Jim Guest President

One of my favorite kids' books is " Voyage to the Bunny Planet, " by Rosemary Wells. It's actually a set of three books in which some bunny kids have really bad days: One throws up in art class, one gets pounced on by his cousins. And when they've had about all they can take, Janet, the Bunny Queen, appears from " far beyond the moon and stars, twenty light years south of Mars " to show them " the day that should have been. "

I wish I could summon Janet when I'm dealing with my cell phone because I've had all I can take. The way it could be and should be is not the maze of calling areas, dead zones, roaming charges, and fees through which we have to crawl in the hope that our phones will work when and where we need them. Add to that the worry about overpaying for the privilege.

How would we know? In the 10 years since Consumer Reports started rating cell phones and calling plans, we've never found an easy way to compare actual costs. From what our readers tell us, they haven't either. Each carrier presents its rates, extra charges, and calling areas differently. Deciphering one company's plan is hard enough, but comparing plans from various carriers is nearly impossible.

In this month's article on choosing a calling plan (Cell phone plans), we propose a simple solution: All cellular calling plans should be presented to the consumer in a standard format with readable type. Want to know whether AT&T or Sprint charges more for extra minutes? Boom--there it is, easy to read on both plans.

That isn't a radical idea. Credit-card solicitations must now state, among other things, exactly what the annual percentage rate is and what it will cost to take a cash advance or transfer a balance from another card. The type size is even regulated, so financial quicksand can't be hidden in small print. Cell-phone companies aren't doing that yet. Meantime, check out our advice on the best plans for your needs.

Problems start when you sign up. Why must we sign a contract for a year or more, with penalties if we stop service early? One reader, who contracted for cellular service in a store where clerks were too busy to answer her questions, decided to return the phone at the end of the two-week trial period, since it didn't work in the part of town where she needed it most. " I am now required to forfeit $35 for the activation fee, " she wrote. " Do you think I can read the back side of the contract, all in minute light-gray print? I cannot! "

And why are we still unable to take our phone number with us when we switch carriers? (This change is due to happen in November, but could be delayed; the Federal Communications Commission has postponed it several times already.)

What really concerned us were the results of our tests of 911 calling. (Will your cell phone reach 911?). We sent our cell-phone team to Indiana and western New York state. Working closely with active emergency-communications centers (where officials assured us that we in no way interfered with their ability to respond to real emergencies), they tested a variety of phones connected to several major carriers.

The tests were conducted in locations that had weak digital home-carrier signals but strong analog signals from competing carriers. A disturbing number of the calls made to 911 never reached an operator. We believe there was no fundamental technical barrier preventing these calls from connecting to 911.

Finally, in our reports on Cell-phone service, Cell-phone plans, and Cell phones, we look at the companies, the technology, the regulations, and the phones to see why getting and staying connected is unpredictable at best. And at www.consumersunion.org you can see how CU is working to achieve better cell service for consumers.

We have to. Janet's too busy running the Bunny Planet to take on the cell-phone industry.