Dont lose your number during the ‘Porting’ process

Consumers switching phone providers should be sure to follow the established procedure for porting (industry-speak for transferring from one carrier to another) their numbers, said TRAC Research Director John Breyault in the February 16 edition of The New York Times.

Subscribers who cancel their service before a port takes effect run the risk of losing their phone numbers permanently if the subscriber’s previous carrier returns their number to the national number pool before the new carrier requests the port. “It’s a significant issue, and consumers are not being educated about how the system works,” said Breyault. Some consumers may try to “help” the process along by cancelling their service subscriptions once they sign up for new service from someone else. While this may save a few dollars in service charges, the savings likely won’t make up for the time and aggravation of having to get in touch with all of your contacts to notify them of a new number. To read the full New York Times article, click here.

Source: Telecommunications Research and Action Center. http://www.trac.org

More AT&T rate increases take effect

Another round of rate increases for “legacy” AT&T long distance plans is on the way. Effective March 1, the following plans’ monthly recurring fees increased:

• One Rate 7¢ Plus Increases from $4.95 to $5.95

• One Rate 5¢ - Increases from $7.95 to $8.95 for customers also subscribed to AT&T as their local toll carrier and have opted for online billing.

• AT&T Select Saver Increases from $3.75 to $4.99

• AT&T One Rate 7¢ Global Plan Increases from $4.95 to $5.95

Consumers on these plans may want to compare the new cost of their monthly long distance service to other options, both with landline long distance carriers and over other platforms such as cell phones, Skype, and prepaid calling cards. While the cost of these alternative technologies may not end up saving money versus the AT&T plans, it’s generally smart for consumers to do a communications “check-up” at least once every six months regardless. These rate increases could be just the incentive needed to get out those bills and run the numbers. The money you save could be yours!

Source: Telecommunications Research and Action Center. http://www.trac.org

Major carriers all add unlimited calling, is it worth it?

The past few weeks have been a good one for wireless consumers who can’t seem to get off the phone. Three of the four major national wireless carriers — Verizon Wireless, AT&T Mobility, and T-Mobile unveiled unlimited wireless voice calling plans for $99.99 per month. Sprint-Nextel is testing unlimited voice in four cities and may go national very soon in response to the other three carriers’ announcements.

This shift in the wireless market reflects both the falling cost of making wireless calls and the perceived desire of consumers to have calling plans where they don’t have to worry about going over their allotted plan minutes. This follows a similar trend to what happened over the past decade in the landline voice industry, where metered long distance plans were gradually replaced by all-you-can-eat bundles of local and long distance service. While many consumers gravitated to those bundled landline plans, TRAC’s research indicates that the typical phone user can still save money by sticking with a metered long distance plan coupled with a standard, unlimited local plan. Similar math applies to the new unlimited wireless plans. The great majority of users do not make enough wireless calls in a month to need an unlimited voice plan. In addition, none of the companies have announced that subscribers will be able to share minutes on these plans, making them suited mostly to the power-user as opposed to the great many subscribers who share their minutes on so-called “family” plans.

Another type of user who may benefit from the unlimited wireless plans are individuals who are already spending in excess of $100 combined on their landline, long distance, and wireless services. Such users, who may already be investigating ditching their landline phones anyway, could potentially save by going to an unlimited wireless voice plan. An additional point to keep in mind is that only T-Mobile is offering unlimited text-messages as a part of the unlimited voice package. Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility are both charging an extra fee for unlimited text messages on top of unlimited voice.

Source: Telecommunications Research and Action Center. http://www.trac.org

Digital dictionary helps parents decode Net language

Parents of net-savvy teens can be excused for sometimes thinking that their kids are speaking a different language. Thanks to the explosion of text-messaging on cell phones, instant messaging, and online forums such as MySpace and Facebook, a unique short-hand language has evolved.

For parent who aren’t up on what “abend” or “pachs” mean (”absent by enforced net deprivation” and “parents are coming home soon,” respectively), this teen slang can quickly make it tough to keep up with what your teens are talking to their friends about online. Fortunately, there are a number of online dictionaries that will translate this language (commonly known as “Leet speak,” or “netspeak”) into proper English. One particularly comprehensive tool can be found at NoSlang.com. “It’s really useful,” said NoSlang.com founder Ryan Jones, “you can just copy and paste from somebody’s LiveJournal and find out what the heck they’re talking about. It’s also a great way for parents help protect their kids by learning their language.

Not many parents know to look for warning signs like paw, p911, or pir.” While teens have always had a language all their own (”Far out, man!”), the relative anonymity of much online conversation makes it even more important for parents to keep track of their kids’ activities online. In addition to NoSlang.com another good “Leet speak” translator can be found by clicking here. There is also a great beginner’s guide to “Leet speak” here.

Source: Telecommunications Research and Action Center. http://www.trac.org

Samsung Blackjack-2-SGH-617 Black

At a Glance:
 
What’s Good: Compact, stylish Windows Mobile 6 smartphone; HSDPA (3G) high speed data; Improved battery life; GPS; Center mounted jog wheel

What’s Not Good: QWERTY keys are a little small and a little slippery; No touchscreen; Display is smallish for a smartphone

Bottom Line: Blackjack II is a solid improvement over its predecessor.  There’s nothing revolutionary here, but faster hardware, improved battery life, and speedy 3G data make this a worthy update to the popular original.

Specs:

Make/Model: Samsung Blackjack II (SGH-i617)
Network: GSM Quad-Band
Data: HSDPA (3G)
Carrier: AT&T (Locked)
Size: 114 x 61 x 13 mm
Weight: 116 g
Form Factor: Candybar
Display: 2.4″ Color LCD, 320 x 240 (QVGA) Resolution, 65,000 Colors
Memory: 155 MB built-in, microSD card slot
Notable Features: Windows Mobile 6 Standard OS; QWERTY thumbpad; Front-mounted jog dial navigation; Integrated GPS; 2-megapixel camera; Supports AT&T Video Share - read full review

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