I am out in the boondocks this weekend and can only get a GPRS connection. I have noticed that my battery is pretty much dead after one afternoon. I know that since GPRS is slower it only makes since that it would require more packets to be sent and received but has anyone else seen this behavior?

Thanks in advance for your responses.
Doug

I've been on a GPRS all weekend when normally I'm on an EDGE signal at my house and I haven't noticed any difference in battery drain. Maybe if you're out in the boon docks, you're on the edge of the signal coverage. Many people have said if the BB is searching for service, that will drain battery faster.

If the signal's weak a GSM/GPRS device will up it's transmitter power up to 100x in order to try and keep a connection to a tower. Battery life then suffers. If signal strength is OK, so is the battery life.

If it's still 'on the edge' of a decent connection, retries will just make matters worse. But at least your email should get through in the end!

Weak signal will definately cause the battery to drain faster. Be aware though. I believe there are some bad 8700 batteries out there. I am on my second already. The first one all of a sudden would only power my phone for about 3 hours. Just received a new one and can go several days without recharging again.