[Radius]

One of my favorite stories concerns my last employer. No one inside the building got very good cell coverage (most used AT&T). Getting any connectivity in my boss's office was just impossible. Then T-Mobile launched UMA calling. My boss's office was next to the computer room and of course there was a router in there. I got a UMA capable BlackBerry and all of a sudden, I was always able to get crystal clear cell-phone coverage anywhere in the building including the boss's office where no one else could.

3G? Fergetttt about it. I'll be happy to accept 3G as something extra on my phone but I'd never give up UMA for 3G. Not in a million years.

Actually this is the #1 reason I am getting UMA. My office is essentially a concrete bunker lined with steel pipes and cables. No reception in the building at all but a plethora of wireless access points.

I am really looking forward to it.

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[boomhower1820]

To me wifi is pretty much useless. I have wifi at my house, but there I am using my laptop. There are a couple hotspots around town but they are few and far between. I don't have wifi at work but I spend 95% of my time outside the office anyways. On the other hand I have excellent EVDO coverage in the town I live in and the town I work in.

Wifi certainly has it uses for some people. UMA in areas of poor coverage are certainly one of them. Traveling oversees is another.

Anyone else notice that wifi phones are more popular on carriers with spottier 3G coverage(AT&T and T-Mobile) than on the CDMA carriers with much broader coverage?

Personally I don't understand why both are not offered on all but the low end models. The chips are not that expensive and for the prices we are paying it should be in there.

[larrygump]

The real acid test of this might be proven shortly.

T-Mobile is said to be nearing the release of the 3G Driftwood which allegedly will NOT have UMA.

Given the choice to stay with my terrific 8900 without 3G or go to a new Driftwood without UMA, my decision is a no-brainer.

I'll stick with my 8900 every day of the week.

I'm with you on this......although 3G is fantastic and all......WiFi is still the untapped commodity.........

[berryite]

Shatner is a big thumbs down anyway.

Now look here! If you keep that up, you're not going to get any cheap hotel rooms any time soon buddy!

LOL (j/k).

[berryite]

Actually this is the #1 reason I am getting UMA. My office is essentially a concrete bunker lined with steel pipes and cables. No reception in the building at all but a plethora of wireless access points.

I am really looking forward to it.

You'll love it!

And it will completely p*iss off your colleagues who use AT&T and Verizon.

___

Editing the message because I just realized you are in Canada and you don't have AT&T and Verizon there.

It will mystify your co-workers who don't have UMA.

[Devlyn16]

Anyone want to compare Apples and Oranges?

[PGHammer]

in my honest opinion, i've to say thats the silliest commonest thing i've heard
yet i do agree people value wifi... blindly.
wifi is touted to be such a requirement for a phone, that a phone without wifi is useless.. but coverage wise, 3G > wifi. especially 3G with BIS

wifi isnt available anywhere and everywhere.. at most only at macdonald's, starbucks, some other hotspots, and at home..

what about transiting time? on the trains and buses and cars?

i could do without wifi, have not enabled it even at home with wifi network readily available

WiFi is valuable if you hang out in hotspots or have a router at home (and you don't want to chew up your minutes). WiFi is also avilable in major bookstores (Barnes and Noble in the US is the biggest non-Starbucks hotspotter). Considering I have VZW, I could care less about 3G.

Also, home users are exactly *why* wifi is valuable. If you're cell-only (or have the misfortune of living in or near a dead spot), wifi can be more valuable than a service like T-Mobile's HotSpot@Home.

[Xpimp]

I actually like both and think they both have there pros and cons.

3G good when i need to surf when I'm out and about, while sacrificing battery life at the same time.

WiFi is almost 90% on whenever I'm home, better battery life and faster internet speeds then 3G.

[8220]

in my honest opinion, i've to say thats the silliest commonest thing i've heard
yet i do agree people value wifi... blindly.
wifi is touted to be such a requirement for a phone, that a phone without wifi is useless.. but coverage wise, 3G > wifi. especially 3G with BIS

wifi isnt available anywhere and everywhere.. at most only at macdonald's, starbucks, some other hotspots, and at home..

what about transiting time? on the trains and buses and cars?

i could do without wifi, have not enabled it even at home with wifi network readily available

To not take advantage of unlimited calling to me is in valuable. It saves me from being tied to regular calling plans with unlimited day/night restrictions. I make a lot of nation wide calls during the early mornings and to not have that take minutes off the plan is a serious plus.

During the day out in the field EDGE kicks in and I use the phone freely knowing that I will never ever go over my minutes, during the evening I switch over to UMA and all calls are free 24/7 whenever I'm @ home.

15.00 Netgear router. (Newegg)
94.00 8220 flip. (Costco)
9.95 WiFi Hotspot unlimited calling. (family plan)

I'd say Im getting away with murder in the 1st degree here.

[AisforAustin]

I can do with out wifi on my phone but if the option is there I will take advantage of it.

[T�nis]

Still can't seem to catch that wifi signal when I'm on the highway ... or on the backroad ... or at the park. But I will give it this: wifi works great when I'm in my home on my laptop. I suppose if I worked in a bunker that had wifi and no 3G, I'd definitely appreciate a wifi feature (in addition to the 3G I use everywhere else) on my Bb.And I would probably be frustrated if I had no way to connect. I would probably even bring my wifi enabled laptop if the berry didn't have wifi capability. But I certainly wouldn't trade in my 3G Bb for a non-3G wifi Bb.

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[dwaynewilliams#WN]

Still can't seem to catch that wifi signal when I'm on the highway ... or on the backroad ... or at the park. But I will give it this: wifi works great when I'm in my home on my laptop. I suppose if I worked in a bunker that had wifi and no 3G, I'd definitely appreciate a wifi feature (in addition to the 3G I use everywhere else) on my Bb.And I would probably be frustrated if I had no way to connect. I would probably even bring my wifi enabled laptop if the berry didn't have wifi capability. But I certainly wouldn't trade in my 3G Bb for a non-3G wifi Bb.

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EDGE works just fine doesn't it?