T-Mobile BlackBerry 7100, palmOne Treo 600
Posted May 9th, 2005 @ 12:04pm by Erik J. Barzeski
Carey and I are looking to move from our separate cell phone plans (Cingular for me, Cellular One for her) to a T-Mobile plan. The only other carriers in our region are Cellular One (very small) and Verizon Wireless, and I'll never use Verizon again if I can help it.
So, T-Mobile it is.
I called today to get some information. My requirements were simple: I wanted something like my Motorola V600. I have Bluetooth on this phone, I can text message easily, and I have put my own MP3s as ringtones. The rest I don't care about so much, though some new jobs I am getting may require me to have access to AIM, email, and the Internet.
The T-Mobile lady steered me towards the BlackBerry 7100. I'll be checking reviews soon, but I'm curious what anyone (Mac users in particular) out there has to say about the 7100. The icons look hideous and I've read that it's not the greatest PDA, but I don't use my current phone as a PDA. I've used the camera on my V600 about ten times, and most of those were for the heck of it.
The alternatives to the 7100 from T-Mobile, from what I can see, are the palmOne Treo 600 and the HP iPAQ h6315. For obvious reasons I might resist the iPAQ, but the palmOne is interesting. It's not the 650, which is what I've heard about the most, but it looks like it could be a bit more "Mac-friendly"
Carey, FWIW, would get the Motorola V188 (free). Or that's what was suggested by the lady on the phone.
Eight reviews at epinions give the 7100t (I'm guessing the "t" is for T-Mobile) four out of five stars.
Any thoughts?
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Posted 09 May 2005 at 12:24pm #
I'm not terribly interested in "unlocking" my V600, though I realize it's a possibility.
Posted 09 May 2005 at 1:58pm #
Have you looked at the T-Mobile Sidekick? If your mail needs don't include connecting to an MS Exchange server there is no real benefit to the Blackberry. The Sidekick is cheaper, has an infinitely better browser and IM client, and integrates well with Mac OS X.
And I'm not just saying that because I work on the product. 🙂
Posted 09 May 2005 at 2:45pm #
I know that if you've been a T-Mobile customer for a little while, you can call them and have them unlock it over the phone (I did it so I could use my phone overseas with another SIM). I'm not sure if Cingular does this but it might be worth giving them a call.
Posted 09 May 2005 at 5:26pm #
All of the carriers will eventually give you an unlock code. There is usually a waiting period of 30-90 days after purchase.
Posted 09 May 2005 at 7:44pm #
Actually IIRC, Cingular won't give you an unlock code (as evidenced by my sister's asking since she's moving to London). Also Chris, the sidekick doesn't have bluetooth. That's really all it needs to be the replacement phone for me. I need bluetooth on my phone. I hope that Danger releases one soon.
AFAIK, T-Mobile is the only one that will give you the unlock code on request without any sort of trouble.
Posted 09 May 2005 at 10:38pm #
I have another plan, now: give Carey my V600, get a RAZR, and stick with Cingular. There are no stores here but I have good coverage.
Posted 09 May 2005 at 11:34pm #
Yesterday I wrote about how I was considering the BlackBerry 7100 and the Treo 600. I'm no longer considering them, and with that, T-Mobile has pretty much left my list of desired cell phone carriers. That leaves Cingular, which has...
Posted 10 May 2005 at 1:21am #
I would use the camera on a phone more often if it were 1.3 megapixels or so, rather than the teensy image on my Sony Ericsson t616.
Blackberry's strength is due to early marketing to corporations before going to the public, and offering close tie-ins corporate to corporate intranet memo messaging and email and syncing. If you are independent of these factors, I'm not sure if it has as much to offer.
As far as carriers go, I think any one of them will get jeers or cheers based on particular experience. I do give extra points if they have been early adopters of particular types of smart phones; and take away points if they cripple those features.
And some people only want cheap coverage.
Posted 16 Jun 2005 at 9:44pm #
help me unlock a t-mobile blackberry that has a lock on it please does any 1 no how?