Reception is poor plus the chances of dropping a call is about 80 percent. We had U S Cellular before with no problems. This I really don't understand because both companies use the same towers.

Does not matter what type phone you have you cannot get reception in this area if you have AT&T. My wife has US Cellular and it works just fine but if I move form my spot 2" then I can drop a call and have no service at all. AT&T says I should have cans of service but they must not check everywhere they say they have it.

Near the four corners area on Old Knoxville Hwy. Cingular has no reception. This is understandable due to the hills, etc. but what really gets me is that on the wide open highway approx. 3-4 miles in either direction, there are also dead spots. The agents for Cingular never admit to these even though everyone I know that has their service has the same issues. The brand or model of phone does not seem to matter.

I bragged on my Cingular service to everyone until the past few months. It seems that a couple of months or more after the merge with AT&T the service is terrible! And, not just in my near area. But in Maryville, Knoxville, Lenoir City and much more. TERRIBLE! I can't hold one conversation that I don't have to call them back at least 3 times. At home in Rockford, prior to the switch I got service everywhere in my home. So, I know it is not a "too many trees / hills / whatever" problem. However now, I have to move around to just find 1 bar. Then that fluctuates! I get very spotty service all the way along Maryville Pike and Hwy. 129 toward Knoxville. I get very spotty service all over the Rockford area. I get spotty service across Pellissippi Parkway. It is crazy. Basically, if I am driving in any of these areas (there are many more but I can't think of them all right now), I end up calling people back at least 3 times. I actually spend more time recalling than the actual conversation lasts. And by that time, I am really ready to simply role down the window and toss the phone out. (I think there may be a replacement for "Road Rage". It is called "Phone Rage"!) My phone is a little outdated but I recently added my sister to the family plan and got her the newest Nokia phone and it is no better. I do plan to switch phones and update soon but based on my sisters lack of service, I don't think it will help much. So, whatever is happening since the AT&T merge, I wish it would stop. I want to switch carriers altogether and just may if I can get out of my contract. If you are in a two year contract and you are holding up your end and they suddenly don't get service at all, then you should be able to get out of it. I guess we'll see. Bottom line... if you live anywhere in the Knoxville, Maryville, Lenoir City, Rockford, Greenback, Louiseville areas, you should not even consider Cingular. I hear they are putting up 100 more towers this year, but unfortunatly, they can save themselves some trouble because they are loosing customers daily! Believe me... .don't waste your time!