Results 1 to 15 of 21
- 12-28-2005, 04:01 AM #1JeffGuest
Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
For a number of months I have tried to get the phone service in the
Los Angeles / Laurel Canyon area back to what it was for the previous
years. But to no avail. The signal which for years was superior even
to my land line, albeit with a Sanyo 4700 rather than my present Sanyo
4920. (I can't imagine that the difference in reception would be so
great when the 4920 works fine elsewhere, until I drive up to my
residence at the Hollywood side entrance of Laurel Canyon). It is
during midday that the reception is at its poorest.
It is as if Sprint has withdrawn from the area and is falling back to
utilizing the previously existing Nextel system or circuitry. Well,
not that bad, but I have unworkably poor reception in my house, now.
(the whole reason I switched from Nextel to Sprint, years ago, was
that the Sprint reception in and around my house was so fabulous -
alas, that is not the case now)
I have noted that others have stated that Verison will come out and do
a site check to see if reception is spotty, when so notified, and if
so, will waive the early contract termination fee, in order to allow
one to switch to a service that will be operable for one's location.
I don't expect that Sprint will do the same. In my case it will be at
least $300 for Sprint contract cancellation on my two phone plan.
If there is any truly workable way that anyone knows to get Sprint to
return to the previous service that existed in my area, being informed
of what might work would be quite appreciated by me.
My mom's neighbor created all kinds of proof printouts regarding his
SBC land line / DSL service and persistently found a way to get them
to the office of the president of SBC in Texas. Amazingly several
crews showed up and upgraded / modernized the neighborhood land line /
up the pole / hard wiring adjacent to her house. Even the SBC
service guys remarked to me that this guy (mom's neighbor) must have
some connection with the president of SBC, as we would not have come
and done this to this area otherwise.
Other than possibly utilizing a/the harrowing digital roaming option
with my existing (excellent) Sprint plan (and presumably roaming to
Verison, the only other CDMA carrier here) - and always having to do
the math to see if my roaming minutes do not exceed half the total
daytime minutes used, I would assume that mounting a major contest
with Sprint to return to its previous Sprint service in my home area,
would be exhausting and iffy, as to potential success, at best.
But there are smart guys and gurus in this group and it makes sense to
give this communication a try.
Thanks.
Jeff
› See More: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
- 12-28-2005, 08:28 AM #2Bob SmithGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
"Jeff" <[email protected] remove the nospam> wrote in message
news[email protected]...
> Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
>
> For a number of months I have tried to get the phone service in the
> Los Angeles / Laurel Canyon area back to what it was for the previous
> years. But to no avail. The signal which for years was superior even
> to my land line, albeit with a Sanyo 4700 rather than my present Sanyo
> 4920. (I can't imagine that the difference in reception would be so
> great when the 4920 works fine elsewhere, until I drive up to my
> residence at the Hollywood side entrance of Laurel Canyon). It is
> during midday that the reception is at its poorest.
<snipped>
In all your words in your prior post, you didn't mention what steps you've
already taken to contact SPCS to make a "Trouble Ticket" report. If you
haven't, you need to make a call to them, tell them you want a make one, and
provide some specific details, as to street locations, cross roads, and the
time of day where you are experiencing the drop off of signal.
You can also follow up with sending them an email via SPCS's website either
from "Contact Us" link or through your "Manage Account" page, and scroll
down to the "Contact Us" link, and provide the details.
Bob
- 12-28-2005, 09:00 AM #3FWIWGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
The Canyon is a relatively low-density area of Greater Los Angeles, and
your most likely problem is the NIMBY-ism of Canyon Dwellers who do not
want a tower erected in their back yard.
Maybe the lease ran out on a former tower, and they are having trouble
find a place to put one. Obviously the Canyon presents some real
logistic problems. When I go all the way up to Mulholland, I go to a
spotty one bar and will drop quite a bit. Always has. Elevation
always is a problem as CDMA towers work better as an umbrella than an
onmi-directional system. Ever wonder why you have a crappier signals
on the 60th floor of the Library tower than on the 5th floor? How does
one erect a single tower to cover the labrinth of streets and
topography, and is 10 towers to cover the canyon with 5 bars worth the
$$$? It's a tough call, but probably not.
