Database Users

Taking an Exec to the US: worthwhile???

Hey guys.
I'm just about up for an upgrade with O2 from my XDAs (which I adore, even though I use like 10% of its capabilities!!) but the problem is that I'm living in the US now. So, I really want the Exec, as it'll save me lugging a laptop about, but am worried that it'll get uber expensive to run here, due to crazy roaming costs.
I'm thinking about changing my tarrif over to a "Data Only" with 5mb per month, at some 8 Pounds a month, but am I right in saying that as soon as I log on to GPRS in the US that I'll be charged "Roaming" fees and that my 5mb will go untouched? If so, is there anyway to get around this, as I like the look and the functionality of the Exec, but don't really have a desire to fork out $1000 for one! Are there going to be any compatability issues in using a UK handset as a main device in the US? Are O2 going to let me swop from my 200 Minutes plan to an Online plan that costs just 8 Pounds? Are there any requirements to being a "Business User"? I've Emailed O2, but to say that they were unhelpful is a huge understatement and then some!!
Lastly: can I play Java games on it/my XDA? Whenever I go to an onlione store with Java games, all of the handsets I see are Motorola and Nokia, etc, and never an XDA. I'm asuming that it must be able to play them, but does anyone have any comments or tips on the process? Thanks guys.

Why dont you just use a sim card from the US depending on where you go you can just buy a sim card if your phone is unlocked hope that help

Hmm. Okay, I think that that would make sense (tbh, I hadn't thought of that!). Okay, is the Exec unlockable? If so, how does one go about it? IE: is it an easy process?

The Exec should already be unlocked: http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=30330

yes all execs are unlocked. I have a spare one if you are willing to buy.

Hi GadgetGirl: thanks for the tip and link. I'll check it out.
Zillocx: thanks man, but I already have a line on one. Thanks for the offer though.

Teflon,
be sure to consider a T-Mobile USA SIM since T-Mobile uses GSM 1900 only which is the only US band that the Exec supports. Cingular uses GSM 850/1900 in most major US markets so you'd experience inconsistent since the Exec doesn't have GSM 850. T-Mobile USA is also the best US GSM network to use for data. They have unlimited data plans if you sign a contract with them. If I recall correctly, the unlimited plans run between $19.99 and $49.99 (Unlimited Internet Plan) per month.
http://www.t-mobile.com/services/webandinfo.asp (T-Zones Mobile Web Plan, $5.99/month)
http://www.t-mobile.com/plans/default.asp?tab=internet

I use a universal (Jasjar) and I live in the US, so I can tell you that it's definitely worthwhile I can also give you a bit of advice about a service provider...
Your two options for GSM providers are T-Mobile and Cingular. Like Triband said, T-Mobile only uses 1900MHz, so you know you'll get a signal as long as T-Mobile has coverage there. Cingular uses both 850MHz and 1900MHz, so you can run into some issues with Cingular. Generally, however, in the cities and more populated areas Cingular will have 1900MHz coverage while rural areas are more likely to be 850MHz only. Overall Cingular has better coverage then T-Mobile, but unfortunately there are no maps or anything available to consumers that show where they have 1900MHz coverage and where it is only 850MHz. I'm using Cingular with my Jasjar and I've had very few coverage problems.
Prepaid service in the US is considerably more than it would be with a contract, so if you're going to be in the US for a while, or you will be using your phone a lot you might not want to go prepaid (although I'm sure its much less than international roaming). Here Cingular has an advantage because they'll let you sign a month to month contract where you can cancel whenever you want. With T-Mobile you must sign a contract for a full year.
Please let me know if you have any other questions
Brett

Hi BrettS, where did you bought the Jasjar?

cktlcmd said:
Hi BrettS, where did you bought the Jasjar?
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I got mine from Expansys USA http://www.expansys-usa.com/
Brett

Hey guys,
Well, I just got married, so I'll be living in the US on a permanent basis. I'm towards the East Coast (New Haven, to be exact). My wife is American, and she's with Cingular, so that may be the way to go as calls between us would be free, from what she tells me. I'll do some detailed research into it, although further comments would be appreciated. I'll check out those links too. Now, if I can just get O2 to stop being such asses I'll be a happy man!!

BrettS said:
I got mine from Expansys USA http://www.expansys-usa.com/
Brett
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Do they have warranty on it or does I-mate honor the warranty no matter where you bought the unit? I saw that the I-mate Phone store has it too for 1200 USD. Why did you not bought it from them and opted for expansysUSA?

cktlcmd,
I have a Jasjar as well and I also got it from expansys. I use expansys because I purchased the previous two devices (XDA, I-mate PocketPC Phone ) from them. During my purchase of the Pocket PC phone, I original got the Qtek 2020 and I was not happy. They took it back and sent me the I-mate version without any issues. Overall all accessories and devices purchased from them have been a good experience. In all cases they did honor their 15 days policies if the product did not perform as expected.
Teflon, I am using Cingular and they seems to have the best coverage for GSM in the US. I am located in the East Coast.

