OK Need help about to sign a 2 year contract and want to make the right move. I am a current Sprint Customer about to upgrade to a Blackberry. Our company has a Blackberry server. Should I stay with Sprint or switch to Cingular? Which network is better/reliable? Our company uses Lotus notes if that helps the decsion process. I am torn between the Sprint Blackberry 7130e and the Cingular Blackberry Pearl or Cingular Blackberry 8800?

thank you

I would check both of their coverage maps and see if they both have great coverage in your area. I have Cingular right now it seems to work fine, in my area Cingular is much better then Sprint. But it all depends on where you are.

Cingular .. Newer phones, international support.

I just recently left Sprint to go to Cingular.

the ability to alter your account and the phone selection is supremely better. network is the same out here, but the support you receive and the options you have in relation to newer phones is much nicer with Cingular.

In my world, Cingular is the better choice of the two.

I would agree with the other readers, that Cingular is the way togo. I was a long long time Sprint customer then after one too many billing issues I switched to Cingular and never looked back. Better phones, GSM is a better world technology, and the coverage seems the same for me in Los Angeles...

Wirelessly posted (NakedBerry: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows 98; PalmSource/Palm-D052; Blazer/4.5) 16;320x320)

Let the coverage be the deciding factor. All things being equal, go for the phone you like the best. For the Pearl or 8800, Cingular (New at&t). 7130, Sprint.

Sprint also offers the 8703.

Los Angeles has had much improvement over the years... I used to travel up there all the time from San Diego and I have friends up there. They said it's a lot better now.

Here's a recent article: 257 new cell sites in Los Angeles expansion


Bradley

GSM carriers will be the first to receive new Blackberry models if that matters to you. You can also change your device at any time without customer service intervention with a GSM carrier.

However, you should pick your carrier primarily based on coverage. Don't rely on coverage maps (not even the street level maps). If you can't find someone using the carrier you're considering in your area then make the most of the carrier's trial period and make sure that you have coverage where you need it.

My vote goes for Cingular also. My company just recently told me I could get a Blackberry and after looking at coverages and talking with my co-workers, Cingular won. I also wanted a Pearl and I knew that Sprint will not get that(I'd by shocked if they got the 8800 by this time next year) considering their history for poor choice of phones. Also, since I'm in the middle of the country where Cingular coverage has been around for quite a while, I knew that I'd be moving to equal coverage if not better than Sprint. I've been with Sprint for 10 years now and had good service, but as of the end of this week, we're parting ways.

Sprint also has GPS telenav built into their plan for the 8703e, which is why I went with them. I used to be on Cingular, and honestly find all the companies and their 2 year contract pushing to be irritating. That said, I went with Sprint since they have GPS, and I got them to offer me a good deal.

In terms of coverage, Cingular and Verizon are tops, followed by Sprint and T-Mobile. But it really depends on where you are and where you use the phone. CDMA carriers such as Sprint and Verizon cannot be used outside of the US except in very few Central American and Caribbean countries.

Sprint and Verizon have the same coverage.

No way. Verizon offers US wide whereas Sprint has a much more limited area, particularly along the major Interstates and metro areas. plus they do not roam on each others network. Sprint works in the Caribbean, Verizon does not.

I have a friend with Sprint and he has to use my phone when we are out of Sprint coverage. The only reason he keeps Sprint is that is the only service that works at his house (and he works from home).

Sprint completely roams on VZ voice and 1x data. I don't know of any place where VZ works where Sprint doesn't.

VT, NH, ME, MA. Shall I continue?

Cingular offers GSM phones with sim cards, just like the rest of the world.

CDMA is older technology that will not be around in the future.

Cingular and T-Mobile have moved away from CDMA/TDMA a long time ago, and now have acccess to the widest variety of phones.

Cingular is rolling out 3G service which means that the speed that you may connect to the internet is very fast, much faster than EVDO. Shortly after Cingular completes the 3G network they will then provide 3.5G which is the fastest access, and web pages will load as fast as broadband on your PC, or Laptop.

Cingular is the best now and in the future.

Hi - i just read through this i am already with Cingular and love them - BUT customer service is not always so honest...today i've had three different people give me three different responses on the new 8800 and if it is 3G or not - you can imagine what i've heard already
SOme yes some no some dont know...just to sell a phone...
I've been searching for the 8707v unlocked -
other than the fact that it will not be covered if something breaks -
the basic question is - WILL IT WORK IF I PURCHASE ONE SAY ON EBAY ETC - OVERSEAS, AND JUST CONNECT AND ENTER IMEI ETC....
if you could email me back a response is great please!

I think you mean to say that GSM is Old technology. As I am sure you know that GSM has been around for a Very Long time, Cingular used to be TDMA which had to upgradablity, thus Cingular decided to start using the already in place GSM Network that was being used for European Roming.

CDMA Technology is more expensive to build and maintain. Either way Cingular and Verizon are the 2 Best Carriers. Unless you are an Executive or someone that travels overseas on a regualr basis they both will give you the same result.

Does that mean we could just leapfrog over RevA to get 3G?