1) Even an outstanding national provider may have poor coverage in your home town. With cellular, there is no one-size-fits-all, so you have to test things and make sure they will work for you. Most companies give you at least 7 days (and many 14 days) to test service before locking you into a contract. I always recommend you pay a little more upfront to avoid longer-term contracts (avoid 2 year contracts). The main issue here is that your service can get much worse without notice, which does not relieve you of your contract. In addition, if you do something like accept a new promotional rate plan or simply buy a new phone your contract will be extended by the same increment of time you selected when you began the current contract. Shorter contracts are better. You can either seek out a pre-paid option with no long term commitment or plan to make your purchase when you have time to verify that your phone works at home, at work, and any place you travel to frequently. My friends have tended to buy their phone right before a trip so that they have time to test both at home, work, and at least one other place they hope to use the phone.

2) If all you need is a true emergency phone, get any used phone that supports analog. 911 calls will go through even on a deactivated cell phone (FCC rules). I recommend basically everyone travel with an old cell phone and the appropriate car charger for their phone (put both in the glove box). 911, however, is *only* for true life and death emergencies, not to call a tow truck. The ability to carry a cell phone for emergency-only use costs you nothing per month. This is the great free option.

3) Consider one of several pre-paid cell phones. Verizon, Sprint, and Voicestream (among others) offer prepaid phones for light-duty use. In some (most?) cases, you can keep the same phone number if you move to a regular post-paid plan. Even if you plan to be a regular cell phone user, prepaid is a great way to find a provider you like without any contract.

4) If you go with a conventional carrier that requires a one year (or longer) contract, might as well get a good deal on the phone. This is basically a one-time offer extended to attract new customers. A phone given for free when you start new service may end up costing an existing customer $200 or more. Checkout Amazon (www.amazon.com) for some of the best deals on free phones when you start service. Just know that the awesome deal they give you when you begin service will most likely not be available to you again, even when you renew service. It is not uncommon for folks to "make money" on their initial phone purchase after a rebate. i.e. $25 for a phone up front which includes a $100 rebate yielding an initial $75 profit. Of course, the carrier does get this money out of you over time, or the early termination fee if you quit early.