60,000 go wireless at home

To cut the cord, or not to cut? That is the question a growing number of people are asking themselves now that they're free to switch their home phone number to a cell phone.

So far, about 60,000 have decided to make the all-wireless leap since new federal rules took effect Nov. 24, according to confidential figures gathered by the Associated Press.

While the early tally casts some doubt on the most optimistic projections that millions might cut the cord within a year, there are signs demand is on the rise.

That said, thousands of the wireline-to-wireless switches already requested have yet to be filled due to glitches in the process, and many customers have even been left without any phone service for several days.

Due to the delays, cellular companies are cautioning their would-be converts to all-wireless that the process could take weeks, if not months. Rules set by the Federal Communications Commission require the companies to complete the process within four days.

Before the new rules took effect, an estimated 3 percent of the nation's cell phone subscribers, about 4.5-million people, said they had no wired phone service, according to an October survey by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

One obvious appeal for those early adopters has been the simplicity of steering all calls to a single phone number that follows them everywhere.

But even with the new freedom to move a land line number to a cell as added incentive, there can be substantial drawbacks to going all wireless, starting with poor indoor reception.

In addition, while moving a home number to a cell phone may be appealing for a first-time wireless subscriber, it's not so clear how many of the nation's 155-million mobile phone users are anxious to replace a wireless number to which they've grown attached.

Abandoning a home phone may work for young adults, mostly singles in their 20s and 30s who are its sole users. But families and others who live together can find it hard to share a single cell phone that needs to be used as both a home number and a mobile number.

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