Blackberry phone on the Straight Talk plan

I need some advice.

My husband has a Blackberry phone. I not sure of the model, it is silver in color and has Verizon and World Edition written on it. I chose a random model for my profile as it seemed to be needed for my registration to continue! Anyway, obviously, we are on a Verizon plan. Our contract expires in May, 2010 and I am trying to talk him into the $45 Straight Talk plan. We currently pay $125 a family plan that includes unlimited voice and data for him - he uses the phone to browse office emails on weekends and after hours - and about 700 minutes of voice for me. I don't need so many minutes at all as I only use my cell phone when I am out with the children and for emergencies. Most other calls, I make and receive on our VOIP home phone.

He is adamant about not giving up his Blackberry to move to the Straight Talk plan. He says that the phones they offer are not 'all that' and that is his reason for staying in the Verizon plan although it is almost three times as costly as the Straight Talk plan.

Now, I want to know this: Is it really not possible for him to use his existing Blackberry phone with the Straight Talk plan???? This may sound like a really dumb question to the more knowledgeable people here but this is a genuine doubt that I have. Once our 2 year contract expires with Verizon in May, 2010 (he got the phone as part of the contract), I would really like to save some money and move to the Straight Talk plan - which I was told has the same coverage as Verizon? Money is tight and I would be glad to save some money here (close to $90 a month with this switch!).

Could you please advice and guide me on this issue? Can't we switch to Straight Talk and still have him use his existing Blackberry phone?? He's besotted with that phone!!!!!!

Thank you so much for reading and for your time and advice.

-Gayatri

It's not possible to use your device on a Straight Talk plan.

You must use one of their devices.

Straight Talk is not part of Verizon Wireless. They lease "space" on Verizon towers/networks.

I understand where you are coming from. My husband and I pay an additional $60 for our data plans. Throw in another $40 and you have groceries for a week. We pay $720 a year extra to have his iphone and my 9700. Throw in another $130 and you have a house payment. If money is tight - sit down with him and break down the numbers. I love my berry, but in the grand picture of things I'd rather eat than read work e-mails.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

A Blackberry alternative may be Boost Mobile. I believe you can purchase a Blackberry 8330 for $249.00 and pay $60 per month for unlimited use. Boost mobile is similar to straight talk, but operates using the Sprint network. May be something to look into. Hope this helps.

Thank you all.

I just found out that his Blackberry model is a 8830 smart phone.

But if he can only use Straight Talk's phone on their plan, then there's no way he's going to switch. :(

your husband can get a blackberry tour 9630 (has to be originally a sprint branded phone) then get it flashed by boosterry3g.com for $13O which makes the phone capable of using BIS (apps, BBM, etc.) for $50 a month. i'd suggest finding the phone on craigslist for around $200 (if you're lucky, as low as $150). he doesn't even have to send the phone in. boostmobile is who he pays but his phone is running on the sprint 3g network. i read LOTS of reviews on this phone by owners who overwhelmingly said that the lack of wi-fi isn't a problem because the phone is so fast already. hope this helps. go to boostberry3g.com, click on "Blackberry/Sprint Phone Adder" then click "Activation Service" and choose one of the second two options, depending on if he wants to keep his current number (makes it $150) or for $130 you get a new number. he doesn't have to send the phone anywhere. in the fee they charge for the service, the boost mobile account activation fee and the first month of unlimited everything service is included so you're basically paying them $50 to flash the phone. i say craigslist because that or ebay are probably the best bet at getting a good price on the phone. remember... it HAS to be a SPRINT tour 9630. they also do it with the 8330 but since his 8330 is verizon, he'd have to buy a new phone anyway so why not get the next step up. hope this helps. good luck.

Tell your husband to check out the Nokia E71 with Straight Talk. It rivals the Blackberry. In my opinion, it is much sleeker. It has been a popular phone in Europe for a long time, and they are very discriminatory with their cell phones. I actually just switched from ATT BB today...still waiting for completion of port though, so I haven't really used the phone yet. I will say the reviews online are phenomenal. I haven't found anyone that dislikes this phone. Some Iphone users even say it is better than the Iphone. I'm excited and can't wait to use it. I like my BB, but this phone seems to have it all.

Be warned, straight talk has horrible customer service! Possibly the worst!

Straight Talk is a nightmare to deal with. My girlfriends phone is Straight Talk on T-Mobiles network. I requested that her line be moved to their AT&T coverage. They wouldn't do it unless there's a service issue even though I said I'd pay for the new sim and for overnight shipping. Bunch of idiots really. As soon as I have a better job I'm getting my gf on a vzw or Att plan.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

I had to buy a nokia 6790 straight talk phone to use the sim card from that into eith a black berry 8520 or 8530 np problems calling or texting
internet was the problem. did not change service books or anything else. just unlocked att curves.

