T-Mobile Cell Phone Service in Wisconsin

I have used T-Mobile for a long time and never seemed to have a problem with their service.  Most of my traveling has been in Minnesota around the Twin Cities and into Wisconsin down to Eau Claire.  The best service has always been around the metro areas, but can also be relied upon along I-94 throughout the state of Wisconsin.

The reasons I choose T-Mobile and stuck with them so long is that they had the best plan for what I needed.  This entailed just pure talk minutes, and I used about four hundred a month with the cost being about $45.  Their family plans are also good, you can add a line for about ten bucks a month and share the minutes with unlimited talk between the two.

Some of the the areas that I have visited in Wisconsin where reception wasn't so good are in northern Wisconsin.  These areas out in the middle of nowhere the T-Mobile service drops off, but is usually replaced with a different carrier.  This doesn't really matter because there are no roaming charges and your minutes cover the usage.  The annoying thing is that if you get a voicemail you can't check it, for whatever reason.  When you call your voicemail, it goes to your voicemail, meaning that you hear your message, so if you want to you could record something to yourself.  Any messages you get you have to wait til you get back to civilization to listen to them, which was never a big deal for me anyway.

Another area that I didn't get any T-Mobile reception is in the Wausau area.  When you get off I-94 and drive east on highway 29, your reception will drop off around Cadott, then switch to the AT&T network.  This isn't a problem unless again you need to check your messages.  AT&T seems to have good coverage over the eastern part of Wisconsin.

So I would say that T-Mobile is a good choice if you live or spend most time in the heavily populated areas and they have very good pricing on their cell phone plans.  But AT&T seems to have the upper hand in remote area coverage.  Make sure to compare Wisconsin cell phones providers T-Mobile to AT&T side by side to be able to make the best decision.

Wisconsin DSL for Small Business

How does Wisconsin DSL for small business stack up with other internet access?  For many small business in Wisconsin, getting adequate high speed internet access can be a challenge.  This can be one of the most important aspects of your business though.  Some of the uses of internet access can be for a credit card terminal, ordering, research, and communication through email or voip.  Some of the most important concerns regarding small business DSL is reliability, speed, accessibility, and price.  Its important to know what DSL can and can't do as well as the other options.

A DSL line is available for both residential and business use.  However there is not much difference between the two when it comes to reliability.  For a business that needs a high uptime because of critical applications, such as processing transactions, a more reliable option would be t1 internet.

DSL has speeds that could be from 512 kbps to 3.0 mbps depending on the location.  This might be okay for a home office or a small business with only a few employees.

The price of DSL is hard to beat.  For less than a hundred bucks you can get basic internet access.  It is important to look at the other factors.  If you have more than 6 phone lines then a t1 line can be a cost saver because you can use the same line for voice and internet access.

One difficulty could be in the location of your business.  There are many rural areas in Wisconsin.  If your business is pretty far out in a rural location, DSL might not be an option because it has distance limitations.  Another option might be cable broadband internet, but that might not be available either.  Satellite internet could be a option but that has a lot of drawbacks as well.  A t1 line though can be provisioned almost anywhere and offers a guaranteed service and speed.

Get ADSL in Wisconsin

Is ADSL better than DSL?  That's a good question, but they really refer to the same thing.  DSL stands for digital subscriber line and is a broad topic that includes many types of DSL.  ADSL is one of those types.  It stands for asymmetric digital subscriber line.  If you are looking to get DSL for your residential home, then most likely it is going to be ADSL.  So for all intent these can be treated as the same, unless you are looking for symmetrical digital subscriber line, SDSL, but that is another post.

Asymmetric digital subscriber line means that the transmission rates are uneven, or asymmetrical.  The download speeds and the upload speeds are different.  Why are the speeds different?  The thought is that when you use the  Internet you download more than upload.  For those that are unsure what the difference is, download is data that comes to your computer and upload is data leaving your computer.  Examples of uploading would be sending a picture to someone else, a document to a website or email, or just requesting a webpage by clicking on a link.  This isn't very often, so upload speeds for ADSL are usually 384 Kbps, 512 Kbps, or 768 Kbps.  Download speeds are faster at speeds of 512 Kbps, 768 Kbps, 1.5 Mbps, or 3 Mbps.

