April 1999 Published by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

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Topic:
Title:Online Exclusives - April 1999
Headline:Buyer's Guide: Pagers
Language:English
Writer:Michael Antoniak
Editor:Christina Hoffmann Spira
Article Page #:
Copyright:Copyright ©1999. NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®


BUYER'S GUIDE PLUS
Technology information to enhance your productivity.

Pagers
MUCH MORE THAN THAT TIMELY BEEP

BY MICHAEL ANTONIAK
It wasn't too long ago that the terms pager and beeper could be used interchangeably.

However, with recent advances in paging technology, beeper only begins to describe the functions and features now available in pagers.

The basic paging function--an audible or vibrating alert when someone wants to reach you--remains the common denominator in all paging products. But depending on which model you choose, today’s pagers will also keep track of your calls, alert you to pages you haven’t viewed, or allow you to send and receive messages.

“It’s a simple solution that gives clients and the office a way to reach me whenever they need to,” says broker Emile Cloutier at Gateway Real Estate/Better Homes and Gardens, Ashland, Ore.

A numeric pager, like Cloutier’s Motorola unit, which displays a phone number when someone wants to reach you, may be all you need. But whatever your needs, you can find a pager to match your work style--from wristwatch pagers to ultracompact two-way communications systems complete with microkeyboard. If paging is a secondary requirement, you may also find a cell phone, personal digital assistant, or notebook computer equipped for double duty as a pager.

Most real estate practitioners, however, would sacrifice something else in their mobile arsenal before they’d consider surrendering their pager. In an industry where a timely callback can mean the difference between gaining or losing a potential client, a pager is the de facto standard tool of the trade.

“I might leave the house without my glasses before I’d think of leaving without my pager,” jokes Bernie Ferrone, residential sales specialist with Prudential C. Dan Joyner Co., Greenville, S.C. “I think I could live without my cell phone but not without my pager.”

Ferrone estimates he receives between six and 10 pages each day on his NEC MessageMaker, a numeric pager that alerts him when anyone leaves him a voice mail message at the office.

“I believe in returning phone calls immediately,” he explains. “I think it’s important that people talk to me rather than just leave me a message. I know as soon as someone calls, and I can get back to that person as soon as I'm free.”

For those who want to know more than a phone number, alphanumeric pagers allow callers to leave text messages along with their phone number. Those pagers can also be used to take advantage of paging news services, where available, for updates on the latest headlines, weather, and sports, or stock market activity throughout the day.

Depending on the model, the included text function can range from a cryptic message a few words long to a full-blown letter. For those who want to communicate this way, the pager screen size, maximum message size, and memory are all important considerations.

Better alphanumeric pagers feature an LCD screen with several lines of text display and the memory to accommodate lengthy dispatches. Top-of-the-line pagers add two-way communication capabilities and other options such as voice mail messaging, fax reception, and the sending and receiving of text messages or E-mail.

Rusty Goodman, an independent residential sales specialist with Patterson, REALTORS®, of Tulsa, Okla., relies on an alphanumeric pager he purchased through his local AT&T wireless service provider. “It seems most clients these days want an instant response whenever they call,” he observes. “I carry the pager everywhere. It’s been an awesome tool.”

Its value has as much to do with the capabilities of the pager and paging services as with how Goodman puts them to work for him. Callers can “leave their number, leave a text or voice message, or even download software off the Internet that lets them send messages directly to me,” he says.

On occasion he’s used the paging service as a mobile voice recorder. “If there’s something I need to remember when I’m out of the office, I’ll just call myself and leave a detailed message, which I can retrieve later.”

In fact, he finds that the combination of his pager’s size and the services available through it makes it practical to carry his pager when other mobile tools might be too cumbersome.

“This is a rural area, and I spend a lot of time traipsing through fields and climbing over barbed wire fences. I take it everywhere.” His experience leaves him with one closing bit of advice: Invest in the replacement insurance against loss offered through your paging service provider. “I’ve probably lost my pager six times over the last four years,” he explains. “I want to make sure I never have to be without it.”

Any pager user can relate to that sentiment: Once you rely on your pager, it’s hard to imagine how you could remain productive away from the office without it.



Evaluate pager and services as a system
Purchasing a pager is much like buying a cellular phone. Whichever model you choose, its usefulness is entirely dependent on the service package supporting it.

With pagers, though, there can be even more to consider. Most paging service providers offer much more than the basic numeric paging service. Your options may include a private paging number, two-way paging, or a selection of news services that transmit the latest headlines to your pager throughout the day.

Paging service providers know that without their service options, a pager is little more than an expensive paperweight. You’ll find service providers eager to strike a deal with packages combining the pager and services. Weigh those offers in terms of what you actually need to keep you within reach when you’re out of the office.


What will it cost?
You can purchase a pager outright, lease it as part of a monthly service contract, or pay it off over several months of usage. Whichever option you choose, make sure you understand which features are covered by your monthly fee, how many messages you're entitled to receive each month, and your cost if you exceed that limit.

