Team-BHP - Tata Indicom ?..GSM or CDMA ?..please guide for International Travel to India..

Hi Guys. I will be travelling to India soon, in December..and have a TriBand 850/1800/1900MHz Motorola V3xx phone with AT&T (have got the phone unlocked from them).
I know that since the V3xx works only on the 1800 frequency for Europe and Asian countries..and I am guessing Airtel and Tata Indicom, both are the only 1800 frequency providers in India(as per gsmworld.com)..but Tata Indicom, I'm not sure..since when I called their customer care, 2 different reps gave different answers..one said it's on CDMA..other said it's on GSM..
I am planning to call for a SIM card to be sent to me with a friend coming here from India soon..(so, I can use the new Indian SIM once I land at the Mumbai airport)..
I would appreciate if someone could clarify whether I should call for a Tata Indicom SIM(or whether they still sell new connections as CDMA units or should I go in for Airtel ?..
The main networks I'll be in India are Maharashtra and Gujrat..

Thanks,
SR

Well, if you are going to stay in Mumbai, you have Vodafone & Airtel. Both of them operate on 1800 MHz, but bring national roaming in picture and you should look at Airtel. Add GPRS access to it and they are the only operater to offer unlimited GPRS across the country while on roaming.

AnuragN suggested that it is not good in Mumbai or Delhi, but all the networks are badly congested and Airtel has recovered well from their worst days during a server building crash. I am on Airtel and haven't faced any issues very recently. I vote for my provider.

TATA Indicom is CDMA as far as I know.
For GSM I'd prefer Vodafone anyday, the Airtel coverage sucks and I have been having lots and lots of issues in their signal quality. I believe they use 1800Mhz in Maharashtra and you constantly experience lots of call drops. Vodafone is awesome, never drops a line and the voice clarity is very good. I know the difference since I have 2 phones, one on Airtel and one of Vodafone.
Even the Vodafone GPRS is much better than Airtel, I somehow have lost all faith in Airtel as a decent GSM provider.

If you are looking for a reliable phone service, dont even consider Airtel in Maharashtra circle.

At least in Poona, the network is horrendous. Call drops can happen as frequently as 30 1 to 3 minutes!!! Voice clarity is very poor. Congestion is also a major problem... esp. at peak hours.

Since the last couple of weeks, I am getting only 1 to 2 signal bars on my phone. It is impossible to carry out a conversation indoors - I have to rush into a balcony or something, to get some coverage.

As for their customer care, it is equally bad. Also the email ids and ph nos of their Nodal officers and Appellete authority are a total sham... just to comply with regulations they are provided on the site. The phone numbers NEVER work and emails only generate an auto-reply... I have never recieved a reply or solution thru that mode.

Idea is the best network in Maharashtra & Goa circle. But it works in the 900 MHz band (dont know about Bombay circle), so may not be an option for you.

Wow..pretty confusing now..!..many say Airtel..many Vodafone..
And I had called Tata Indicom again, and luckily got a rep who knew some facts, and told me all new Tata connections are on GSM now..he didn't know the frequency and stuff..but said they are GSM..but since no one on this forum recommended Tata/Virgin, I guess Airtel and Vodafone (and maybe Idea) are my best bets..
My only concern, like I had mentioned in first post, was I have a Motorola RAZR V3xx phone, which is provided to me by AT&T..which works on 850/1800/1900 frequencies only..
So, only option for me is to use Indian 1800 frequency band..which Airtel and Idea seem to be running on (as per the forum users here)..
Some people mentioned Vodafone works on 1800 too..but I thought they are exclusive only 900 MHz..
By the way, any idea how MTNL PrePaid - I think Trump is..I mean is it on 900 or 1800 ?..I had heard from a friend here who recently visited India that he bought a Trump prepaid..
All your inputs appreciated..thanks,
sr

Quote:

Originally Posted by srasania (Post 1018766)

Pl note that Tata is NOT on GSM, its on CDMA. Tata has got license for Pan India GSM service, they are yet to receive GSM spectrum which itself might take quite a few months, depending on the availability of spectrum. Reliance is also on CDMA, has got GSM license as well as spectrum and has started GSM testing, but commercial launch might take a few more months.
And Virgin operates on Tata's network (obviously CDMA). It uses Tata's network resources but sells "minutes" with it's own branding.
Airtel's network is really bad here in Mumbai. Idea might be a good bet because, as I said earlier, they are new, hence their network would not be as congested as other's. And Idea is on 1800Mhz band.
Hope this clarifies a few doubts.

New or old is not the only criterion for being congested. Idea is perhaps the oldest operator in Mah & Goa circle, but in spite of that, it seems the least congested GSM network!

Srsania, it seems the Tata rep who spoke to you was having some good time with you... rl: Never take call centre folks seriously! As Anuragn mentioned, you arent going to find a Tata phone on GSM anytime soon.

For most of the people saying Airtel has been bad to them, I can see why they say so. They are mostly from Pune & yes, it is indeed bad in Pune. But move 50 kms away from Pune in any direction and it works like a charm. No other GSM service provider is Pan-India than Airtel. I repeat no other GSM Operator is Pan-India. So if it is GSM, stick to Airtel. (And their customer service calls are free across the circles). GPRS and Call quality as well as Network connectivity all is good all across India except Pune. I am moving to Pune and I know I will face issues. But still, I will hold onto my number for its convenience across India.

Regarding their customer service, its completely outsourced & being handled by IBM Daksh & MphasiS across India. And they have been very effective recently whenever I've interacted with them. So may be just bad apples in some cases.

PS: AnuragN, I have been on Airtel Mumbai network for about 4 yrs now & I haven't found it lacking in any way in Mumbai except Kharghar where it sucks due to lack of towers in that area. I've stayed there, so I know about it. Or else, only recently, they had some issues when their server room in Lower Parel was destroyed in a fire. Since then, they have successfully restored the services including GPRS connectivity. So I shouldn't see any personal bias coming in way of an effective service.

I just reread your first post and found that you will be traveling mainly in Maharashtra and Gujrat. is it Bombay and Gujrat? Then you can choose between Vodafone and Airtel. Both are good on that route and decision mainly depends on your contact (costwise, being on home network will come cheaper).

One issue I have noticed with Vodafone is that Mumbai no. are charged for roaming rates in Maharashtra while incoming is free. However, Airtel charges you as per Mumbai rates throughout MH and vice-versa.

I'm at Trivandrum, i have an Airtel connection, and i have to agree with the rest who says Airtel has connectivity problems. Signal strength is very weak inside my house and my office! While i'm at home if i keep the phone in it's pouch or in my pocket it often loses connectivity. Situation was the same with my old Nokia handset and with my new Sony Ericsson handset. My dad has a Vodafone connection and he doesn't face any signal strength issues.