Living in the Canyon takes away some of the conviences of living in the
dirty basin (but obviously adds some niceties as well).
If you are in a good location to serve a good part of the Canyon, and
could offer up a tower site on your property, they might just stick one
in your backyard.
- 12-28-2005, 10:25 AM #4Mij AdyawGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
Try some of the phone numbers on this list. I would start with the Corp HQ
number or Executive Services. Please let us know how it goes.
Activations
------------------------------
(888)715-4588
Customer Service w/Hold Time
------------------------------
(888)211-4727
(888)788-4727
(877)909-4806
Customer Service - straight to Rep.
------------------------------
(800)658-7564
(877)822-7505
TeleSales
------------------------------
(888)253-1315
Fraud Dept.
------------------------------
(888)788-0788
WW / Vision Support Dept.
------------------------------
(866)884-4534
Premium Issues Line
------------------------------
(877)788-0743
Corporate HQ/Higherups, etc.
------------------------------
(800)829-0965
LockLine
-----------------------------
(800)584-3666
Rebates
------------------------------
(800)477-4127
International Roaming Dept.
------------------------------
(888)226-7212
Legal Deptartment
------------------------------
(913)624-5800
Credit Department
------------------------------
(800)881-8036
Help Desk
------------------------------
(800)808-1058
Exective Services
------------------------------
866-866-7496
------------------------------
PCS Phone Codes (* or #)
------------------------------
Accessory Line
------------------------------
#222
Customer Care
------------------------------
*2
Account Information
------------------------------
*4
Spanish Option
------------------------------
*5
Speedpay System (pay your bill)
------------------------------
*3
Voice Command
------------------------------
* -> (Talk) or # -> (Talk)
"FWIW" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> The Canyon is a relatively low-density area of Greater Los Angeles, and
> your most likely problem is the NIMBY-ism of Canyon Dwellers who do not
> want a tower erected in their back yard.
>
> Maybe the lease ran out on a former tower, and they are having trouble
> find a place to put one. Obviously the Canyon presents some real
> logistic problems. When I go all the way up to Mulholland, I go to a
> spotty one bar and will drop quite a bit. Always has. Elevation
> always is a problem as CDMA towers work better as an umbrella than an
> onmi-directional system. Ever wonder why you have a crappier signals
> on the 60th floor of the Library tower than on the 5th floor? How does
> one erect a single tower to cover the labrinth of streets and
> topography, and is 10 towers to cover the canyon with 5 bars worth the
> $$$? It's a tough call, but probably not.
>
> Living in the Canyon takes away some of the conviences of living in the
> dirty basin (but obviously adds some niceties as well).
>
> If you are in a good location to serve a good part of the Canyon, and
> could offer up a tower site on your property, they might just stick one
> in your backyard.
>
- 12-28-2005, 08:55 PM #5Steve SobolGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
FWIW wrote:
> The Canyon is a relatively low-density area of Greater Los Angeles, and
> your most likely problem is the NIMBY-ism of Canyon Dwellers who do not
> want a tower erected in their back yard.
Is it possible that this is related to problems over the last few months in
the Valley - problems reported in this newsgroup recently?
--
Steve Sobol, Professional Geek 888-480-4638 PGP: 0xE3AE35ED
Company website: http://JustThe.net/
Personal blog, resume, portfolio: http://SteveSobol.com/
E: [email protected] Snail: 22674 Motnocab Road, Apple Valley, CA 92307
- 12-29-2005, 08:50 AM #6FWIWGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
"Is it possible that this is related to problems over the last few
months in
the Valley - problems reported in this newsgroup recently? "
Possibly, but if you have ever been to the Canyon, it poses it's own
unique challenges. 50 houses up that twisting road, 20 houses up the
other, peaks, valleys, all kinds of natural obstructions. The amount
of houses in the Canyon is somthing that a single tower would serve on
the flat, but would take multiple towers there due to the topography.
