iPhone vs Blackberry vs Palm

What I'm looking for:

A phone/email device/text messenger/address book/calendar that instantly and automatically syncs all my data onto my computer remotely! (Manual sync ***). So here's my comparason. Please free to add info if you have it...

In the first corner... The Blackberry

Pros:

The fact that the Blackberry uses your cell phone signal means inputting a new event in its calendar, address book, or email, means it will remotely update your computers calendar, address book, and email immediately. So you never, ever have to do a manual sync again!

Cons:

The Blackberry seems to only work with Entourage, not Apple Mail.

On top of that, you need an account with something called Mailstreet.com which charges a monthly fee, and still isn't without bugs.

And while the Apple Address Book does have an option to sync with the Entourage address book (using "Exchange"), I've never been able to get the configuration to work.

As for iCal syncing with Entourage or Mailstreet? If there's an answer, I haven't found it yet.

Even if I had no other choice but manually sync my blackberry to my computers manually at the end of the day, the PocketMac software that comes with the Blackberry does not work very well and doesn't sync everything I want. And while plenty of folks out there rave over The Missing Sync, it does not sync email from the Blackberry to the Mac. Which is the main reason to own a Blackberry

In the second corner... The iPhone

Pros:

Compatible with everything! Apple Mail, Address Book, iCal and whatever email accounts I want.

Cons:

I live in Los Angeles... in the hills of Bel Air. Which means AT&T reception is spotty at best. (Comparing online coverage maps, Verizon has the best signal in my particular area). So will my iPhone even work at my house? I don't want to have to buy one first to find out.

Unknowns: I'm assuming my iPhone can automatically sync with my .mac account via AT&T, instantly updating/syncing to my ical, address book and email on my computers at home. But again, until I actually buy an iphone I don't know if it'll work.

In the third corner... Palm Treo

Pros:

Syncs easily with Leopard thru the Palm Desktop.

I can use any phone carrier, so verizon or sprint which seem to have better reception maps in my area, are an option.

Cons:

I'd have to give up my dream of automatic remote syncing to my computers at home and just do it manually.

Palm Calendar doesn't play nice with iCal. (Categories don't match, even with Missing Sync)

Palm isn't the best email platform. Internet expensive and slow.

The platform is antiquated.

Okay, so what do you folks think? Let the posting begin!

Macbook Pro 2.4Ghz & G5 dual 1.8, Mac OS X (10.5.1), 2 GBs of ram

Posted on Dec 11, 2007 7:29 PM

23 replies

Enio Rigolin2 Author

Level 1

114 points

Dec 13, 2007 1:05 PM in response to cybercrypt13

Wow. Where do I get one of those $1.00 disposable test phones from AT&T? I did a bunch of google searches and checked the AT&T web site, but can't find any info.

Dec 13, 2007 2:01 PM in response to Enio Rigolin2

Enio,

I really think the most logical thing to do is ask someone with an iPhone to come over to your house and try out the reception.

Then there will be no more questions.

Good luck

Enio Rigolin2 Author

Level 1

114 points

Dec 13, 2007 5:59 PM in response to Enio Rigolin2

Thanks for all the feedback, folks!

I've been scouring the net for more info on the subtle differences between the blackberry and the rest, and only have more questions. Such as...

I noticed in my Apple Mail preferences that I can create 3 kinds of emails... POP, IMAP, and EXCHANGE. One would assume the Exchange option would be for devices like the Blackberry. And yet, "push" email services like Mailstreet.com tell you to configure your mail using IMAP.

What am I missing here?

Do I actually need this extra service if I get a blackberry?

Dec 13, 2007 6:07 PM in response to Enio Rigolin2

Exchange refers to Microsoft Exchange. It's a corporate email server solution used by many companies. It doesn't relate to BlackBerry at all, other than you could also use a BlackBerry to retrieve your email from an Exchange server... as you can an iPhone to some degree.

All email on the BlackBerry is push email. You don't need a service such as Mailstreet.com to get push email on a BlackBerry. The BlackBerry device does this on its own by design.
You'd need a BlackBerry Data Plan if you used a BlackBerry device. The BlackBerry Data Plan would allow for access to BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS). BIS is what you'd use to link your email to your device.

I don't want to speak too much about BlackBerry here, as this is an iPhone forum and I've already gone on too much.
You might considr visiting a BlackBerry forum such as http://www.blackberryforums.com if you'd like more info on BlackBerry devices and how they function.

Dec 13, 2007 7:24 PM in response to Enio Rigolin2

The devil is in the details. It depends upon the details of your mail and calendar service.

iPhone has a reasonable IMAP. Not perfect (lack of searching) but reasonable. That means it can talk to any standards-based mail system. Blackberry gives you "push" mail, at the cost of requiring a special Blackberry mail server. What push means is that you don't have to check mail, you see it immediately. With iPhone you have to set it to check every 10 min or so. Do you really want your device buzzing every time you get a mail? I'm just as happy to check it now and then when it's convenient. If there's really an emergency people can use the cell phone. Different people will prefer one or the other.

The calendar should do at least a one-way sync from any system that can export iCal calendars via the web. What I do is sync my calendar to my iPhone. That gives me a nice interface to look at my events. However to make a new appointment I use a web client. The iPhone's web browser is good enough that you don't necessarily need native applications. Just about every calendar server has a web interface. Several (including mine) have interfaces optimized for a small screen such as the iPhone. Again, others might prefer Blackberry or some other.

I find that the iPhone is a great mail and calendar client. Those who want optimized clients for propriety systems may not agree.

Dec 14, 2007 4:57 AM in response to Charles Hedrick1

Charles Hedrick1 wrote:
Blackberry gives you "push" mail, at the cost of requiring a special Blackberry mail server.

This is absolutely not true.
You do not need a "special BlackBerry mail server" to get push mail on a BlackBerry device.

Jan 13, 2008 7:00 AM in response to Rich Fleming

I was definitely not kidding. I was talking about the Blackberry Pearl which is a pretty good phone too. Having full IMAP support is one of the best things about pocket pcs and the iphone. Blackberry needs to catch up.

Jan 13, 2008 7:05 AM in response to Rich Fleming

The push email is nice. You don't have to wait five minutes to get new messages. But if you want IMAP folders and other nice IMAP options (such as the ability to have sent and deleted messages always synced to the server) then you should get something other than the blackberry. Unless some Blackberry models DO support it but the one I had (Pearl) did not. You have to BCC yourself to save sent messages and there was no good syncing of deleted messages.

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iPhone vs Blackberry vs Palm