What kind of factors determine your upload and download speeds?  First its the kind of plan that you want, or how much you are willing to spend.  Faster speeds cost more.  Another factor on speed is how far you live from the point of presence, which is where the equipment is.  The farther the distance the slower the speed, so all speeds may not be available in your neighborhood.

Where can you order ADSL?  The list is short because only telephone companies offer DSL, so your choices are going to be either AT&T or another telephone company like CenturyLink.  You can compare Wisconsin ADSL prices to other kinds of high speed internet by using our side by side internet engine.

Wisconsin Ethernet Internet

There are many options for internet in Wisconsin.  You are probably already familiar with business dsl, t1, and ds3.  When available, Wisconsin ethernet internet will give some of the best service.  Not only can it be the fastest option, but can also lower costs because it allows for many other technologies to work along with it.  For instance it works well with vpls, which is virtual private lan service, and voip or any kind of hosted telephony or managed service.  Ethernet internet also is very scalable in terms of bandwidth speed.  If you are used to dealing with t1 lines and you need more bandwidth, you have to order another t1 or bonded t1 in prescribed increments.  Metro ethernet is available in increments of 1 mbps, from 10 mbps to 100 mpbs.  You can simply order what you need now, and when your business grows just add more.

Where is metro ethernet available in Wisconsin?  Right now the best chances of metro ethernet over fiber optics being deployed is in the bigger cities.  So Milwaukee,  Madison, Green Bay, and Eau Claire have the best possibilities of having service.  Ethernet is very flexible though, so in these or other locations it may be available as ethernet over copper.

Which vendors have fiber optic availability for this kind of internet at speeds of up to 1 gigabit?  AT&T is the obvious choice since they have excellent coverage throughout Wisconsin.  ACC Business also works very closely with AT&T for solutions for small business.  There may also be some other ISP's that offer service in Wisconsin.  If you would like to check if Wisconsin fiber optic ethernet internet is available in your city, you can use our map tool or ask for a free quote at no obligation.

Verizon Wireless Cell Phones for Wisconsin

If you are looking into Verizon Wireless as a carrier for your Wisconsin cell phone service, you probably want to know first what kind of phones they have available.  Smartphones have become very popular, but if you want to keep it simple then you probably just want something to be small and functional.  Here are some of the brands and models that Verizon offers.  Some of these phones are free with a qualifying service plan

Blackberry - Some of the smartphone Blackberry models are the Curve, Storm, and Bold.  All of them have WiFi and 3G capability, but you have to order the data package, so that cost may be a factor for you.  The Storm is the one with the touchscreen, the Curve and Bold have keyboards.  These smartphones tend to be best used by those that are tied to their cell phones, such as for work, or those that like to be constantly connected to the network to check email or social networking.  On the Curve you can even change Microsoft documents in Excel, Word or Powerpoint.

Palm - Palm cell phones on Verizon are the Pixi Plus and the Pre Plus.  What is kind of neat with these is that when you are connected to the 3G network, these phones can turn into a router to connect up to five other devices.

Droid - The Droid smartphones have thousands of apps that you can search and download so that you can customize what you can do with your phone.  If you want to be in control of your phone, this is the one for you.

If you don't want anything too fancy, then Verizon also has cell phones from LG, Nokia, Motorola, and Samsung.  Not that these aren't great phones, but are probably closer to what you have now.

What is the Verizon cell phone coverage in Wisconsin?  Verizon has coverage in the majority of the state, along with 3G.

How to Buy Wisconsin T1 Line Service

What is the best way to buy a T1 line in Wisconsin?  If you have a small business in Wisconsin, then you most likely already have internet access.  Depending on the size of your business, you might have DSL or cable internet.  If your business is out of your home, then this is all of your options, but if you have a storefront then you may be eligible for a T1 line.  Two good questions that you may have though are what are the benefits of a T1 line and is this necessary for your business?  Another good question is what does a T1 line cost?