And most of the people who I know that live there DO NOT want any kind
of public structure placed anywhere near them. "That's why we moved to
the Canyon ... to get away from that" is what they will tell you.
It's one of those having your cake and eating it too things.
If you want to get away from it all, you usually can't take it all with
you.
If I lived in the Canyon, I would just get a good cordless phone. I
wouldn't use a cell as a primary phone. I can't imagine any cell
service being all that reliable. Granted the folks up there have big
money .... but they pay the same rates that we do. 10,000 complaining
peons are worth more than 100 complaining celebrities to the
shareholders.
- 12-29-2005, 09:37 AM #7Mij AdyawGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
But why did the service work fined in the past? That is the questions that
needs to be answered and again Sprint's inadequate Technical Support
Department is failing to provide an adequate response to this customer. How
do you get a straight non-BS answer out of them?
"FWIW" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> "Is it possible that this is related to problems over the last few
> months in
> the Valley - problems reported in this newsgroup recently? "
>
> Possibly, but if you have ever been to the Canyon, it poses it's own
> unique challenges. 50 houses up that twisting road, 20 houses up the
> other, peaks, valleys, all kinds of natural obstructions. The amount
> of houses in the Canyon is somthing that a single tower would serve on
> the flat, but would take multiple towers there due to the topography.
>
> And most of the people who I know that live there DO NOT want any kind
> of public structure placed anywhere near them. "That's why we moved to
> the Canyon ... to get away from that" is what they will tell you.
>
> It's one of those having your cake and eating it too things.
>
> If you want to get away from it all, you usually can't take it all with
> you.
>
> If I lived in the Canyon, I would just get a good cordless phone. I
> wouldn't use a cell as a primary phone. I can't imagine any cell
> service being all that reliable. Granted the folks up there have big
> money .... but they pay the same rates that we do. 10,000 complaining
> peons are worth more than 100 complaining celebrities to the
> shareholders.
>
- 12-29-2005, 11:27 AM #8JeffGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
On 29 Dec 2005 06:50:19 -0800, "FWIW"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>"Is it possible that this is related to problems over the last few
>months in
>the Valley - problems reported in this newsgroup recently? "
>
>Possibly, but if you have ever been to the Canyon, it poses it's own
>unique challenges. 50 houses up that twisting road, 20 houses up the
>other, peaks, valleys, all kinds of natural obstructions. The amount
>of houses in the Canyon is somthing that a single tower would serve on
>the flat, but would take multiple towers there due to the topography.
>
>And most of the people who I know that live there DO NOT want any kind
>of public structure placed anywhere near them. "That's why we moved to
>the Canyon ... to get away from that" is what they will tell you.
>
>It's one of those having your cake and eating it too things.
>
>If you want to get away from it all, you usually can't take it all with
>you.
>
>If I lived in the Canyon, I would just get a good cordless phone. I
>wouldn't use a cell as a primary phone. I can't imagine any cell
>service being all that reliable. Granted the folks up there have big
>money .... but they pay the same rates that we do. 10,000 complaining
>peons are worth more than 100 complaining celebrities to the
>shareholders.
Sprint, up until a few months ago, offered fabulous service, for
years, ALL through Laurel Canyon. The point is being totally missed
when one counts the number of houses per square foot of surface space.
This is a major, major traffic thoroughfare. There are only a handful
of ways to get to the valley and this is a major one. Tens of
thousands of cars per week. People in cars, in California, use cell
phones. Big time. I have every impression that Verison fully covers
this Laurel Canyon major traffic thoroughfare. And Sprint used to do
so like a champ. When you are driving on freeways outside of Los
Angeles, there are often fewer houses to be seen, per mile, than there
are in this canyon. Yet there is cell phone coverage on the freeways
because there is auto traffic. Same thing.
- 12-29-2005, 12:58 PM #9JeffGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
Bob, you are right, I will persist onwards and, separately, thanks,
the contact phone numbers of great help.
