I need a new cell phone - help me!
 

OK, my cell phone is seriously like 8 years old. Never updated it because it works fine and does what I needed it to do (make telephone calls).

Now I need a new phone. The main reason is I need something that makes calls, but also (1) do a lot of e-mailing (reading of e-mails and attachments, and writing responses, often lengthy, to e-mails), and (2) access the Internet. No. (1) is more important than (2).

I know nothing about these modern "smart phones." Zero.

So, I've thought about the iPhone, I guess because it looks kinda cool.

But my current provider is Verizon.

So I looked at Verizon to see what's out there:

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/store/controller?item=phoneFirst&action=viewStoreIndex&l id=//global//phones+and+accessories

Questions:

1. What's the difference between a PDA, Smartphone and Blackberry device? They look like they do the same things, why are they in different categories on the Verizon website?

2. It seems like for heavy e-mail use, it would be better than an iPhone to have one of the Verizon devices, particularly something like this one, which has a nice big QWERTY keyboard:

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/store/controller?item=phoneFirst&action=viewPhoneDetail& selectedPhoneId=3411

Seeing one of the posts in the other thread, about the real costs of a new $199 iPhone (it ends up being $2,000 for 2 years, on the cheapest voice/data plan), turned me off to that a bit. That's a lot of money. If the Verizon devices are a lot less expensive, that will do it for me.

Any suggestions, recommendations, thoughts on the various Verizon devices shown on their page? Or what I should look for, look out for, in this? Help me into the 21st century here.

For email use I say go with the dingle berry.

I know a guy who has the i7100 and he likes it. I also know a guy who got "the curve" he also likes it.

I have the Why-Phone

treo 750/755.

If you want a simple phone, not a "fancy phone" with lots of functions you'll never use, switch to ATT and get an iPhone.

I frequently use email, web, photos/camera, iPod, calendar and of course the phone. iPhone 2.0 brings 3G, GPS (and location based services) and the iTunes based applications store.

Yes, it is elegant and the UI is currently unmatched, IMO.

You'll just have to wait until July 7 . . . you won't be sorry, again IMO.

edit: You can also subscribe to Apple's new "MobileMe" service and get push based services for you calendar, phone directory, email . . .

Best,

I have a Pearl and love it. If you are going to do much email though you probably would prefer a curve or even hold out for a bold.
check out http://www.blackberryforums.com
there is more information there than you will ever need.

Jesse the body said the iphone sucks a$$!!

Dont start the revolution without me brother!!!

PDA, think personal organizer. Todo's, calendars etc...

Smartphone, think mini computer

BlackBerry, email monster You can get BlackBerry push on other devices these days so that opens your options. Had it on my Nokia E62 on AT&T.

Personally I would eval T-Mobile and AT&T plans.

Verizon is not GSM so the phones only work on their network.

GSM provider phones have a SIM allowing you to switch providers and keep your phone. Also convenient if you are out and your phone breaks. You can grab another SIM based phone, swap chips and make calls on your account. Some limits to that, other phone should be on the same network or unlocked.

i am verizon also. i got the EN2, and my good friend just got the glyde. both work great. his is faster, his screen bigger. he got the full vcast package and he is always checking email and web browsing.

T-Mobile offers Wifi compatible phones.
I use a Tmobile Blackberry Curve. It works great, connects to my emails, and uses my home wifi router at home (where coverage is typically weaker).

If you want something new, skip the Iphone and wait for the nicknamed g-phone in a few months.. (aka android)

T-Mobile offers Wifi compatible phones.
I use a Tmobile Blackberry Curve. It works great, connects to my emails, and uses my home wifi router at home (where coverage is typically weaker).

If you want something new, skip the Iphone and wait for the nicknamed g-phone in a few months.. (aka android)

I had the predecessor to that 6800. It's a good phone. The qwerty keys are nice but I found that I used the hand-writting recognition for faster input. Because of that I switched to the smaller version, the XV6900. (it's the HTC Touch for other carriers) After discounts and rebates, it was only $150.

Getting used to the touch-screen for inputs takes a while. But with the HTC phones you can use a stylus for precise selection, or writing. --unlike the finger-only sensing of the iPhone.

Of course, if you want to be able to type w/o looking, you'll need hard keys. --like a Treo or crackberry.

Anyway, I've been happy with the Verizon Touch (xv6900). Also, I do use the voice tags a lot. --both for contacts and launching app's.

Crackberry. (this message sent from my iPhone)

http://wmexperts.com/reviews/smackdowns/htc_touch_vs_iphone_part_2_vid.html ..for a very balanced review of the Touch and iPhone.

New version of the iPhone coming out soon, $200...

