Analog Cell Phone Network Shuts Down Monday

I Don't Believe in Imaginary Property writes "AT&T and Verizon will be shutting down their old, analog AMPS networks next Monday, and AT&T will also turn off its old TDMA network, with smaller providers expected to follow thanks to a sunset date set by the FCC. After these old networks are shut down, the networks will be all digital. Of course, if you have one of those old fashioned 'just a phone' cellphones and it happens to be analog, you'd best enjoy the last few days before it becomes useless."

Analog has its place

[ClaraBow]

I think that there are still areas that benefit from having analog signal, especially rural area. So isn't there any benefits of keep a least one analog network alive? I'm jut curious.

What about the "forbidden" bands?

[mangu]

I have a radio that scans from 30 MHz to 1.3 GHz, except for the analog cell phone frequencies. I suppose there will be no objection for selling radios that scan all the frequencies now, right?

Not that there would be anything interesting in those frequencies now, but it always bothered me in a way that my radio had holes in its coverage.

Re:And good riddance.

[Qzukk]

Poorly maintained, bad coverage, iffy signal, rotten roaming (and occasional charges)

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

Re:Analog has its place

[DMCBOSTON]

I can take mine into jury duty because it's old. No camera, no need to leave it in an unsecure location (like the car). So I guess I'm screwed.

Okay, I don't believe in imaginary submitters

[MrPerfekt]

Honestly, 1-3 times a day there's a story approved from I Don't Believe In Imaginary Property. Thankfully, unlike Beatles Beatles Beatles, he's not using his URL to boost his search engine results but it does beg a question, how does that happen? Or are other submitters just submitting crap lately?

No reasoning behind this, just curious.

Re:Okay, I don't believe in imaginary submitters

[fm6]

Possibly a sock puppet for Zonk.

Re:Refurbished Junk

[Skater]

3rd world Grandmas are probably using digital networks. The odd thing is that a lot of 3rd world countries that didn't have phone service at all got digital wireless phone service because it's relatively cheap to build out, while the US (for example) was slower to adopt wireless service because we had landlines.

But analog phones - ugh. I remember the three hours of standby battery life, and 30 minutes of talk time, or having a phone the size of a brick. My first two cell phones were dual-mode or tri-mode; they'd work on analog networks as well as digital, and I remember that if it had to use the analog network, the battery life would drop from a day or two to hours.

Re:Legacy embedded devices?

[Plekto]

Likely true about the planned obsolescence. But with massive areas of the country no longer covered, they will surely find some other way to fill in those gaps. It's just too many people to ignore from a revenue standpoint.

My educated guess is that they will use those frequencies to provide some sort of digital replacement service. Really poor speed or voice only), but covers a wide area.

Yes, it's going to be painful for the first year or two, but they have to pull down the old system before they can put in the new ones.

There is one big advantage to an analog phone

[xkr]

AT&T was so determined to get me off their old network, they finally made me an offer for a plan that was half the price of their cheapest new plan - including a 2-year contract and a free phone. Then, yesterday, I upgraded one of my kids from "pay as you go," to a copy of my dirt-cheap digital plan. They didn't want to do it, but finally agreed. So you see -- analog can be cheaper !

Easier to Wiretap

[kidcharles]

AT&T and Verizon, huh? They probably just want to phase out analog because it is easier to store digital phone calls to sell to the government [aclu.org].

Re:AMPS has FAR more coverage than GSM.

[mikelieman]

"In those areas the new handset is just a paperweight, while a car breakdown can be a death sentence if help can't be called"

DUDE!, Check It!

http://www.acrelectronics.com/microfix/microfix.htm [acrelectronics.com]

And Remember Kids: "The MicrOFix(TM) is a satellite signaling device of last resort, for use when all other means of self rescue have been exhausted, where the situation is grave and imminent loss of life, limb, eyesight, or valuable property will occur without assistance."

think of the less fortunate...

[SaturnNiGHTS]

so..exactly what does this mean for all of those emergency 911 handsets that have been given out to beaten spouses, people worried about their safety, grandmas driving around with an old handset, etc? all of those people are left in the dark, and worse, with a false sense of security that their handset will still contact emergency services.

Re:Analog has its place

[Pathwalker]

It's kind of annoying how it's nearly impossible to get any sort of a decent phone without a camera built in.

A few years ago, I was working the night shift in the datacenter underneath the VEC (formally midlux) at the GM Tech Center. Cameras were very strictly forbidden, due to prototype parts lying all over the place, and I needed a new cellphone.

I had a simple list of requirements:

• Had to have bluetooth
  • And act as a modem to get a computer online via at least GPRS
• Had to be somewhat open, and allow me to install my own applications
• decent speakerphone
• NO CAMERA

I found two phones which matched what I was looking for.

One was an "Executive Model" where they removed the camera, added a shiny metal case, and added $600 to the price.

The other was a N-Gage.

And that's how I ended up with a phone that looks like a taco.

911/donated cell phones/abused women

[dpbsmith]

What about the thousands of people--often abused women in dangerous situations--who have been given donated cell phones through numerous charitable organizations so that they can dial 911 in an emergency?

Have they been warned about the upcoming transition? Are the cell phone companies going to give them new digital phones?