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There are 3 or 4 issues that we come across on our phones in general in order of commonality.

1. Broken screen (We just reuse a screen from a #2 #3 or #4 phone below)
2. Thumb wheel breaks off and falls in the phone.
3. Phone has random crashes or reboots
4. Phone mysteriously stops getting and/or recieving mail.

On #4 I've seen phones that won't work no matter who they are configured for. I've moved people off a phone like that to another phone and it starts working. Then I've tried reusing the phone for someone else (complete wipe and OS upgrade) and no luck.

Because of the SIM issue, we try to limit our use of CDMA phones (Verizon) as much as possible. They are only used as a last resort when the person lives in a rural area with poor coverage. Despite all the Cingular/AT&T commercials about their "best" network (meaning GSM), Verizon CDMA beats GSM for coverage in the US.

Right now the majority of the phones we are issuing are Nextel phones, which would be similar to the MIKE phones available in Canada. The coverage is about a 3.5 on a scale of 1 to 5, but everyone wants Walkie-Talkie and Speakerphone so that makes it our phone of choice. Also the 75xx and 65xx Nextel phones use a SIM which is nice for swapouts with other Nextel phones. Unfortunately a complete setup on Nextel with 7520, Jabra BT250, Extended Battery, Leather Holster, and car charger runs around 300$ US and the monthly fee is about 80 or 90$ US.

Nextel offers an extended warranty but it is an additional $100 per unit. With the number of phones we have, it ends up being cheaper just to replace the phone then spending 100 per phone.