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difenbaker
08-18-2007, 02:07 AM
AT&T Crippling GPS in BlackBerry 8820?

So the BlackBerry 8820 is soon to be released on AT&T and someone that is supposedly and insider has outed the notion that the integrated GPS in the 8820 may be crippled by a monthly service fee in order to keep iPhone sales up. I personally think this is ludicrous.

There are several reasons for buying an iPhone, the music capabilities the highly innovative touchscreen, the simple fashion statement it makes. What I cannot come up with is one reason where the iPhone and any BlackBerry would ever compete for customers. Sure the BlackBerry has a lot of great features, features that maximize it’s usefulness for its intended audience, but I cannot think of one that would cause someone to walk into an AT&T store with the intention of purchasing and iPhone and suddenly be swayed to buy a BlackBerry.

I guess the deal is that AT&T is going to tie the GPS in the 8820 to TeleNav and charge customers $9.99/month to use it. Now I don’t know if this means what some have been implicating, who knows, maybe the BlackBerry doesn’t come with software to utilize the GPS technology inside it and the $9.99 fee is really only a charge from TeleNav and AT&T providing that software. Regardless, if AT&T is pulling such hijinks just to push sales of a $600 iPhone then I suspect a large number of their customers to be moving over to Sprint, not only to they have better data network coverage, but they are working on a WiMax network.

http://www.slashphone.com/70/8048.html
http://www.boygeniusreport.com/2007/08/17/att-crippling-gps-in-blackberry-8820/

AT&T kills GPS in Blackberry

Did not want it to look better than the iPhone
By Nick Farrell: Monday 20 August 2007, 07:30

DEEP THROATS within AT&T claim that the outfit has killed off the GPS functionality in its upcoming BlackBerry 8820 to prop up its Iphone sales. According to Blackberry Cool, AT&T wants to make sure that the only functioning 3rd party software which can run on the hardware will be TeleNav.

An AT&T Deep Throat told Blackberry Cool, that the carrier didn’t want to launch a cheaper device that would be superior to the more expensive Iphone.

AT&T executives were a little nervous when they realised that they would be selling a cheaper GPS/Wi-Fi’d device with push email and no touch screen.

http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=41794


:o

jmac32here
08-20-2007, 09:24 PM
Didn't think the Blackberry actually ever came with a GPS unit that didn't have a service charge. The ones on Sprint use TeleNav as well, and the ones on Verizon have always been advertised to require the Monthly navagtion service added on to use it.

This is worth further investigation...