As what is for me an extreme oddity and one of the least preferred
scenarios which I can encounter - the ol' drive the car in to the shop
and the incessant squeak stops for the duration of the time that I am
in the shop, only to return while driving away - I can't believe that
I have 4-5 bars as I sit here, Tuesday, at home, at 4:50 PM. (no way
anyone from Sprint would respond to my posting, alone) after all that
I have been through. This on a day with minimal traffic due to
lessened business activity. With high humidity and mist. Yet with
bright sunsshine and low humiditiy and regular business, pure
distress.
Those explanations of CDMA umbrella effect are insightful. I can't get
how or why the potential for "signal overload" or reduction of shared
cell signal would take place at noon time, and not later. On almost
all days, with today as an exception. The 27th and relative lack of
traffic ? the overcast weather ? Someone with Sprint signal stealing
capabilities chose to go to the movies today ?
Regarding the top of Mulholland, before and over the top. There is
Digital Roaming offered, so why would/could Verison be as service
beneficial (as it would have to be the roaming partner) but Sprint is
not ?
PS My understanding is that the Sprint antennas or towers or relay
points are often or usually disguised as shrubbery or ornamentalized
in some way to make them more palatable. I really would not mind
something in a spot that would work for Sprint. Believe it or not, I
actually offered my property to Nextel, way back then, to put an
antenna on. They were never serious and never cared, one way or the
other. Sprint used to have magnificent reception all up and down and
throughout Laurel Canyon until a number of months ago.
- 12-29-2005, 01:40 PM #10Bob SmithGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
"Jeff" <[email protected] remove the nospam> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Bob, you are right, I will persist onwards and, separately, thanks,
> the contact phone numbers of great help.
>
> As what is for me an extreme oddity and one of the least preferred
> scenarios which I can encounter - the ol' drive the car in to the shop
> and the incessant squeak stops for the duration of the time that I am
> in the shop, only to return while driving away - I can't believe that
> I have 4-5 bars as I sit here, Tuesday, at home, at 4:50 PM. (no way
> anyone from Sprint would respond to my posting, alone) after all that
> I have been through. This on a day with minimal traffic due to
> lessened business activity. With high humidity and mist. Yet with
> bright sunsshine and low humiditiy and regular business, pure
> distress.
> Those explanations of CDMA umbrella effect are insightful. I can't get
> how or why the potential for "signal overload" or reduction of shared
> cell signal would take place at noon time, and not later. On almost
> all days, with today as an exception. The 27th and relative lack of
> traffic ? the overcast weather ? Someone with Sprint signal stealing
> capabilities chose to go to the movies today ?
>
> Regarding the top of Mulholland, before and over the top. There is
> Digital Roaming offered, so why would/could Verison be as service
> beneficial (as it would have to be the roaming partner) but Sprint is
> not ?
>
> PS My understanding is that the Sprint antennas or towers or relay
> points are often or usually disguised as shrubbery or ornamentalized
> in some way to make them more palatable. I really would not mind
> something in a spot that would work for Sprint. Believe it or not, I
> actually offered my property to Nextel, way back then, to put an
> antenna on. They were never serious and never cared, one way or the
> other. Sprint used to have magnificent reception all up and down and
> throughout Laurel Canyon until a number of months ago.
There are a number of disguises that are used to hide towers, including
making them look like Pine & Palm trees. As for putting a tower on your
property, it can be very lucrative for you (if it's found to be in a zone
that can cover quite a bit of area), however there a lot of hoops to jump
through with zoning, etc. Keep in mind that SPCS does not own many of their
towers. They lease them from tower companies who will co-locate other
providers on the same tower. Here's a link that shows a few companies that
own towers. http://www.mountainwireless.com/site_finder.shtml
You can see where the closest tower is to your location @
http://www.sprint.com/pcsbusiness/co...towermaps.html Here's one map
that shows the area between Burbank & Santa Monica -
http://www.sprint.com/pcsbusiness/co...=Los%20Angeles
Bob
- 12-29-2005, 10:43 PM #11Steve SobolGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
FWIW wrote:
> "Is it possible that this is related to problems over the last few
> months in
> the Valley - problems reported in this newsgroup recently? "
>
> Possibly, but if you have ever been to the Canyon
I haven't. I've only ever driven through that area once (and not really
through the heart of it, just north on the 101 to Santa Barbara). But the
Victor Valley, while flatter, has similar problems. We have hills all around
us, including one out near Bell Mountain where every single carrier I've
ever used drops calls.
