[Dan East]

I have a Pearl that is several months old now. No updates to the firmware have been released for my carrier since I've owned the phone. That's hard to believe. There are bugs that I know of (particularly with initializing GPS), and the OS and applications are quite complex, so there has to be many additional issues that I'm not even aware of.

How often are firmware updates released? Do they roll them out sooner or more often for some carriers than others? My carrier is US Cellular, which is a smaller regional carrier, so I'm concerned that perhaps we're being overlooked when it comes to firmware releases.

BlackBerry Handheld Software v4.3.0.170 (Multilanguage)

Package Version: 4.3.0.170
Consisting of:

* Applications: 4.3.0.97
* Software Platform: 3.1.0.51

[JSanders]

You can load any carrier's upgrade release, just follow the directions.
Here is yours:
http://www.blackberryforums.com/gene...ilanguage.html

US Cellular is not being overlooked... it is their own choice to release it or not, RIM does dictate who gets to or not. AT&T, one of the largest carriers, has not released 4.5 yet either, while Cellular South, one of the smaller carriers has.

You will be fine to do the upgrade.

[jsconyers]

Some carriers do release OS updates before others. In fact version 4.5 has been released for the 8130. You can load any carrier's OS on your 8130. It doesn't have to be released from your carrier in order for you to use it. It just has to be released for your device.

[Dan East]

Thanks for the response. A few more questions:
Is it possible to view a changelist from version to version?
Are there any ramifications at all using another carrier's firmware (I assume splash screens and stuff might not match).
Is all user data preserved?
Does any extra configuration have to be done (entering ESNs or gateway values, etc).

[JSanders]

1. No change list. If you make one up, please share with us.
2. No ramifications. Your boot-up splash screen never changes. Ever.
3. Yes. Do a prior Desktop Manager backup first for safetly
4. No. Routinely your device will be restored with ALL settings, emails, etc., just as before. Glitches do occur, it is not a without fail process. But my guess is 98% of users get a clean upgrade.