Cell Phones.. RE Tmobile?

TMobile will work, however you will most likely have to pay roaming charges unless you have a free roaming plan from them. The only cell phone providers here in the VI are Sprint, Cingular, and Innovative wireless (a local company).

If you are tied into a contract with Tmobile and wanted to switch to Sprint or Cingular, they should waive the termination fee because you are moving to an area where they don't provide service. When I moved to STT, I had Verizon and they waived my Early termination fee for this reason. All I had to show them was my job offer letter or other proof that I was moving there. Hope this helps.

BEWARE !!!!!!!!!!!!

I have T-Mobile and used the phone in April with no roaming charges. Their coverage map on-line clearly shows USVI and St. Thomas.

However, I was again on-island 7/14 to 7/24. From 7/14 to 7/18 the bill showed calls but no roaming charges - which there should not be any. But from 7/18 to 7/24 the bill showed $340 in roaming from a BVI Cell Company. I was not off of STT.

T-Mobile has no towers in STT and as a result, they rely on partners like Cingular, others. They don't say who the partners are on the coverage map or anywhere else on the web site. So your phone will always say roaming. And you won't know if you are on a partner network. (They still have yet to tell me if they have any partners other than Cingular).

Cell tower companies can reduce or amplify their power and even project it in a particular direction. Seems the partner cell on the east end had a weak signal and the BVI cell tower a stronger signal and picked up my phone. This may have been the plan all along from the BVI cell company to pickup extra revenue, since it doesn't cost them anymore once there tower or repeater is in place.

I have been going round and round with T-Mobile over this for the last week. They finally have started a technical investigation since the BVI tower is about 15 to 20 miles away from STT. BVI Cell companies are not regualted by the US- FCC. Their term was signal bouncing.

One other problem when calling TM. All of their rep.s have script that says that STT is part of the BVI. So that was the first hurdle - to finally talk to a supervisor that knows some geography. It took me to 3 trys.

Document what they tell you over the phone. Ask for something in writing. Good luck.

thanks for all of the info! I really appreciate it.. going to have to figure this one out.. they told me once I am there it will be "free" to call the U.S. but .69 a minute to call a "registered" VI number.. Have I mentioned I hate phone companies?!