Or just get a phone that has bluetooth support (not crippled) and a Nokia 810 for mail, web, etc. thru the phone's connection

I have Verizon and love my Samsung SCHi-760. It has the slide out keyboard, touch screen AND tactile dialing buttons on the face. The tactile buttons are a must in my opinion. Dialing without looking is not easy with the touch screen. It's been very rugged as I'm hard on phones. It has WiFi, and 3G. A full browser, etc..

I don't put it in a case, I just throw it in my front pocket ewith my keys and whatever else, no scratches on the screen at all. If I hadn't gone this route I would have gotten the Pearl, as it's a nice small package.

http://www.unlimitedcomplimentaryrin...04/schi760.jpg

I have a Blackberry Pearl and like it. My only complaints are a smallish screen and keys, but it also easily fits in a pocket. Unlimited data and push e-mail is only $19.99/mo extra with T-Mobile, cheapest I've seen. It's an unlocked AT&T phone, allowing me to switch providers at my whim.

iPhone UI is unmatched, however. I picked up my brother-in-law's iPhone and was easily able to navigate it's menus and functions, no questions asked. To fully master my Pearl took a bit of reading online. Whatever you get, make sure it has the QWERTY keyboard. The bigger the keys, the easier it is to type. Shop around, go play with a few. You'll figure out what you like pretty quick.

Edit: once you have one, you'll wonder how you survived without it.

Since Matt mentioned it, the smart-phones are little PC's, so if you are familiar with a PC the menus make perfect sense and navigation is the same. It runs Windows. BlackBerry is it's own little world (though a good one I'm told).

One more thing, in the end these things are phones first and foremost so look for one with the highest rating for phone performance. What tipped the scales for me was that the SCHi760 was rated very high as a phone, many of the muti-taskers are rated poorly as a phone.

CNet has very good reviews/ratings of PDAs and smartphones. Another good place for research. Ditto to what Len said, don't forget that it has to work as a phone.

I just got a Palm Centro and so far I am very happy with it. I've used Palm PDA's in the past so I was already used to that aspect of it. The keyboard is way small though, so if you're doing a lot of e-mail's it might be tough.

I can't believe how nice it is to have my e-mail and calendar right there. I loved my old Palm in that regard, but it was a pain to sync, and it wasn't 'real-time'. This is VERY nice.

http://www.palminfocenter.com/ss.asp...centro-1-l.jpg

[/IMG]http://www.palminfocenter.com/ss.asp?f=palm-centro-1-l.jpg[/IMG]

Fixed it for ya.

Tho' if hard buttons are needed, definately go with Lendaddys recommendation . .. the Samsung SCHi-760. Great phone, and you stay with Verizons great coverage.

It depends on what you want the phone for. Blackberries are best for people who primarily use it for email. It doesn't do documents very well and I don't think they do calendars or surf the web well.

The Treo synchs to Outlook so it is good for keeping your calendar, it does email easily, almost as well as the Blackberry, and it can be used to email and edit Word documents. I like it because I can be out of the office and receive a document, PDF or Word, and open it and read it (if I squint a little) and see what it is. You don't really want to write big word documents on it, but you can. You can surf the internet, but it's not real fast.

My sense is that the iPhone is more for people who surf the web a lot, need a media player, and do emailing without documents, but I am not very familiar with it.

I have the Treo 755p. It is the newer Palm version of the Treo that doesn't have the big external antena. I use it to keep my calendar, send and receive emails, organize pictures and some documents, and it gets good reception. I think it's the best all-around business-oriented PDA/smartphone available right now, but the new iPhone looks promising.

Blackberry curve, 8310 AT&T. Does it all. Good phone, good reception, good phone features, + camera, email, GPS, web stuff (i don't use this feature), and more. Good size, good display, good batt life. No Apple Taxes necessary...:cool:

MRM, my BB Pearl syncs easily to my Outlook calendar. If you like, you can also import contacts, etc. From the box it won't open MS Office or .pdf files, but there's a number of programs that allow you to do so.

I have yet to see a phone that is good for surfing the web. Many phones can do it, and the iPhone is the best I've seen . . .but it still sucks for actual surfing. --2 fundamental problems: the screen, and the input. An HVGA screen is only 320x480, which pushes the iphone to the top of the heap, for viewing the web, compared to the QVGA screens of most other web phones. But, still sucks. --the zoom out to fuzzy-over-view feature helps a bit, but still sucks. And then the iPhone only allows basic/crude inputs . ..you can't even select text on a page to be copied/searched for, or to copy into another document. ...and of course, the qewerty keyboard all thumbs.

