Typically speaking, the maximum range of a digital cell phone is about 25 miles even with line-of-sight to a tower. In most cases this is due to timing requirements rather than signal availability. There are lots of places in the rural west, especially for mountain hikers where folks have line-of-sight to a distant tower. I am not sure what the maximum range of analog is, but I can tell you I've routinely been able to make calls from mountain tops, and definitely made a call 67 miles from a tower. For folks living in the rural west, there are many cases where analog is the only technology that works at all. I have received concerned email from many folks in rural locations and including sea boat captains that can currently use analog even when off-shore.

Analog capable handsets can transmit at higher power, which in and of itself can extend their range. I have an analog bag phone with an antenna mounted on my car which I kept serviced until very recently. I was using an AT&T reseller than dropped all of their TDMA and analog plans.

To me, this is also a basic public health concern. Folks living in central Oregon definitely do spend time "in the boonies" and the only game in town is analog. There is no economic reason to build additional cell phone towers in rural locations (which would be required for digital coverage).

Just the same, analog is a less efficient use of limited spectrum. One theory is that they will turn it off in dense urban areas to re-claim that spectrum which can be used more efficiently with digital phones. Spectrum limits are typically not an issue in rural or low-density locations.

The bigger question is will we have analog in rural locations? The problem with rural low-population areas is that there is little revenue for a cellular carrier. In addition, some existing sites are powered by liquid propane, and service and maintenance costs in remote locations can be very high.