[serrano_yejo]

I was gonna buy the Sprint BB 7130e today but the sales rep told me to buy the BB7250 (w/ev-do) because "You'll only miss polyphonic ringtones and a speakerphone"

I really need some help... Is true then...should I go for the BB7250 then?

[mymitsu3kgt]

That rep can't exactly tell you which options you find worth it to pay extra for. Those are two pretty different BB's. Do you prefer a full qwerty keyboard or the suretype keyboard? Do you prefer the classic BB form factor or the slimmer 71xx series form factor?

[serrano_yejo]

I dont mind the form factor... and the suretype I played w/ it and seems easy and intuitive.

I am interested in 3 things
1) E-Mail/SMS
2)IM
3)web surfing
4)phone

In that order...
7250 is MUCH more rugged with a more robust build quality?

[Gazoo]

Originally Posted by serrano_yejo

I was gonna buy the Sprint BB 7130e today but the sales rep told me to buy the BB7250 (w/ev-do) because "You'll only miss polyphonic ringtones and a speakerphone"

I really need some help... Is true then...should I go for the BB7250 then?

Sounds to me like the sales guy was trying to move older stock

[BERDucky]

if web surfing is important get the 7130 - it's faster

and i agree w/ Gazoo - he's just trying to move old stock (or he's out of the 7130 and didn't want to let you know)

[phillyslickster]

Wirelessly posted (7105t: BlackBerry8700/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/100)

You can do the features you want on either of them. The thing is like that you need to decide whether you want the full qwerty keyboard or the suretype, as well as the form factor. Some people prefer the form factor of the 7130e as well as others would prefer the 7250. That's something that you'd need to decide.

[hotsauce26]

From my experience if you are going to do a lot of typing on the BB then go with the 7250. Since it has the full keyboard. Both have the T9 feature, which will complete words for you but, I can type faster by putting in all the letters myself. I have had both phones when I was with Nextel, I bought the 7250 first then the 7130, and switched back to the 7250 for the keyboard

[mymitsu3kgt]

There are a couple of threads in this forum where people say they can type faster with the SureType keyboard (I feel the same). After you adjust for the predicted words, I believe you can type faster because the keys are larger.

[DINide]

Originally Posted by mymitsu3kgt

There are a couple of threads in this forum where people say they can type faster with the SureType keyboard (I feel the same). After you adjust for the predicted words, I believe you can type faster because the keys are larger.

SureType is where it's at. Plus the 7100 series are slimmer.

[jax]

In my experience, SureType (on the 71xx) doesn't work well if you write a lot of messages with jargon or slang in them - I used one and got hugely frustrated. I now use an 8707 (QWERTY keyboard) and find it much easier to write / edit.

[phillyslickster]

Jax, when I used the 7100 series BB, I found that adding the slang or jargon terms to the auto text helped me out. Yet, I type a lot of emails for work, etc that I found that the full qwerty keyboard worked better for me. I'm currently using the 8700g with T-Mobile. Bottom line is the person that started the thread needs to determine his/her needs as far as having a full qwerty keyboard or using suretype.

[Gazoo]

I can type quicker with Suretype than without because I have big hands and the standard keyboard buttons are always too small. Suretype and the 7130e were a godsend.

[mister.zero]

Ah, Sprint Cusstomer Support. I have dealt with some truly inspired reps and I really appreciated the help they provided, but they were somewhat in the minority.

I would suggest taking full advantage of the return grace period and try both phones. If all the sure-type prophets are right, then predictive text shouldn't give you any problem if you put in a week or so of practice (I'm sure it's just like learning that stylus-stroke touchscreen input language on a PPC). After that, you'll just have to see which phone meshes with what you want to use it for.

Sprint didn't offer the 7130 when I was buying (or maybe they did and the rep was just selling his old stock ), but I haven't found any gaping holes in the usefulness of my 7250. My BB's on vibrate most of the time, so ringtones aren't an issue. Eventually they'll move EVDO coverage 60 miles to the west and I'll benefit from that, too.The full keyboard is my main love after years of touch-screen hell, so it suits me just fine. If you're worried about the larger form-factor looking silly as you hold it to your head to talk, just get a bluetooth headset (and look silly with a blue flashing light in your ear).

Rambling on is Fun!

[donsarlo]

Originally Posted by hotsauce26

Both have the T9 feature

I have a 7250. How do you activate T9 on it?

[Milkman]

Originally Posted by mister.zero

I would suggest taking full advantage of the return grace period and try both phones.

BE CAREFUL when using this method. Some carriers will want to charge you for something (restocking fees, shipping, data fees, etc.). You will want to ask the rep you speak with (GET A NAME!), or better yet, read the fine print!

[mister.zero]

Originally Posted by Milkman

BE CAREFUL when using this method. Some carriers will want to charge you for something (restocking fees, shipping, data fees, etc.). You will want to ask the rep you speak with (GET A NAME!), or better yet, read the fine print!

Well, of course they're going to try to make a little more money off of you; the poor dears can't help themselves

However, in my small world, it's worth it to pay a bit extra and to talk to a few more people to make sure that I'm buying something I really like and will actually find useful, especially on more expensive items (like Sprint BB's!).

Good advice though, it never hurts to get full names on anyone who makes you promises, and a few minutes of reading can eliminate a lot of nasty surprises later on.