[raidian]

Hi Guys,
it's my first post on the site and I have a very important question; what mobile carrier should I sign up for? I'm moving to HK next month and will need to get myself a phone ASAP. I pretty much have to get a blackberry because of work.

My company allows SmartOne, CSL and Three/Orange. so which one would you recommend?

I am a total Web head (personally and it's also my job as well) so i assume i'll have unlimited data with any corporate blackberry plan? also I head on these forums that Three (3) allows you to use your minutes for IDD? is that to all countries? would be great if home (australia) is included on that. just trying to get an idea of what the best deal is. the websites don't seem to be all that transparent and it's always best to ask around anyways right?

how do the plans work in HK? I am just ridding myself of a 2 year contract here in the US and would be great if i don't have to commit for that length of time again, it's just too long

thanks in advance for any tips, just want to make the right decision and try not to be tied up for too long with a bad deal

cheers

[PDLM]

Some plans on some carriers include calls to certain cheap destinations. That normally includes Australia fixed lines, but never Australia Cellular. But since calls to Australia fixed lines are only HK$0.2-0.3 per minute you may find when you do the sums that the extra cost of those packages is actually more than what it would cost you to buy the IDD separately.

[grandcider]

If you're not paying out of pocket, go for CSL. Otherwise, sign up with Smartone. Avoid Three, I can't wait for my contract with them to end.

[discobay]

BB plans here are 12 to 18 months.

[hk.com]

Peoples, -
great for GPRS,
Very poor for roaming, can't dial out, can't send SMS, but can receive calls and sms.

[raidian]

so it doesn't seem like blackberry plans are unlimited data then? Grandcider do you say go with CSL because their service is the best but you pay a premium?

[discobay]

Originally Posted by hk.com

Peoples, -
great for GPRS,
Very poor for roaming, can't dial out, can't send SMS, but can receive calls and sms.

When roaming you dial IDD back to HK by entering *138* followed by the HK number. Dialing IDD to other countries and SMS is done with the international + prefix for which you need to leave a deposit with Peoples.

[Sleuth]

We've never had a problem with 3 phone service. But we don't use it for a BB.
Our BB service is still out of the US (Cingular).

[discobay]

Wow that must kill you in roaming charges!

[grandcider]

I switched from Smartone to Three and noticed a big decline in quality. Calls are occasionally dropped. The network is sometimes busy at crowded places (eg, when watching the 10th anniversary fireworks in TST). SMS messages have sometimes taken up to an hour to reach the recipient (but this has not happened lately).