The main benefit of a T1 line is that it is dedicated internet access that will only service your business and it comes with a SLA, or service level agreement.  The service level agreement is a guarantee that you will have an uptime of better 99%.  That is about as reliable as you can get.  DSL and cable internet cannot give this kind of guarantee because they have a distributed internet that is subject to peak time of heavy use.  If you have mission critical applications or if the internet is the primary way that you communicate with your customers then you should look into a T1 line as an option.

Is a T1 line necessary for your business?  Again this depends on how much you use the internet.  Consider also that if you have eight or more phone lines then they can all be bundled through the T1 as well, which could be an expense saver.  A T1 line can handle multiple phone lines and internet at the same time and they might also be available in a fractional T1.

How much will a T1 line cost?  If you lose customers through lost sales from lost internet service or have more than eight phone lines then it might pay for itself.  The price of a T1 line has come down over the years so you may want to see what they are in your neighborhood.  The cost is based on line length so your location is a factor.  Why not get a Wisconsin T1 line price quote and consider some of the options from the best T1 providers in Wisconsin.

Alltel Wireless - Cell Phones for Wisconsin

You've probably tried some of the more recognized names in cell phones such as T-Mobile, Sprint, and AT@t.  All of them have great service in large bigger cities as well as in areas close to major highways like I-94.  But what happens when you get into rural areas, like Ladysmith for instance?  What you need is a wireless provider that has great plans, the newest phones, and an extensive reach into rural markets.

In Wisconsin Alltel has been a good choice for just that.  There coverage extended to the northern part of Wisconsin where there was little reception from other carriers and they had local outlets in many small towns that had very good plans, especially if some of the other carriers wouldn't reach out that far.  Now Verizon has bought out Alltel Wireless, so there might be some better oppertunities with them.  They claim to have 3G wireless to more than 90% of Wisconsin, according to their coverage map.  There are still areas that do not have service however.  These are primarily to the north in what I can only assume are perhaps the state forests.  Their map doesn't show towns very well.

Verizon does offer some great phones though.  They have smartphones with 3G internet like HTC, Motorola, Palm, Blackberry, and Android.  You can check out these Wisconsin cell phones all in one spot, along with other carriers.

Verizon is also partnering with rural carriers to extend their 4G network reach into rural markets, so maybe they will even have this service in some of those remote locations as well.

Alltel customers phones still work, but as their contracts expire they will be moved over to Verizon Wireless.

Wisconsin Phone Systems

Are you interested in a new phone system for your Wisconsin business?  There are many new choices depending on your needs and the size of your business.

A PBX stands for private branch exchange and is a telephone switch that resides at your business.  You purchase the equipment, which can be expensive, program it, maintain it, and set it up.  This is a better option for a large company that has its own IT staff.

An IP-PBX is a pbx that is ip-based, which means it runs over ip protocol.  This is your computer network including the switches and routers.  Cable is required to be at least cat5.

A hosted PBX is a pbx that resides off of your premises.  In Wisconsin you can get an ATT hosted pbx that they set up, maintain, and program.  There is also no huge upfront fee for the equipment so you save money upfront.

A virtual phone system is a voip system and there are many different ways to set these up.  Some of them come over an internet connection and some over a landline.  These often offer many features that might cost extra with other systems.

Wisconsin ATT Telecommunication Services

ATT is the legacy provider of telephone service in Wisconsin.  It used to be if you wanted any kind of telephone service in Wisconsin you had to use ATT.  Now there are a lot of choices, but here are some of the services ATT offers for both residential and business.
Residential
Find ATT home telephone service:  Wisconsin is in the ATT territory so this is probably your only option for a home landline.  In some areas there might a couple of other options as well.

Find ATT internet service:  ATT now offers dry DSL, which is internet connection without telephone service so you don't have to be tied down to a landline.

Business services
Find ATT voip:  ATT has many options for voip for large and small business including hosted PBX, IP-PBX, and their business in a box.

Find ATT T1:  ATT has some of the most reliable t1 service in the world with the greatest reach so they can even provide a Wisconsin t1.

ATT can also provide ATM and frame relay services, ethernet services, mpls, and vpn.

