[Teegunn]

Hello. Great site here! I am excited for the release of the Blackberry Flip 8230 on Alltel! Living up in MT, our only real choices for carriers are Alltel and Verizon. My current LG8600 phone is all but dead and I have been researching just which phone to upgrade to. My GF has the Blackberry Curve, and I have found that I like the capabilities of what her Blackberry can do over my old LG8600 (for obvious reasons). That being said, I have rather large hands/fingers and have a fairly hard time typing well on her Curve keyboard. I have gotten a chance to use a regular Pearl a bit and found the modified QWERTY keyboard works a bit better for my larger hands. I had all but decided to get a regular Pearl until this week I found out that Alltel will be offering the Pearl Flip 8230 as of May 15th. I prefer the flip style/clamshell setup over the slab Pearl available now and am looking forward to upgrading. I will try to do a review on the 8230 a few weeks after ownership to add to the site. In the meantime, I will continue to research for any new available info on the Alltel version of this phone.

[hubermania]

Agreed on the keyboard. I like the square keys on the Flip. They seem to be the largest ever keys on a BlackBerry. I can touch-type pretty good on the Flip with my thumbs. I looked at a regular Pearl in the store this weekend, and I found it difficult to type. I pecked on it with my thumbnails for a minute or so and concluded once again that the Flip was the right choice for me.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Teegunn]

I haven't had a chance to see a Flip 8230 in person yet, but from the reviews I have read the keyboard is bigger than the regular Pearl which is another reason I will opt for the flip. Just wish May 15th would get here so I can get mine!

[Teegunn]

Also, in reading several press releases about the Alltel version of this phone, it is hard to tell just what Alltell will be offering. Some press releases say it will be WIFI but have no GPS, some say no WIFI but GPS and some even say WIFI and GPS will both be included. I really want WIFI but also want GPS capabilities. Hopefully it will have both, but I doubt it.

[Removed]

Also, in reading several press releases about the Alltel version of this phone, it is hard to tell just what Alltell will be offering. Some press releases say it will be WIFI but have no GPS, some say no WIFI but GPS and some even say WIFI and GPS will both be included. I really want WIFI but also want GPS capabilities. Hopefully it will have both, but I doubt it.

From the Blackberry.com website (BlackBerry - BlackBerry | Wireless Handheld Devices, Software & Services from Research In Motion (RIM))

It clearly states that the 8230 does not have Wi-fi but it will have GPS and 3G. Sorry, it would have been great if it had both.

[Teegunn]

Thanks for that link and info! I think I'd rather have the GPS than the WIFI if given the choice, so it's not the end of the world, but yeah, having both woulda been nice.