[bob_az]

I'm thinking about making the plunge to a Mac, as well as .mac service (currently am sick of my PC!). I do have some questions. I see that some of them have already been addressed in this forum, and from what I have read I take it that Missing Sync's Blackberry/Mac solution is far and away the best way to sync the two.

Here's a question - does .mac email, which is IMAP, offer 2 way sync with my blackberry? this may be a dumb question, but I have only ever dealt with pop3 email, which never really helped my situation. I'm not really sure about how IMAP works as I have never used it, but as I understand it, it operates 2 way syncing (meaning if I write an email on my BB it will show in my sent folder when I access it via my Mac at home, etc.) I love my BB, but I use BIS, and so at times the capabilities are limited. I want total email sync! Does .mac mail support this and work properly? I am jealous of my friends who have BES, because theirs seems to work so much more seamlessly.

Also, another question. I know the issues of providers vary greatly, but I currently am thinking of switching to either T-Mobile or Cingular to get an 8700. Anyone have any positives or negatives comparing the two? I live in Phoenix AZ but travel frequently (mainly only to large metro areas and internationally). I despise poor customer service but also understand that you get what you pay for. Any suggestions?

And, finally, if .mac email doesn't work seamlessly (2 way sync, etc.) with a BB, does anyone know of any good email programs that do?! I love Gmail and am sad to leave but until they offer true 2 way sync, I can't use them. I know they offer that program that you can download but I don't want that. Rumor mill was that Yahoo offered 2 way sync, but who knows.

Thanks!

[ant architect]

2-way sync works. If I erase an e-mail on my .Mac account on my device, it's gone from my mailbox. If I read one, it's marked as read, etc. It works very well. I've been using .Mac on my BlackBerry for a year or so now.

As for providers, it doesn't matter. Cingular just launched the BlackBerry 8800 so you might want to look into that. If you're big on IM (AIM, MSN, etc) you should probably get T-Mobile.

[SchmutzBerry]

2 months ago I switched to the Mac and have been very happy with it. a much superior experience. however, .mac sucks. really. there are better services. and they will prob be better blackberry compatible. why .mac?

Originally Posted by bob_az

I'm thinking about making the plunge to a Mac, as well as .mac service (currently am sick of my PC!). I do have some questions. I see that some of them have already been addressed in this forum, and from what I have read I take it that Missing Sync's Blackberry/Mac solution is far and away the best way to sync the two.

Here's a question - does .mac email, which is IMAP, offer 2 way sync with my blackberry? this may be a dumb question, but I have only ever dealt with pop3 email, which never really helped my situation. I'm not really sure about how IMAP works as I have never used it, but as I understand it, it operates 2 way syncing (meaning if I write an email on my BB it will show in my sent folder when I access it via my Mac at home, etc.) I love my BB, but I use BIS, and so at times the capabilities are limited. I want total email sync! Does .mac mail support this and work properly? I am jealous of my friends who have BES, because theirs seems to work so much more seamlessly.

Also, another question. I know the issues of providers vary greatly, but I currently am thinking of switching to either T-Mobile or Cingular to get an 8700. Anyone have any positives or negatives comparing the two? I live in Phoenix AZ but travel frequently (mainly only to large metro areas and internationally). I despise poor customer service but also understand that you get what you pay for. Any suggestions?

And, finally, if .mac email doesn't work seamlessly (2 way sync, etc.) with a BB, does anyone know of any good email programs that do?! I love Gmail and am sad to leave but until they offer true 2 way sync, I can't use them. I know they offer that program that you can download but I don't want that. Rumor mill was that Yahoo offered 2 way sync, but who knows.

Thanks!

[bob_az]

i guess .mac because im not really aware of any other services out there. naive as it may sound, but the truth. here's the deal - i will use BIS as i own my own business and we don't have enough users to justify a BES. i do, however, use my old sprint blackberry a ton, and i love it. i want to switch to either tmobile, cingular, or verizon and get an 8700 series - i have played with my friends and they love theirs. but what services out there are good for someone like me, who needs accurate 2 way syncing and ideally calendar syncing, but who can't have the BES? It's frustrating b/c i think blackberry is amazing but they only seem to truly cater to BES, and their BIS services, while great, lack in a lot of areas that make the BB truly the ultimate device.

any suggestions on other great services out there? and when comparing the big 3 (tmobile, cingular, verizon) - anyone stand out in particular? i travel across the USA a lot, but internationally only once or twice a year. still, i'm willing to pay top dollar for the best, but in turn i want the best!

[SchmutzBerry]

Myself, I like using BES. Why not get your own BES service from a provider. I use themessagecenter and have been happy with them. You can search for others on this board, I think there's a faq somewhere.
On the Mac side - you can either use entourage or the programs from snerdware. I am evaluating both systems right now. the program from snerdware will let you use tasks, while entourage won't, for some strange reason, so i'm leaning towards snerdware.
.mac, other than blackberry usage, is simply not that great a service. look around the mac forums and you'll see why. it's not a great deal. but especially not for a blackberry user where i think you'd be happier with using a bes provider. it's also like magic, your calendar and everything are syncd, and mail is flawless. i've tried syncing imap mail, it's not as good.

[H2oMan]

I have used .mac and a blackberry for the last four years and never had any problems with syncing. I use pocket mac and entourage for my email never had any problems with task or anything. As for service I have been with Cingular for about 8 years when they where Pac bell and have been very happy I tried them all. I am using a 7130c now holding off on the 8800 for now. I go to England once a year and never had any problem with service. I think it comes down to money, most people dont want to spend the money for a email account. I would go to apple web site to find more info on it. Hope this helps

[KeilwerthSX90R]

Originally Posted by ant architect

2-way sync works. If I erase an e-mail on my .Mac account on my device, it's gone from my mailbox. If I read one, it's marked as read, etc. It works very well. I've been using .Mac on my BlackBerry for a year or so now.

As for providers, it doesn't matter. Cingular just launched the BlackBerry 8800 so you might want to look into that. If you're big on IM (AIM, MSN, etc) you should probably get T-Mobile.

How did you set up your .Mac mail on your Blackberry? I'm a new BB user coming over from WM 5.0.

Thanks!