EvDO Verizon @ ORD

513k throughput.
123k
323k

depending on where in the terminal C you stand.

Chicago O'hare airport

Well, couldnt' get a HSDPA signal here with the Cingular OptionGT Max card. However, I was able to connect with a Verizon EvDO card no problem.

On a side note, BlackBerry Pearl 8100 seems to crash if you're running GoogleTalk and you have to turn off the radio. Also, many time, if you start GTalk before the IM application which uses SMS to send AIM, Yahoo, etc, the BB IM application will not launch or work. Finally, I got a Null Java error earlier and couldn't even launch the browser. Needed to pull the battery and reinstall to get it working.

The E62 is somewhat annoying in that you cannot set a seperate alert for BB messages. So if you have vibrate turned on, it turns it on for EVERYTHING. Phone calls, SMS, and each new BB message. Very annoying.

More Pearls 8100 Info

This post from someone else seems to describe most of my issues as well, though my phone typically rings, but won't ring for the first vibrate or two when the phone is set to vibe and ring.

On a seperate note, it doesn't appear there is a good way to reboot a Pearl 8100 without taking out the battery and putting it back in. Not like the old BB with the combo.

http://blackberryforums.pinstack.com/6902-blackberry_pearl_8100_bugs_errors_report.html

Re: Blackberry Pearl 8100 Bugs/Errors Report Page permalink No audible ring even when phone is set to ring. Uncaught exception jav.lang... Jav reset error with white screen Freezes in between switching apps Hour glassing won't stop when I try to visit web pages or send messages Phone doesn't show a call ring--just goes straight to voicemail and puts missed called icon on screen New themes posted on mobile.BlackBerry.com phone won't ring. Only goes to voice mail. ~via BB (wap.pinstack.com)~

Pearl Problems...

Here's some nigglings I've had with the Pearl:

* GTalk crashes occasionally and some null exception error and logs out.
* GTalk has hung on trying to load on several occasions after crashing (requiring battery out reboot)
* Voice Command / Voice Dial will have error "cannot allocate audio resource" and not function.
* Voice Command / Voice Dial launch button and icon will not launch application with no errors or other clue as to what is not working
* IM application wil get stuck and not show 'not able to connect to server' after it looses a connection, even when you sign off and try to sign back on (I believe it uses SMS messaging for that IM application to work).
* Some themes/skins show the date in the 'euro' or 'international' format showing day/month instead of month/day or month/day/year.
* Minor annoyance : LED indicator flashes green when you are in coverage (and set on or off), but you flashes red during many other things (if selected such as SMS or email). On past phones, it would flash green when in service and flash red when out of service coverage area.

On the flip side, BlackBerry has an excellent alert system compared to almsot any other phone or messaging device I have ever used. It lets you set alerts, tones, vibe, silence for virtually each alert within each application. Now if only they could allow you to set what color the LED blinks during each as well!

TMobile Pearl *** Update ***

Coverage from TMobile aside, the more I use the Pearl or BlackBerry 8100, the more I like it. The form factor is slightly shorter than a Motorola SLVR L7, maybe 3mm or so, and about 1 or 2 mm thicker. width is about hte same if not marginally wider (1mm or so). The trackball 'pearl' is growing on me and I'm getting faster with it, though switching to a 8700 or 7290 or even using a Motorola Q with the scroll wheel is SO MUCH FASTER as it is much more precise, natural, and easier to gauge how far you have to turn.

The bluetooth audio quality is bothersome from the Pearl. Using a Plantronics 510 or Motorola bluetooth headset, the Pearl sounds tinny or nasal, while the same headsets with the HTC Wizard or Nokia E62 sound fine. Sound quality wise, the Nokia is clearest with the best speakerphone and clearest sounding ear piece. The Pearl is the most natural to hold against the ear and the speakerphone itself is not too bad. Sound quality is only okay through the earpiece. Could use more volume adjustment (louder). The HTC Wizard (Cingular 8125) has a clear earpiece which is very intelligible if not a bit harsh sounding. However, the speakerphone is even harsher and tinnier sounding. The Samsung i500 sounds very good in the earpiece, but the sweet spot is hard to find until you get accustomed to the speaker being on the edge of the flip.

MMS Between Carriers

Multimedia messaging between carriers is still somehwat funky in the US.

From what I have found:

Sprint PCS will receive MMS messages from TMobile, Cingular (Orange), and ATTWS mmode (Blue). However, it received these messages via a SMS and you need to connect via internet to retreive from their webpage. However, I am trying this on an older Samsung i500 Palm OS phone which does not support MMS or even SMS.

