[RichTJ99]

Hi,

Right now I am using a Nextel I730 phone & also tend to carry around (but forget it sometimes) a Tmobile sidekick. The device service is pretty inexpensive (30 per month for unlimited data), only holds 6 megs of data, and as I am sure you all heard is unsecure as all heck!

My main issue is I hate carrying around two devices. Thats why most of the time I leave the sidekick at home.

The main function for me is email (I have 3 main accounts I check daily). I use the device for business. If you leave me a voicemail at work, it emails me a notification, so I know to call my voicemail (I do not have a pager anymore - thats what the sidekick was for).

Some grips about the sidekick:

Web is not usable (too slow)
Email only holds 6 megs
Cant do much with attachments
Not enough applications to keep me busy
Security issues with T-mobile
AIM is weak (bounces on & off) plus its clunky


Pro's

4 email accounts at once!
Auto grabbing emails
Email layout with various folders is nice


The service area for me with the sidekick is fine, its just that there are so many downtimes, the email works great but that is all that really works well.

I wish there was a java app that would let me "play" online with a blackberry to see if its for me.

I assume it would be much much bulkier than my I730 & also the sidekick.

How is the "web" on the blackberry, is it usable or slow as all heck & timeouts all over the place?

Any ideas if I would be happy making a swap from the sidekick to the blackberry?

Thanks,
Rich

[sbagdan]

I think you would be.... Unless IM is a MOJOR part of your daily use, the BLackberry should replace it NO PROBLEM!!!

Just my 2 Cents!

[gator2418]

I think you will be very happy. I got tired of the svc being down and the web browser to slow. So i decided to step up my game and Got the BlackBerry 7520 thru nextel this is a real Grown Man Gadget

[finch]

You'll never look back!

[stonent]

Remember SMS isn't really an option with the Nextel Blackberries.
You can send via teleflip, but if you get an SMS you won't know who it came from.

BTW you can set up multiple mail accounts with your blackberry.

[Mark Rejhon]

Here's some links that may convince you:
Why BlackBerry?

And here's some useful info:
BlackBerry FAQ

Even though BlackBerries are sometimes more expensive than Hiptop/sidekick, don't forget that BlackBerries has more free software applications available than (BlackChat ICQ, BBLight, BBToday, Berry411, jmIRC, midpssh, etc). On top of the existing great pay applications that has free trail versions available (Verichat, Idokorro, etc.).

Just make sure you get one of the newer BlackBerry models with screens that are just as colorful as the Hiptop/Sidekick, and in many cases, better looking graphics:
BlackBerry 7250, 7520, 7290, 7100

[Mark Rejhon]

In answer to your questions:

1. Problem: Web is not usable (too slow)
   Solution: For the fastest BlackBerry web experience, you should make sure you have one of the newer 32 megabyte BlackBerries. You should install the third-party Reqwireless Webviewer from http://www.reqwireless.com ... which is usually faster than the built-in BlackBerry browser. In general, thids web browser is much better and faster than the Hiptop/Sidekick browser, although you may need to turn off a few features to minimize download bandwidth.
   
2. Problem: Email only holds 6 megs
   Solution: There's 10 megabytes in most BlackBerry accounts, but you can usually request a free upgrade to 25 megabytes. Alternatively, you can purchase unlimited email space using a third party BES/MDS hosting provider. For more info, see Hosted BES FAQ.
   
3. Problem: Cant do much with attachments
   Solution: BlackBerry on BWC now supports PDF, DOC, XLS, TXT, JPG, PNG, TIFF file attachments. The BWC will convert it to a fast-downloading format, like downconverting the JPG to a smaller size. You can even have 1 gigabyte of images and you can still download them on demand through your BlackBerry. Recently, you are finally now able to view images on BlackBerry without needing BES. And even better, if you are a power user, you may become interested in a free software program called "eFile" from Dynoplex that provides a filesystem for BlackBerries, if you like to copy images back and fourth over the USB cable.
   
4. Problem: Not enough applications to keep me busy
   Solution: You're in luck! During year 2004, the BlackBerry software market exploded, and now you have over 1,000 applications compatible with BlackBerry. Some of my favourites are listed in BlackBerry Killer Software thread, BlackBerry PowerToys thread, and you can even install Nokia, Motorola, Siemens, SonyEricsson Java midlet apps on a BlackBerry nowadays!
   
