If you never have to roam in an Analog (AMPS) area.

I have $35 for 500 Min + N/W Nationwide Network.  N/W starting at 9
PM.

They offered me t616 for $199 + 1 year contract or $9.99 for 2 year
contract.
The 39.99 plan for Nationwide is 650 min + N/W.  No major difference
to me because I only use 500 minutes.  I really wanted 7 PM N/W but
can't get that because I don't want to move up to $59.99

I'd take it for $9.99 and 1 year contract.  But I refuse to sign a 2
year contract because it's more important for me to have a new phone
and be able to switch to carriers with better deals than be locked
into one carrier.

I'd rather switch to T-mobile for 1 year and switch back to AT&T 1
year later if necessary since that time I'd be considered a new
customer again and get the 1 year contract new customer deals.  I can
get the t610 for free with T mobile and get 1000 + N/W from them. I
will likely do that or keep TDMA coverage.  I have to see how T-mobile
works in my apartment, if it works, then I will port my number to
T-mobile. I live in downtown Philly so all carriers give me good
signal.  I travel to major cities (NYC, Houston, LA)

AT&T offered me no deal to sign another 1 year contract with TDMA, so
they may be phasing this out. I would happily sign 1 year again if I
can get at least 8 PM N/W

I don't use data, I only use my phone for voice. So if you see another
solution let me know!

Define value.  Perhaps the value of TDMA to the OP is the knowledge
that his phone will work virtually everywhere there's cell service.
AT&T (and Cingular) are doing dandy jobs of converting their entire
coverage areas to GSM, but they also partner with various smaller
companies nationwide to offer nnationwide service.  Not all of these
partners may be converting as quickly, if at all.

AT&T GSM has no equivalent to DOR, do they?

(I'm not knocking GSM, by the way- I'm a T-Mo customer.  But I do
carry a CallPlus prepaid TDMA/analog phone in the glovebox as a backup
because it's cheap $3/month "insurance" that I'll have service
virtually anywhere I'll go.)

What plan are you on that offers more value than
you can have today?
--> How about a location that requires an external antenna (i.e. there is
good support for Nokia 5160/6160 with external antenna connection), coupled
with 600 peak minutes, nationwide long distance, no roaming in local two
state area (OR/WA) unlimited nights and weekends at 8pm for $39.99.

This is at Oregon coast where even TDMA coverage is spotty at best, and I
sincerely doubt GSM would do better.  I could see it having equal coverage
once they migrate folks from 1900 to 850Mhz but I don't know how far that
has come.

-Dan

The differences are too numerous to mention here.

Both use digital transmission using time division multiplexing.  However,
'GSM' is the Euro standard. TDMA has no one pushing it,, and although it's
a decent system, it's largest provider, ATT Witless, offered a crippled
implementation without data service (unlike other smaller carriers who knew
what they wer edoing, e.g., Rogers).

Data is key to revenue growth, so ATTWS suffered. Finally, new management
decided they would offer GSM side by side with TDMA.  Their GSM service
still is not offering coverage as good as the TDMA side in my area.

However, the value of a networking (networking used in the telephony sense
here) is how many connections it can make, so TDMA with its dwindling user
base is less and less useful when compared to what GSM can do, that folks
are switching.

Phone makers are focusing on GSM and CDMA 2000 phones, and TDMA is being
left behind in the dust.

--
John Bartley K7AAY http://celdata.cjb.net
This post quad-ROT-13 encrypted; reading it violates the DMCA.
Nobody but a fool goes into a federal counterrorism operation without duct tape - Richard Preston, THE COBRA EVENT.