Very confused! New Blackberry owner. Help!

[Bedgee]

Hello,

I am brand spanking new to this forum and Blackberry ownership! A lovely client of mine gave me a almost new 8700g.

I have no idea what I have to do, or who I have to speak to in order to get my internet services on line.

All I know is that I have my own domain name and email, and I wish to hook this email up to my Blackberry.

I'm talking real basics hear people,

So who is the best service provider? How does it work? How much does it cost? My mobile plan is currently with AAPT and apparently they dont offer data packages?

Thanks so much for your help.

[GaryCutri]

Hi Bedgee,

In Australia the only providers to offer the BlackBerry solution are Telstra, Optus and Vodafone. In order to access email on your BlackBerry device you will need a Blackberry data plan, and in your case you will need to ask for a BlackBerry Individual Solution (BIS) plan. When it comes to plan charges all the providers are very similar (Approx $30 to $39 per month) so it's up to you to determine which provider offers the best call rates and coverage for your requirements. In general Optus and Vodafone offer better call rates but Telstra have better coverage depending on the area you will be using the device. Apart from call costs and coverage Telstra's BlackBerry helpdesk and warranty support is also much better; this is due to them having BlackBerry for much longer than the others. So as a basic overview you need to choose a provider, add a BlackBerry plan and then configure your email via your providers website (The BIS website is the one and the same for all providers but it has been branded by the provider).

So we can help you further in determining the best voice and BlackBerry plan can you answer the following questions?

1. Why did you choose your current mobile plan? e.g. Cheap rates or capped plan.
2. Do you receive many email every month?
3. Is coverage an issue in your area?

Thanks,

Gary

[Bedgee]

Hi Gary,

Great stuff, thank you!

So for some reason I was thinking I could add a seperate data package on top of my exsisting mobile phone plan. I assume this is wrong? So I need to change my whole plan and phone provider (AAPT dont seem to offer this stuff)?

I also have a question (dont know if this is the right thread) .. when I connect to the desktop manager it doesn't recognise my devise in media manager. I am running Vista, and I installed version 4.3?? I have also un-installed and re-installed?

Thanks again Gary!

[GaryCutri]

I just doubled checked to see if AAPT offer BlackBerry and I found a website that states that they do actually offer it in the business section. Have a look HERE for more information. With regards to your 8700 connectivity issue it is highly likely that your device has older firmware that doesn't have Media Manager included. To confirm this go to "Options > About" and let us know what the version and platform is installed.

[Bedgee]

Hi again,

A friend is here trying to help me and my Blackberry out!

I have: Version 4.1.0.309 (platform 2.0.0.133).

Thanks a million!

[GaryCutri]

Your version software doesn't have Media Manager capabilities at the moment. All you need to do is download and install the latest firmware onto your computer using this LINK, once installed open BlackBerry Manager and it will detect that your device needs an upgrade. Just follow the prompts of the upgrade and after half an hour your device will be ready to go. Please note that the device can take up to 10 minutes to start (The egg timer will be on the screen) after the update so don't stop this process.

[Bedgee]

This is all fanastic, thank you so much. It's all up and running now! And I will call AAPT today.

[GaryCutri]

How did you go with AAPT and your BlackBerry service? Let us know if you need anymore help.

[Bedgee]

Hi!

It's me. I am back.

Right, here is my story ... so apparently AAPT do offer the service to biz customers hence we hooked me up.

BUT ... I never got the data connection through. I am so confused, I don't know what it going on. They put me through to all sorts of support peeps but no luck. I gave up and we decided I should try a new devise. So now in my hot little hand I have the vodafone Curve 8310. Nice phone!

As far as I know, where it says GPRS in the top right hand corner; it should be displayed in capital letters. Yes? Indercating the blackberry data connection? Well on both my devises they are only displayed in lower case.

So what do I do? What is going on? How am I meant to use this thing? is it meant to just automatically appear in capital letters? am i meant to do something?

Note that I can sent a recieve calls and SMS ...

pls pls pls help .. is it meant to be this complicated? Shouldn't it all just work?

Could it be the actual sim card at fault?

Lastly; the browser icon does not display in the menu. This was also the case with the other devise. Is this due to the fact it is not connect to the BIS?

Thanks.

[GaryCutri]

Hi Bedgee,

Welcome back! Basically all you should need to do is contact your service provider and ask them to add BlackBerry services (In your case the BlackBerry Internet Service a.k.a BIS). Once the plan is added you will need to go to "Connection Manager" on the device and unselect "Mobile Network" and wait 30 seconds and the reselect "Mobile Network. By doing this is should pick up the new services from your provider and GPRS should switch to capitals. Once you get capital GPRS the device will download service books (setting files) from your provider and it will configure some settings on your device (also the Browser icon will appear). So the first thing I would try is removing and replacing the battery on your device to see if it is a software issue that is stopping the data connection. If this fails to fix the problem it means they have added the Blackberry plan to your account incorrectly.

Thanks,

Gary