--
Steve Sobol, Professional Geek 888-480-4638 PGP: 0xE3AE35ED
Company website: http://JustThe.net/
Personal blog, resume, portfolio: http://SteveSobol.com/
E: [email protected] Snail: 22674 Motnocab Road, Apple Valley, CA 92307
- 12-29-2005, 10:57 PM #12Mij AdyawGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
Begin_Rant_Mode:
The question is "Why in the Hell can't Sprint give this customer a STRAIGHT
ANSWER"? I have been in this situation with Verizon and after one week they
sent send a technician to my home to check out the problem, told me that
they could not reliably provide service, and let me out of the contract with
no ETF. Why can't Sprint give this customer a straight answer rather than
BS? I wonder if anyone from Sprint reads this newsgroup or even cares?
Please let me know how this progresses. I suspect that Sprint lost a lease
on a tower and had to remove their equipment. If this is the case, then
Sprint should give a straight answer to the customer. Why is Verizon so
exceptional in this regard? Maybe it is because Verizon is "pro-customer". I
have Sprint and love the network and just hope that I do not ever have this
type of problem and need to contact their impotent customer service
department.
End_Rant_Mode:
"Steve Sobol" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> FWIW wrote:
>> "Is it possible that this is related to problems over the last few
>> months in
>> the Valley - problems reported in this newsgroup recently? "
>>
>> Possibly, but if you have ever been to the Canyon
>
> I haven't. I've only ever driven through that area once (and not really
> through the heart of it, just north on the 101 to Santa Barbara). But the
> Victor Valley, while flatter, has similar problems. We have hills all
> around us, including one out near Bell Mountain where every single carrier
> I've ever used drops calls.
>
> --
> Steve Sobol, Professional Geek 888-480-4638 PGP: 0xE3AE35ED
> Company website: http://JustThe.net/
> Personal blog, resume, portfolio: http://SteveSobol.com/
> E: [email protected] Snail: 22674 Motnocab Road, Apple Valley, CA 92307
- 12-29-2005, 11:33 PM #13Steve SobolGuest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
Mij Adyaw wrote:
> The question is "Why in the Hell can't Sprint give this customer a STRAIGHT
> ANSWER"?
The very simple answer is "Because the majority of frontline Sprint CSRs are
morons these days."
But the Tech Support reps, up until I fired Sprint, were still quite
competent and helpful.
>I have been in this situation with Verizon and after one week they
> sent send a technician to my home to check out the problem, told me that
> they could not reliably provide service, and let me out of the contract with
> no ETF. Why can't Sprint give this customer a straight answer rather than
> BS?
Sprint *does* let people out of their contract. They let my brother out of
his original contract when he moved to California City (Kern County, up
north of Edwards AFB), but I don't believe they even advertise service up
there, so it's a slightly different situation than in the Canyon.
>I wonder if anyone from Sprint reads this newsgroup or even cares?
a) probably not
b) no
> Please let me know how this progresses. I suspect that Sprint lost a lease
> on a tower and had to remove their equipment. If this is the case, then
> Sprint should give a straight answer to the customer.
Sprint is actually the only major carrier that OWNS most of their own
towers, or used to be, anyhow. http://sprintsitesusa.com/ shows the location
of Sprint-owned towers, like the two near my home and the one right around
the corner from my old house. They make a big deal about it because they
want to lease space on those towers. :>
> Why is Verizon so
> exceptional in this regard? Maybe it is because Verizon is "pro-customer".
Verizon has their issues, too. In general, their customer service rocks, but
then there are the other times... http://stevesobol.com/goodbye_vzw/ for
example.
T-Mobile has outstanding customer service - on a par with Verizon CS (on one
of Verizon's good days ;>). And they're very inexpensive. They have slightly
less coverage in this area than Sprint and Verizon do, though. I guess there
are always tradeoffs...