TMobile seems to be able to receive MMS via the BlackBerry Pearl via both Cingular (Orange) and AT&T mMode (Blue) devices. I was able to receive an audio clip I recorded on a Nokia E62 on the Pearl as well as a picture and sound clip from a HTC Wizard with a blue sim (Cingular 8125 phone). All the MMS pictures and sounds have been playing on the Pearl fine.

Cingular (Orange SIM) with Nokia E62. Was able to send a recorded audio clip (no camera) to both the TMobile Pearl as well as the HTC Wizard (Cingular 8125 with Blue AT&T sim). However, the Wizard with the blue SIM was unable to download and play the audio clip. It also did not receive a MMS sent from the TMobile BlackBerry Pearl but did receive and playback fine a message, picture, and video clip sent from the Blue HTC Wizard to the Orange Cingular E62.

HTC Wizard (cingular 8125) with a ATTWS BLUE sim. Seems to be able to send to everyone, but cannot download/receive certain messages. Could not listen to an audio clip sent from the Nokia E62 with a Cingular Orange SIM. Could receive a picture mms message from TMobile.

There you have it. A bunch of incompatibilities between either carriers (or even one carrier, AT&T/Cingular), and everyone else! (Note some of these could be file formats between devices, but I was unable to verify).

Wireless Coverage in Pittsburgh PA

Little to no TMO coverage inside our Forbes office. Cingular and SprintPCS seems fine, able to hold a signal and make/receive calls as well as perform data connections.

However, no 3G coverage on Cingular 3G as the hsdpa card doesn't light up under hsdpa only under GPRS/EDGE.

Verizon does appear to have good 3G coverage with 350k+ speeds near CMU.

Wireless Coverage in Pittsburgh PA

Little to no TMO coverage inside our Forbes office. Cingular and SprintPCS seems fine, able to hold a signal and make/receive calls as well as perform data connections.

However, no 3G coverage, as the Cingular 3G hsdpa card doesn't light up under hsdpa.

Wireless Coverage in Redwood City and Tahoe and Heavenly!

Well, this weekend, I was at a friend's place in Redwood City, CA, and can say that, where they live, I TMobile service is very poor. Cingular, Verizon, Sprint all appear to work fine. Cannot get Cingular HSDPA here, but GPRS/EDGE is okay.

I was also in South Lake Tahoe, and noticed that mobile service on the top of the ridge on Tramway on the Nevada side of Heavely was quite good with most carrier having extremely strong service. TMobile service was showing full service, Cingular was showing full service, and Sprint was showing very good service. However, I could not get HSDPA here, and my 1xRT/EvDO card could not get a signal. How sad. The best I could muster was 110k on EDGE on a Powerbook G4 with the Cingular Option GT Max card and about the 90k on my SprintPCS 1xRT connection with a Samsung I500 tethered to a Thinkpad running XP.

In Sacramento, voice coverage with TMobile, Sprint, and Cingular all seemed A-OK going up 80 to hwy 50...

Wireless Coverage - EvDO HSDPA EDGE

Well, after several months of usage, I find that Verizon still has the best 3G coverage. hsdpa is spotty and doesn't hold a signal good while driving, and Sprint doesn't have coverage up 680 and I5, and limited coverage in Sacramento. None seem to work in El Dorado Hills nor South Lake Tahoe.

On a seperate note, TMobile seems to work in building 46, though barely, but it still works with the Pearl.

TMobile Coverage @ Work

TMobile coverage and service at work sucks. Bldg 900 and 47 get really spotty coverage, going from "searching for service" to no bars. Building 43 appears to have 0-1 bars but seems to be able to hang on to service.

Driving across the Dumbarton Bridge, nor did it going across 237.

One note is that the BlackBerry 8100 Pearl does seem to hold a signal better than the 7100 from the past as well as several other TMobile phones.

MX5 vs S2000 vs ???

Drove my friend's Mazdaspeed MX-5 ( Miata ) back to back with his 2004 S2000.
Quite interesting powerbands on the two vehicles. The s2k is actually quite a bit quicker than it feels, and has a distinct hit at around 6000 rpm. If you then hit redline (8000 rpm or so) before going into the next gear, you are exactly at 6000rpm for instantaneous power. You don't realize it, and feel that you're doing about 50mph or so when in reality the digital speedo is speeding past 75mph.

