If you’re one of the millions of cell phone users who count on
their wireless phone for emergency 911 calling,

You might want to think again……..

Unfortunately, there’s no guarantee that your wireless 911 call will be routed to an emergency call center. Much less, that the emergency dispatcher will have the ability to pinpoint your call’s location.

Why?

Part of the problem is lack of service. Often, in more rural
areas, your cell phone has fewer towers available to receive
reception. And, many of those towers are designed for analog calls – not digital.

But, since the FCC does not require it, fewer carriers offer
analog service — or the ability to connect to it.

Not surprising, since much of the carriers’ revenue is dependant on features available only on digital networks.

Another problem?

There is no uniform Ehanced 911 system (E911) for wireless carriers. The fault lies mainly with the FCC, who has once again neglected to force all carriers to conform their systems to a single technology.

Because of this, there are now two very incompatable E911 systems in the works.

Nextel, Sprint and Verizon each have cell phones that use the Global Positioning System (GPS) to find a caller’s location. While Cingular/AT&T and T-Mobile rely on a triangulation system.

Unfortunately, both E911 systems have their flaws. The GPS system needs a minimum of three satalites to be able to “read” the handset’s location. Accuracy can be hampered by heavy vegetation, mountains or tall buildings.

The triangulation system also has its shortcomings. The system relies on the strength and timing of cell towers to determine a location. It too, requires multiple towers for accuracy. This becomes more difficult in rural areas where towers are scarce.

To compound the problem, Emergency Call Centers are not equipt with the technology needed to field E911 calls. Most smaller centers lack the funding for the sophisticated equiptment, while others lack the knowledge on how to integrate E911 into their existing system.

According to a 2004 article in the San Diego Union Tribune, only about 12% of the country’s 911 centers had the ability to pinpoint the location of wireless phone users emergency calls.

Which cell phone is best?

Dual band, or tri-band phones, allow both analog and digital frequencies. If a 911 call does not connect in a digital mode, the alternate analog network is available.

The FCC mandates that any carrier offering multi-frequency phones, must allow the 911 call to roam to another service if the call can not be completed on their own network.

Currently, only Cingular/AT&T and Verizon offer dual or tri-bands for both their service and handsets. Sprint PCS and T-Mobile wireless phones rely on a digital band, but provide an option to roam for an analog signal.

Nextel uses the iDEN network for their cell phones. Because Nextel is the only major carrier using this technology, 911 calls may be difficult to “hand off” to other carriers when roaming and may be dropped.

Sandra Landwehr is the knowledgable webmaster of The Cell Phone Advisor.com, a site offering information and advice on choosing a free cell phone and plan.

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Ages ago, cellphones were moderately worse than the modern types, and several were contrived for long run installation in cars, or as “portable” cellphones the same size as a briefcase. As software bettered in the early 1990s, the more unfit “bricks” vanished and tiny hand held cells became normal. Within virtually all of Europe, moneyed areas of Mainland China, cells are pretty much universal, either with the majority of adults possessing a phone.

Cell Phone

Once upon a time, decisions about telephone service were easy – you either wanted it or you didn’t. Those fairy-tale days are gone for good since the advent of the cell phone. Now, we not only have to figure out what type of mobile phone we’d like to have, but also what features we need, whether or not we want a contract or simply prefer to purchase pre-paid minutes without such a commitment, what accessories we think we might like and what type of plan will best meet our individual or family needs.

By the time we’ve cut through the red tape and have gotten down to the business of choosing a specific cell phone service plan, we’re often either too overwhelmed by the lengthy decision-making process, or we’re just looking to get the whole thing over and done with, so that we can finally start using the not-always-so-convenient little device. As a result, many people overlook some of the finer points of selecting the best plan for their money. The best thing to do, then, is to take a deep breath and give yourself a bit of time to clear your head before jumping into such a major undertaking. Once ready, it’s a matter of doing a good deal of research and narrowing down your options, until the right one presents itself.

