My subscription period for my Verizon phone has come to an end. I’ve had my Treo for 2 years and it has served me well, but I’m wondering what I’m going to do next.
I’ve been paying Verizon the extra money for unlimited broadband access. The sad part is that my Treo is only a 650, and can’t take advantage of the high speed access that I’m paying way too much for. It’s gotten me thinking about what I’m really getting out of my cell phone and phone service.
What do I really use my phone for besides making calls? Well, I do use it as a contact database. I have all of my phone numbers and addresses in the Palm’s address book. (Actually, I use Agendus, but same difference.) I use it as a calculator. I play games on it when I’ve got time to kill and nothing else to do. I watch movies on it using TCPMP, since Treos can’t do VCast or any of that fancy network-provided stuff. I use the phone to get movie times via the built-in web browser, and send SMS to Google to get local addresses.
What would I like the phone to do that it doesn’t already? I would like the phone to take better pictures so I could go on impromptu weekend excursions without having to remember the camera. I do use the internet access, but I really wish it was faster. Having GPS features would alleviate that infrequent but periodic need to know where I’m going when I don’t know where I am. I would really like to have internal, iPod-like storage.
Finally, the network pricetag for the services I’m using is outrageous. Other networks are much cheaper, and just as prevalent in this area.
I could wait for the iPhone, but I won’t. It’s a long story, but to summarize: I have a work project that involves video podcasts, so I’ve been loaned a video iPod. I can’t get the blasted thing to work the way it’s supposed to – it constantly needs reset. If the performance of the iPod translates into iPhone performance (something I can’t afford to not have working right) then I have no interest.
Berta seems pretty attached to her Palm-based phone. I don’t know that she’d want to switch to something else, but I’m considering it.
The Helio Ocean, which isn’t out yet, looks like a really nice phone. I haven’t been able to determine if the Bluetooth it has includes a Dial-up Networking profile, but if it does, then I think it fulfills many of my requirements. What’s particularly nice is that it would be a 3G phone on an unlimited high-speed network for about $60 monthly. I would be able to be online via my notebook wherever I had phone service, which is basically Sprint’s coverage area.
The phone itself looks pretty slick, too, from the reviews I’ve read: 2.0 megapixel camera with flash. A full slide-out keyboard. Connects with many instant messaging systems. Plays movies from miniSD memory.
This whole phone/network search is frustrating. It’s as if the industry knows exactly what I want and is doing their best to dance around those specific features.
We’ll probably just renew with Verizon, but spending $300 to upgrade to a phone that makes use of a service that we pay an extra $50/month for seems like a good catalyst for switching to a service that charges a flat monthly rate of $60 for unlimited internet and whose phones can be had for less than $295.
