Montana Cellular Network Report
General Montana Observations: Verizon Wireless dominates the entire state with good coverage and plans. AT&T has acquired the Alltel network in Montana which provides good coverage across most of the state and they claim their network is being upgraded. Cellular One provides good service in parts of the state but they have a number of coverage limitations. TracFone is available in most areas of the state. There are places in the state that are served by just one or two carriers, so check locally for coverage in specific areas.

ALLTEL
Virtually all of the remaining Alltel network in the state has been acquired by AT&T. Other parts of the Alltel network have been sold to ATN which will continue to use the Alltel name, and Verizon Wireless. AT&T's prepaid GoPhone is now available in the area.
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AT&T
AT&T has a large GSM network, but in the west, have a lot less developed spectrum than in the rest of the country. That has improved with AT&T's acquisition of Alltel Wireless in 76 markets in the western US. They converted most former Alltel sites to 3G GSM. Some ex-Alltel customers noticed significant changes in coverage with the loss of CDMA roaming partners. With GSM technology, AT&T roams more readily internationally, but there are areas in the US with no GSM coverage. AT&T's takeover of other cellular networks has improved their service in some areas already, including Alaska. AT&T offers a large selection of GSM phones including the Apple iPhone. Parts of what was the old AT&T Wireless network in the interior west is still not among the best. They still suffer from some coverage 'holes', but they are updating some of these areas. Most improvements will be made in the new markets and are increasing data capacity instead of adding cell sites in older areas. They have added "4G" coverage in a handful of markets and will upgrade most of the network in the near future. In several markets where AT&T operates at 1900 MHz only, we have been disappointed, but not all AT&T 1900 MHz-only markets are equal. AT&T offers a variety of plans including Unlimited minutes and services, and 'calling circle' plans. They have extensive data coverage. One of their greatest assets is also their worst problem: the overwhelming success of the Apple iPhone on the AT&T network. It has overloaded their system resulting in dropped calls, interrupted data and slower service. This situation is improving with the defection of some iPhone users.

Pros: AT&T has a 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 plans available, a very good selection of phones. Improvements in coverage have been substantial in some areas, lacking in others. Excellent international roaming capabilities, and AT&T will now supply the unlock code for all phones, except the iPhone, after 3 to 10 months. Additions of Alltel, Unicel and Centennial network purchases give AT&T substantial rural coverage improvements.

Cons: AT&T plans aren't as generous as some, customers can only access GSM networks which are not as universally available in the US as CDMA, customer service varies from above to below average, some markets have a large number of dropped calls caused by large data users. Some customers who have been transferred from other networks have noticed substantial changes in coverage, mostly while roaming.
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BIG SKY MOBILE
This GSM carrier is offering cellular service in Bozeman, Montana. They have Local Unlimited plans offered at a low price and no contracts are required. They hope to expand across the state and currently suffer from having limited GSM roaming available. They offer a small number of phone models with no smart phones. Their enhanced voice mail is included with your plan.

iSMART MOBILE
iSmart is now known as Big Sky Mobile.

MID RIVERS WIRELESS
Mid Rivers covers the east central part of Montana. They only offer a few phones, most of which are pricey, but do include some Smart phones. They offer Local and Regional plans, all Home area calls are Unlimited, and Regional plans include the Nemont Wireless territory as your Home calling area. Their calling plans are a little overpriced but they include various amounts of Roaming service. The first incoming minute is Free on all plans, but Long Distance charges may apply. They are part of the local telephone co-op, so they are pretty friendly and easy to deal with, and they offer bundle discounts for various services including wireless, landline, Internet and cable TV. They offer Lifeline plans. There are extra charges for each different feature like Caller ID, Voice Mail, and Long Distance.

NEMONT WIRELESS
The Nemont Telephone Cooperative provides CDMA wireless service in northeast Montana and northwest North Dakota surrounding Minot. They have good coverage across their area. They offer reasonably-priced National plans although off-peak and Mobile to Mobile features do not apply off their network. They have very inexpensive Local and Unlimited plans limited to their own coverage area. They may still have some analog sites. As part of the local telephone cooperative you can expect better than average customer service. They have a small selection of phones and do not support Smart phones. They only have 1 retail outlet in North Dakota located in Williston.

TRACFONE
Tracfone isn't an actual cellular carrier but is a major supplier of wireless phones and offers service in most areas of the state. They are the largest prepaid cellular company and arrange for their phones to use whichever wireless carrier is available in a given geographic area. As a result, Tracfone actually has more included roaming coverage available than perhaps any other single company. Their price points start below $9 a month and offer all the advantages of prepaid services. They also feature monthly plans and offer promotions with bonus minutes, and plans with 365-day expiration. Their service is mostly limited to Voice and Text but does support data use of some of their phones. They offer the option of having the charges deducted from your credit card or checking account automatically, eliminating the need to renew on an exact expiration date. TracFone offers Free international calls to about 60 countries by calling a special access number, and with their International Neighbors features, they provide a local number in Mexico or Canada for incoming calls from those countries at local rates for both callers. Tracfone offers additional plan options, including Unlimited plans, through NET10.
Pros: Coverage and Local service is available virtually everywhere in the US, good price plans with no roaming or long distance charges, Local numbers in all markets, included Long Distance calling to 60 countries.
Cons: They have a small selection of phones, coverage is determined by the phone model (CDMA or GSM) which may limit your roaming coverage or phone selection, you can only use one of their phones, no roaming outside the US.
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VERIZON WIRELESS
Verizon has the largest network, geographically, in the US. They have taken over a large portion of the old Alltel network and are now dominant in rural America. Their claim to fame is superior coverage on their CDMA network, especially in the west. They use PCS frequencies in a few areas, but they have constructed those networks well. In the few places where they don't have their own coverage, they have roaming agreements with other carriers, normally ones with superior coverage. Therefore, their "National" plans, which include almost all of the country, are about as close to "wall-to-wall" as you can get. Their reasonably-priced plans have no roaming or long distance charges, and they also throw in Unlimited Night and Weekend minutes as well as Unlimited calls among Verizon Wireless users both on and off their own network (there are a few exceptions). They offer fairly competitive prices, and often have promotions. They also offer plans that include Unlimited Voice and other features at various fixed price levels. Data service is excellent with various price plans. Verizon forces their phone manufacturers to offer a "standardized" user interface, limiting menu and font variations. This could mean the screen appearance may not be to your liking or the fonts may be too small. Smart and data-type phones require a per-Mb plan. They have the largest area of 3G coverage in the US and now offer faster 4G service in many major cities and major airports in additional markets.

Pros: Verizon has reasonably-priced plans, "Unlimited" calling plans available, extensive coverage, wide-ranging National plans, excellent customer service and some 'customer-friendly' policies. With such a large coverage area of their own, little roaming is necessary, and their roaming partners normally have superior coverage. They offer a large variety of phones including the Apple iPhone

Cons: Some Verizon plans are a little more expensive, Customer Service closes at 11pm, but technical assistance is available 24/7. They 'cripple' some User Interface functions like larger fonts: make sure you can read their submenus before buying. They require more expensive Data plans for any data-capable phone. Some of their data services are not available while roaming. CDMA phones roam in a limited number of foreign countries but Verizon can provide a hybrid loaner phone that will work both in the US and most foreign countries.
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