New cell phone app: Tesla Tattler --- works on all cell phones

[TEG]

My only disappointment was that TEG didn't post a picture of Tom meeting Scott...

Well I did notice Scott's old Roadster yesterday. The new owner happened to drive it into the parking lot of the place I work.
(I recognized it based on the carpool sticker placement even though it had different license plates now.)

[zack]

What provider does the modem use? The Tesla uses ATT and they have the worst service for me. I'm in an apartment building in the middle of the most popular part of Minneapolis (Uptown) and I often have dropped calls and calls that go directly to voicemail, and it's very common for me to see only one bar of signal. Verizon, on the other hand, works perfectly. It even penetrates two floors underground into the parking ramp, which is where my car will be most of the time when I need to use the Tattler (once it's available).

[scott451]

What provider does the modem use? The Tesla uses ATT and they have the worst service for me. Verizon, on the other hand, works perfectly.

The tattler currently uses a GSM/GPRS/UMTS modem. So the carriers are ATT and T-Mobile. I chose T-mobile because they have a $15/mo unlimited SMS text message pay-as-you-go plan. So for $15 a month I can get unlimited messages for the tattler. AFAIK there is no better deal. I have at least one Qualcomm based UMTS modem working with the tattler, so I should be able to get a Verizon (all Qualcomm based) one to work. But my first attempt failed with the Novatel USB760 on Verizon because the Novatel doesn't support an AT interface for sending SMS text messages. If you have a recommendation for a Verizon modem (that I can pick up cheap on eBay) I will give it a try. I'm currently stuck with ATT on my iPhone until the 5 comes out in October. Then I will switch back to Verizon. I hate ATT (and I would still hate them even if I didn't work for QCOM)

[zack]

Scott, you've got mail.

[vfx]

Yes that's the Newport Store carport. No comment from Scott...

[tomsax]

The tattler currently uses a GSM/GPRS/UMTS modem. So the carriers are ATT and T-Mobile. I chose T-mobile because they have a $15/mo unlimited SMS text message pay-as-you-go plan. So for $15 a month I can get unlimited messages for the tattler. AFAIK there is no better deal. I have at least one Qualcomm based UMTS modem working with the tattler, so I should be able to get a Verizon (all Qualcomm based) one to work. But my first attempt failed with the Novatel USB760 on Verizon because the Novatel doesn't support an AT interface for sending SMS text messages. If you have a recommendation for a Verizon modem (that I can pick up cheap on eBay) I will give it a try. I'm currently stuck with ATT on my iPhone until the 5 comes out in October. Then I will switch back to Verizon. I hate ATT (and I would still hate them even if I didn't work for QCOM)

At least for me, AT&T is cheaper than T-Mobile. We have a family plan with unlimited text messages. So, I added the modem to the family plan for $10/month and I get unlimited text messages. There's also a pay-as-you-go plan that would probably work out as cheaper but for the moment I like that I can text all I want at zero marginal cost. I don't remember the SIM card + activation cost, but it was around $25. Since our family plan is now full, I may switch to the other plan if we need to add another real phone. Cathy found out that I can have that set up to bill with the family plan, even if it's not on the plan.

When I had the Tattler on T-Mobile, I found it problematic to have the Tattler and my phone on different carriers because that meant the Tattler only worked in areas where both carriers had coverage, which was a problem in remote areas like Mt. Rainier, Mossyrock, and the San Juan Islands.