Originally Posted by fritchy

Tell your husband to check out the Nokia E71 with Straight Talk. It rivals the Blackberry. In my opinion, it is much sleeker. It has been a popular phone in Europe for a long time, and they are very discriminatory with their cell phones. I actually just switched from ATT BB today...still waiting for completion of port though, so I haven't really used the phone yet. I will say the reviews online are phenomenal. I haven't found anyone that dislikes this phone. Some Iphone users even say it is better than the Iphone. I'm excited and can't wait to use it. I like my BB, but this phone seems to have it all.

I believe this to be true, I know one of our former Mods used this model for a while. I believe this Nokia can even connect to a BES, NOT that you need it to, BUT it can pretty much do what your husband needs, email, web, as well as regular phone stuff. :)

Originally Posted by Gayatri

I need some advice.
I know on the straight talk website they have a blackberry i am not sure which one it is

I myself have an I-phone 3G and i am using it on the striaght talk network and $45.00 a month unlimited everything is great and all the apps are working fine for me

My husband has a Blackberry phone. I not sure of the model, it is silver in color and has Verizon and World Edition written on it. I chose a random model for my profile as it seemed to be needed for my registration to continue! Anyway, obviously, we are on a Verizon plan. Our contract expires in May, 2010 and I am trying to talk him into the $45 Straight Talk plan. We currently pay $125 a family plan that includes unlimited voice and data for him - he uses the phone to browse office emails on weekends and after hours - and about 700 minutes of voice for me. I don't need so many minutes at all as I only use my cell phone when I am out with the children and for emergencies. Most other calls, I make and receive on our VOIP home phone.

He is adamant about not giving up his Blackberry to move to the Straight Talk plan. He says that the phones they offer are not 'all that' and that is his reason for staying in the Verizon plan although it is almost three times as costly as the Straight Talk plan.

Now, I want to know this: Is it really not possible for him to use his existing Blackberry phone with the Straight Talk plan???? This may sound like a really dumb question to the more knowledgeable people here but this is a genuine doubt that I have. Once our 2 year contract expires with Verizon in May, 2010 (he got the phone as part of the contract), I would really like to save some money and move to the Straight Talk plan - which I was told has the same coverage as Verizon? Money is tight and I would be glad to save some money here (close to $90 a month with this switch!).

Could you please advice and guide me on this issue? Can't we switch to Straight Talk and still have him use his existing Blackberry phone?? He's besotted with that phone!!!!!!

Thank you so much for reading and for your time and advice.

-Gayatri

I know on the straight talk website they have a blackberry i am not sure which one it is

I myself have an I-phone 3G and i am using it on the striaght talk network and $45.00 a month unlimited everything is great and all the apps are working fine for me

I know you can get a BB on Boost or Virgin Mobile, which both use Sprint towers. That's a great way to go. :)

If you live in a Sprint coverage area just tell your husband to get a Boost Mobile/ Virgin Mobile. If T-mobile is available in your area you can also choose Simple Mobile. Both of these offer BlackBerry phones on prepaid with similar plans to Straighttalk. If you live in a rural area like me, where only Verizon & AT&T covers you, you can give up hope for (an affordable) BlackBerry on prepaid.

Originally Posted by littlebastard31

your husband can get a blackberry tour 9630 (has to be originally a sprint branded phone) then get it flashed by boosterry3g.com for $13O which makes the phone capable of using BIS (apps, BBM, etc.) for $50 a month. i'd suggest finding the phone on craigslist for around $200 (if you're lucky, as low as $150). he doesn't even have to send the phone in. boostmobile is who he pays but his phone is running on the sprint 3g network. i read LOTS of reviews on this phone by owners who overwhelmingly said that the lack of wi-fi isn't a problem because the phone is so fast already. hope this helps. go to boostberry3g.com, click on "Blackberry/Sprint Phone Adder" then click "Activation Service" and choose one of the second two options, depending on if he wants to keep his current number (makes it $150) or for $130 you get a new number. he doesn't have to send the phone anywhere. in the fee they charge for the service, the boost mobile account activation fee and the first month of unlimited everything service is included so you're basically paying them $50 to flash the phone. i say craigslist because that or ebay are probably the best bet at getting a good price on the phone. remember... it HAS to be a SPRINT tour 9630. they also do it with the 8330 but since his 8330 is verizon, he'd have to buy a new phone anyway so why not get the next step up. hope this helps. good luck.

Ok so.. I jus got a us cellular blackberry 9630 from a gal for $25 and there's no SIM card in it so can I buy a straight talk SIM card for it? There's a spot for one idk what my next steps are to get this phone up and running on straight talk :/ u seen like u can help lol

Ported my verizon number to straight talk, took less than 2 hours and i had a working cell phone. T-mobile has had 8 hours and i've talked to four reps giving each activation code/sim number/imei numbers and still no service. Last word from tmobile was "call back tomorrow and try again." All this aggravation to buy cell service and port a number? Tmobile. What was i thinking? Horrible. I'll stay with straight talk.