yeah I know this thread has been done 100 times, but I am looking for some up to date info and and I haven't had much luck w/ the search function.

I currently have a crappy Kyocera phone w/ alltel but my service contract ends this month so I am looking to change phones and providers. I want something that is easy to check email with, and at least minimal internet access capability using the phone, and the ability to connect the phone to my laptop to use as a wireless modem. Should I be looking at the Treo's, Blackberry, or other phones? I don't need an integrated camera btw. Anyone have the new motorola Q?

What is anyone's experience with different phones and providers that offer this kind of service?

How much am I going to have to pay for something like this? thanks.

7/3/2006 7:33:13 PM

Well I ended up going with Alltel (and have been VERY pleased, escp. w/ the "My Circle") and got a Starcom PPC-6700. Sprint & Verizon sell these too (Verizon's called a vx6700) but Alltel is the only one that has abolutely zero limitations on it like bluetooth limits and such. So Alltel's is the most functional without hacks.

The unlimited data plan is $39/month, which means I get unlimited access to the internet (IE browser on the phone) and unlimited POP emails. It checks my school mail, Gmail, and work mail and keeps all the messeges in seperate accounts on the phone. Auto checks, alerts, weekday wake-up alarms, the works. The best part about this phone is it has a real slide-out keyboard, not some crunked up keyboard like the Treo 650. I can type really fast on it. It's a tad bulky, but fits very comfortably on my belt while at work and slides in my pants pockets when rockin' casual stuff.

EV-DO is beauiful, and 1x is definitely useable. Plus, Alltel has the largest amount of non-roaming area of any carrier other than Cingular which has no roaming (but only uses GSM towers, which def. aren't everywhere in the USA).

My phone was $380 after a $190 instant rebate for signing a 2-year contract + a $50 mail-in rebate. Expensive, yes. But worthwhile if you'll use everything this gadget can do. I love how this phone has WiFi as well, so if you're near a hotspot, just hit that up and you can still receive calls while surfing on WiFi since you're not tying up your phone line. Bluetooth works wonderfully well w/ the "UConnect" system in my Jeep. Fairly easy to customize; I've got a NC State logo as my background and the fight song as a ringtone

Windows Mobile 5 has been great so far, the built in Windows Media Player works awesome w/ vids on the miniSD card. The coolest feature is the tethering feature. I can tell the phone to act as a modem, plug it into my laptop/PC, and have instant internet through the phone. This kept me online for 3 hours the other week in a power outage when my cable modem went out. People have found ways to tether the internet via BlueTooth, but it's obviously slower than a USB connection and I ain't got no issues w/ one cable being hooked up so I just use it like that.

Anyway, if you have any other Q's on this phone or data services, just post

7/3/2006 8:06:08 PM

thanks for the detailed reply. Can you tell me about how much your monthly bill is w/ data plan, internet and everything?

7/3/2006 11:51:34 PM

If you go and look at the PPC-6700 please listen to the speakerphone. This phone has the absolute worst speakerphone I've ever had the pleasure of barely hearing. Not a huge deal if you are going to pair it up with a bluetooth headset but on it's own it is completely useless. Also, dialing while driving is next to impossible due to the non textile lcd buttons. There is some really useful voice dialing software that will help bypass but without it your in for some painful experiences while dialing. Overall the software is fairly buggy (sound sometimes will only come out of the headset jack/backlight sometimes will not respond without a soft reset) but I'm sure a firmware fix will take care of this in the future.

I'd take a look at the new Palm 700. There is a Palm OS version as well as Windows Mobile 5.

7/4/2006 12:04:44 AM

I have a shared voice plan w/ my fiancee that runs $75/month for 1000 anytime minutes, unlimited calls to Alltel folk and 10 "My Circle" #s of our choosing and then $39/month on top for unlimited data (includes internet, checking email, everything). So $115/month for 2 phones [only mine has the data plan] plus 911 fees and crap that you'll get with any plan. If you're going in solo, your min. bill will be $59.99 (lowest priced plan that you get "My Circle" on and the discounted $39/month data plan) + $39/month for data = ~$100/month. Great part is that when you're using data, it's NOT COUNTING OFF your minutes. So you can get online for 4 hours in the middle of the day and it doesn't count off your minutes. Just counts off your unlimited data, and since it's unlimited...well, you know.

^ Alltel's latest ROM update gives the PPC-6700 voice dialing software, no purchase required. You just tap the voice memo button on the side, say that name, and it auto-dials. Works absolutely perfectly. I can even voice dial through a bluetooth headset that supports a "Hands Free" profile (like the Motorola HS820).

And I was on the phone for about 2 hours this evening and used purely speakerphone while typing on my PC the entire time. Quality was outstanding for me and the person on the other end had zero issues hearing me. You may have "heard" bad things about the speakerphone, but it worked excellent for me.

Furthermore, all those bugs you're referring to are ironed out in the latest ROM flash. If you get this phone, update the ROM first thing since it deletes all your contacts. You'll save yourself time if you flash first, then put in contacts and such. Just google for the "how to" of installing it, it's fairly straightforward.

I could really care less which PDA phone you go with, I don't work for Alltel or Starcom, but I can't recommend this 6700 highly enough. It's worked amazingly well for me and I couldn't imagine a cooler phone/gadget. The slide-out keyboard flat out smokes those cramped qwerty's on the Treo's IMO. And I'm unsure if the Treo 700 has WiFi, but having WiFi on-board is a big plus for times when you're in a 1x area but are near a wireless spot.

EDIT: Also, if you're going to be in Raleigh (or any EV-DO zone), you're in for a treat. I tethered the 6700 to my laptop and went to a speed test site (dslreports.com) and got ~400k/sec. through the phone. Not too shabby...

[Edited on July 4, 2006 at 12:29 AM. Reason : .]

7/4/2006 12:22:48 AM

I just got the PCC-6700 phone with Sprint.

The handset cost me $200 - $100 mail in rebate which has past now. The cost of this phone is now down to $300 on sprint.com

I also have the Sprint Sero plan which includes:

1250 anytime minutes
Night and Weekends starting @ 7:00pm
Unlimited Vision (Internet Access)
VM, CID, Free three way calling
Unlimited Picture Messaging
Unlimited Mobile to Mobile (Sprint to Sprint/Nextel)
All minutes are nationwide and Sprint can roam for free off Verizon towers which has come in handy out West.

All for $49.99/month - 25% corporate discount through my employer.

Trick is to call and get the phone for dirt cheap, then within your 14 days call and complain and get freebees added to your account to stay.

7/4/2006 12:14:15 PM

^ I'm assuming your "$200-$100" is a typo

But still, heck of a deal you got! How did you get such a deal? I can't even come close to that on Sprint.com

[Edited on July 4, 2006 at 2:31 PM. Reason : .]

7/4/2006 2:29:49 PM