The Switch: Episode 5

As promised. And as anticipated. It looks like this is the last episode of The Switch saga. I am now a happy customer of Orange, using the BlackBerry Curve 8900, including it's UMA feature. The entire story started back in December 2008, when I decided to jump onto the BlackBerry platform and started learning all the pros and cons and curiosities of this setup. As you may remember I selected the BlackBerry Bold 9000 smartphone and a two - year contract with Era (T-Mobile) network. In a matter of days I figured out two things. First, whatever application runs on BlackBerry, it heavily depends on what data connections are configured and running. And the connections and settings are a maze on the BlackBerry platform. I started downloading various applications just to see them failing to work. It never happened before on a Windows Mobile platform. Nor on the iPhone. WiFi was enough to run everything. And outside of WiFi coverage, the usual cellular data over standard APN was sufficient too. But not on a BlackBerry, that relied heavily on the [blackberry.net] APN connecting it to the BlackBerry servers. I soon learned BlackBerry without the [blackberry.net] APN connection was almost useless. And the solution was simple enough - subscribe to the BIS (BlackBerry Internet Service). I decided to shell out $15 a month to get BIS. Soon after it was turned on, many applications, like Google Talk and Facebook started working. And soon after I discovered, BIS did not solve all my problems. And soon after I found out, the real reason was the configuration of BlackBerry connectivity, intentionally screwed by T-Mobile. After long communications exchange with T-Mobile, I learned they were fully aware of the situation and absolutely unwilling to change the configuration. The decision for me was easy. Terminate the contract. But where to go?

I started checking the other MNOs around and discovered several interesting points:

• Both Orange and Plus (Vodafone) were offering the BIS service for 40% of the price @T-Mobile. Yeah I know I always pick the lonmgest queue :)
• Orange was offering UMA on the upcoming Curve 8900. Very interesting. In the end this was the deal maker.
• None of the MNOs could offer a BlackBerry for try-and-buy and none could confirm officially things like GTalk, Facebook, E*Trade and other applications would work.
• BlackBerry BIS was available only as a two - year contract with all the risk on the customer (me).

One thing I knew was T-Mobile setup was expensive and not working. But I could not be sure Vodafone or Orange configured the BIS service properly. So not knowing the pool was filled with water I decided to jump. I selected Orange, as UMA seemed to give me a better reward for taking similar risk. Thanks to the MNP (Mobile Number Portability), I was able to keep my number. Orange sent me the Curve 8900 a week before the number transfer procedure, furnished with a temporary number. This was a great idea, as I was able to configure the handset and all the associated services. The number was transferred last Wednesday night and that day I could confirm everything worked as [initially] expected. The end story is everything to recommend. The Curve 8900 is a marvel by itself. Smaller and lighter than the Bold, with even better screen and very similar keyboard. There also is a 3,5mm headphone jack, one of my key device requirements. The lack of 3G is nothing to regret at the moment. EDGE is not a speed demon, but works just fine to match the mobile screen and processor, while giving substantially more battery life with much smaller package overall. The Orange mobile plan gives me more minutes than comparable one at T-Mobile, for the same amount. And most importantly, the way they configure the BIS service is exactly as designed by RIM. Everything works, including the Internet Browser[BrowserConfig] and IPPP for BIS-B [IPPP] service books the whole war was about. With Orange I save enough money to cover the penalty I had to pay T-Mobile for prematurely terminating the two year contract. And I do not regret the switch a bit. It is a short sighted strategy trying to screw customers. In the end it does not pay off.