Hey everyone I'm coming from Halifax to attend MAC in the fall I was just wondering from past experience who provides the best cell phone coverage in Hamilton. I'm talking just service on the phone around campus which one of the big three (Bell, Telus, Rogers) has the best service. Thanks in advance

In terms of coverage, I believe Rogers is best. I live in Toronto, not in Hamilton, so results can be different.

I had Rogers before, but currently I'm with Telus. I found that they overcharged for a lot of random things that I didn't even have on my plan, which really irritated me. Telus is pretty good and I had signal all of campus I went to go visit.

If you're buying into a company solely because of their coverage, I'd go with Rogers. If you're looking for a company as a whole, I'd pick Telus as an established company, or WIND as one of the not so established ones who are good as well.

I'm pretty content with Bell, however there are certain buildings (basements, MDCL, random spots in the student center) where i have no signal.

when I move to hamilton do I have to change my number to hamilton's area code?
since from toronto to hamilton it's long distance call

money wise, rogers rips you off big time!...I mean BIG TIME!! My friend it with telus and he has the same plan as me if not better. He pays flat $25 a month, while I pay $30 with system access fee ($6.50 i think) and taxes. So money wise go with telus. They have really good coverage too.

Also koodo has really good deals, but Im not sure abt their coverage. You would need to look into that.

Hope that helps.

Originally Posted by cjdzl

when I move to hamilton do I have to change my number to hamilton's area code?
since from toronto to hamilton it's long distance call

yeah if you are staying in Hamilton change it. Your number will be 905 most likely but dont let that fool you into thinking if you are in the sauga / brampton area that it isnt long distance

Originally Posted by cjdzl

when I move to hamilton do I have to change my number to hamilton's area code?
since from toronto to hamilton it's long distance call

Yes, you would have to. I haven't yet, but I'm planning to change my number to a 905 before moving. Because I'm on a contract, I would have to pay a hefty fine to cancel. But then again, who knows what other fees they will charge.

I've been reading up on the forms, and people have faced a lot of problems from moving back and forth from city to city. Some change SIM cards, while others get charged long distance minutes when they're not in Hamilton.

If you're not on a contract, I suggest you get a SIM card phone, and pick any company you like. That way, then you're done the year and move back to Toronto, you can just cancel Hamilton's phone company, and pick up Toronto's.

Telus has best coverage.

but honestly, it doesnt matter what company you go with. Bell-Telus-Rogers all are basically the same (including $), and then there koodo, virgin mobile, wind, fido, etc.

Originally Posted by fall3n

Yes, you would have to. I haven't yet, but I'm planning to change my number to a 905 before moving. Because I'm on a contract, I would have to pay a hefty fine to cancel. But then again, who knows what other fees they will charge.

I've been reading up on the forms, and people have faced a lot of problems from moving back and forth from city to city. Some change SIM cards, while others get charged long distance minutes when they're not in Hamilton.

If you're not on a contract, I suggest you get a SIM card phone, and pick any company you like. That way, then you're done the year and move back to Toronto, you can just cancel Hamilton's phone company, and pick up Toronto's.

I've lived in Hamilton for 10 months now, with my 705 number, and not had a problem. I'm with Rogers, and have the My5/fave5 or w/e it's called. I keep the numbers I call back home and in Toronto on it, have nationwide texting, and all calls to Hamilton are local when I'm here. I think I've made a total of about 15 long distance calls to aunts and uncles totaling about 20 minutes since I moved here. The only "extra" I pay regularly is for texting my ex in the US, and Im pretty sure it's only 25 (or maybe 50) cents per out of country text.

If I want to change my number, I can just go online and do it, but it makes no difference in terms of calling. It's still long distance to call anywhere outside of Hamilton, and its still local to make calls to hamilton. But I have to give out my new number to everyone, and hope they're not idiots and lose/delete it. So why bother changing it?

Originally Posted by blackdragon

Telus has best coverage.

but honestly, it doesnt matter what company you go with. Bell-Telus-Rogers all are basically the same (including $), and then there koodo, virgin mobile, wind, fido, etc.

Its important to note that Bell, Telus and Rogers also own most of the smaller companies, they're just subsidiaries.

Rogers owns Fido, Telus owns Koodo and Bell owns Solo and Virgin Mobile.

Its only now that a few companies not owned/operated by the big 3 have popped up, namely Wind and Mobility. The only problem not being owned by the big three though are coverage issues.

Some basically its all the same shit. You just might be able to get betters depending on who you talk to at one of the given companies.

WIND currently has a rocking $15 plan. 100mins, unlimited text (promo addon), caller id, fwding, and more...

Rogers/Fido has the best coverage. People have a hard time indoors with Bell and Telus.

I'm currently with Bell, but once I get back in Hamilton I'll be switching to Wind. I would switch sooner if they had service in Bowmanville

For a heads up on anyone considering Wind, and/or have not heard about it. It's fantastic!! I'm on a $35 plan, which includes unlimited talking, at all times, to all of ontario. This works great for us students cause I know from personal experience that a lot of my friends choose to keep their home phone numbers, and so calling 416's, 519's, some 905's, etc... would all be long distance if it weren't for this God-sent plan.

I transferred from Virgin to Wind a few months back, and I checked the service on campus. It works great in the usual dead-spots i had with Virgin: full service in MDCL, MUSC, TSH, CNH. I frequently go back to Mississauga and Toronto, and it's perfect that I don't have to ever worry about these lon distance charges. When i do roam out of their coverage, like when I go to Guelph, they charge 25cents a minute, which I can say is lower than the 35cents a minute i was charged with Virgin (i believe the big 3 all charge 35cents/minute for long distance).

I'm with Bell and previously I had horrible reception in a lot of buildings at Mac. However, I got a new phone (Pearl 3G) and reception is a lot better, though I'm not sure if it's due to the CMDA to HSPA switch or just the phone.

You could also look into Fido. I have a couple friends with it and they manage to get good reception. Rogers is also coming out with Chatr, so you can always wait for that to come out and see what that is like. It will be competing directly with Wind, Mobilicity, etc.