Cell phone suggestions for 76 year old?

My 76 year old mother has decided to get a cell phone and do away with land lines in two diferent houses. I use a cell only on occasion when I travel, so my Virgin Oyster phone is adequate for my needs, but she would need something with free afternoon/night minutes, economical, dependable, and an extremely simple to use phone.

Since this is something I know little about, I thought I'd ask for suggestions here. Thanks for any help anyone is able to offer.

Some carriers allow you to check the cell phone signal strength for the region that you will use it most. If this is going to be a primary phone thne make sure to look into signal strength at the place it will be used the most. After all a cell phone is useless without a good signal

Also - help her out by programming in the full 10 digits to the local fire department, police and paramedics in case they are needed in an emergency. (currently in CA if you dial 911 from a cell phone it goes straight to the hwy patrol - who then has to ask you what your emergency is and where you are because they do not know your exact location or what you need - this is being improved as a roll out is in place to track you to the nearest cell phone tower - still not exact but an improvement). Fire, Police, Ambulance - are all easy to remember and dialing their emergency number direct can be quicker than calling 911 on cell phone.

The last tip is for everyone - program this into your phone ICE (in case of emergency). If you are injured an found uncounscious or unable to speak - many first responders (police, paramedics, etc.) check your cell phone to find someone to contact to notify them of your accident/situation. EVERYONE should have the name ICE or I.C.E. programmed as a name on their phone and then the phone number for the relative/friend/loved one etc. that they would like to have contacted in case of an emergency. (many people say they have their wife/husband/kid/neighbor programmed into their phone but if the emergency responder does not know your spouses/kid/friend name how will they find it in your contact list - that's why you should use ICE).

Hope this helps,