[jeepsrock]

Hi guys, I have a few questions regarding a possible blackberry 8320 purchase. Currently i have a cell phone + messaging service on my regular phone. I am thinking of independently purchasing a blackberry such as the 8320 and just putting my sim card in it.
I have read the wifi post and wiki and still have a few questions bc it seems i have even become even more confused.
My goal is to be able to message easier with a keyboard and use the wifi to access the internet and email like gmail. I have read and asked the women at the Tmobile store and she said without a data/blackberry plan i can not access the internet, which didn't make full sense to me. I am hoping someone here can give me an idea on if this will work for me.

Thanks
Pete

[jasonsteel]

Hi Jeep. I have the 8320 with service through T-Mobile. The voice plan is self explanatory. The data plans can be a little confusing, but I'll try to answer as best I can.

Unless there is a specific reason, you're better off purchasing the phone through T-Mobile while signing up for a 2-year contract. Retail price w/o contract is around $400-$450. With the 2-year commitment, it's $249 or so.

Most carriers distinguish between just email data transfer and all other data transfer.

If you get your email through the BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS), T-Mobile considers this just email access. That means you're given access to T-Mobile's web portal, and you setup the BIS service to pull email from up to 10 different email accounts that have POP3 enabled (most are) -- such as GMail, Yahoo & your local ISP. Emails are then pushed by BIS to your device.

Emails go to the Blackberry's "Messages" application, so there is no need for a third party email reader, like GMail mobile, and I don't have to go through the web browser to access my email.

The limitation is, in order for it to be considered only email access, you have to use BIS and get your email through the Blackberry "Messages" application. Using the web browser or a 3rd party application like GMail Mobile is considered non-email data transfer.

Choice 1. It's $20/month for the BlackBerry Unlimited Add-on. (I have this). I'm allowed unlimited data transfer for web browsing and email, and the plan includes access to BIS. Of course I can always choose to use the web browser to access your GMail account, or install the GMail mobile application and get to my email through it.

Choice 2. BlackBerry Unlimited E-mail Add-on for $10/month. This plan just gives you access to the BIS push email service. You won't be able to surf on the net. This is probably what the woman at the T-Mobile store meant by needing a data plan.

[John Clark]

You can surf the internet over wifi without a data plan but you won't get any of the email mentioned above.

[aiharkness]

This thread may help, if you haven't found it already: http://www.blackberryforums.com/wifi...tml#post699283.

[jeepsrock]

The funny thing about all this is the more i read about this the more confused i get.
Looking at the links you guys posted as well as info at crackberry forums it seems some users have been able to get apps like the Google series of software to work with wifi by downloading service files while others have reported a no go situation unless the data plan is activated.

I guess a better question is their a list of software that many people have verified to work on a wifi only phone ?

The reason i am asking all this i really spend the majority of the day in areas where wifi is available.

THanks
pete

[jeepsrock]

Ok so after reading much more it seems that many newer applications are slowly starting to support wifi data transmission.
I have read here that jive beta supports wifi in their new beta and that some of the other applications can be made to work by setting up a APN setting ?

Can someone explain or clarify what this apn setting does and which application ppl have gotten to run with this option.

I apologize for all the questions but as a poor college student i need something with a keyboard and something i can somewhat take advantage of the wifi i always have around me.

Thanks
pete

[dandrzejewski]

The "APN" setting is actually not BlackBerry-specific, you probably even have an APN setting somewhere on your current phone.

Basically, the APN is a host somewhere on the wireless network which routes the data between you and the host you're trying to contact on the internet - but this is generally reserved for GPRS or EDGE communications (data through the cell network, not via WiFi).

Now... I'm not sure why you would need an APN setting if you're going to use WiFi, someone else here may be able to help with that...

[sgtcasey]

Originally Posted by dandrzejewski

Now... I'm not sure why you would need an APN setting if you're going to use WiFi, someone else here may be able to help with that...

I don't see why either. It could be the application you are trying to use does not support the use of Wi-Fi. Once you enter the APN and that application works that tells me it is using the APN to connect and not Wi-Fi.

Dave