Catha For Council Blog

Unless you have spent part of the past few years in a cave or under a rock, you have heard of the Blackberry. However, and with that said, even though you may have heard of the Blackberry, you may now know exactly what a Blackberry is in essence. Therefore, this article has been prepared to provide you with some basic information about the Blackberry.

In basic terms, a Blackberry is a line of mobile communication devices that allow you to undertake a number of different tasks through the use of the Blackberry itself. For example, a Blackberry is designed to allow you to read and respond to email. On top of reviewing, reading and sending email, there are many other functions that can be performed with a Blackberry. Indeed, on so many levels, the Blackberry truly is an all purpose piece of personal communications equipment.

In promoting the Blackberry, its manufacturer has described the Blackberry as a “complete package” that includes airtime, software and a mobile communication element that allows you to undertake a wide variety of tasks — from the palm of your own hand. Presently, the Blackberry widely is available in the United States, Canada and United Kingdom. Present plans are in place for the Blackberry to be introduced in other countries the world over in the very immediate future.

Technically speaking, the Blackberry in the United States and Canada relies on either the narrowband PCS 800 Mhz DataTAC network or the narrowband OCS 900 Mhz Mobitex network for its functionality. In the United Kingdom, the Blackberry operates on the the GPRS network.

Many who have taken to the Blackberry have sung its praises because it is easy to use. It has a very user friendly interface and an easy to manipulate keyboard (unlike many similar products that have tragically difficult keyboards). With few exceptions, a person who tries a Blackberry ends up very fond of the Blackberry. Oftentimes a person who has a Blackberry can be found to remark that he or she cannot imagine getting by without a Blackberry.

If you are interested in owning a Blackberry, you should spend some time shopping around in both the brick and mortar world and on the Internet and World Wide Web. In this day and age, there is a wide array of different retailers that offer Blackberry products for sale both in the real world and in cyberspace. By taking the time to shop around, you may even be able to find a Blackberry at a discounted price.

On the Net, there are retailers that cater specifically to the selling of Blackberry products. In addition, any number of auction and overstock sites may be found to have Blackberry products in their inventories.

In the brick and mortar world, a Blackberry can be found at any number of consumer electronic stores — large and small. By paying attention to sales and specials, you may even have the chance to obtain a Blackberry at a discounted price in the brick and mortar world.

For more information, please visit www.best-handheld-pda.info

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Even though you are charged a monthly fee, additional charges
could drive your bill much higher. If you are keeping your bill
on a budget, here are a few tips that will help.

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- If you are on a tight budget, choose a plan with low monthly
fee and low minutes. You can still use a landline phone or
payphone for the majority of your calls.

- Limit the use of your cellular phone to check voicemail. You
will be charged airtime. Use your home or work phone to check
it. Check with your carrier on how to access your voicemail
using a landline. Usually you just have to push # when your
greeting plays then put in your password.

- Use free calls offered by local businesses - Many times local
companies like TV stations, auto towing, radio stations, etc.
may contract with your cellular provider to offer free calls to
their companies. If you need to call these companies, take
advantage of these special numbers.

- Do you really need the additional features like call waiting,
text messaging and call forwarding? Unless they are included in
your plan, you will be charged extra for these. If you are
paying for a feature but do not use it, contact your carrier and
drop it. Do not keep paying for a feature you don’t use.

- Caller ID might pay for itself if you have a minimum plan. You
can use it to screen out calls that you do not wish to receive.
This will reduce your airtime usage.

- Since incoming calls counts against your airtime, be cautious
about giving out your cell phone number and NEVER post your cell
phone number online.

- Unless you get a really good promotional offer, stick to a
1-year contract. Your usage needs may change or you may find a
better deal after the contract expires.

- If you do not have a nationwide or network plan, be careful
about calling outside your home coverage area. The roaming and
large distance charges will really add up fast. You will also be
charged for roaming and long distance with incoming calls
received out of your coverage area. In some areas, you may pay
roaming charges even if you have a nationwide plan.

- Pay attention to the clock when you call during the week. The
weekday off-peak hours are limited, often 9 pm to 5:59 am
(varies by carrier, check your plan for details).

- Choose the right plan. If you are overpaying for more plan
than you actually need, you are also overpaying in taxes, which
can be 15-20% of your total bill.

- If you need to make a change in your plan, do it during the
first month of your plan. If you wait, you will be locked into
the contract. Carriers have deadlines for changes. If you make
changes afterwards, they add months to your contract.

- Re-evaluate your usage every couple of months - Go over 2-3
months of your cellular bill. If you find that the package plan
you are paying for includes too many, or worse, not enough
minutes, call and change to a different plan.You may have to
extend your contract as stated above.

- Ask for a bill analysis - If you are not sure if another plan
would be better, call customer service and ask them to do a bill
analysis. They will examine your bill for you and compare other
plans to see if they can save you money. They can do this at any
time, but this is especially important when getting ready to
renew a contract.

- When selecting a phone, start with your budget. There are
usually rebates and promotions that result in a free basic phone
with service. You can pay much more for a phone loaded with
features. Features to consider: weight, size, if you can read
the numbers on the screen, paging service, two-way radio
service, customized ring tones.

- Keep an eye on all the charges on your bill. Sometimes you may
be charged for a feature or service you did not request.

- If you sign up for a plan with a rebate, do not forget to mail
in the rebate card. This is how you get your cellular phone for
free from many carriers.

- Call in late payments - If you are going to be late paying
your bill, call them and tell them exactly when you will send
it. This may save you from late fees, being suspended and paying
reconnect fees.

- Suspend the cell phone if you’re not using it - If you are not
going to be using your phone for a while. If you do seasonal
work and are done until next year, or you’re on a trip without
the phone, you can call the company and request service
suspension for a period of time. Make sure to request a specific
time frame. (Voluntary suspension may be limited to a month or
so. Check with your customer service rep.) Remember that you are
still locked into a contract and suspension stops the clock.

- Find out how to call toll-free calls on your cell phone. Most
times 1-800 is not a free call on cell phones. Many times you
must dial #-800, or something similar. Ask your customer service
agent.

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