Reading logs of local Coast Guard activities, it appears that a fair number of boaters are phoning-in to report problems. Cell phones also let you update your float plan with a friend/relative in another area. My StarTAC is a poor performer in fringe analog areas. I'm thinking of resurrecting my old analog MicroTAC Elite, which seemed to perform much better as an analog cell phone.<br><br>Has anyone compared the suitability of various cell phones for use in emergency situations? Issues of signal strength (watts) and dB gain (possibly with aftermarket antenna) would be most-important; availability of hi-capacity batteries (like the 3300mAh zinc-air single-use batteries) would be a big plus. These issues were probably compared by Consumer Reports or other mainstream publications in the past, but information (and good analog phones) are harder to find now that digital metro cell phone service is the mainstay of the market.<br><br>