Blackberries and the middle of nowhere

Joezilla

Joezilla

Moderator- Wilderness and Survival Skills
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Hey Guys, I'm thinking of buying a blackberry and would love to know how your reception is when you go out. Does anyone have any 2 cents about these confernal devices?
 
This will depend entirely on your carrier and on their infrastructure in the areas where you intend to be.
 
I have a Curve with AT&T, and my coverage has been A+ from KY up through MI and over to SC and down through TN.

I think they have a coverage map on their website (att.com), or at least they used to.

But I have been very happy with by BB on AT&T.

see generally, www.crackberry.com

cheers
 
I've got the 8330 curve through Sprint. I've been all over the country selling product and it has worked like a champ. I wouldn't ve without it.
 
:thumbup: to BlackBerrys (especially the more expensive ones); :thumbdn: to AT&T.
 
I have a bold and at&t and it has always worked great for me. some of the nicer models have gps as well which can be very helpful.
 
Gollnick said:
This will depend entirely on your carrier and on their infrastructure in the areas where you intend to be.
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Unless things have changed wouldn't it also depend on whether the phone is capable of Analog roaming?
 
Samael said:
Things have changed. Analog has been gone for a while now.
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Well that's good to know. When I'm deep in the sticks down here in the swamps and my trimode phone shows that A I guess it is some other kind of indicator they are using for a lower quality digital? I'm not being a smart a$$ I'm really curious.

I thought they were still selling trimode phones that used Analog around here. Granted I haven't shopped for a phone in a year so I could easily be wrong. Just curious is all. Thanks.
 
I can't speak for the swamps of Florida; I do know that people here were told they would have to trade in their analog phones because the networks were going all-digital. I suppose each individual service provider could be doing things differently also.
 
I have been using a Blackberry Curve 8320 and couldn't be happier. I oftentimes get signal where others can't. As a matter of fact, my ability to send out text messages when my buddies couldn't saved the girls from calling out search and rescue on us during a recent hunting debacle!
 
FlaMtnBkr said:
Unless things have changed wouldn't it also depend on whether the phone is capable of Analog roaming?
Click to expand...

Are there any Blackberries that are capable of analog?

Analog phones do tend to have greater range than digital ones, but cellular carriers are no longer required to support analog modes in metropolitan areas. Doing so just means maintaining more equipment which very few customers use anymore. Furthermore, that equipment is largely older equipment which is more expensive to operate and less reliable. So, most carriers are discontinuing analog service in cities. This does mean that if you want to be able to use your phone both in the city and out in rural areas, you may actually have to have two phones.
 
Joe, in NC Verizon will be your best bet as far as good reception in RURAL areas as in the mtns and other out of the way areas. This I know for fact.
 
Verizon does have a reception map on their website and it's fairly accurate.
 
BBs rock out in the boondocks. You may not have phone service, but you will pretty much always be able to text. I'd never be caught without a bb in the woods. :)
 
My understanding is that Verizon has the best coverage. My work phone is a BB Curve through Sprint/Nextel, and my personal phone is a new BB Tour through Verizon. In the areas I'm in Verizon seems to have slightly better service. I just did a motorcycle trip from San Diego, into Nevada, then rode around Utah for the better part of a week. Had service at Zion, Bryce, and Capitol Reef National Parks. Used the BB as a modem for my small laptop too. Had it wired into my helmet and used it as an MP3 player. Also used GPS, but difficult to see from the saddle...worked great handheld. I dig this stuff.

IMG_7910.jpg
 
I have a Blackberry Curve 8330 on Verizon. Never a dropped call, never an issue with service. I had service in Yellowstone and Grand Teton. The Blackberry itself runs like a champ. I carry it in an Otterbox case and it's survived numerous falls, bumps, spills and throws across the room without a hitch.
 
Sprint for me and I'm in a spotty area for any carrier. When I switched out plans back in the spring I went from an older blackberry to a Samsung Instinct. The email platform was the biggest reason that I didn't keep the Instinct but I did notice that the blackberry curve that I switched out the Instinct for gets better reception.
 
hung-solo said:
Joe, in NC Verizon will be your best bet as far as good reception in RURAL areas as in the mtns and other out of the way areas. This I know for fact.
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I'm in NC as well. I have a Palm Treo' through Alltel which was bought out by Verizon. Since then I have been having a lot more dead spots than before
 
Yes, it all depends on your carrier and location.

Here in the Portland, Oregon area, my iPhone on AT&T is great, 100% solid 3G service everywhere. Even down deep into the wine country I have solid 3G service.

I recently spent the better part of a week (a wonderful get-away) in Newkowin, Oregon, a tiny little village on the Oregon Coast, population 169, and enjoyed AT&T 3G the whole time.

But, I and my iPhone, recently spent four days all but cut off from the on-line world because AT&T has no 3G and very little service at all in, of all places, Iowa City, Iowa. At first glance one might dismiss Iowa City as a small, rurual town. But it's 68,000 residents and is the home of University of Iowa with over thirty-thousand more students, 100,000 potential customers. College students are the densiest cellular users out there; all but 100% of them have a cell phone, they tend to be heavy text users, and most want some sort of "smart" phone with e-mail and internet accesss which means an expensive data plan. Thirty-thousand college students and not an iPhone in sight... thirty-thousand college kids all sporting Blackberries... can you believe it? At the hotel where I stayed, I had to stand on the bed in just the right way (there's doubtlessly a yoga name for it) to check my voice mail much less try any data services.

Cedar Rapids, Iowa, just North of Iowa City with an eighth-of-a-million residents is also an AT&T wasteland. AT&T's website claims solid 3G coverage for Cedar Rapids, but I didn't find any of it and I found the regular service to be spotty and poor.

So, it just depends on your carrier and your location.
 
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