Is there any difference between the 8700v and 8700g, other than exterior colors and branding? I'm moving to NZ from the states and may either be gettin g an 8100 or an 8700*.

So for my purposes, is the 8700v and the 8700g practically the same?

Other than the looks of the cases, they are identical.

I have an 8700v. Besides the case color differences mentioned above, my 8700v originated in Germany. Hence the keyboard is not a QWERTY but a QWERTZ (Z & Y positions interchanged). Please be aware of where your 8700v originates.

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8700/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/100)

If you purchase a 8700g from tmo, make sure you unlock it before you use a gsm sim from any of the nz's wireless carriers. Other than the provider specific os and the housing, and one is locked to tmo (and not sure the v is locked to the originated provider (vodafone)). They are the same in terms of the hardware spec.

You also should see what system is in use in NZ and whether the carriers there will allow a US phone to operate ontheir network.