[Affiliated]

I thought I would be a CrackBerry addict for life but recently switched to iPhone and can definitely say that each has its pros/cons. I spent one year on a BB Pearl 8120 and then 3 weeks with a BB Curve 8520. After 3 weeks on the 8520, I returned it and switched to ATT and got an iPhone.....but in many ways I miss my BlackBerry experience.

My chief problem was that I was with TMobile and get no reception in my house and was 100% reliant on wifi/UMA calling. Over the past month, my wifi network kept crashing which left my BB inoperable. I was also frustrated about not having 3G service, albeit, T Mobile just turned on 3G in my city about 2 weeks ago but it is only in limited areas. I've been holding out for an eventual 3G BlackBerry but it still isn't clear if the pending 3G Blackberry for TMobile with have UMA. Without UMA, I can't use the phone. So far, no TMobile 3G phones have UMA so I am guessing that the new BlackBerry won't either.

So I bit the bullet and switched to ATT and have great reception. Decided to give iPhone a try, mainly because I wanted the superior internet experience and large screen. As great as BB is for many things, for internet, it sucks (compared to iPhone, Palm Pre, or Android). So far, I am pleased with the iPhone, primarily for its super user friendly UI and superior internet experience BUT this comes at a COST. It's email system, while adequate, is nowhere near as efficient as BB (though the emails and SMS look far better on an iPhone, especially the threaded SMS). Also.....talk about poor battery life. My BB could always make it through an entire day without needing charging and rarely did I ever completely drain the battery (though the BB did get charged every night at bedtime). With the iPhone, by the time I get home from work, it has to go on the charger. (Granted my BBs were EDGE only and I am using 3G on my iPhone).

With regards to keyboard, I was coming from a Pearl and Curve 8520, so the move to the iPhone keyboard was easy and I actually like it better. But compared to a Bold or Tour keyboard, the BB wins. I really was unhappy with the Curve 8520 keyboard. The buttons were far too small, too close together, and required too much effort to press. They were very "clicky" and after marathon email sessions I sometimes found my hands cramping up.

So for now, I will stick with iPhone, until I get the new phone bug in about one year and we will see what BB models are available at that time.

[Affiliated]

P.s. Verizon doesn't work from my house either, nothing but dropped calls so I couldn't get a 3G CDMA BlackBerry. Sprint works okay, but I've had bad customer service experiences with Sprint in the past and wasn't yet willing to give them a third chance, though I understand that ATT's customer service doesn't fare much better. T Mobile was tops with customer service and of all the mobile phone providers I've been with, T Mobile was my favorite....if only it had a tower closer to my house.

[Champer]

ATT has great reception and Verizon drops your calls? Do you live near a black hole? :P

[Affiliated]

Actually I live in a valley surrounded by dormant Volcanic mountains on one of the Hawaiian Islands. Overall, ATT has better coverage here relative to Verizon. Also, in a previous state that I lived in a very rural area, ATT (then Cingular) also had far more extensive coverage than Verizon. Overall, it really depends on where one lives. I had Verizon (then GTE Wireless) for several years in Northern CA and they were top notch.

[juliankueh]

Good luck with the iphone, buddy. It's BB for me. Thank goodness all our carriers in Australia are 2G and 3G providers except the one I'm with, 3 Australia. They're primarily 3G but they roam onto Telstras 2G network, which has the best urban and rural coverage.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com