1. KentuckyHouse's Avatar
    I'm new to the BB world (best device I've ever had, btw), but I've got a question that might seem silly, but bear with me.

    I typically use my cell phones as an alarm clock and continue to do so now that I've got the BB. In the past, though, I've had problems with other devices acting weird after a year or so because I never turned them off at night. I would just stick them on the charger and unplug them the next morning.

    That being said, is there a thought that turning the BB off at night might extend it's serviceable lifespan? You know, by giving it a "rest"? I'm really just looking for opinions on this.

    I've also noticed that the alarm that comes with the BB Curve 8330 doesn't seem to have an option to "turn on the device" if it's turned off when it's time for the alarm to go off. I haven't tested it, obviously, but does anyone know if I have an alarm set and the device is off, if it will wake itself up so the alarm can sound?

    This is a GREAT forum and seems to be full of really helpful (and nice) people! Thanks in advance for any help or opinions!
    11-19-09 10:14 PM
  2. entwined82's Avatar
    What I do is I plug my Curve into my charging dock all night and let it be my alarm clock in the morning. I have been doing this since April and have yet to notice any ill effects on my battery.

    For what its worth, most batteries have issues after a year but then again most devices batteries work differently than the BB. A lot of them can be overcharged. The Curve knows when to stop charging.

    I don't believe it'll turn itself on to give you an alarm but there is no need to ever turn it off apart from the occasional battery pull or reboot I find.
    11-19-09 10:19 PM
  3. BergerKing's Avatar
    I wouldn't be terribly worried about turning it off at night. There are people still running 7000 series BBs that are working just fine. Saw 4 of 'em at a receiver earlier today, still going strong.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    11-19-09 10:27 PM
  4. phixion's Avatar
    I wouldn't and don't turn the phone off at night. It is either plugged into the charger or the phone is on standby.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    11-19-09 10:36 PM
  5. KentuckyHouse's Avatar
    Thanks for the responses! I didn't think it would have a negative effect on my BB to just leave it on at night, but it never hurts to ask more experienced people, right?
    11-19-09 10:37 PM
  6. xliderider's Avatar
    FYI, a BB is never truly off unless you take the battery out.

    For electronics, it is actually more stressful to keep cycling the device on and off rather than leave it running constantly. The thermal expansion/contraction of the circuits and soldered joints eventually cause failure. That's one theory anyway.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    11-19-09 10:41 PM
  7. chynnamann's Avatar
    I never turn my BB off incase work calls me but even if I probably wouldn't. I have the 9700 and there is a bedside mode which dims and stops led from flashing.
    My carrier told me to use the auto on/off to refresh the network signal every day so I have this set at like 3 in the am to turn off and come back on in 2 mins. Go to settings>options>auto on/off
    11-19-09 10:47 PM
  8. nmbbaddict's Avatar
    I use the auto on/off and all it really does is put it in a standby mode more than actually turning the device off.

    I have NOT tested this with the alarm, but I do know from personal experience is that scheduled calendar items will wake up the phone and go off if it is set before the phone is to turn on.

    With that, I would assume the alarm would turn on as well, but then again, it's just an assumption.
    11-19-09 11:19 PM
  9. oshawa8330's Avatar
    I just leave my Curve on and switch to Vibrate at night
    11-19-09 11:27 PM
  10. K1drobt's Avatar
    The last time I turned off my Curve was a little over a year ago. I wouldn't worry about it
    11-20-09 01:09 AM
  11. khobbs's Avatar
    When I was running OS 4.5, my BB gave me two choices when I powered it off. It would say "fully power off the device" or "[I can't remember what this one was]" and the latter of the two would allow it to be "off" but the alarm would still wake it up, the former would not. I'm not sure if that was a specific function of my carrier's OS at that time, but now that I'm running a leaked OS 5, I just turn it off by holding the end button and the alarm will still wake it up when it goes off. That will at least help you conserve battery power if you forget your adapter. Otherwise, I never really shut mine off either.
    11-20-09 02:54 AM
  12. RMarkwald's Avatar
    With the Auto On/Off feature set up, it will turn itself on and if the alarm is set, it will still work as it should. At night, I set my phone on silent, and the alarm still comes on at max volume as I have it programmed. At least RIM got it right, so when my phone is on silent it doesn't quiet the alarm!! I usually will just use the stand-by button for my personal 8310, and my work 8330m I use the Auto On/Off, and never had any issues.
    11-20-09 06:03 PM
  13. nickp123's Avatar
    I leave my phone on for the same purpose i just have quickpull set to reset my phone at 5am every morning to solve any memory leaks and everything else battery pulls help with so my phones good to go when i wake up
    11-23-09 12:29 PM
  14. sc137's Avatar
    I was told by T-Mobile blackberry support that I was supposed to schedule an on and off time for my device to keep it running fresh on the network. This is COMPLETELY UNTRUE. Auto on/off doesn't reset your phone or shut off app's that you might have left open by accident (like google maps).

    The scheduled timer is great if you want to ensure that you get zero notifications during that time (i.e. when sleeping). The alarm still works with the auto on/off.

    There is a nightstand mode on my 8900 that shows the clockface and disables notifications in that mode.
    11-23-09 12:33 PM
  15. dchawk81's Avatar
    You'll drop it onto concrete, in the toilet, step on it, drive over it, or simply not care about it because it's outdated before you'll ever kill it by not turning it off.

    Having said that, when it acts up, pull the battery for a few seconds.
    11-23-09 12:36 PM
  16. Kepeli's Avatar
    I just leave it on. Occasionally, I'll pull the MicroSD card out of my 8330 to load it with music, delete stuff, transfer files and music to my friends laptop. Yes, I do sync my music, files and yada yada via DM, USB or Bluetooth, but doing the occasional battery pull has kept my device from locking up. Going on almost two years without a problem. Except when I dropped my first phone, cracked it, and got a shotie replacement. Turned that one in, and have my PERFECT CURVE.
    11-23-09 12:55 PM
  17. docsmody's Avatar
    I leave mine on 24/7 and use quickpull also at 5AM for its daily restart to fix memory issues, etc.

    But, the alarm will turn your phone on. You'll notice that if you turn the phone on i'tll say "Next on time..." which if your alarm is set, will show you that time.

    Agree though that there's no reason to turn your phone off. Can turn it to phone only or quiet mode if the phone making noise is an issue. Quiet mode will still sound the alarm audibly.
    11-23-09 02:50 PM
  18. djshack#CB's Avatar
    On my Curve 8330, I've never configured an Auto On/Off setting. However, I have noticed that if I have the alarm set and turn the phone off, prior to shutting off it says "Next Power On Time" or something similar, and it's set to the time of the alarm. So, yes, I do believe it will turn on for the alarm.

    However, as most others said, I never really turn it off. No point. It doesn't even free up memory as it's not truly shutting the phone down.
    11-23-09 02:51 PM
  19. DBRIZZEL's Avatar
    i have tried both methods and in my opinion my curves works alot better when i let my battery run down to about 20 percent and then charge it over night
    11-23-09 02:54 PM
  20. tony bag o donuts's Avatar
    I turn my device off at 11:30 at night and have it turn on at 5 in the morning.....
    I also have it go to phone only if I want to keep the phone on and not have it beep for emails.
    11-23-09 02:56 PM
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