If you want heavy web surfing in a small device, get a Nokia N800 or N810 (and a simple phone for phone calls) . .2.5 times more screen than an iPhone, and can handle Flash, etc... (real web content)

Sounds like I should check out a blackberry curve.

The last thing I want is email on my phone. If you agree then just get a rugged Samsung phone, or ask the sales personnel at the cellphone store.

I was suprised how many phones were desrcribde 'high return rate' when I bought my last cellphone.

Lendaddy's phone does look pretty sweet. It seems like it's what I need. What I really need is as much of a mobile office (with Internet) as possible - i.e., a mini WiFi laptop. Plus, Lendaddy's my boy, I know he wouldn't steer me wrong. I'll go over to Verizon today and check it out and let you know.

(Although Starnes is my boy too, and he really likes the iPhone, so I'll go and check that out too).

I would indeed not steer you wrong (as far as you know) :D

Seriously though, the Samsung is indeed a mobile office. It even comes with Excell/Word/Powerpoint., etc...

I even have an app on it so I can operate my PC at work from it just like I'm sitting at it ala gotomypc.

But if a big tree falls on it....

. . all of your work/info will be safe on your main computer.

--that's the idea ...the Pocket-PC phones are like a mini-me to your main cmptr. My old 6700 would sync once I walked into the office (WiFi) the newer ones use EvDO to constantly sync live from where ever.

The 10-key on that Samsung really helps it be a traditional phone. (the xv6800 is missing that nice extra)

Of course, it should also be noted; you could just use a real computer and a verizon EvDO card. THere are a lot of UMPC's (Ultra mobile PC) to chose from. Like I've said, This whole idea that every thing happen on such a little screen, with little buttons (phones)is limiting in thru-put. --both in and out. THe UMPC's help lessen both problems (and have faster processors) with the 'cost' of being physically bigger.

I've thought about an UMPC, but I really need to carry it on me at all times, so it needs to fit in my pocket.

Otherwise I'd have to get a man bag . . . and we've already discussed that.

Some smart phones and BBs can be used as a mobile modem for a laptop. I know my Pearl can be, and it's by no means cutting edge. It gives you a nice option for the full computer experience.

lol .... maybe you just need bigger pockets. :cool:

fwiw, I use a Samsung Q1U UMPC when I travel. It's very minimal in size, (even fits in to a few pockets) but it is fully functional. It makes for a better GPS, a better web & email function; offloads pictures, edits them, posts them . . .

Phones are doing a lot these days, but they are like viewing the world thru a straw, and on-screen or slideout keyboards are all thumbs. As long as you know/expecty the compromises, the 'smartphones' are great to have.

what sucks with using your phone as a modem is that now most carriers require you to spend anothe $20 to $40 a month for that ability even though the phone is perfectly capable

wow. same cell phone for 8 years. wow. I know of banks, houses, and marriages that don't last that long. I read somewhere that the average life of a cell phone is about 14 months. I have more chargers than ex-girlfriends, which is why when I go cell phone shopping, I say "show me something that doesn't play little girl music when someone calls me". That, and the fact that I don't like to "type" by pushing little chicklets gum pieces, which usually leads me to something black, flip to talk, and costs around $40 with a talk plan.

You need to describe a little more about HOW you plan use the device.

If you want something where you can do one handed, or not need a surface to type, you need a Blackberry or a Treo.

The "lengthy" portion of the description says to me you plan more to do the typing on a surface, to replace bring out the laptop. This sounds more like a Windows Mobile platform. I really like the look of the AT&T Tilt.

Reading attachments, The Treo and the WM will do the attachements better than a Blackberry.

Wifi - Treo does not have. Nor does it have 3G, so it is slow web-browsing.

Wifi - The Blackberry Curve and the AT&T Tilt have it. And the Curve doubles as a VOIP phone.

3G - The Tilt has it, so you have high speed network anywhere.

Over-seas Travel? Get a GSM phone.

I didn't hear you have an iPod, so I will discount the iPhone. Lengthy e-mails and attachments, are not iPhone friendly.

How I will use it - basically as a portable office to read and respond to e-mails, which may often include attachments, and to look info up on the Internet that I need to get while "on the scene." I don't need to use it one handed, finding a surface is fine.

No overseas travel.

I do have an iPod and of course iTunes. To be honest, I don't use it all that much, but it would be kinda cool to have all the songs on the phone.

I won't have hugely long e-mails to read and respond to, but more than one liners. Stuff around the length of your post would be average. But they need to be "proper" e-mails - fully written out words, properly spelled, proper punctuation and spacing, etc.

I meant to go to Verizon today to look at Lendaddy's unit (har har), but will have to do it tomorrow.