I'm switching away from Verzion in December to both get a better phone, and because both Sprint and Virgin Mobile are cheaper. I know that Virgin Mobile runs on Sprint's towers, however, my father said that Verizon had trouble getting service on my college campus a few years ago. I really like the Helio Ocean 2, but the Pantech Matrix Pro is a smartphone. Please keep in mind that if I go with the Pantech, I will NOT be using a data plan, because it costs too much for my budget. The Ocean 2 has the data plan included. What I need is a good messaging phone that can sync calendar (or at least has a calendar), so it comes down to which is better coverage. Please give an honest answer on this.
Also, keep in mind that there is both a Sprint Wireless store and a kiosk for Virgin Mobile in my town.

Not sure if I mentioned it yet, but the college campus is Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Also, some sort of assignment book would be helpful, as I would like this phone to replace my planner.