--
Steve Sobol, Professional Geek 888-480-4638 PGP: 0xE3AE35ED
Company website: http://JustThe.net/
Personal blog, resume, portfolio: http://SteveSobol.com/
E: [email protected] Snail: 22674 Motnocab Road, Apple Valley, CA 92307
- 12-30-2005, 02:36 AM #14Guest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
Bob Smith wrote:
> "Jeff" <[email protected] remove the nospam> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > Bob, you are right, I will persist onwards and, separately, thanks,
> > the contact phone numbers of great help.
> >
> > As what is for me an extreme oddity and one of the least preferred
> > scenarios which I can encounter - the ol' drive the car in to the shop
> > and the incessant squeak stops for the duration of the time that I am
> > in the shop, only to return while driving away - I can't believe that
> > I have 4-5 bars as I sit here, Tuesday, at home, at 4:50 PM. (no way
> > anyone from Sprint would respond to my posting, alone) after all that
> > I have been through. This on a day with minimal traffic due to
> > lessened business activity. With high humidity and mist. Yet with
> > bright sunsshine and low humiditiy and regular business, pure
> > distress.
> > Those explanations of CDMA umbrella effect are insightful. I can't get
> > how or why the potential for "signal overload" or reduction of shared
> > cell signal would take place at noon time, and not later. On almost
> > all days, with today as an exception. The 27th and relative lack of
> > traffic ? the overcast weather ? Someone with Sprint signal stealing
> > capabilities chose to go to the movies today ?
> >
> > Regarding the top of Mulholland, before and over the top. There is
> > Digital Roaming offered, so why would/could Verison be as service
> > beneficial (as it would have to be the roaming partner) but Sprint is
> > not ?
> >
> > PS My understanding is that the Sprint antennas or towers or relay
> > points are often or usually disguised as shrubbery or ornamentalized
> > in some way to make them more palatable. I really would not mind
> > something in a spot that would work for Sprint. Believe it or not, I
> > actually offered my property to Nextel, way back then, to put an
> > antenna on. They were never serious and never cared, one way or the
> > other. Sprint used to have magnificent reception all up and down and
> > throughout Laurel Canyon until a number of months ago.
>
> There are a number of disguises that are used to hide towers, including
> making them look like Pine & Palm trees. As for putting a tower on your
> property, it can be very lucrative for you (if it's found to be in a zone
> that can cover quite a bit of area), however there a lot of hoops to jump
> through with zoning, etc. Keep in mind that SPCS does not own many of their
> towers. They lease them from tower companies who will co-locate other
> providers on the same tower. Here's a link that shows a few companies that
> own towers. http://www.mountainwireless.com/site_finder.shtml
>
> You can see where the closest tower is to your location @
> http://www.sprint.com/pcsbusiness/co...towermaps.html Here's one map
> that shows the area between Burbank & Santa Monica -
> http://www.sprint.com/pcsbusiness/co...=Los%20Angeles
>
> Bob
Bob,
I'm pretty familiar with the modern cell site zoning regulations in Los
Angeles city (which includes the area in question here) and I don't
think they allow cell towers to be built on private residential zoned
property anymore. Some cities/counties do but not LA. So you can't
just say "here build a tower on my property" as that won't fly in NIMBY
areas.
- 12-30-2005, 02:43 AM #15Guest
Re: Some sincere words to/with Sprint guru's
Jeff,
Like someone else said, I'm thinking what happened is that Sprint lost
their lease for a cell site or two that used to cover the area. Once
the lease is up and the property owner doesn't want to renew (for
whatever reason) the tower must come down. It happens. There's
nothing Sprint can do about this and customer service/tech support will
likely not have the ability to even know that this happened as they
have no ties whatsoever to the RF dept. who's in charge of the network
operations. They normally will try to find a replacement site but in
today's NIMBY world it just doesn't happen as quickly as they want it
to. Some sites that go down never get replaced. Sometimes there's
simply no where to put a tower.
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