5. Problem: Security issues with T-mobile
   Solution: You're in luck! BlackBerry is one of the safest mobile platforms available, and if you are using BES within your company, your email/PIM is always encrypted all the way between your company and BlackBerry during wireless PIM sync. No worries about Paris Hilton and her stolen Hiptop/Sidekick addressbook! In fact, you can even stick with T-Mobile, since you will be bypassing their addressbook system.
   
6. Problem: AIM is weak (bounces on & off) plus its clunky
   Solution: It should now be finally better on BlackBerry than Hiptop. Verichat is a very elegant program that's very simple and non-clunky. It was not until recently that improved IM software has finally made BlackBerry a more reliable IM platform than a Hiptop/Sidekick (At least if you are using BES/MDS, which is more reliable than either BWC gateway or Hiptop gateway). When you use BlackBerry Verichat/WebMessenger, it's finally reliable enough to be used as an always-on device. Personally, I successfully ran Verichat for 75 hours non-stop. Great battery life too! There's always occasionally some reliability issues with AIM itself, and some carriers have lots of problems with IM software until you obtain BES/MDS Hosting, but the fortunate thing is that you have many options now (many brands of chat software, many options of improved networking, all major carriers now provide BlackBerry service, you can cherrypick a good service). For more information, see BlackBerry Instant Messaging FAQ.
   
7. Problem: 4 email accounts at once!
   Solution: BlackBerry handles this no problem. You can configure the BWC to do multiple email accounts. I can do up to 10, although I use email forwarding instead because it is much faster that way.
   
8. Problem: Auto grabbing emails
   Solution: BlackBerry handles this no problem. BWC checks email every 15 minutes (although this temporarily speeds up to about once every 5 minutes if emails are coming in very quickly). You can even bypass this by using email forwarding, then your emails show up on the BlackBerry less than 15 seconds after "SEND" on the other end. Or if you use BES on an email address, then you get speedy delivery that can even be less than 5 seconds after somebody sends it.
   
9. Problem: Email layout with various folders is nice
   Solution: You might come slightly short here, since this is usually a paid-extra service. The default BlackBerry software only provides a few folders. For a true folders system, including wireless synchronization of your Microsoft Outlook email folder tree, you need a BES, for more info, see the Hosted BES FAQ.
   
10. Problem: there are so many downtimes
    Solution: You'll be very happy with BlackBerry's reliability. Downtimes on the BlackBerry network is extremely rare, and if you are using a BES server, it actually sometimes never happens.
    
11. Problem: bulkier than Sidekick?
    Solution: That's not true. All BlackBerries are smaller than the original Sidekick I. Although a few models of BlackBerries are slightly bigger than Sidekick II.
    
12. Problem: How is the "web" on the blackberry, is it usable or slow as all heck & timeouts all over the place?
    Solution: It's very useable! However, BlackBerryOS 4.0 web browser is very slow sometimes until you turn off JavaScript and turn off Tables/images. Or you can use a third party web browser such as Reqwireless WebViewer. I have never had timeouts on Rogers, although I heard T-Mobile is sometimes overloaded, so I might prefer to go with Cingular 7290 or Verizon 7250. Try a Cingular 7290 first, that has longer battery life.
    
13. Problem: Any ideas if I would be happy making a swap from the sidekick to the blackberry?
    Solution: According to your needs, I think you'll wish you never purchased Sidekick - All the needs that you listed, can definitely be met.

Just be careful about which network you get it on, because some of the networks are much better and faster (i.e. Cingular). T-Mobile has better coverage in some suburban areas I have been in, but Cingular has a bigger coverage footprint, and I found data to be generally at least twice as fast on Cingular. I am on Rogers and am able to roam on both T-Mobile and Cingular, and the roaming seems to work better on Cingular. If Cingular is TERRIBLE in your area, you should try something like Verizon or perhaps AT&T (Cingular Blue). Nextel is GREAT but you won't be able to do SMS/text messaging very well on Nextel. There is NO "perfect" carrier, but Nextel is great if you can forgo outgoing SMS messages. If you must use SMS messages, try Cingular. Cingular's network is much improved since the last 2 years, so I would give it a test again. Cingular and AT&T merged, and now the network is more-or-less unified, which makes the coverage much better than it used to be (although there were some merger pains in some areas). On the other hand, if you want to save the most money, a T-Mobile BlackBerry plan is usually the cheapest one to go for. (And I think if you are in California, the T-Mobile BlackBerry automatically uses Cingular's network!)

