I only recently heard of Alltel via some commercials. Have they always
been around? Honestly I have never heard of them. How is their
reliability and coverage?

> Have you considered Alltel? You could put 10 of those friends and/or
> family in your "circle" and calls to and from those numbers would
> always be free. That'll keep you on a CDMA network with the potential
> to roam on Sprint or VZW in areas where there is no native Alltel
> signal.