App my life

[pergamond]

So I want an iPhone. I mean, who doesn't? They're shiny, allow you to check email, surf the web, play games and there's even an app to tell you if someone is a cylon. Obviously, I need this. But here's the thing:

Travel rates SUCK.

For the US,  I'm looking at $1-2/MB and for Europe around $5. Given my basic package for use in Canada would include 500 MB/month, you start to see the problem. (The fact some companies put the prices per kB to make the numbers look small says a lot. They tried to fool me. It didn't work >_>).

I understand that when I step away from my cosy home country I'm transmitting waves on someone else's network, but this is a MOBILE phone. I want to be mobile! That doesn't mean a quick trip into town; I need to use it all over the world. After all, while it's a close run thing, I can manage without checking livejournal while I walk to work. (OK, once I went into a coffee shop en-route but ONLY ONCE). While I'm propping up a bus shelter in Rome waiting for a vehicle that may or may not show because timetables are more suggestions in Italy then I need my smart phone and google maps.

One thing I did discover in my harassment of cell phone companies at the mall was that the Blackberry compresses data by 4x the amount the iPhone does. So while the data plan would be identical, in theory I should get considerably more bang per MB on the Blackberry. (The Blackberry bold, since I was told this was better for world travel). A google search of this fact revealed it to be true, but oddly there weren't 800 listings of people saying this was an absolute must for users with ADHD when it comes to countries. Does this compression not make the difference I'd naively think it should?

Blackberrys are supposed to be unrivalled for email. Unsurprising, since this was what they were designed for. I am told though, that web surfing is not nearly as good and there are many less apps than for the iPhones.

Has anyone else hit this dilemma? What did you do and do you regret it? (Confessions limited to phones if reply is public ^.~).

Comments

[reppu.livejournal.com]

I have a Blackberry. I haven't taken it abroad (my Japanese phone was too awesome, but DAMN that $500 bill sure wasn't). The Blackberry is excellent for e-mail, calenders, and all things business, but it does have fewer apps. Then again, you have to think of how many apps you would actually use. Blackberries are practical phones, not really fun phones. You can't really play games or turn off your lights or pay bills, but you can use LJ-mobile, Googlemaps, and check your mail. I think it suits all my needs, though I think the iPhone is more fun.

[pergamond.livejournal.com]

Thanks!!

How easy is LJ to use? Can you update your journal comfortably from it and choose user pics etc?

[reppu.livejournal.com]

LJ mobile is really simple. As long as you can type, you can put out a message. Choosing pics is easy too. I don't use it too much because I like long updates, but I've never had a problem with it if I'm on the road or something.

[pergamond.livejournal.com]

Oh neat! Must it be the mobile site? Is the normal one too memory intensive?

[reppu.livejournal.com]

You can access the normal one (they even have a link for it at the bottom of the mobile page), but yes, the normal one is memory and load intensive. The mobile site has had some upgrades in recent months, so I like it. You can still see userpics and any pics linked on posting. It's just condensed. Like an entry might only be a few sentences, and you click the "read more" link to finish reading the post. The normal site has a lot of things going on, so it's very slow to load.

[pergamond.livejournal.com]

Got it! Thanks for the advice <3

[fulminata]

Like I told you, my Bold is pretty awesome when it's not being a grumpy asshat.

Okay, so if you are as technologically attached as I am, no, the Blackberry doesn't have nearly as many apps as the iPhone and therefore, in some respect, is inferior. If you are not, then it's cool.

Yeah, it gives me most of my email (sometimes well before Gmail has it even showing up) and there is a nifty Twitter app that is shiny and I have a Tumblr one too. And AIM isn't too stupid.

However, I will point this out (only cause I haven't found a true work around), you cannot post LJ comments from the email you get on the BB. You have to click the reply link which takes you to the FULL LJ site and is therefore exceedingly slow and bumbly.

[pergamond.livejournal.com]

It's a shame full websites are so slow :\ The BB bold has wireless as well for things like AIM, right? So you can log onto networks at places like Starbucks and not waste data MB?

[fulminata]

Hmm...I connect to my AIM over my 3G. I've never tried with the wireless. ...Perhaps I should one day.

Then again...I have unlimited data (it's required with US AT&T Blackberry plans), so I don't worry about it.

[pergamond.livejournal.com]

*Sigh* yes. Canadian networks are a bit behind the times ...

[fulminata]

Come back to the US already then.

[februaryfour]

*drive-by comment*

you cannot post LJ comments from the email you get on the BB. You have to click the reply link which takes you to the FULL LJ site and is therefore exceedingly slow and bumbly.

Oh, thanks for this, I didn't know that.

[fulminata]

Glad to help!

I believe this is the case for all BBs, not just the Bold.

[reppu.livejournal.com]

I didn't know this either, thanks! I always just went back to LJ mobile to reply, since most of the comments were coming from my own posts (and thus it was easy to find them). For the others, I made a mental memo to look at them later when I was on my full computer. Good to know!

[fulminata]

I get a ton of RP comments, so this is rather equivalent to being a pain in the ass. >_>;;