[RichTJ99]

This might be just an equipment question, but my Nextel I730 comes with a "belt Clip" that secures the phone & it doesnt fall off the clip.

Does the 7520 come with a similar clip?

[Mark Rejhon]

There is no clip that directly attaches to the rear of a 7520; the BlackBerry is designed to slip into a holster.

An advantage of the holster is that it contains a tiny magnet that automatically turns off the Blackberry's screen whenever it's inside the holster. (All the software continues to run, such as Verichat though) ... This saves some battery power.

The holster magnet is also useful for automatically displaying incoming emails. If you pull the BlackBerry out of the holster within 20 seconds of an email alert (i.e. vibrate), the email automatically displays on the screen in a pager-style manner.

There are many replacement holsters if you don't like the hard-plastic holster that is included with the 7520.

[blake.blake]

YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES YESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYESYES


anyway you will be very happy. ive had a nextel and a sidekick for a while, sk1 color for about 19 months and i went to the BB on nextel. Best move i have ever made.

the nextel is behind in a few small things, but not much and it works all the time. knock on wood. also the service with my bb is much much better than my old 730 and all of my friends phones too, as far as nextels go.

if i could only get sprint picture email to show on up on my phone i would be all set. but its a great device, give it a few days so learn all the shortcuts like the kick and ull be at home

PS BUY THE BB. SK suck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[sempai]

You know, you really can't compare the two. When you're using a BlackBerry you'll wonder how come so many people torture themselves with a SideKick.

The biggest Thumbs-Up, to me, is that I manage my data. I don't rely on incompetant third-parties that have done nothing but demonstrate that they just don't get a fsck what happens to my data.

I don't use a BlackBerry as a mobile phone - I use it as a tether to everyone I know, as I'm sure you and your fellow SKers do. To not have control over your own data is an incredible limitation.

You'll be able to change from two devices to one, and probably end up paying less, for better more reliable service. Save that right now we have a nationwide service outage

[blake.blake]

my sidekick crashed and had more issues than my bb.. the bb is a real device, the kick is just a toy to applear to the younger market.

[RichTJ99]

Mark,

Thanks for the fantastic reply. I have a few more questions for you though.

First off, is there a "Flash" or "Java" demo for the 7520? Something that lists all the features of that particular phone (kind of like the CSK on Tmobiles website).

I am hoping to stop by a Nextel store tomorrow to check out the BB.

As far as the folder issues, right now I have 3 email accounts (4 if you count the tmail.com account I never use).

I have Account 1, Account 2, & Account 3.

For file management, all I do is have all emails that are coming to "Account 1" & the sidekick puts those emails into a folder called "Account 1", "Account 2's" emails are placed into an "Account 2" folder, the same for "Account 3".

From a folder management point, that is about as advanced as I get. I really only use my Sidekick for mobile email & my PC in the office is the "master", everything in site gets deleted off my sidekick on a daily basis. I do have a "saved" folder for emails I want to hang on to (those dont get deleted).

Would the default BB software handle this?

I also like being able to start an email & choose which account to use for the outgoing email. Email 1 is sent from Account 1, Email 2 is sent from Account 3, etc etc.

My email accounts are all pop3 set to leave messages on the server. I am hoping to get away with not using a BES for my needs (still working through the FAQ) as I do not want or need my BB to keep “every” folder & email in a downloadable state. I guess I wouldn’t want my emails out there like that (from a security perspective – of course who cares about my data anyway).

I currently use a PPC based solution (Dell Axim X50v) for most of my PDA items. Can I use both the Dell Axim & the BB on the same PC? I just bought the Dell a few months ago & would hate to never use it again because of a software configuration issue.

I will check out the reqwireless browser as well to speed up the web browsing. To be honest, I wont use it most of the time, just if I have a few minutes to kill. It really comes down to I am paying for a sidekick “web browser” that is unusable the 3 times per month I want to use it.

AIM is used on a similar level as well. The problem is that by the time I have IM’ed someone, I can DC them much faster.

Oh how is DC on the 7520, is it hard to hold? Also dialing out, right now on my I730, I can navigate to my contacts without looking (then I need to look to see), is there a “D pad” on the BB?