Rural Wisconisn Satellite Internet

Grabbing the laptop and heading into town to the nearest coffe shop or MacDougals to surf the internet can be a cheap way to go, but also inconvenient.  When I travel I always run into the same things.  Slow speeds if there a lot of  other users, getting the evil eye from the barista (doesn't he know this is a coffe shop?), Worrying about your gear (if you have to go to the bathroom), and the shakes from too much caffeine.  Don't even try the library.  You might feel that it is your only escape from dialup if you live in the boonies.   Have you checked all of the possibilities?

One good thing to do is to simply check all of the companies in your area, what their plans are, and how much it will cost you.  Perhaps service has come in after all.  You can use our  Wisconsin high speed internet price engine to compare what your options are and what the rates are.

You may already know that you live too far out to get dsl, but cable broadband internet sometimes has a further reach and when it is bundled with your cable tv is often cheaper.

I can't get cable that's why I have a satellite dish.  Then maybe satellite internet is also your only option.  Satellite internet providers could be your only option even if you don't live that far out, just in a secluded area.

Satellite internet has speeds that can be as high as  .  This can depend on the weather though and other factors.  Since download speeds need to be higher than upload speeds for most residential users, a dialup connection can also be used for uploading.

If you are a small business, such as a gas station in a remote area, you might also be interested in a fixed wireless solution.

Wisconsin Voip versus Landline

It almost seems like the days of making a phone call using your home phone are over.  Most everyone, it seems has cell phone.  In some families, everyone has their own phone.  Another innovation that has made an impact is voip.

Voip stands for voice over internet protocol.  This is simply sending your phone call over the internet.  This has become a good way to make long distance calls because it is cheap.  Most plans allow for unlimited usage in the continental U.S.  You might wonder though, is this a good service to switch to.

In Wisconsin there can be a couple of scenarios to answer that question.  Voip can be cheaper than a landline if you already have high speed internet, preferably through a cable provider.  Without a high speed internet connection, voip becomes unreliable.  The biggest problem is latency, which is a delay in the travel from when you say a word and the other person hears it.  This should be pretty much simultaneous, but if the internet isn't fast enough, then it can cause some confusion in your conversation.

Why is a high speed cable connection preferable?  Because if you have DSL through the phone company, they want to sell you their phone service also, so they have their own deals, which can also be very good pricewise.  You can check out some phone and internet bundles.  Satellite internet is considered not reliable for voip and probably doesn't have the speed required as well.

What if you don't have high speed internet or don't want it.  Thats all right because the price of long distance on your landline can also be very cheap.  Check out our low Wisconsin long distance rates.  Another factor is that you have to add everything together to see if it is going to save you money.  If you spend $20 for your voip service, that's equal to 1000 minutes of landline long distance if your rate is $.02 per minute.

Long Distance a Long Time Ago

You might remember when if you wanted to make a phone call, local or long distance, you may have used a phone that was fixed to the wall.  That long distance call might have cost you $.20 or more per minute.  Then prices started to fall down to under $.10 per minute.  Then along came cell phones.

When the cell phone started to get popular, sometime after 2001, it often seemed like a great way to save money.  If you made all of your calls after 7:00 p.m. or on the weekends you could even call for free.  So using landlines started to fall by the wayside.  The downside though is that you would pay for more cell phone minutes than you would use, and if you would use them you might get charged if you went over.  The result is that you might not save any money with a cell phone, but it is more convenient.

Not everyone loves the cell phone though.  I myself will probably let my cell phone lapse when the contract is up in favor of voip.  In some rural areas of Wisconsin though without adequate high speed internet access, this isn't an option.  Can you still get great rates on landline long distance?  You betcha, with some rates under $.02 a minute.  For those that just want the cheapest way to call this can still be a good option if you still have a landline.   At that rate 1000 minutes only cost you $20 plus taxes.

If you want to compare your current calling rates or cell phone bill with some of the lowest long distance rates in Wisconsin, or on the planet for that matter, I recommend that you try our comparing engine.

Wisconsin Telecom

The telecom field changes every year.  It doesn't seem that long ago when long distance rates were $.20 a minute and no hardly anyone has a landline anymore.  Cell phones are on every ear and take pictures and have internet.  Business options change too as services come down in price and new ones have more capabilities.

The purpose of this blog is to  look at some of these technologies and provide information so that you can make informed decisions about the services you buy.