I have been using Sprint PCS service since 2000 and I personally think it provides pretty decent service. In 1999 cell phones become really popular as service providers reduced their rates to capture the market against regular land line service provider. Sprint was first to take the initiative and captured lot of market compared to it competitors. Also, when they faced competition, they further lowered the rates and stayed in the market.
My first plan in 2000 was 1500 free minutes (150 daytime and 1350 night & weekend) for $34.99. That was one of the best plan available compared to other service providers like AT&T and Verizon. Just after 6 months they offered the plan for 2500 free minutes for same price and upgraded the plans for all its customers. And then other plans followed to keep themselves one step ahead of competition. Currently the plan I am using is 300 daytime minutes and unlimited free night & weekend for just $29.99. Also, for $4.99, I have free Sprint PCS to Sprint PCS calls.
As far as service is provided, I have never came across any problems. I have seen people complaining about the low signal or cell phone not working properly. But my experience has been otherwise. If you have decent phone (Initially I had Samsung 3500 and now I have LG [not that great]), then you wont have any signal problem.
With my experience I will suggest the following how to use Sprint service hassle free.
1) Try to buy decent phone like Samsung or Sanyo. Don’t just go for lower end phone as they might have weak antenna and you might face signal problem later.
2) Before buying the service, check for the coverage area where you are going to use the phone. It has good coverage area and covers most of the highways and cities but still they have black spots. So before signing up check that out.
3) Choose plan wisely. Whatever the plan you choose, you have to sign a contract for a minimum of 1 year. So if you change the plan later you have to renew the contract again or if you disconnect the service, you have to pay more. So before hand, do your calculations how much you will be using.
4) Never exceed your plan minutes. This is really important because if you do so, you will be charged heavily. Also, it will mess up their regular billing process and there are all the chances you will get wrong bill. The problem with that is their costumer service when it comes to dealing with billing is bad and you will be kept on hold for hours. So try to stay within your limits.
5) General costumer service is decent enough and will provide you guidance what to do if you have faced any problem. At times they will suggest you to go to the store where you had bought the phone and get your phone check up. And they will provide you another cell phone if you are still in warranty and under contract.
Today in the market there are other service providers who are competing with Sprint and to name the few are Cingular, T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon. Cingular and T-Mobile are getting more and more popular because with those phones you can send SMS to India and receive it back. Sprint does not have that facility and if you want to get Text messaging, person in India has to send a mail from the Sprint site and you have to pay extra for having Text messaging facility.
But over all I will suggest sprint is really good if you have to use it only in US and don’t have to worry about receiving SMS from other places.
Enjoy Talking and Communicating, ,
-Rahul