Survey finds cellphone service less than stellar

A survey conducted by Consumer Reports for its January 2010 issue finds that despite "smarter phones," more flexible plans and faster wireless networks, cellphone service continues to be among the lower-rated of all the services the watchdog group evaluates.

Responses from more than 50,000 readers based in 26 U.S. cities showed that two-thirds of respondents had at least one major complaint with one in five readers citing high prices as their top concern.

"America is in love with the cellphone, but they are lukewarm about cellphone service," says Paul Reynolds, electronics editor at Consumer Reports. "They're especially concerned about its cost in these tight economic times."

The survey ranks Verizon as consumers' favorite wireless carrier, applauding the service provider for its customer service, voice connectivity and network reach. However, respondents had issue with Verizon's high cost.

On the other hand, T-Mobile ranked second in the report for its cost-efficient value but had less-than-stellar marks for messaging, web and e-mail services. Sprint and AT&T tied for the bottom slot scoring low in customer service and voice connectivity respectively.

More than one-fourth of respondents say they opted for a service provider based on the carrier for a specific phone, with Apple iPhone leading the way winning over a staggering 98 percent adding that they would buy the phone again despite the below-par ratings for its exclusive service carrier AT&T.

The survey explores the buzz surrounding prepaid phones revealing that the non-contract option is actually cheaper than traditional cellphone service billed on a monthly basis. For example, prepaid phones often costs $25 or less per month compared to $50 to $100 carrier fees for contract customers.

Out of those surveyed with prepaid phones, TracFone scored the highest in customer satisfaction with T-Mobile, Verizon and Virgin Mobile not far behind.

Looking for a cost-efficient prepaid phone? Consumer United has teamed up with TracFone's Straight Talk service which offers unlimited talk and text for only $45 a month or $30 for 1000 minutes/texts, 30 MB (about 300 pages) of mobile web access and free 411 calls.

Click here to learn more.