Phone Choices and the Doggone Password Problem

By on January 30, 2008 in Tech

I need some help.

I have been using a Blackberry 7130e for the past 2 years.  It’s been a good phone, but it’s getting a little long in the tooth.  It does media only slightly better than 2 cans and some string.  I need a new phone.  Fortunately, I am out of contract with Verizon, my current provider, so I am free to pick any phone and any provider I want.  Sort of.

There are issues to be dealt with…

Like most big companies, my firm uses Microsoft Exchange Servers and BlackBerry Enterprise Servers.  Like many big companies, my firm does not use IMAP, I assume because the decision makers do not believe it is secure enough.  Which means that, as much as I dig my wife’s iPhone, if I ponied up and bought one, I could not access my work email, contacts, etc. with it.  This is a problem.  Ideally, I want to carry one device to get all my mail and to serve as my phone.  Carrying a phone and a separate Blackberry for work is inefficient and is not my preference.

Plus, as much as I like the iPhone, it is not without other drawbacks.  It’s not 3G compatible, the camera does not have a flash, there is no voice dialing and some of its features require a Wi-Fi connection.  And, as I have said before, I don’t want to be tied to iTunes to synch my data or to manage my music.

As I mentioned the other day, in an effort to keep me as a customer, Verizon sent me a Blackberry Pearl 8130 for $50.  I thought, incorrectly, that no contract extension was required.  I learned today that a 2 year extension is required, but that I can return the new phone and be free of the contract extension.  The fact is, however, that I really like the 8130.  It’s fast, it has a camera with a flash, it does voice dialing, works with Google maps (with GPS), and it is set up to receive my work and my personal email seamlessly.  In fact, I would strongly consider extending my Verizon contract, keeping the 8130 and waiting for the Blackberry 9000 to hopefully rock my world, but for one little complication…

After I activated my old phone, but before I got the 8130, my firm decided that everyone’s Blackberry should have a forced password on it.  This means that after 30 minutes of inactivity, my phone locks, and I have to enter a password on that little Suretype keyboard before I can access my email, contacts, camera and other applications.  This is not a huge problem for most people at my firm, because they do not use their firm-issued Blackberries as their phones.  On the other hand, I use my Kent-purchased Blackberry as my phone, for my personal email, etc.  Plus, I do a lot of calls while driving, and having to enter that password every 30 minutes is, practically and psychologically, unappealing.  In sum, the password thing is close to a deal stopper for me as far as the phone and personal stuff goes.

So I see my choices as:

1. Getting an iPhone for my personal stuff and carrying a firm-issued, password enforced and likely rarely used Blackberry for my work stuff.  This seems really inefficient and unnecessary to me.  I don’t want to lug two devices around.  On the other hand, I would be able to quench my iPhone-lust.  But if I can’t get my work contacts, calendar and email on it, it’s not really serving its intended purpose.

2. Keeping the 8130 and living with the forced password.  I can’t adequately describe how intrusive I find the password thing.  I wish I could learn to live with it, but I don’t think I can.  On the other hand, if I could somehow come to terms with it, I could be happy with the 8130, and potentially thrilled with a subsequent 9000.

3. Returning the 8130, reactivating my old 7130e and waiting to see how the 9000 shakes out.  Unfortunately, because of account deletions and creations with the new phone, even if I go back to my old phone, I will have the forced password problem.  The only way this makes sense is if the iPhone will be able to pull email from Blackberry Enterprise servers within the foreseeable future.  And nothing I have read gives me any reason to believe that’s going to happen.

I end up caught between two less than satisfactory choices.  One, if I want an iPhone, I have to lug two devices around.  Two, if I want to have one device for everything, I have to live with a forced password.  Honestly, I find neither choice acceptable.

What should I do?

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About Kent

Reader, writer, arithmeticer. Proprietor of Newsome.Org, a tech, music and life blog.
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  • http://assaf.labnotes.org/ Assaf
  • http://grandstreamdreams.blogspot.com/ Claus Valca

    I’ve learned to just live with carrying two phones.It’s better now. I used to carry a pager as well. I can’t express how dorky I felt with two job-mandated devices (BlackBerry & pager) as well as my personal cell phone hung off my belt. Never understood the logic of that policy. Glad we rescinded it finally.My BlackBerry is a 8703e model. I actually have come to like the wider format and the true qwerty keypad.When I loaded up Google Mobile (update) I found that the Google Map now does that cool “you are here” mapping on the device. Turns out it isn’t using GPS, but doing triangulation via different towers. Regardless, it ends up being very accurate in most locations. Google Maps with My Location (beta)We’ve since ditched the pager requirement, but I still have to carry the BlackBerry along with my personal phone. (Can’t use the company phone for personal calls.)Our BlackBerry policy is require password-access and it will only stay active for 1-2 minutes of non-use. Then it relocks. It is a pain unlocking it everytime for access. And we must use “strong” passwords! The benefit is that if I loose it or it falls into the “wrong-hands” after 10 incorrect password attempts, the device auto-wipes itself, erasing any secure or insecure information.So from that aspect, I appreciate the login/lock requirement.I’m also shopping for a new personal cell phone. (Darn it…) My Nokia is about to work itself apart. I’ve been looking at the Samsung A727 having reached the point of fed-up’ness with flip-phones. In the store the price was almost $200 (with Bluetooth kit tossed in “free”).On-line I can upgrade for just $100 for the same phone (after $50 mail-in rebate). No “free” Bluetooth kit…thank goodness.As much as I dislike the disruption of picking out a new phone, I have to concede sometimes you have to take some pain with the pleasure.Good luck in your shopping!

  • http://www.blogger.com/profile/11282147203081120420 ws

    Use a 4 digit password on your Pearl, that uses the first character on each button. ie. 4 buttons need to be pressed. You’ll quickly learn to press them without looking. That’s what I do.