Defining Your Needs Profile

In order to ensure that you’ll be opting for the best plan that matches your needs, it’s important to define what those needs are, point by point. Without the creation of such a profile, you’re far more likely to overlook some critical considerations when it comes time to choose a specific cell phone service plan.

• Track Your Time – Accurately determining the number of minutes that you’ll need to comfortably use your cellular phone service without disruption is the most significant piece of the puzzle. A miscalculation could mean the difference between the ability to use your cell phone freely and losing service altogether. Before you go shopping for mobile phone service, then, keep track of the number of minutes that you use the phone each day – and be realistic, or you’ll end up cutting yourself short in the end. Once that’s been determined over the span of at least a week, you should then be able to forecast your monthly usage. That, however, won’t be your target number; you’ll need to add about 20% extra time onto your figure in order to have a comfortable safety net so that you won’t eat up your minutes too quickly and possibly lose service.
View – You’ll find that there is a wide range and diversity of features from one cell phone to another, so look for the features that are most important to you and will be most often used, such as a speakerphone for hands-free use.
• Consider Long Distance Needs – A good plan for long distance phone service is essential if you find that you’re using a significant number of minutes outside of your calling area. Geographical distance isn’t always the determining factor when pricing comes into play, so don’t assume that you’ll need less just because the calls that you make are within ten miles of home – even though they’re out of your calling range. With many plans, the charge will be the same whether you’re calling someone ten miles away or 1,000 miles away. In addition, many cell phone companies levy fees against you for roaming, which completely destroys the goal of cheap long distance calls.
• Choose Your Service Type - Although it seems realistic to expect that all wireless phone service will – one day – be digital, that isn’t yet the case. When you factor that into the equation, you’ll understand that it’s important to make sure that your cell phone service plan includes both analog and digital service. If not, you’re going to find that you’ll be missing out on a fairly large cell phone coverage area.
View – Don’t put the cell phone in your pocket or belt while in use or while it is on. The body tissue in the lower body area has good conductivity and absorbs radiation more quickly than the head.
• Be Careful About Rounding – Some cell phone providers try to gouge the pricing of your phone service by rounding out the amount of time that you talk to the next minute. That means that, if you talk for 5 minutes and 4 seconds, you’ll end up being charged for a 6 minute conversation. The better choice is to find a company that rounds to the nearest second so that – when making the same 5 minute and 4 second call, you’ll only pay for 5 minutes and 5 seconds. While these increments may not seem like much on an individual basis, they can eat up your time allotment very quickly.
View – Lastly your cell phone will most likely last you a year or two or more.
• Analyze the Rate Schedule - Many carriers offer a special rate for nights and weekends, which seems great if you look at it on the surface. If, however, you don’t know exactly which hours these rates encompass, then you might think that you’re making a free call when, in fact, you’re chewing up your minutes at a high rate.
CELL PHONE SECURE .
• Look for Discounted Plans - If you’re planning to provide phone service for several members of your family, be sure to find a provider that gives the best cell phone coverage options. For instance, many of them will have a discounted family plan and – in some cases – will even provide free phones to a limited number of family members. Don’t automatically assume that you’ll be placed under the family plan umbrella, though – take the time to ask about such a plan and, if it matches your needs, make arrangements to have it put into place.
• Assess Your Internet Needs – Since some companies also provide internet phone service, make a realistic assessment of your online usage to see if it’s worth paying the extra amount that will be required for that feature. If you tend to use the internet even as much as an hour a day, however, you’ll end up losing thousands of minutes each month as a result.
View – If you travel a fair bit, then get a regional mobile phone plan. It’s a great cell phone deal because regional plans have the best mixture of minutes and features, with the best prices.

Once you’ve developed a specific needs profile, then you’ll need to consider whether or not to go with a prepaid service or sign a contract for up to a year or more. Depending upon your circumstances, you may want to consider opting for a plan that doesn’t lock you into a particular time-frame, since you’ll be required to pay for the service even if it isn’t being used.

About the Author

Samantha Goode is a freelance technology writer who loves to provide tips to consumers shopping for cell phone service, cell phone providers and cell phone coverage.