Android Casey on Blackberry -- Smartphone Round Robin

[iLovemy_bb]

Originally Posted by halw

1. 8330. Email while traveling.

2. No.

3. No. Don't use it that much at this point.

4. Like a qwerty keyboard. Not interested in touch screen.

5. For me things are good the way they are. Will probably get the Essex after it's released. Like the idea of more memory and open GPS. Also hoping it will be OpenGL. Also would like to see a Desktop Manager or BBSAK version for Linux.

6. Outages are a PITA but haven't experienced that many.

Hmm, simply response. Good input. The basics are necessity for every BB user.

[gtstang462002]

Originally Posted by caseychan

A little late this week folks, my apologies!

Hey all! I'm Casey Chan from Android Central and I'm the lucky guy who gets to use Blackberry this week for the Smartphone Round Robin. Now I'm a big fan of Blackberry but still have some issues with the OS. Either way, I definitely have questions for you guys and if you answer, which I'm sure you will, you'll have a chance to win a free Blackberry!

1. What Blackberry do you use? And why did you go Blackberry?

2. Do you guys use two devices? If you do what is your other device? If you don't, what would your other device be?

3. If BBM was available to other smartphone platforms, would it be easier to jump ship? Or is the crack in more than just messaging?

4. I absolutely love the traditional Blackberry form factor and the keyboards are typically top notch, but don't you guys want a touchscreen too sometimes? Touchscreen makes web browsing so much better! (I am uber jealous of your optical trackpad though, that thing is awesome)

5. I always hear that the Bold 9700 is the perfect Blackberry device. I also hear that a better web browser, OpenGL, etc., all that refinement stuff is coming soon. So I guess, where does RIM go from this point? They've pretty much delivered the best Blackberry experience already. If by the end of the year you only get a more refined, better Blackberry, will you be happy with that? Or do you guys want dramatic change soon?

6. Are the outages driving you insane?

1. Storm2 9550
2. Had a second device for a while. It was another blackberry 8830WE. Looking at the upcoming pre+
3. The crack for me is the instant email, and the @vzw.blackberry.net email address
4. I have my touchscreen, Don't care to use a regular keyboard anymore
5. I can't speak on the 9700 as it isn't available on Verizon and the GSM providers coverage doesn't work for me
6. All of the outages have more or less occurred while I was in meetings or driving to meetings, so I have lucked out and had little to no ill effects from them

[AndrewWestSide]

Another Entry!

[DKatri]

If you are still reading here are my answers

1. Currently 8900 but soon to be 9700. I went blackberry because I wanted a smartphone that would take care of my emails and have a really good physical keyboard, the form is the biggest thing for me.

2. Just the one for me, but if I could afford it I'd have a storm2 aswell.

3. In all honesty I am not too sure about this BBM is the only thing that the blackberry does that nothing else can, and it is great. I do really like berryOS after using it for a year or so even if it doesnt look the nicest.

4. I really dont mind not having a touch screen. I think that the new magnum/dakota looks interesting though as a rumoured hybrid.

5. I think that RIM are maybe a little too iterative with their changes (With the 8910 being a good example, its just a 8900 with a trackpad) Maybe they need to make their whole UI a bit more user friendly and a little less like trawling through DOS . It would be nice to see RIM make a leap like palm made from palmOS to webOS.

6. I've only experienced 1 or 2 in my year or so with my berry but I suppose there are less outages here in the UK.

[mountainman]

Originally Posted by caseychan

A little late this week folks, my apologies!

Hey all! I'm Casey Chan from Android Central and I'm the lucky guy who gets to use Blackberry this week for the Smartphone Round Robin. Now I'm a big fan of Blackberry but still have some issues with the OS. Either way, I definitely have questions for you guys and if you answer, which I'm sure you will, you'll have a chance to win a free Blackberry!

1. What Blackberry do you use? And why did you go Blackberry?

2. Do you guys use two devices? If you do what is your other device? If you don't, what would your other device be?

3. If BBM was available to other smartphone platforms, would it be easier to jump ship? Or is the crack in more than just messaging?

