Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Decisions, decisions

I've enjoyed my BlackBerry. Mostly.

There have been a couple of problems with it. Okay, more than a couple.

I simply quit working one day, and Verizon replaced it. Then, the battery died, and I had to buy another one. And, lately, I've had to reboot it once (or more) a day.

There have been no issues with the phone. The making and receiving calls part, I mean. That's because Verizon has the best service in the areas I frequent. Like parked on the couch in front of the big screen.

But, the non-phone parts of the BlackBerry have had the occasional problem. So, I've been visiting the Verizon Wireless Website, looking at phones.

I won't be changing phones before October -- that's when I hit the 20-month mark, which is how long the "new every two" agreement requires -- but I thought it might be a good idea to have something researched and picked out.

I have decided on one of these options:
  • Get a different BlackBerry device
  • Get an Android-based phone
  • Hope AT&T has improved service here and switch to an iPhone.
The new BlackBerry device might be a good idea, since I've generally been happy with the BlackBerry. It could be that the particular phone I have is a lemon. My original BlackBerry worked just great until it screwed up during an update. And that update happened via BlackBerry Desktop for Mac. The Mac version is inferior to the Windows version (I've used both), and I've suspected that the Desktop Manager software was the problem all along.

But, I haven't been using it on the new BlackBerry. I think the problem is this particular BlackBerry (likely a reconditioned one that replaced my original). So, I haven't completely soured on BlackBerry.

However, there are more smart phone options for me. Such as Android-based phones. The downside is that they are still fairly new (compared to BlackBerry), so there may be some issues that still need to be ironed out. But, the fact that I haven't heard a lot about Android-based phone issues alleviates my concerns.

Then, there's the iPhone. But, if AT&T doesn't improve service around here, that's ruled out. But, if service was acceptable, it'd be an option.

Dropping my current phone from the Verizon account would drop the Verizon bill by $50 ($10 for a line on a family plan; $10 for texting plan; $30 for BlackBerry unlimited data). Our AT&T account for adding iPhone would go up about $70/month ($40 for the line; $15 for texting; $15 for data). Figure in the multi-service discount (phone, Internet, and wireless), and that brings it back down to a net $50 increase. In other words, Verizon would go down $50, and AT&T would go up $50. A wash.

But, AT&T wireless service around here is awful. Or, at least, inferior to Verizon's.

So, what to do?

A fourth option has been added, apparently. Bloomberg reports that Verizon is set to introduce its iPhone in January.

Yes, the iPhone on Verizon.

Suddenly, I think the decision has been made for me.

2 comments:

  1. My Droid is amazing. I like it much better than the BlackBerry I had before.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Android-based phone. More choices of carriers (I have T-Mobile), more phone manufacturers, more screen sizes, more free APPS, no APPS gestapo like Apple, open source, more choices, choices, choices.

    I wouldn't get an iPhone if they paid me.

    The iphone will be like the Mac from 1980s, with a small percent of the market because of the Apple-fascist policies of control.

    ReplyDelete

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