This might be a dumb question, but what is “The BWC”?

Thanks,
Rich

[Mark Rejhon]

>>"This might be a dumb question, but what is “The BWC”?"

See BlackBerry Glossary. It is the BlackBerry Web Client. That's your webmail account / email configurator for your BlackBerry. An example is http://www.rogers.com/bwc ...


>>"Thanks for the fantastic reply."

You're welcome! Just so everyone knows, I like to post big replies online (Rather than by email), since that helps educate many people asking the same kind of questions! So that makes it well worth me posting huge replies, because many people find the replies useful.


>>"First off, is there a "Flash" or "Java" demo for the 7520? Something that lists all the features of that particular phone (kind of like the CSK on Tmobiles website)."

The product demos are at http://www.blackberry.com ... Click "Product Demo" and you'll get a demo.


>>"I am hoping to stop by a Nextel store tomorrow to check out the BB."

Just to be warned, many representatives at stores don't actually know the capabilities of the BlackBerry. Also make sure you try the model 7520 which has a much better screen than the model 7510.


[i]>>"For file management, all I do is have all emails that are coming to "Account 1" & the sidekick puts those emails into a folder called "Account 1", "Account 2's" emails are placed into an "Account 2" folder, the same for "Account 3"."

There is a new BWC feature (recently introduced in BWC 4.0) that allows folders to be created at the BWC webclient. I am not too familiar with this feature, but you can create BWC email filters that automatically move incoming BWC emails to specific folders (including the custom BWC folders you create). You have to do all of this configuring through the BWC website for your BlackBerry account.


>>"Would the default BB software handle this?"

Yes, you can now. You may need to upgrade to BlackBerryOS 4.0 to include the folder selection feature.


[i]>>"I also like being able to start an email & choose which account to use for the outgoing email. Email 1 is sent from Account 1, Email 2 is sent from Account 3, etc etc."

This is not a feature included in the BlackBerry but available as a third party utility to change the "Reply-To" address. I do not think this is quite automatic yet, but you can use the BlackBerry PowerToy


>>"My email accounts are all pop3 set to leave messages on the server. I am hoping to get away with not using a BES for my needs (still working through the FAQ) as I do not want or need my BB to keep “every” folder & email in a downloadable state. I guess I wouldn’t want my emails out there like that (from a security perspective – of course who cares about my data anyway)."

I think you'll be OK without BES.


>>"I currently use a PPC based solution (Dell Axim X50v) for most of my PDA items. Can I use both the Dell Axim & the BB on the same PC? I just bought the Dell a few months ago & would hate to never use it again because of a software configuration issue."

As long as you use the latest version of ActiveSync, you can have BlackBerry Desktop and ActiveSync coexist. Just make sure you have the field mapping set up correctly so that synchronization is identical on both your BlackBerry and your PocketPC. Do not do any nonstandard stuff like formatting/fonts/icons in the Notes fields of your contacts.


[i]>>"I will check out the reqwireless browser as well to speed up the web browsing. To be honest, I wont use it most of the time, just if I have a few minutes to kill. It really comes down to I am paying for a sidekick “web browser” that is unusable the 3 times per month I want to use it."

You'll likely find the reliability of the BlackBerry Browser greatly improved. If you do not need to use the browser often, you can use the browser that is built into the BlackBerry (Although not all carriers "enable" it)


>>AIM is used on a similar level as well. The problem is that by the time I have IM’ed someone, I can DC them much faster.

You can use Verichat much faster than you can DC. The messages arrive on the other end about 1 second after hitting Enter or the thumbwheel to transmit the message.


>>Oh how is DC on the 7520, is it hard to hold? Also dialing out, right now on my I730, I can navigate to my contacts without looking (then I need to look to see), is there a “D pad” on the BB?

There's no such thing as a D-Pad on the BlackBerry. However, I think DC on BlackBerry works fine, you'll have to test it at the store though.

[RyanNobrega]

Hey Rich,

Great question... I was in your exact position (voice device + sidekick looking to converge)... I went to a sidekick II, then switched to a blackberry.

Personally, I think the sidekick kicks the BB's butt in many categories:

1) email - MUCH better email client, and fully supports multiple accounts (BB will receive multiple accounts, but you can only send from one... two if you have BES)

2) web - both BB and Sidekick are equally slow... but I found the HTML transformation on the Sidekick was both a) better suited to the form factor and b) more reliable (my 7290 crashes on some HTML content pages, NOTE: I'm using the CIngular browser, waiting for 4.0 still...)

