Here's What You Are Saying: Letters to McGarvey's Words .  Back Pages: o World Phones, Part I o Email-Country.  Of Ricky Skaggs, cruising, Yahoo, and the ubiquity of email. o Ebay and the triumph of ecommerce.  Taos Land Sale: Click For Details

Verdict time: which global cell phone company did I opt for?  You’ll recall that in the previous column, I outlined the choices available for an American business traveler who wants a mobile phone that works in most of the world.  You had a lot to tell me about your opinions, choices, hopes -- read your views here. Which service has won my allegiance?  First, let me relate one of those weird Internet paradoxes that makes you think you have stumbled into, or out of, The Matrix.  I was pricing world cell phones supported by T-Mobile and came upon two valid options: Motorola V60 (with a web browser) and the V66 (without a web browser, this is a 2.8 oz phone that dazzles more because of its size than its functionality).  Both offer multiple GSM bands, both qualify for T-Mobile’s international calling, and, as for price, the V60 is $199.99 and the V66 is $149.99 from T-Mobile, which sweetens the deal with a $50 rebate on either phone.  That makes the prices $149.99 for the V60, $99.99 for the V66.  Sounds good? “Have you checked them at Amazon,” a friend asked?  Why would I shop for phones at a bookstore, I snorted.  But the friend patiently explained, as though talking to a big dummy, that Amazon had long ago added mobile phones to its inventory and “often the prices are the best around.” I went to Amazon.com, found the V60, and almost choked.  Mr. Bezos is selling it for the same $199.99 – but it comes with $250 in “special offers,” more particularly, a $200 rebate from Amazon and a $50 rebate from T-Mobile.  That makes the net price $-50.01. As for the V66, it comes with $80 in rebates, making its price $69.99 – not the $99.99 T-Mobile nicks customers for at its website. Then I went to MySimon, a venerable shopping bot, searched for the V60 and found it for sale online at prices ranging from $49.99 to $199.99 and even as high as $329.99 for an unlocked version with no activation required.  Whew, no wonder mobile phone buyers are confused by the process. Then I stopped by my local T-Mobile dealer, Joe Christiani’s, to eyeball the phones, but also to ask an important question: “Will T-Mobile work here, where I live?” The fellow behind the counter took a deep breath, then said: “I cannot promise you that.” The reason is that I live on the side of a mountain and these big rocks play havoc with cell phone signals.  Verizon is an absolute champ here, but other phones I’ve tried (AT&T and Sprint) produce more static than fidelity.  Even the BlackBerry doesn’t much work here which says this is nowhere, but it is where I live so I want a mobile phone that functions in these hills. I walk out of the store empty-handed, then recall I’ve known a guy – a world traveler in fact – who has been a T-Mobile customer.  So I email him for comments.  Here’s his response:  “I have a two-year-old phone, a dual-band, and that's the interesting thing. T-Mobile in England (at least) needs the THIRD band, which they conveniently don't tell you about. “The other issue: unlocking. All US GSM providers lock their phone to their network. Technically, legally, T-Mobile says they will unlock your multi-mode phone after two months with them. And, after the contract is up, you obviously have the right. The problem is that they don't rush to give you service on an unlock.You have the right to get the phone unlocked, but lots of luck. When I asked for my phone to be unlocked, I never got a response.” Wow, that’s testimony from just one T-Mobile customer – who, incidentally, says the phone works fine in much of the US – but it is damning enough. Many of you have written, saying you strongly endorse T-Mobile.  No other carrier got anywhere near as many yes votes.  But still.... Let me get this right.  There is no saying what’s a fair price for the phone because that’s a moving target with numbers all over the board.  There’s no assurance the phone will actually work in the US, at least where I live.  And – horrors – there’s not assurance the phone will work abroad and, certainly, it cannot be "unlocked" and given a local number (meaning that when you're in Dublin, you have to give the Irish a US number to call you). Talk to cell phone companies and most will whisper, at least off the record, that they don’t see much demand for world phones.  But is that surprising?  Make a product hard to buy, make its reliability questionable and, well, who would expect long lines of buyers? Don’t think I’m picking on T-Mobile.  Pretty much all carriers have similarly spotty records regarding world phones – and that is why I have decided still to wait a while longer.  Call me when world phones finally begin to live up to their potential.  I want it, I need it – but it ain’t there, not yet, not at affordable rates and in reliable packages. Am I wrong? Convince me and I may decide sooner. Tell us your thoughts and we’ll feature the best emails in this space.  Click here to visit Joe Brancatelli's Travel Site, JoeSentMe.com Keep coming back, for more of McGarvey’s Words.  Copyright 2003 by Robert McGarvey Taos Land Sale: Click For Details

Have a cruise complaint? File it with Porthole Magazine's Ombudsman.   About Robert McGarvey Author of How to Dotcom (Entrepreneur Press), McGarvey is working on a book about Google and the rise of instant knowledge. A onetime columnist for BizTravel.com, he is a frequent contributor to dozens of magazines, ranging from American Legion to Electronic Business and Rutgers.  For the past five years, he has served as "The Ombudsman" for PORTHOLE Cruise Magazine.  Still curious about McGarvey? Read up on him here.