[jc34]

I have a few questions regarding the roaming indicator (blue triangle) on the 8830 and what others know about how the roaming indicator operates.

I am on a national voice and national unlimited Blackberry data plan with Alltel. I have noticed as soon as I travel outside my local area, specifically Indiana the blue triangle comes on solid which indicates the phone is roaming. I contacted the carrier and asked why this is happening and they indicated that the blue triangle should be flashing when in contact with a partner tower which in my case is Verizon or Sprint in Indiana. They did not have any explaination as to why the indicator was solid and was going to log the problem.

So I doubt that this is going to get escalated anywhere and I am going to need to debug this on my own then call them back with the answers and push the issue with them. So I am a bit stuck here unless I can figure out and confirm the operation of the roaming indicator on the 8830. So, this does being up some questions.....

Does the blue triangle flash when the phone is roaming on a partner tower as opposed to, on solid, to indicate the phone is truely roaming where I will be charged roaming fees?

Is the roaming indicator really a data roaming indicator? I know that if I set the Manage Connetions -> Mobile Network Options -> Data Services to "Off When Roaming" instead of "ON", I can get the blue triangle to become a red triangle. So some confusion here as well.

So if anyone has any insight on how the roaming indicator functions I'd like to hear from you.

I did not see anything in the manual that puts a great deal of explaination about this but, its a big manual and may have just overlooked it. Most of the discussion in the manual refers to global (out of U.S.A.) roaming.

Thx!

[JRSCCivic98]

Maybe I'm missing something. If you're on a "National" Unlimited plan why are you so concerned about roaming? You're not going to get charged for roaming.

[kch50428]

The roaming indicator on a BB8830 is not capable of blinking that I know of...so you need to be aware of geography, and what areas you might incur roaming charges, and if you might happen to be in an area where you would incur roaming charges when traveling...from the area you describe, you should be in the area where you should not incur any roaming charges.

The thing to do is to periodically dial *228 - hit 'send', and then select option 2 to 'update your phone's roaming service' - what this does is install the latest PRL, or preferred roaming list - which tells your phone which towers to use when away from your home area.

And JRS...the 'National' does have some exceptions.

[jc34]

The thing to do is to periodically dial *228 - hit 'send', and then select option 2 to 'update your phone's roaming service' - what this does is install the latest PRL, or preferred roaming list - which tells your phone which towers to use when away from your home area.

And JRS...the 'National' does have some exceptions.

I suspected the roam indicator is either on or off and it does not flash. I was wanting to confirm that here and was hoping some folks would respond back to confirm my belief. Thanks for responding back.

Anybody else have any insights?

I was down in Columbus, OH this weekend also and when I did look at the phone I only noticed the roam indicator on once. I was driving and most of the time I could not look at the screen. The phone PRL list should be up to date because I did that before going to Columbus and I have done it a number of times before that.

I am beginning to suspect that Alltel's configuration for my account is not setup correctly for the phone and giving the phone an incorrect PRL. Getting to someone that can actually look at this is a challenge though. The individual I talked to last night confirmed that the account was national (so at least the billing portion is correct... and getting their money) and Fort Wayne is part of national plan. But they were unable to explain the roaming indicator being on when over there and placed that information in my account complaint log. I recognize the Alltel National plan for both voice and Blackberry has a number of holes in it in Indiana where there are roaming charges but not in downtown Fort Wayne!

Thanks again for responding back with your insights.

[kch50428]

There's only one PRL for the BB - version # is 40036 - dial *HELP# hit send, and you'll see your PRL version.

And both Columbus & Ft Wayne are both areas where your national plan are covered, and you should not see any roaming charges.

Your roaming indicator will come on whenever you are not on your "home" system - even if you are in another Alltel coverage area...hence the 'flashing is friendly' when it comes to non-bb phones.

[jc34]

Yea I've know about the semi-secret dialing of #HELP* and the other one to look at the configuration of the phone. It says my version is 40036 and has for a while. If that is the only PRL for the BB then I'm good but still concerned about knowing where I am actually roaming when I'm not on a partner tower. I travel a lot in rural areas getting from point A to point B anywhere in the country and having that knowledge is important at times.

I kinda figured that there was no flashing roam indicator (but you never know) since the overhead to refresh the screen every second is significant for the CPU in this phone.

Thanks

[kch50428]

As far as knowing if you'll be in an area where you will incur roaming charges, go to Alltel's web site, click on wireless plans, then click on a 'smart choice pack' link, and look at the map. And if you're still not sure if somewhere you are going to be is covered or not, customer service or a rep in a store can look up a town by name and tell you if its in their national coverage area or not.

[jc34]

I've looked at that map and its a real small map when looking at it online and most of the U.S shows its covered except for a big area in Kentucky and a bunch of spots mostly out west. I get down to Kentucky a few times a year but I know this and it is obvious. It's those small areas that you travel through that's ran by Mom and Pop cell phone company and Taco Stand that I worry about. I've gotten caught a few times in one of those areas and was charged as much as 50 bucks for a 3 minute cell phone call. Those areas still exist in the rural areas. I was on Verizon's National SingleRate plan where it does not matter but the National plan offered by Alltel is different and does not have those features. So back to watching the roaming indicator which appears to not be a good roaming indicator. Guess I'll get a nice Easter Egg in my bill from time to time. LOL

Anyways....

[kch50428]

The first time you're going to Kentucky, call customer service or visit your store and add the 'Free to Roam' feature to your plan - 100 roaming minutes - it's $10...then you won't get any surprises unless you go over the 100 minutes...then take the feature off at the end of the bill cycle.

[JRSCCivic98]

National Plans have free Roaming. Where's the problem? Does Alltel still charge roaming?

[jc34]

kch50428... Yea I kinda already figured that the only way to get around these mom and pop cell companies was to pick up the 100 Free To Roam minutes.

[editionfws]

I'm on sprint, and I get the triangle a lot...a lot a lot. I can be in one spot, get a drink and come back then be roaming in the same spot. I haven't noticed roaming charges yet, but I do get worried about it. It bugs me...

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