 10Mb plan is pricey at $29.99 per month, although that is enough for 4000 transactions!  [May 2010- Outdated information deleted]

Nextel- is generally not recommended, as they are very expensive, and their phones have tiny text-only screens.  Their only PDA's are the ever-litigating Blackberries, which we do not support at this time.  We do have a swiping solution for Nextel 2-digit and 3-digit phones (except the 860), but it is swipe only, with no printing, store/forward, or signature capture.   Only companies that have a dire need for the "direct-connect" walkie-talkie feature should consider Nextel.  On the positive side, they have great commercials!

Cingular- offers both the Treo 600 (in stores only- price varies), the Treo 650 for $449.99, as well as the Siemens SX-66 for $549.99 with a 2-year contract.  Not the best deals, but not bad if you are in a Cingular area.  You can see their coverage map here. Cingular DOES offer a "per Kilobyte" data plan! Their "Media NET" packages allow you to tailor a plan perfect for you!  You can get prepackaged deals like 1 Mb (Half a Megabyte, good for about 400 transactions) for only $4.99 per month!  Definitely a major PLUS in looking to Cingular as your carrier!! .

Sprint- is still currently the winner, with Treo 650's at $329.00 and Treo 600's at $249. We also still have a few of the older Treo 300's in packages with Pocket Merchant left as well.  Their unlimited data is only $15 per month, and you can get their penny per kilobyte data plan just by declining the $15 per month plan!  Their coverage is excellent, see their map here, which actually lets you drill down to the actual, individual towers on the street level.  For the Pocket PC user, they have their PPC6601 for only $353.00!  They have the widest selection of compatible PDA's, the lowest cost data services, and their coverage is first class.  If you are looking to change your carrier, Sprint is our #1 recommendation!

In conclusion, we specifically refrained from evaluating the plans for voice minutes, as the different carriers have so many plans, and our merchants range from not needing voice at all, to needing up to 4000 minutes per month!  Overall, Sprint is the best choice, unless you are in an area that lacks PCS coverage.  In that case, Cingular and Verizon are the next best bets.  We do not represent ANY of these carriers, and just want to help our merchants reduce their cost of doing business.

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