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Consider what will happen if you get stuck somewhere with a poor or non existent signal. Your car or train may break down far from civilisation, or you may be involved in an accident and require help. How critical will it be if you cannot place a call or get online? You won't even be able to contact the emergency services!

Some carriers offer faster connections but suffer reduced coverage. If speed is more important, choose that provider. With the exception of 3 (UK), today's carriers will switch to a different technology if you move outside a high speed signal area, such as from 3.5G (HSDPA) to 2G. You can often tell, the symbol on your device display will change from (say), 3G to E (for Edge) or in the case of an iPhone, a little dot indicates 2G speeds.

If coverage is critical to your career or personal life, consider a backup phone on a different network that covers areas not supported by your main carrier.

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To check coverage in areas important to you is by asking those who are on different networks for a reality check. Note that signal reception differs between devices, so even if a friend reports a good signal on a specific network where they are located, their phone may be more sensitive than yours.

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Now you have mastered the art of choosing a carrier, digest the FONEBOX.COM guide to calling plans >>