Rates climb as you take advantage of more services. Basic numeric pager and paging services from AT&T Wireless, for example, could cost about $23 a month for a maximum of 200 messages. The price quickly climbs to about $42 a month for the basic alphanumeric pager/services package. A top-of-the-line Seiko MessageWatch could set you back $169. Once you buy it, basic services cost $8.95 a month, where available.
What do I need?
Rates, available services, and coverage will vary from vendor to vendor, market to market. First consider what paging services you need. The answer will point you to the right pager and the best deal in your area.

How much do you need to know when someone calls? If the caller’s phone number is sufficient, numeric paging is all you need. Or, you can pay more for the versatility of an alphanumeric pager and include text in those messages. When you want your paging service to double as your answering machine, voice messaging makes sense. And if you plan to use the pager as your primary communications appliance, two-way messaging, which lets you respond from your pager to messages received, may be what you need.

Not sure which options you need, and what you’ll really use? The easiest introduction is to rent a pager first and field-test a range of services. After a month or two, you’ll have a better idea of which services are of value to you in keeping that link to the office, wherever you are.


For more information from any manufacturer, visit the company's Web site.
MODEL/
MANUFACTURER
TYPE
MESSAGE DISPLAY/CAPACITY
MEMORY
FEATURES
Beepwear Pro
Beepwear Paging Products
888/727-2931
www.beepwear.com		Alphanumeric
wristwatch/
pager		1 line
8 characters		16 messagesJoint venture of Motorola and Timex; lets users download schedule, contact info from PC; receives E-mail messages; 10 alarm functions; messaging services available only through SkyTel
Diva Plus
DIVA Telecom
212/887-0000
www.divatelecom.com		Numeric pager1 line
12 characters		25 messages, with total of 700 charactersBasic function numeric display pager in rubberized case; automatic setting of date, time, year; sound alert, vibrator or silent mode; choice of 10 melody alerts or three tone alarms; unread and duplicate message indicators; morning call or alarm function
Access Mate II
Glenayre
704/553-0038
www.glenayre.com		Two-way alphanumeric
pager		4 lines
20 characters per line		4MB memory for storing up to 150,000 charactersCompact two-way messaging pager; virtual keyboard for message entry; infrared data port for wireless communication with PC; maximum message size 10,000 characters receiving, 2,000 sending; address book function; cutomizable message alerts
Elite Keychain
Global Access Pagers
800/896-4403
www.gapagers.com		Keychain/numeric pager1 line
12 characters		18 messages Ultracompact basic pager hangs on a key chain; alerts with reminder functions; three-button operation; stores six permanent messages; appointment and travel alarm with snooze function
PageWriter 2000
Motorola
800/548-9954, Ext. 2
www.motorola.com
/smart pagers		Two-way alphanumeric pager10 lines
27 characters per line		1.25 MB total memoryCompact folding two-way pager; can receive pages, E-mail, faxes and download data from Internet (where available); graphical user interface; keyboard; included software provides address book, Internet access functions; four message alert modes
Message Maker Vue
NEC America Inc.
214/751-7000
www.nec.com		Alphanumeric pager4 lines
20 characters per line		32 messagesIncludes preset messages activated by Touch-Tone phone; messages are time/date stamped as they 're received; choice of alert melodies, beep, or vibration for incoming messages; stores total of 23,040 characters
Precis
Panasonic
Telecommunications
800/441-7262
www.panasonic.com		Alphanumeric pager4 lines
20 characters per line		50 messagesCan store up to 16 contact addresses, phone numbers; automatic time and date stamping; beep
or vibrating alerts; three-speed message scroll; headline scroll; maximum message length up to 4,000 characters
Inter@ctive Page 950
Research in Motion
519/888-7465
www.rim.net		Two-way alphanumeric pager6 or 8 lines
28 characters per line		1MB, upgradablePowered by Intel386 microprocessor; 31-key microkeyboard; RS-232 serial port; audible, vibrating, or screen alerts; sends messages by E-mail, page, or fax; transmits telephone messages with text-to-voice service (where available)
MessageWatch Seiko Communications of America
800/724-3585
www.messagewatch.
com		Alphanumeric
wristwatch/pager		1 line
12 characters		8 messagesWrist pager available in several styles; visual or audio message alerts; maximum message length of 128 characters; time and date stamping; requires Seiko MessageWatch Subscriber services; availability limited
ALP9094
Uniden America Corp.
800/364-1944
www.uniden.com		Alphanumeric pager4 lines
24 characters per line		40 messagesIcon-driven menu;
10 file folders for organizing messages; 20 mail drops for receiving messages from multiple service providers; 100,000 character capacity; choice of eight message alerts, including silent mode; date and time alarm; memory space for phone directory
b>&nbsp;</b>]


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