USA SERVICE PLANS

Just wanted to know what service plans would be good for JasJar in the USA.
I use T-Mobile but of course we americans are lagging behind on mobile technology communications. I find I cannot use half of the features and it doesnt even have EDGE support. So wondering if any of you have T-Mobile in the USA and what service/internet plans are you using? :?:

I find I cannot use half of the features
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That's a bit of an exageration. The only thing you cannot use is 2100MHz UTMS. Everything else works fine.
You really only have Cingular and T-Mobile from which to pick in the US. Cingular has more coverage, but there are some 850MHz areas where the JasJar will not function as a phone. The TMo $20 unlimited gprs plan is pretty sweet. As others have lamented, the only thing this phone is missing (mostly for those of us on this side of the pond) is a quad-band radio, and EDGE or 1900MHz UTMS.

gadgetgirl said:
The TMo $20 unlimited gprs plan is pretty sweet.
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I definitely have to second this. I've looked at other plans, Cingular as well as going something "non-sim" before I got the Jasjar, and nothing seemed to come close to the $20 unlimited data with TMo. My minutes and data combined with TMo are less than the unlimited data alone with some others.
It all depends on your needs though. I don't spend a lot of time in areas that aren't covered by TMo, so that issue is moot and price can play a larger factor for me.

USA service plans
ahh I see your point. I just got the $20.00 unlimited data plan. Is there anything special needed to get it started. Does anybody know if Tmo will start coming out with 3G networks?

Re: USA service plans
xda_dev said:
ahh I see your point. I just got the $20.00 unlimited data plan. Is there anything special needed to get it started. Does anybody know if Tmo will start coming out with 3G networks?
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Unfortunately, the news on 3G networks in the USA is not very good for us Universal owners. Cingular has already started to implement their 3G service in a few markets in the US and will be expanding their 3G service in 2006. I haven't heard anything about T-Mobile's 3G plans yet. Unfortunately, however, Cingular's 3G network works at 1900MHz and T-Mobile's most likely will as well. This means that even if Cingular or T-Mobile provide 3G service the Universal won't work with it, because the Universal only supports 3G at 2100MHz.
In the US, the 2100MHz band currently belongs to the US Military and there are rumors that that band may be made available to cell phone providers in 2007, but even if that happens, but the time the band is available and the service providers start using it I'm sure that my universal will be obsolete.
I'm using a Universal in the USA right now, but I don't expect to ever be able to use it on a 3G network here.
Brett

EDGE on MDA Pro/JasJar
So you're saying EDGE won't work on the MDA Pro? According to T-Mobile, EDGE is already in place in most of its US network. Also, GPRS to EDGE from the providers standpoint basically involved a software update. Can this be done on the MDA Pro as well?
One final question. Anyone know how I can find out if my MDA Pro has the latest rom and where to get updates. My phone came from Germany (T-Mobile)?

The Universal does not do Edge afaik. The HTC Wizzard does do edge. So the only difference between the two for US users (who cant use 2100MHz UMTS) is the low res screen on the wizzard, and the fact that the wizzard is a whole lot more portable. Oh and the mini SD port!
Here in the UK, none of the networks support edge, which is a bit of a pain for wizzard owners! I would have had a wizzard for the smaller size if edge were available in UK, or if wizzard was 3G !
Nigel

Thanks
If I choose then to sell may MDA Pro, what would you recommend as being the most comparable item that will at least work with EDGE and UMTS @ 1900 in the USA. I am otherwise very satisfied but one reason why I paid a premium price was to have something that would not be obsolete too soon, be able to work with the next generation (3G) and be downward compatible (EDGE, GPRS).

I am happily using T-Mobile in the USA. I bought the jasjar knowing that I would be limited to GPRS on the data side. Its many other advantages make the compromise worth it to me.

I am happily using T-Mobile in the USA. I bought the jasjar knowing that I would be limited to GPRS on the data side. Its many other advantages make the compromise worth it to me.

US Carriers
I too am using my JasJar with T-Mobile in the US and am quite happy with the service. I recognize that I will not be able to use 3G with this device, but I'm OK with that. For me the features of the device far outweigh that single drawback.

3G O2 Exec while visiting USA- which/how network to choose?!