4. I absolutely love the traditional Blackberry form factor and the keyboards are typically top notch, but don't you guys want a touchscreen too sometimes? Touchscreen makes web browsing so much better! (I am uber jealous of your optical trackpad though, that thing is awesome)

5. I always hear that the Bold 9700 is the perfect Blackberry device. I also hear that a better web browser, OpenGL, etc., all that refinement stuff is coming soon. So I guess, where does RIM go from this point? They've pretty much delivered the best Blackberry experience already. If by the end of the year you only get a more refined, better Blackberry, will you be happy with that? Or do you guys want dramatic change soon?

6. Are the outages driving you insane?

1 - I got the Curve 8330 from Verizon. My first smartphone. Got it because my friend had a Motorola Q, and I thought it would be cool to surf the web and get e-mails. Obviously did not get the Q, because I liked the trackball better. Good decision.

2 - I don't use two, but if I did, it would be an iPhone - even though I don't like touchscreens, it would be my toy, and the kids could play games on it.

3 - the Crack is way more than BBM. I love the e-mail and full QWERTY keyboard. Checking out Fantasy sports stats, and of course Crackberry.com

4 - I think once you have a full QWERTY, it would be hard to go touchscreen. My bud has a Palm with full keys and touch screen - it's just ok. Maybe the Dakota will make me want to switch. Trackball/pad is fine with me for surfing.

5 - Not sure I entirely agree with that "bold" statement : ) -- The ideal BB for me would be the old Bold size (wider screen), with Trackpad, Wifi, accept up to 64 gig card, and a Bolt browser-like surfer with Flash capability. Verizon customers get the shaft IMO with regards to Blackberry's.

6 - Not at all - I can put the Berry down. Just not for too long. : )

Thanks

[DKatri]

Originally Posted by mountainman

Verizon customers get the shaft IMO with regards to Blackberry's.

As a GSM user (I live in the UK so no CDMA) I have yet to see a CDMA berry that I am really exited about. The GSM models always seem well, better.

[bigjman]

1) I currently own a blackberry 9700. I came to the blackberry world in '07 with the 7100i on Nextel. I was ready for a smartphone and that was the best thing going on Nextel at the time.
2) I only have 1 phone but if I did have a second phone, I would probably go with the Nexus One.
3) BBM would make it easier to jump ship but the crack is really in the email (actually the bbm also).
4) Never had a touch screen so the idea does sound intriguing. But I do love the physical keyboard and sharp screen of my bold.
5) Actually I'm not sure. A refined blackberry may hold me over because I'm comfortable with the platform but at the same time it gets a little boring, (same thing just little fixes here & there).
6) The outages are a bad thing but thankfully they don't happen too often and don't last too long when they do happen.

[mountainman]

Originally Posted by DKatri

As a GSM user (I live in the UK so no CDMA) I have yet to see a CDMA berry that I am really exited about. The GSM models always seem well, better.

Absolutely correct.

Here in eastern US, you either have a great phone with so-so service (ATT), or a so-so phone with great service (Verizon).

I am jealous of the full size Bold users.

Also, at least there is something on the horizon for GSM, the Dakota. What is the next full QWERTY Blackberry for Verizon (excluding the Tour 2) ??? Anyone? Bueller?

[rrrebo]

Welcome, Casey!

1. What Blackberry do you use? And why did you go Blackberry?
Bold 9700. I wanted to get more organized, and my wife wanted to stop carrying a phone + PDA. I saw a pre-release ad for the original Curve 8300, showed it to her, explained the BlackBerry concept. She said, "I want one." SOLD! That was two and a half years ago. Just finally upgraded to 9700s in early December.

2. Do you guys use two devices? If you do what is your other device? If you don't, what would your other device be?

Nope, but if I did, it would be the biggest iPod Touch I could get. Can't argue with the sexy interface and gorgeous screen. I would most likely never ever tweet from the iPod.

3. If BBM was available to other smartphone platforms, would it be easier to jump ship? Or is the crack in more than just messaging?

It's so much more than just BBM, though RIM is really developing that into a really robust collaboration tool. It's push, stability, versatility, usability, and reliability. I love how much control I have over my device and software.

