SIMple Calling SIM card coverage in the hinterlands
 

Wyoming
 

There's still a need for a phone that supports GSM 850 with this product too. Otherwise you are quite right that it is a good choice.

The advantage of T-Mobile is that $100 in it lets you keep it going for $10 a year. Therefore, for very low-minute users it is the most cost-effective solution at the expense of some coverage. (For example, AT&T has a much better network in New York City than T-Mobile does, although T-Mobile is alright.)

Do the new dual-US/UK SIMs allow you to use the 3G networks as well? This may be important down the road as the operators expand 3G coverage. There may even be areas w/o 2G that could have 3G. My single SIMple Calling SIM allows me to roam on just 2G for AT&T & T-Mobile (though w/ T-Mobile, I do not have an unlocked device w/ AWS band to test their 3G network).

Can't speak for the SIMple Calling SIM, but the dual IMSI Passport SIM would not roam on the Rogers 3G network.

Thanks for mentioning that, I hadn't noticed the Simple Calling doesn't work on 3G - mainly because I'm rarely in areas with 3G coverage! Tonight though I'm in a town that has an excellent AT&T 3G signal - works fine on 7-11 Speakout - but the Simple Calling (US/Canada edition) won't register on 3G (fine on GSM).

I really doubt there will be any areas with 3G coverage but not 2G, but if Simple Calling ever gets data 3G would be helpful. Another use might be during a disaster, if the 3G has more capacity than 2G.

I hope they do decide to add 3G roaming on it as that will be important in the coming years after more users migrate to 3G & more sites become 3G, especially with T-Mobile's AWS sites & the whole new Bell & Telus networks coming about in Canada which will be 3G-only and could fill in some huge gaps in the Canadian GSM/UMTS footprint that Rogers never addressed, such as the Territories & Maritimes.

Oregon-California border - Edge Wireless
 

The Simple Calling sim is roaming fine today on Edge Wireless in Gold Beach, Oregon (30 miles north of California). Voicemail and balance shortcodes work OK.

Coverage map (also covers SE Idaho): Edge Wireless :: Coverage Areas

There is supposed to also be some AT&T coverage here but it doesn't exist in this part of town.

Thanks for the addition.
 

Thanks. I lived in Portland, Oregon for about 25 years ending in 2004 and I had never heard of Edge until I left.

3G roaming (on AT&T) worked for me yesterday, in Reno NV.

The Simple Calling sim roams all down US 95 in western Nevada (Reno to LV) on a network just identified as "roaming".

In some of the "urban" areas like Tonopah and Beatty it also roams on Commnet - which is suprising as the commnet website Commnet Wireless doesn't currently show any coverage in NV.

Interesting. I wonder if anyone has made a map showing all GSM coverage in the US (not just AT&T or just T-Mobile but a vcombined map showing those & the other operators' coverage on one map). I hear from too many CDMA buffs that CDMA 'has more coverage' than GSM and it would be nice to actually see some maps & maybe stats to do a comparison. I'm guessing that even though GSM was late to the US compared to elsewhere in the world and compared to CDMA, by now the level of coverage GSM has has to be about on par with CDMA. Sure there are likely to be some spots one has coverage and the other doesn't, but that's expected.

I can assure you that GSM isn't yet on par with CDMA in the US. It's improving rapidly but it has a ways to go.

If you'd like evidence, check out the Verizon CDMA coverage of North Dakota versus the GSM coverage provided by AT&T (almost none) and T-Mobile (none, but there is some GSM roaming coverage that CDMA provider Alltel has installed).

I'm finding that GSM is more and more usable there, but there are parts of the US where you would not want to use GSM as your primary coverage.

I wish there was a map...............
 

How many GSM networks in the USA?
 

Well I guess I will try to answer my own question. Using info from GSM World USA network page I counted 75 networks. Five are not on the 850/1900mHz frequencies, 7 are 'planned' and 3 have multiple listings for the same network. So 50 would seem to be the number of GSM networks from a easily accessed resource.

Having done some more research at GSM World one finds that some of the information is dated and some of the companies no longer exist or were bought out and then bought out again. So grain of salt is always wise.

Colorado, Nebraska, and kinda South Dakota
 

I like the direction this thread has gone. If it becomes: "Who are the obscure GSM phone companies of the USA?" that would be neat.

North East Colorado Cellular does a suprisingly good job of Colorado and Nebraska if we can believe the maps:

North East Colorado Cellular, Inc (NECCI) (Viaero Wireless) - Coverage Map

Viaero local coverage

Now, coverage in South Dakota seems a lot more iffy.
A code USA-590 gave me Western Wireless Properties which had been bought by Alltel which is being consumed by Verizon. The last two are not GSM providers but GSM World has an Alltel map:

Alltel Communications Inc - Coverage Map

Maybe there is some FCC licencing database that would show which markets are served by which companies, although it probably doesn't show the technology they use.

Like that mention of Alltel providing GSM roaming in ND, I had coverage from Unicel in Jackpot, NV (just south of Twin Falls, Idaho) about a month ago. They are now part of Verizon, so are presumably not a GSM company, but just make some roaming income by putting GSM on their towers.

BTW, apart from Reno, I haven't found anywhere else that the Simple Calling will roam on 3G. I wonder what is different about 3G in Reno?

Alltel used to be GSM and switched to CDMA, which Verizon later bought out. Alltel never converted all of their GSM towers over (likely because they could make money off roamers in areas that have no other GSM coverage).