Chaps,
My other half uses her O2 xda Exec with a work supplied 3G vodafone SIM. It works fine in the UK and she did a good job getting it set up with the right 3G UK vodafone settings etc- well done her!
Question is...
She's now working in the USA for a few days. The xda has found a network and can use it - great stuff but no 3G....
How can she determine what network its using over there - is this selectable somewhere (I couldn't find the option)?
Based on the network what would the settings be to allow her to use 3G!? Anyone help?
Thanks

USA doesn't have 3G. It's also why the universal isnt popular in USA. I feel sorry for em. :lol:

RyanZA said:
USA doesn't have 3G. It's also why the universal isnt popular in USA. I feel sorry for em. :lol:
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Oh bugger! You mean we're ahead of America on something!?
I can't believe silicon valley doesn't have 3G, I guess they have wireless hotspot all over....

T-Mobile US have mumbled something about enabling UMTS "in 2006" but I rather want to see it than hear about it.
The rest of the US carriers use fancy 1xRTT data protocols over CDMA networks - not compatible with GSM. People in the US still wonder what the "G" stands for ;-)

Blame it on our military. Those bands are owned by the US Gov. Just recently I have heard news of businesses getting access to those bands. And there was much rejoicing...

who ever said the us doesn't have 3G?
i live in houston and when i got the universal i did some reaserch:
i found that verison wireless has 3G on their devices, but they dont use sim cards, so they wont help...
but i now have cingular wireless, and it works great, but it is a bit pricy...
i believe about $45 per month...
so if you were just going to visit the us, then i would sugest to you that you go with t-mobile using the GPRS,
yes i know it is slow, but if you are only going to be using it for a little bit i think it would be fine. I believe the GPRS is $19.99.
so it really depends if you really think you need the 3G service...
if you dont think so then get GPRS, the exec can use it, and its not all that bad

It is true that the US does not have 3G but your Tri-Band GSM device will work perfectly fine. With the proper settings you can even surfe the WEB at 32k just no high speed for things like video calls.
I use my Exec quite often in various places in the US without any problems.

USA gprs Internet access via Universal

I am off to Florida for a month and would like to have internet access on my laptop using gprs(Universal as modem). My problem is that I am not sure what the necessary setup is(can i have gprs on a prepaid, what network, settings etc) . I have tried to investigate the possiblilty of a sidekick sims in the Universal but got nowhere. Hope you can help.

Unfortunately, you won't have much luck. The majority of the networks in Florida are using the 850 MHz band, which the Universal doesn't support. You'll have intermittent luck using the 1900 MHz band, but it's not as widely used. If you visit Florida later this year, you'll be able to use Cingular's 3G network that they will be rolling out.
The two biggest GSM/GPRS providers here are Cingular and T-Mobile. You can purchase pre-paid service from them so you don't have to enter any contracts.
What part of Florida will you be in?

But wait, there's more! You can't use the 3G access in the US because Cingular's 3G frequency is 1900mhz and UK/Asia/Europe uses 2100mhz that the Universal has. So, you're still out of luck.

Shame!
There goes my beautiful plan! I am doing the Disney Tour so will be mainly round Orlando/Kissimmee area.
I am assuming that although the GPRS is looking grim, I can still use my Exec as a normal phone, right?

Re: Shame!
terapixels said:
There goes my beautiful plan! I am doing the Disney Tour so will be mainly round Orlando/Kissimmee area.
I am assuming that although the GPRS is looking grim, I can still use my Exec as a normal phone, right?
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If you are covered for international calls on your plan with O2, yes. Having been in and around the Orlando area several times, it seems that T-Mobile was the service available most often (as opposed to Cingular, with whom I subscribe.
The GPRS down there wasn't half bad.

thefunkunfaked,
I am on a monthly plan so I think I am covered for international calls. But what I would like to happen is for me to buy a PAYG US sim card and be able to call cheaply within the US(+GPRS if poss).
So if I get a T Mobile PAYG sim card, are you saying I will be able to get GPRS?

Yes, T-Mobile USA uses 1900 according to http://www.gsmworld.com/roaming/gsminfo/net_uswe.shtml
The map for Cingular seems to indicate their 1900 network fully covers Florida http://www.gsmworld.com/cgi-bin/ni_map.pl?cc=us&net=be
But a local probably know better than trusting the map.

T-Mobile Sidekick Prepaid with European HD2

I will be on a trip through New England in a few weeks and wondered whether I can use the T-Mobile Sidekick Prepaid Plan on a European HD2. I intend to buy the SIM on ebay and activate it as soon as I'm in the States, so my question is: Is there anything important that needs to be considered, if I want to use it primarily for emailing, facebook, google maps and web browsing in general. My phone has neither SIM- nor netlock.
As for coverage and roaming: I assume that there are no roaming costs as long as I stay in the US? I just wondered because I read somewhere that T-Mobile is using another provider's network in some areas.
Thanks in advance for all replies.