4. I absolutely love the traditional Blackberry form factor and the keyboards are typically top notch, but don't you guys want a touchscreen too sometimes? Touchscreen makes web browsing so much better! (I am uber jealous of your optical trackpad though, that thing is awesome)

A Bold 9000-sized, full-QWERTY BlackBerry with a large-ish touchscreen and flick-scrolling would be, umm, possibly mind-blowing.I still think the trackpad excels at 1-handed operation, and I'm not sure if the touchscreen could ever really make that obsolete. The combination of the two would wicked, possibly in the form of a "soft" trackpad on-screen that could be hidden as needed to save screen real estate. I am completely jealous of multi-touch, pinch-zoom gestures and flick scrolling.

5. I always hear that the Bold 9700 is the perfect Blackberry device. I also hear that a better web browser, OpenGL, etc., all that refinement stuff is coming soon. So I guess, where does RIM go from this point? They've pretty much delivered the best Blackberry experience already. If by the end of the year you only get a more refined, better Blackberry, will you be happy with that? Or do you guys want dramatic change soon?

Consolidate and integrate the OS more. Innovate. Improve media support. I want to be able to print directly from my BB without having to buy a Kodak printer. I want to arrange my home screen icons ONCE, and be able to switch themes ad nauseam whilst keeping the same folder structure. Improve the infrastructure, hardware, build quality. There's ALWAYS room for improvement. There's no such thing as "perfect". The consumer world changes too quickly. By the time you've met everyone's need, someone's come up with a whole batch of new ones.

6. Are the outages driving you insane?

In 2.5 years, I've had exactly 2 extended BIS outages (non-carrier-related). That's a pretty damned good track record. So, no.

[Fobok]

I really wish I had more to say at this point, but I don't, and I can't think of any more comments at present without having experienced one, so this is pretty much just a contest entry!

[simp_10]

Another entry!

[iLovemy_bb]

Originally Posted by mountainman

Absolutely correct.

Here in eastern US, you either have a great phone with so-so service (ATT), or a so-so phone with great service (Verizon).

I am jealous of the full size Bold users.

Also, at least there is something on the horizon for GSM, the Dakota. What is the next full QWERTY Blackberry for Verizon (excluding the Tour 2) ??? Anyone? Bueller?

haha your sig is cool

[iLovemy_bb]

Originally Posted by Fobok

I really wish I had more to say at this point, but I don't, and I can't think of any more comments at present without having experienced one, so this is pretty much just a contest entry!

Google Android and do some reading.

[Fobok]

Originally Posted by iLovemy_bb

Google Android and do some reading.

Already done some reading, quite a bit of it. I've commented on what I like about it, (the Google integration and customizability), what I don't, (how many different iterations are out there), but I can't really answer any of the questions that are designed for those who use either phone. And there's not much in the way of discussion going on at present to enter.

Right now, unless I win one of these contests (and I'd love to win any of them), it's down to between Android and Blackberry for my choice in Smartphone, and right now I'm leaning towards Android.

[iLovemy_bb]

Originally Posted by Fobok

Already done some reading, quite a bit of it. I've commented on what I like about it, (the Google integration and customizability), what I don't, (how many different iterations are out there), but I can't really answer any of the questions that are designed for those who use either phone. And there's not much in the way of discussion going on at present to enter.

Right now, unless I win one of these contests (and I'd love to win any of them), it's down to between Android and Blackberry for my choice in Smartphone, and right now I'm leaning towards Android.

If I were you I'd go with Android. Most of us BB users are smart-phone newbies who like BB's and won't jump ship or complete fans. The BB is a great phone but right now Android has a lot to offer and will be adding more to the field for you to play with. Take this from a BB addict who went to rehab a few times. My next smart-phone choice would be Android anyway. I'm about to buy an Archos 5 Internet Media Tablet and guess what? It runs on the Android OS. I like having a BB because there's nothing out there that can match it. But, if I want an iPhone or Google phone I can get a PMP(ipod touch or Archos 5) instead to replace that, I like to have the best of all worlds and not have those worlds cross. BlackBerry with an Android device to match it = a happy smart-phone/gadget lover. Pick your poison, either way they'll both kill a donkey.