1) Even an outstanding national provider may have poor coverage in your home town. With cellular, there is no one-size-fits-all, so you have to test things and make sure they will work for you. Most carriers give you 14 days to evaluate your new service.

2) Consider one of several pre-paid cell phones. Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile (among others) offer prepaid phones for light-duty use. In some (most?) cases, you can keep the same phone number if you move to a regular post-paid plan. Even if you plan to be a regular cell phone user, prepaid is a great way to find a provider you like without any contract.