Comparing cellular phone plan

If you want to join the ranks of mobile phone users, read on

Mobile phones aren't new, not even to farmers. According to Successful Farming magazine reader surveys, about 75% of farmers carry them, and half of those have been doing so for more than five years.

Gary Riekhof, Higginsville, Missouri, has been using one for 10 years. He's on his second phone. The first was a bulky bag phone that he had to drag everywhere. Now, he uses a sleeker phone (a Nokia 6190) with high-tech capabilities.

His monthly plan costs $39.99 and gives him 600 minutes anytime with free weekends. He doesn't have nationwide toll-free long distance, but he can call almost anywhere in the Midwest toll free.

"Between my cell phone and a per-minute rechargeable phone card, I hardly use my home phone for long-distance toll calls. Even though I use the cell phone much more than I did 10 years ago, I'm probably paying close to half of the rate I was charged back then," Riekhof says.

Lots of advantages

He says there are a lot of other advantages, too. "I think the one I appreciate most is that I don't have a list of calls to return when I get home at night. They've all been taken care of as the crisis occurred," he says.

If you're considering your first mobile phone, or if you want a new one, there are several things to consider. Today, you can chose between analog or digital service. Analog has been around since the early 1980s and has the broadest coverage.

Digital technology made its mobilephone debut in the mid-1990s. It allows for things like call waiting and voice mail and is the springboard for Internet-ready capabilities. The downside is you can't get coverage everywhere yet, especially in rural areas. According to a Sprint PCS representative, that company's coverage reaches 85% of the U.S. population with expansion going on all the time.

Before making a decision, do an assessment of how you want to use your phone. Also, find out what service providers are in your area.

RELATED ARTICLE: Overheard

I was at a field day in Kentucky during the summer and overheard some men talking. They were comparing their pocket knives.

"My daddy had horses, so I bought him this knife with a punch blade." said one man. "I bought it many years ago.

"I got this from the guy I bought land from," said another fellow.

A younger man that was talking with them got distracted. because his mobile phone beeped at him. The battery was running low. He was grumbling about that a bit when the two older men put their knives away and pulled out their phones.

"Mine vibrates," said one of the farmers." I had to have it. I'm so hard of hearing."

Then the three men were off on that conversation. Their old tools were tucked proudly in their pockets; their new tools were clasped firmly in their hands.

The users' corner

Should I allow a mobile phone tower on my land?

A farmer in @griculture Online[TM] has been approached by a mobile-phone company about putting a 300-foot tower with guide wires on his land. He wants to know if he should do it and for how much.

First, some advise him to ask about a freestanding tower because the wires would take up too much space. More advise him to have his lawyer look at any contract before signing.

I've done it and ...

Many in the group share their experience. Some say no way and others say they would jump at the money. Read more to get into their discussion.

"I handle all the cell-phone tower leases for county-owned property in my area. The county gets between $1,100 and $1,700 a month per carrier. If you are out in the country, I would expect you to get between $500 to $1,000 per month," says Mike.

"We were approached last fall. The rent seemed good at first, but after seeing the contract, we had nothing to do with it. We'd have had to provide land for and maintain a 12-foot-wide gravel road. we couldn't go near the tower, and there were liability issues. We kindly said no thank you," says JP.

"I have been dealing with a phone company for the last five months, and I can tell you whatever you get, it isn't going to be enough. They give me $650 a month, but it's not worth it to look at that tower for 25 years, They also didn't want to share any extra money they would get from puffing other antennas on my tower, but I did finally settle on a price. It's still not a real profitable venture, but it's more money than I had before, and with today's prices, every little bit helps. My advice is to negotiate a price you think you can live with," says Dale.

"Unless you're raising hemp you sure aren't netting that kind of money Think of how many acres you could buy. I would jump at the chance, especially if they would let me put my broadband radio antenna on there. Try to get a 25-year lease, because I bet in less than 10 years, these towers will be obsolete," says Badger.

"A friend got $500 a month for 10 years for a freestanding tower, and they groveled the road. It sounded like a good thing makes it so he can up his retirement. I would try and ask for free service on a phone. In all the leases I have seen, if you try to work with them they will give you a little mare. Remember, somebody always has ground, and they will just go next door," says Russ.

I'II take 20

"I have a tower easement on a quarter-acre section that starts at $600 per month the first year and goes up 5% a year for 20 years. At the end of the lease it is written that if they don't renew the contract, they hove to remove all the above-ground parts of the antenna They don't hove to touch the concrete," says Steve,

"I must be in a different world. The rents listed here are enough to buy the land several times per year, and you are still complaining? I don't get it. I'll take 10 or 20 for the price," says Plowboy.

"In New York and Pennsylvania, if you're near a big city, the going lease rate seems to be between $1,000 and $1,500 per month. If you're far from a population center, it drops to between $300 to $500 per month," says Jeff.