It’s kinda interesting to me, the coincidences life sometimes tosses at you.  Like this particular news piece, for example  Just today, as I plowed through my Twitter feed, I followed a link to a post talking about the supposed fragmentation of the Android market, and whether that’s a bad thing, a good thing, or a neutral thing that one simply has to accept in an open platform environment.  I have no opinion, not being one of Gear Diary’s resident Android folks, but it’s a fascinating discussion.

And then I started to do this news piece . . . about a new Android phone!  Funny old thing, life, eh?

In any event, Alltel and LG are getting together to… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

It’s usually a very sad long waiting game to get decent smartphones for folks who aren’t already on a major carrier like Verizon, Sprint, AT&T or T-Mobile.  Sometimes, though, that waiting can pay off.   Alltell customers  — well, those of you not already swallowed up by ported over to Verizon in many market areas — this may be one of those times.   If you have a qualifying plan (e.g., eligible to upgrade or opening a new line/account) you can grab the BlackBerry 8530 to run on Alltel’s 3G network for a mere $49.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate.  Yeah, we’re not big fans of the mail-in rebate way of doing things either, but $100 bucks isn’t exactly chump change.  The best part?  It’s only a 1-year contract.

So, while it’s not the most revved-up BlackBerry on the market with it’s 2MP camera,  you do get to take advantage of the new Curve form factor, trackpad (no more gunky trackball problems, yay!), social networking with Facebook and Twitter, and the Wi-Fi/ GPS enabled goodness any respectable smartphone sports these days.  Throw in your own microSD, and your 8530 can be used for video recording with expandable storage up to 32GB.  Not too shabby.

Press Release follows with even more details on Alltel’s BlackBerry 8530.

Act quickly! If you have been on the fence about getting a BlackBerry, your patience has just paid off.  Between now and  midnight Sunday, June 4th, you can get  ALL models of the BlackBerry Curve line fro  AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, and Alltel for FREE!

It’s arguably the toughest requirement one faces when signing up for new cell phone service.  The 2 year contract.  You sign on the dotted line and you’re locked in to your new service provider for 730 days.

In a somewhat retro move, Alltel wireless has just announced that as of June 5th they plan to replace their standard 2 year contract requirement with a 1 year only required commitment.

That’s not even the best part of the announcement though.  Even though you’ll only have to sign a one year agreement, Alltel plans to still offer their line up of cellular handsets at the 2 year contract discount price.

This change will surely offer… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Alltel Wireless is offering the CDMA BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8230 smartphone for $79.99, after a $70 mail-in rebate, at Alltel retail stores and online at shopalltel.com.  This discounted price is available to new and existing eligible customers who sign-up for a two-year service agreement.

The clamshell design of the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8230 smartphone allows users to discreetly screen calls and preview messages on the high-resolution external display or utilize the large internal display to respond to calls
or messages, view maps and web pages, and play games.  With a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels, the internal LCD displays videos and pictures in crisp detail and contrast.

The 8230 features the SureType® QWERTY keyboard… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

My mom is an Alltel Wireless customer, and one of her favorite features is that she’s able to call my AT&T number for free, since I am in her “circle“.

She, and others who use Alltel, will be pleased to know that starting tomorrow customers on a “My Circle 10” or a “My Circle 20” plan will automatically – and at no cost – receive five more numbers within their  “circles” – on both wireless or landline numbers.

As much as I love my AT&T service, I wish that it offered something like this. Ah well; at least AT&T users get free calls to other numbers on our carrier. Usually.

Full details follow…… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Taking a page from the Blitz on Verizon, Motorola will be releasing the Hint QA30 on Alltel on November 28th.

The Hint will sport a 3.5 mm headphone jack, USB 2.0, Bluetooth A2DP, Threaded Messaging and a full HTML browser.  The phone is completely built for messaging with a slide out keyboard similar to the Blitz on Verizon Wireless.  The price will be $99 after a $50 dollar rebate and will be available on Black Friday at Alltel Wireless stores and online… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

The long awaited Sprint Blackberry 8330 seems destined to miss the predicted April launch window, allowing Alltel to capture the “first US CMDA Curve” crown. The phone is going to be available at Best Buy (which has all Blackberry devices on sale during May 2008) for $199 (price drops to $179 with a rate plan of $59 or higher). Tip: Sprint’s $99 Simply Everything Plan is great for Blackberry – unlimited text, data, voice – and FREE Blackberry Internet Service. That’s right – no additional fee for Blackberry BIS service under the plan. (Note to corporate users – BES service IS an additional fee – Note to everyone else – Sprint does NOT yet support… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

The folks at Alltel may just beat both Sprint and Verizon to market with the first US Blackberry CDMA Cuve with included video recording capabilities (Telus have already released a similar model to the Canada market). Prior to this release only certain Blackberry Pearl – 81xx – models have sported video recorders – and only when operating under OS v4.3.2. Scheduled for release on May 1, 2008, the phone is now available for pre-order by customers within Alltel’s primary service areas of – Albuquerque, NM, Charlotte, NC, Cleveland, OH, Grand Rapids, MI, Greensboro/Winston-Salem, NC, Little Rock, Ark, Norfolk, VA, Oklahoma City, OK, Phoenix, AZ, Raleigh/Durham, NC, Shreveport, LA or Tampa, FL. Here’s hoping that Sprint and Verizon follow suit and offer Bluetooth Headsets and car chargers at no cost with future offerings as well!

Link: Alltel Blackberry Curve Pre-Order Page (No activation promo through 4/24/08)