Thinking of getting a Blackberry but cannot work out how the Internet access works...

Hi :) I'm little tired of Android, so I thought my next device gotta be a Blackberry 9900, But beforehand, I did lots of searches about how the Internet access works on Blackberry, turned out that multiple sources explain it differently.

My typical usage of Blackberry will be GTalk and Gmail, web browsing, playing little games. About 1/4 time of each year I have to stay in China with my family so I considered a hosted BES as my Internet access solution (cause of Internet restrictions in mainland China), since all Internet traffic will be routed to BES.

I primary use Internet by Wifi (80% of the time), occasionally use mobile network.

There are few questions which I have with a BES connection:
Mobile network company needs to know it when I need BES connection, so I definitely have to pay for BB data plan when connecting to BES by Mobile network.
What if I'm connected to WIFI? Does BES traffic go through WIFI instead of mobile network?
What if I do not buy for mobile network data and only use Internet by WIFI? is BES still gonna work by WIFI only?
Is BES still gonna work when I have SIM card removed and only connect to WIFI?
How does an application determine whether to use BIS, BES or ordinary network?

BES and BB internet connection has been the most confusing part for me to understand Blackberry...

thank you indeed!

There are few questions which I have with a BES connection:
Mobile Network Company needs to know it when I need BES connection, so I definitely have to pay for BB data plan when connecting to BES by Mobile network.

A – You will want to use BES Express. The data connection does not matter on the express and you will have all you need. It is also free, where the non-express is going to cost.

What if I'm connected to WIFI? Does BES traffic go through WIFI instead of mobile network?

A – If you are on WIFI all newer models will pick up the WIFI first then mobile second. You can also set the BB to automatically deactivate the mobile network on roaming. My company, where I am the IT manager has many users that trip to China and the mobile costs are very high, about a dollar per email. It is best to either deactivate the mobile network or unlock the BB and get a local sim card with a data plan.

What if I do not buy for mobile network data and only use Internet by WIFI? is BES still gonna work by WIFI only?

A – If you have a Bold 9700 or a Torch 9800 then yes, these will run BES via wifi. Older unites will not. You also want to be on version 6.0 for the software.

Is BES still gonna work when I have SIM card removed and only connect to WIFI?

A - See above. The sim, phone number or connection type does not matter as the BB uses the pin as the device identity.

How does an application determine whether to use BIS, BES or ordinary network?

A – It just knows, you wouldn’t ask superman how he flies would you? :D

Thank you Pinkert11, This really is a very good read and very well written. I did not know that BES would work on Wi-Fi on OS 6.0 devices! Nice to know that.

I set-up the BES express server on an older pc in the basement. Then I downloaded the gmail plug-in and I run my wifes BB on it. She gets realtime email, calendar sync and contacts. It also syncs perfectly to her outlook client with a bit of rigging. In the next week or so I will be adding her parents and siblings on to the BES with their gmail accounts as well. Once done, they will have group calendar views and contacts as well. You can't beat the power of BES.

Google connector: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/appsconnector

Originally Posted by pinkert11

I set-up the BES express server on an older pc in the basement. Then I downloaded the gmail plug-in and I run my wifes BB on it. She gets realtime email, calendar sync and contacts. It also syncs perfectly to her outlook client with a bit of rigging. In the next week or so I will be adding her parents and siblings on to the BES with their gmail accounts as well. Once done, they will have group calendar views and contacts as well. You can't beat the power of BES.

Are you doing this with the paid google apps service or is this working with the basic free google email, calendar, etc.? This definitely seems like a great route to follow even if you have to pay for the google apps functionality given the minimal hosting charges from google for small accounts.