The Mazdaspeed is surprisingly nice. The factory turbo feels like a torquey large motor versus most aftermarket turbo kits with a rising rate fuel pressure regulator which gives you nothing and then a sudden hit. It definitely makes the Miata a much more fun to drive car.

The car also feels very solid, though the 6500rpm or so redline seems somewhwat low for a sports car.

TMobile Coverage in Southern California and BB Pearl Battery Life

Tmobile coverage in southern California seems pretty decent. Used the BlackBerry Pearl in San Diego / Del Mar / La Jolla and the phone seems to hold on to a signal okay. Battery life without much usage shows 50% after 1 day (about 11am to 11pm). That is with Bluetooth on but not used for talking.

On the flip side, Sprint PCS service seems quite solid as well, able to get a signal even when the TMobile Pearl is struggling in Laguna Beach. Cingular seems pretty good as well (as evidenced through an E62 and 8125).

Enterprise activation with the BlackBerry Pearl takes a long time! Over an hour. Uses up a lot of battery life as well. However, it is VERY nice to not have to install software onto a Windows OS machine to make a BlackBerry, any BlackBerry work.

BlackBerry PEARL on TMobile with Bluetooth GPS receiver

Had to drive from the SF Bay area to San Diego today. Tried using a bluetooth GPS receiver (Belking Xtrac/Fortune ClipOn) with the Pearl. The Pearl comes with mapping software out of the box. It relies heavily on GPRS and EDGE to download maps and data on the fly. Driving 80mph, with zoom level on 3, it sometimes doesn't quite update the maps fast enough. No navigation and with auto mapping. What it is actually doing is downloading the maps and them super imposing your coordinates onto the map. More on this later! Battery life with GPS and GPRS was about 5 hours or so.

BlackBerry Pearl - Excellent Camera!

The BlackBerry Pearl seems to have a very good camera. Compared to the Treo 700w, HTC Wizard with AKU2 (Cingular 8125), and such, the sharpness, contrast, color, and exposure appear on par with a digital camera from 1999 or so. As a reference, I would say the HTC Wizard image quality is on par with a 110 camera (if you know what that is, saying it has Polaroid instant Land camera picture quality would be generous). The Treo 700w, while not excellent, is at least better than the HTC, though nothing I would post or print. I think you can print decent 3.5 or 4x6 photos with the BlackBerry Pearl camera.

Nokia E61 vs Nokia E62 versus BlackBerry Pearl vs HTC Wizard

So here is a picture of a Nokia E61 next to a Nokia E62 next to a BlackBerry Pearl. The picture was taken with a HTC Wizard (poor photo quality).

Which is the best email device?

Well, I feel the best email device now is the BlackBerry 8700. It feels different as a phone. As a BlackBerry, it does stuff much more efficiently than the BlackBerry connect on the E61 or E62. BlackBerry connect does not synchronize the contacts across from Exchange/Outlook via the BES server to the Nokia. Therefore, you will be unable to get corporate Global Address Book phones numbers and such. It does show email address, but that is it. Do note that as soon as you connect via BlackBerry connect on the E61/E62, that the security policy will apply and unless you know your PIN for the phone, you will be unable to unlock the phone.

I haven't been able to get Nokia's Mail for Exchange service working on the E61. Will be trying on the E62. However, I LOVE Microsoft's ActiveSynch DirectPush on the Cingular 8125 with the AKU2 ROM. Calendar, Contacts, Email synch up just fine, and messages come across just slightly slower than on the BlackBerry devices.

Also, the messaging application on the E61 and E62 is very slow. From the time you click on the main screen, it will take about 2-3 seconds to load the BlackBerry connect/Nokia messaging application. Then when you click on a message, it will take another 3-4 seconds as the screen goes blank, the message starts loading, the progress bar appears, the message loads, then formats.

Another annoyting thing with the E61/E62 is the messaging application does not display attachements such as JPEG. The HTC Wizard Windows Mobile device will allow you to download and view these, and the BlackBerry devices actually render these images.

Finally, regarding the E61 versus E62. It appears there is some data difference as a BlackBerry SIM will get BlackBerry and be able to browse the internet at the same time. It appears that it is using wap.cingular as the APN and not the GPRS APN. I will have to delve deeper to find the differences, but it also has MediaNet and several other APNs set by default. Another difference is that the data connecter and headset connector on the E62 are different than the E61. The E62 has a standard 2.5mm headset jack and mini USB, while the E61 has a Nokia POPPORT for data and headset. They both have infrared. Even though the E62 has a miniusb jack for data, it does NOT charge the phones. Bummer. It appears it's only used for data transfer.