If you are settled in Mumbai with family, chances are you will need both – a landline connection as well as a Mobile phone connection. There are people in Mumbai who don’t have landlines and only use mobile phones, but if you need the Internet connection, you will need a landline too.

Lets discuss your landline option first: (I’m assuming you are going for a landline only for the Internet broadband and otherwise you’re landline usage will be negligible)

• MTNL landline – The most trusted for landlines. If you need a residential proof – most companies are okay when you submit your MTNL landline bill. You can opt for a combo plan here, where you can take an unlimited download plan and get a free landline for minimum usage. Chances are very slim that MTNL wont be present in your area, so you dont have to check if there is MTNL availability. Though at times, they could take upto a month to set everything for a new connection.
• Airtel landline – The second option you have is the Airtel connection. Since it is a private company, they offer you better services. You will need to check if Airtel is present in your area. Alternatively, you can call their helpline on 022 – 44444121 and ask them if they service your suburb (You can even mention your building for a proper check). If you have all documents ready, you will have your connection up and running within 48 hours, or even less.
• Reliance landline – You’re third option would be Anil Dhirubhai Ambani group’s Reliance. Who hasn’t heard of them. They revolutionized the concept of cheap cell phone telephony in India.
• Tata Indicom – Tata Indicom looks very promising. Heard a lot of users thinking of switching to Tata Indicom services, but overall, I’m not a huge fan of Tata services. You can have a look at their tariff plans here.

So you’ve made you’re broadband choice – Now its time to choose your mobile carrier. You have various options here, whether you want to go for a postpaid connection or a prepaid connection, whether you want GSM or CDMA services. The tariff plans, call charges, rentals are similar in all companies, though some of them offer better call quality.

• Vodafone – The most preferred GSM service provider, which is slowly being overtaken by Airtel. Vodafone offers fantastic plans, right from pay per second plans to Closed user group plans. If you logon to Twitter and search for @VodafoneIn, you might read some mix reviews about Vodafone – some are happy, some are not.
• Airtel – Airtel has very good network coverage, or so they claim. During 26th july floods, Airtel was the only network on which users could make and receive calls. All other networks crashed due to excess server load. If you use Internet on your phone, Airtel has better tariffs than Vodafone.
• Reliance – Ofcourse the Dhirubhai offer is not more valid, which was the inaugural offer, where users paid Rs 3000/- for the handset and free calling for 3 years (or was it not free??). Reliance offers both CDMA and GSM services, so if you have your own preferred Nokia handset, it is advisable to go for their GSM services, where you can use your own cell phone and their service. If you’re on Reliance, you get free data access to browse through facebook.
• Tata Docomo – They have some exciting offers – you can look up their postpay tariff plans. If you’re on prepaid, you can choose any 2 numbers and talk to them unlimited for the entire month by paying Rs 95/- rental, provided they are on the same network.

You have a couple of other choices who are new to the market and have yet not gained popularity.

• Aircel
• Videocon

Which service do you use and why do you like it?