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View Full Version : Giving up the addiction-Help me please


FroogleThis
05-03-2007, 05:07 PM
Hi everyone!

I have been a Blackberry user for 3-4 years now, and I have to say it was very good to me---for the little that it had to do. I've stuck with them because of the ease of use as an "End-User". But, I'm a little more "Technologically Inclined" these days than most of the corporate end-users, and I am tired of the scroll-wheel, boring interface/applications, and the relatively-unchanging simplicity that bleeds from almost every BB device. This is in no way an insult to RIM or Blackberry users. There are those of us who prefer the stable/simple technology, and those of us who have the time/interest/psychosis to delve into more risky, possibly-unstable technology. Which is in reference to the things I've read on the previous Palm/PPC's, newer upgrades seem to be much more stable in the right application.

A Little Personal Info:
Well, I am currently with Sprint (in the Northern-Virginia area), and have only been with them for 2 weeks. I purchased my 8703e with a 2 year contract through them, but I have 2 weeks to return/exchange the Blackberry for another Sprint phone. I have perfect signal strength at home and work (where others do not), so I won't be leaving Sprint.

Options:
There's only two way's I'm going with this:

-Palm Treo 700wx
or
-Blackberry 8703e (Current Device)

Absolute Requisites:
Here's what I use my Blackberry for, and absolutely need with the Treo 700wx (Color Coding is used for relevance to the questions at the end):

Push-Email/Contacts/Calendar:
I use a Hosted-Exchange service, Link2Exchange (absolutely amazing people and service). This is my current 'structure', for lack of a better term:
-My company email, you@<hidden>, is on an Exchange 2000 box(I think, there's a small chance it's Exchange 2k3).

-This email address, which I'll call my "official" email address, is forwarded to my Link2Exchange email address, which I'll call "L2E", as well as used for my BES Reply-To/Activation service.

-"official" email is retained as a copy on the server, L2E email is sent to my RPC-Configured Outlook 2007 Client, and pushed to my Blackberry. I only log into my "official" email to clean it up, once a month or so. L2E email is always in view and maintained, and kept under 400mb.

[I]Phone Use:
I use the phone very little, but Speakerphone is a must, which from what I read, works very well on the 700wx. I don't use Bluetooth headsets at all.

[I]Remote Desktop Connection:
I currently use the RDM+ application to remote into my office once in a while. It's not critical, but every little bit helps.

How You Can Help:
Well, as I stated above, I need more than RIM will give me, so I'd like to go to the Treo, but only if it won't affect my Requisites, as these functions are relatively vital to what I do.

If any of you are still reading this essay of a post, and have a moment to give me your thoughts, I would greatly appreciate it.

Here are my questions regarding the Treo 700wx. Please, be honest. If you are simply a Fan-Boy attempting to sell another handset to spite RIM/PALM, take into consideration that it's coming out of my pocket. If it were on the company's dime, I'd have bought it and not researched so much. :p

Question 1. How reliable is Good Mobile Messaging (GoodLink), as opposed to ActiveSync? GoodLink claims to be "True-Push", but ActiveSync also claims to be Push. Is ActiveSync the same thing as EAS? I'd like to conserve battery time, but speed of delivery is imperative, due to the volume and type of work I do. Do either of these have any effects on the performance/normal operation of the 700wx? (Note: My office doesn't currently utilize EAS as far as I know,but they may be able to. If possible, please comment on EAS' performance in comparison if you know of it)

Question 2. How reliable is the speakerphone and earpiece on the 700wx? What about the overall performance/quality of calls? Anyone experience any problems that would prevent device use?

Question 3.Remote Desktop is used every now and then, but I guess it's the one thing I could live without. Anyone have experience with a specific 700wx application that they would suggest?

Additional Questions:
What is your overall opinion of the Treo 700wx in comparison to the Blackberry 8700-series? (Feel free to speak your mind, even if you haven't personally used a Blackberry)

Do you consider your Treo 700w or 700wx reliable? How many shutdowns/resets/lockouts/BSOD's do you get on average, and do you have any mods/applications that might cause this?

Thank you so much for any help/advice you can provide.

Regards,
Anthony