<p>Another phone question
My youngest wants to buy a blackberry curve. She has the money and is eligible to upgrade her phone with at t. She thinks she can just switch her sim card. She justs uses the phone and text messaging. I am not willing to pay for her to have internet or email. She says she doesn’t need that.
Why she wants a blackberry when she won’t use it to it’s capacity is beyond me but she is 14 and it is her money.
I know with verizon you need to have a blackberry plan but that doesn’t appear to be the case with Att. It looks like she can just use the blackberry as a fancy looking phone to make calls and text. She is big into texting which is why she wants the blackberry.
I am dealing with 14 year old logic.</p>
<p>It’s her money, let her spend it and realize that it’s a lot of money for not much improvement. I only advise my kids on their money. I never make their decisions.</p>
<p>I have the blackberry pearl as does my son. For the first year he had it, he only used it for calls and texting…We just added the internet recently. I would assume the curve is the same.
Since she is upgrading through at&t she can just switch her sim card. The only thing I would have her think about is that she can only upgrade through at&t every two or three years. Is this the phone she wants for that length of time?
Also if she waited she could get the new Iphone for not much more and would have all the music features. (Since she is not going to use the blackberry messenger or other internet features that are specific to blackberry).</p>
<p>I know it is her money. I am probably going to let her do it. It will be a vast improvement over what she is using. She presently has a Motorola I bought on ebay for 10 bucks after I washed her old phone by accident.
It is just that she could get something that is nicer then she has for free. But I KNOW it is her money.</p>
<p>I suggested the Iphone but that would cost her 199 and the blackberry 100. She only has 115 dollars so she can’t afford the iphone. Plus she says she doesn’t want it.
I am glad to read that she can use an blackberry without the other features. I think the curve has a camera and also a music feature.
She understands the 2 yr thing. She has been awaiting the day that she could get a new phone for 9 months now. We are tied to ATT since it is the only carrier that has service at our house.</p>
<p>mom60…tell her to go for it.</p>
<p>ebeee- done!
This is my kid who loves to spend her money. She takes her time to ultimately make her decision but she is not a put the money in the bank kid. This time it was deciding between a phone, jeans or a special type of pad for under her horse saddle. Drives us crazy her back and forth.
Lucky for her she has a day long babysitting job this week that will put some money back into her wallet.</p>
<p>I know you already resolved the issue, but I think I can tell you just why your daughter wants a Blackberry. I am a recent college graduate who recently started her job. I also just got a Blackberry Curve (I’ve been waiting for years to get one). I do have the email and web functions with it, but if your daughter does a lot of texting I can see why she wants one. It’s SO MUCH easier to have a full keyboard. It’s so much faster and so much more convenient.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Whatever you choose is fine with me.</p></li>
<li><p>Getting a smart phone (like a Blackberry) and only using it for text messages and phone calls is like buying a chainsaw without gasoline.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>My kid is looking at new phones too. He mentioned the Blackberry…but he wants to combine his PDA and his cell phone into one item. He gave us the impression that the Blackberry has calendar input capabilities (like a Palm Pilot). Also, he found a free offer for the Blackberry through AT and T at Walmart.</p>
<p>I just bought the Blackberry Curve this past weekend. I sampled many phones, and this had best keyboard. At ATT store, they transferred all my data, and gave me back my original SIM card (in case I dropped it in water again). I have found the sound quality & reception far superior to my old phone.</p>
<p>My son plans to buy the new IPhone July 11. He waited for the new model, as original version had bugs. We compromised that he would switch to a family plan, but will add internet access at that time ($30 for both of us). What I don’t understand is why ATT doesn’t give you a month or more to transfer phone numbers, as they do on a land line).</p>
<p>I did look at PalmPilot. It was smaller, but for a first time texters, the key board was more challenging. Pearl was too complicated for me.</p>
<p>LG Vu CU920, Pantech Duo, Moto Q, BlackJack all of these phone feature a kwerty keyboard. I happen to loathe BlackBerry’s i’ve had 6, and had to go and get replacements every six weeks. I stopped using the brand. I’ve had a Moto Q to much like a blackberry, if i had to choose a phone, i’d go with the LG Vu, it’s an LG, my fav brand, and it’s like the happy medium between blackberry and iPhone, i personally have the LG AX260, but ATT does not carry that phone. (It’s the scoop through Alltel, the Rumor through Sprint)</p>
<p>I love a qwerty keyboard for texting but I’m waiting for the Blackberry Thunder I may be able to dodge bringing my laptop everywhere.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>Better than a kid who loves to spend YOUR money! I agree that you should just let her buy whatever phone she wants to with her own money. That’s one of the perks of “growing up.”</p>
<p>I thought about getting the Blackberry Pearl. All I want is a phone and a PDA, I never text. I ended up with the Wing and it drives me crazy. I really want a PDA/phone with a cover so it doesn’t start pushing random buttons and calling people for me.</p>
<p>I figure if a kid has earned the money and has done a modicum of homework they can spend it as they like within the house rules.</p>
<p>AJH- My experience has been the opposite. I have had Blackberrys since they first came out. I currently have two. I have never had any problems with them and think they are pretty much flawless. WildChild has had one mechanical problem and ATT replaced his Curve immediately. I think RIM makes a great product and I would recommend it to anyone. I am anxiously awaiting the new Blackberry Bold before I upgrade from my Curve for my personal phone. I have something a little beefier through my employer.</p>
<p>AJH2008: wow. Your’s is the anti-experience to mine with my Blackberry. I’ve even had seatbelts and car-door pillars knock it out of its clip onto asphalt a half-dozen times and it keeps on ticking. Mine is an 8703 – I wonder if there is wide variation in reliability between the various models?</p>
<p>I CANNOT WAIT FOR THE BBBold.</p>
<p>Every model I’ve had (and I’ve had a lot of them) has been incredible. I, personally, didn’t like the narrow models with the letters sharing a key, but that was fixed by changing models.</p>
<p>I have a BB Curve. Love it.</p>
<p>Make sure that you know the price of the phone for your plan. You can log into AT & T and find out. If you are looking online, be sure to read the small print. The price online can be for a new customer. (This has happened to my daughter before, when scouting out phones online–only to get to the store and see that the price is higher.)</p>
<p>Also, with AT&T you may pay more up front and then get a rebate. The last time that I got the rebate it was not in a check–it was a gift card.</p>
<p>I would hate for your daughter to try to buy one and then find out about the small print.</p>