AT&T
AT&T is what was once Cingular, part of which once was AT&T Wireless. Try not be confused. Today's AT&T has a large network, but in the west, has a lot less spectrum available than in the rest of the country. They continue to expand, but outside of urban areas and off interstate highways they depend on other carriers to provide coverage. Fortunately, the 'roaming' coverage is as good as being on the AT&T network, and most of the coverage is included within your plan minutes. With GSM, AT&T will roam more readily, internationally.

Much of the AT&T network in the interior west is made up of the old AT&T Wireless network which was not among the best. They still suffer from some coverage 'holes', but they are updating these areas. Notable is their "Corridor" project which provides excellent service along several stretches of interstate highways. AT&T's current plans include only the GSM network, thus have some areas of the country with no service due to a lack of GSM coverage, or the inability to access existing analog networks, even for 911 service. In several markets where AT&T operates at 1900 MHz only, we have been very disappointed. The biggest surprise is where Cingular combined with the old AT&T Wireless. We would have expected coverage to improve dramatically, but that is not the case. Not all AT&T 1900 MHz-only markets are equal, though. In Arizona AT&T is generally as good as the others, but in northern Ohio it is disappointing, to the point of being unusable, although they have covered the major roads adequately in those areas. This map shows AT&T 1900 MHz-only areas. AT&T offers a variety of plans including unlimited minutes and services.

Pros: AT&T has a very large network and covers much of the nation, usage is transparent whether on- or off-network, good digital and data services, good national plans, "Rollover" for those who can use it, "Unlimited" calling plan available, a good selection of phones. In some areas, like California, there have been big improvements in coverage. Excellent international roaming capabilities. Cons: AT&T plans aren't as generous as some, customers can only access GSM networks which is not quite as universally available as CDMA, customer service is sometimes below average.
Get Online Discounts on Wireless from AT&T.