3) Yahoo! IM / AOL IM app integration - the apps perform extremely well and are very nicely integrated into the Sidekick experience. Verichat for the BB is a great app and does its job well, it just doesn't have the same polished feeling as Y!/AOL on the Sidekick.

I did a little summary in THIS THREAD that you might find useful.

and re: size, the BB is much smaller than the sidekick.

Ryan

[fliedlice]

If you havent purchased your blackberry yet...boy have I got a deal for you..personally for me the balckberry is a great device..its like having a laptop in the palm of your hand...but in my case (because some buisness plans fell through) the blackberry is not practical for me and I can afford my monthly bill but am not willing to pay that much for something I dont use...since the blackberry's are backordered...you are looking at like two weeks before you get the blackberry...mine is for sale..make me an offer and here is the link to my FS thread

http://www.blackberryforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=3966

[Mark Rejhon]

RyanNobrega

1) Did you can use custom ReplyTo's on your BlackBerry now? You're no longer limited to one anymore. Check out BlackBerry PowerToys.

2) Sidekick may do some pages better, but I don't have any stability problems with my BlackBerry HTML browser, so I think that will be solved when you get the HTML browser. Also, my BlackBerry (on BES4.0) does something the Sidekick cannot: I successfully log onto two of my online banking websites! (But you need BES4.0 though)

3) Are you using Verichat Version 1.91? It's much more stable than older versions of Verichat. I have never had it crash before on me, and it successfully automatically reconnects after returning from weak reception. It may not be as graphically fancy as the Sidekick stuff, but version 1.91 is pretty polished compared to the older Verichats (i.e. 1.48 which often crashed)

[RyanNobrega]

Hi Mark,

1) Did you can use custom ReplyTo's on your BlackBerry now? You're no longer limited to one anymore. Check out BlackBerry PowerToys.

PoketDay only provides half of the solution... it allows you to set your Reply-To address (which is great), but cannot set the From address which is displayed to the recipient.

2) Sidekick may do some pages better, but I don't have any stability problems with my BlackBerry HTML browser, so I think that will be solved when you get the HTML browser. Also, my BlackBerry (on BES4.0) does something the Sidekick cannot: I successfully log onto two of my online banking websites! (But you need BES4.0 though)

Yeah, I'm expecting this will be cleared up when 4.0 is finally released for the Cingular 7290.

3) Are you using Verichat Version 1.91? It's much more stable than older versions of Verichat. I have never had it crash before on me, and it successfully automatically reconnects after returning from weak reception. It may not be as graphically fancy as the Sidekick stuff, but version 1.91 is pretty polished compared to the older Verichats (i.e. 1.48 which often crashed)

I'm using 1.78b. I think Verichat is a great app and actually haven't had problems with it... never had it crash and it seems to maintain / recover the connection well.

Many of the Sidekick strengths for IM are feature level stuff that the Verichat guys could prob replicate quite easily (don't know if they have played w/the Sidekick, but would be worth the investment to pick one up for comparison).

Some examples:

o non-disruptive online/offline messages and "previews" of IMs received while not in a chat session (I.e.- just like your PC behaves w/the little Yahoo! IM notifications on the bottom right of the screen)

o new IM message indicator w/numerical counter in the status bar (similar to new voicemail message)

o active IM session indicator in buddy list to tell you which users you are chatting w/

o shortcut keys to easily switch to / cycle through active chat sessions (equivilent of ALT+[0-9], where 0-9 is the # of the chat session you want to switch to)

o all Yahoo! IM sounds (nice little touch)

o full Preferences control just like you have on your desktop client (without things like "Webcam" of course)

+ Yahoo! IM and AOL IM on the sidekick are both free.

[bfrye]

You could also try downloading the 4.0 JDE from RIM's developer site. It includes a simulator for nearly every blackberry model available. While you won't be able to send/receive email, you can do just about everything up to that point, plus load external applications, play with the existing ones and get a general feel for it's usage before you buy one for real.

[Mark Rejhon]

Ryan,

Very excellent points. I have posted a copy of your message in the Verichat Suggestions Thread.

There's one thing that's already implemented. A hotkey for switching between chat windows.

The multitask key in Verichat is +