Travel Technology - Poor Cell Service Question

Hello all my flyertalk friends and technical nerds (said with utmost respect). This is the most ignorant question of the day. I have Verizon cell service and a Qualcomm phone. The phone works fine most of the time, but because of the hilly nature of my town I am unable to get service in my office and (only rarely) in my home.

Clearly that poses a problem for me (a Realtor) and my clients.

So the ignorant question of the day is this: Is there a phone out there that can grab cell service better than average? I mean, to the uninitiated, it would seem that a really great cellphone should be able to grab even the faintest signal. But the same uninitated person is willing to accept that it's all about the signal from the tower, and not the phone.

Price of the phone would not be an object, although I would/could change services to get the phone I need in a package promotion.

Thanks my guru friends.
Rita

Qualcomm? Your phone must be several years old at this point, since Qualcomm phones are now branded as "Kyocera."

Kyocera phones are not particularly good in weak-signal areas. Neither are Nokias (models with built-in antenna) or Samsungs. Sanyo phones tend to do well in this respect but as far as I know they're only sold with Sprint service.

With an older Verizon phone such as yours, you can perform an over-the-air update by dialing *228. This might help with coverage in some areas.

More info on *228 here:
http://www.cellbanter.com/q-t_92022-228-Questions.html

The best way to get better reception is to either find a provider that has better coverage in your town or to get a bigger antena if your phone supports it. Some phones have plugs on them for external antennas. While most of those are intended to be mounted, like in the car or at home, I suppose it is possible to have a bigger portable antenna that you could plug into the phone. On the other hand, I think you'd look pretty darn silly. :D

If Verizon's signal is tough in your area, you should check out the coverage of other companies. I would suggest you look into a GSM-based network. While it typically has a lot less coverage in rural areas, it is much easier to roam across networks of different companies. So, for example, you might have a Cingular GSM phone but the place you're at has great coverage by US Cellular GSM or TMobile. You could then roam onto that network. With Verizon you're limited to their own network. I believe the same is true of Sprint and Nextel.

I think your best bet is to experiment. It may be a huge hassle, but you'll probably get the best results that way. Good luck!

Generally speaking, Verizon has the best cell service throughout the US. It may not in your location, however. But that phone must be real old and I think not a stellar one. I would try a new Verizon phone. They should give a 2 week trial. Samsung are good, and contrary to above Verizon sells several models. My wife has an a670 that is a very nice phone. Also contrary to above from what I have read at www.howardforums.com THE best performing Verizon phone in fringe areas at the moment is probably the Nokia they sell. I believe the model number is 3589