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Not at all. There are a some very large pager networks in the US. As a bonus, since the messages are so simple, they have better penetration in a given area tha
by dlgeek 5y ago
Not at all. There are a some very large pager networks in the US. As a bonus, since the messages are so simple, they have better penetration in a given area than GSM would. (I've had my pager go off in a deep parking garage for example).
Ex, here are the coverage maps for SPOK who bought out USA Mobility: https://www.spok.com/solutions/paging-services/wide-area-paging/check-coverage/ https://www.spok.com/solutions/paging-services/wide-area-pag...
- justusthane 5y agoThe only problem is there’s no indication on the pager whether or not you’re in range, and no way to know whether you missed a page due to being out of range. At the same time, the reason they’re still used is there’s no good modern alternative in a lot of ways (battery life, range). Troubleshooting paging issues is one thing I do not miss from my time in healthcare I.T.
- reaperducer 5y agoThe only problem is there’s no indication on the pager whether or not you’re in range The pager I had in 2003 has a signal strength indicator just like a cell phone so you know if you are in range. The pager was also able to let the network know if the message was received. If it didn't, the network would keep retrying until it got an ACK.
- GekkePrutser 5y agoEven my digits-only pager had an out of range indicator. I visited some caves back in the day and it was the only time I ever saw it. You just never really saw it as the service was so good.
- owenversteeg 5y agoIs the coverage really that bad? Looking at that map it seems like you’re really only covered inside major cities. Even somewhere like Connecticut seems to have most of the state with zero coverage!
- imwillofficial 5y agoI'm in Virginia, and I live a pretty nomadic life in an RV, never missed a page. (I can verify because my phone and email are also set to receive alerts when Im paged.)