Info: MetroPCS

Here's the other big unlimited carrier, actually the biggest one: MetroPCS.

As a side note, it's interesting how MetroPCS and CricKet coverage areas don't overlap...probably on purpose...but anyway...

MetroPCS has plans starting at $30 (local calling, nothing else) and ending at $50 (web, local, long distance, messaging, calling features). They ring in cheaper than CricKet now, because of CricKet's new rate plans, but then again MetroPCS doesn't have the features on its lowest-price plan that CricKet does...

The one other thing MetroPCS doesn't have is cheap roaming; if you want to roam, you're going to pay 49 or 79 cents per minute to do so, probably because MetroPCS doesn't have any sort of reasonable roaming agreement with anyone, unlike CricKet...

MetroPCS's phones tend to be more varied and even a little cheaper than CricKet's...MetroPCS has Samsung phones and several UTStarCom models versus CricKet's not even having the Razr v3m...but the two carriers serve different areas so comparison of phones is likely a moot point.

A key bit of MetroPCS information is that they are likely to come out with PDA phones in the fairly near future, whereas for CricKet you have to "roll your own" for the forseeable future. And with new MetroPCS markets an EvDO network is already in place...EvDO meaning high speed data access...which is always nice.

Interestingly enough, MetroPCS offers service in less than half the states that CricKet does (seven states versus twenty) yet still manages to have more subscribers than CricKet. Maybe this is due to MetroPCS's being in the more populous markets, or maybe because it has generally more extensive coverage where it does have service...I'm really not sure because I don't have MetroPCS...

Anyhow, MetroPCS is the competitor to CricKet, offering cheaper and more varied phones, but with less generous service plans and expensive roaming, in less but more populous areas than CricKet.