Verizon seemed to work pretty well whenever I went over the hill to San Jose. My friend with Sprint had problems in Sunnyvale... Cingular works except it cuts out right at the intersection of the 17 and the 85... also, I think most plans have the bay area as one area, so no matter what area code (415, 650, 408, etc) you dial, it will still be in your local calling area as long as you are in your home area. I have Verizon's Single Rate West 300 minute plan... no roaming charges in some number of western states and no domestic long distance charges. Hope this helps.