Company Wide BlackBerry Cutbacks

goreds2

Well-Known Member
Oct 14, 2008
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OH H.....EYE OH
On Friday, I found out my employer is making "BlackBerry cuts" company wide and mine is a victim. I will be assigned a "regular" company phone on Monday. Shoot, once you go BlackBerry, it will be hard to go back. :p

I am lucky though to still have a job and a free phone. If these BlackBerry cuts can save a job or two, it is worth it. I still did get to keep my laptop and Verizon Air Card.
 

Jon

Well-Known Member
Dec 16, 2008
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The Horror!!! I suppose it's better than Job Cutbacks.
 

Sirius Rich

Well-Known Member
Oct 11, 2008
2,153
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48
Houston
A lot of my friends work for an oilfield service company and they all have BB's. The company will not allow them to text, call 411 and made everyone use the company BB and get rid of their personal phones that used to be turned in on expenses. They also are forced to take a week long furlough every quarter (12% pay cut). The worse perk they lost was the company paid toll tags. The company no longer will reimburse these expenses. Have you ever tried to get around Houston without using a toll road?

Life is not fair at times, but they all are still feeding their respective families.
 

jef

Power Pig, Hello!
Oct 12, 2008
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It's funny - I'm an IT guy, and where I work, we can't get the boss to get us any sort of smartphone, although we are the ones with the most need. Every Tom, Dick and Harry walks around with one because god forbid someone send them an email inviting them to their 10th meeting that day that they don't get RIGHT NOW!!.

But remote access for IT, on the road email for IT, nah, boss doesn't see the need.

Oh, and not trying to say that it doesn't suck to have to have to give back a perk. It just boggles my mind that there are so many people with such a perk BUT me :D
 

DAB

Mod Emeritus
Oct 9, 2008
9,434
149
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Louisiana
For me as a person that has the makes the decision for who I am going to pay for their smartphone or service, I use one simple thing. Does this managers program require he be on call to do his or her job. If that is the case then I will provide them a smartphone and service.

I do have an IT guy on staff and it just so happened he already had his own smartphone when he came aboard. But keeping our facilities up and running within about a 125 mile radius he would certainly be one I'd gladly pay for.

Many of our facilities we high trainees and the licensing requirement is that there be a supervisor reachable by phone and so this is a requirement for these manages. Plus some of the facility managers have to make admission and discharge decisions while away. It is easy for me to justify paying for their phones. Anyone else... NOT A CHANCE!
 

hyson

Forum Jerk
Oct 19, 2008
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I can't stand my "company" Blackberry's..... they got the cheaper "Dingleberry" version.
 

limegrass69

Confused
Oct 12, 2008
6,079
245
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New York
I'd be lost if I had to give up my Blackberry. If you don't mind T-Mobile, you can get the new 8520 for free. It's a lower end device, but it's been getting decent reviews, and it looks solid.
Posted via Mobile Device
 

goreds2

Well-Known Member
Oct 14, 2008
6,163
1,017
118
OH H.....EYE OH
On Friday, I found out my employer is making "BlackBerry cuts" company wide and mine is a victim. I will be assigned a "regular" company phone on Monday. Shoot, once you go BlackBerry, it will be hard to go back. :p

Man, it sucks texting now because I most of the time have to hit a key 1-4 times to get the number or letter needed. :(

I know, I know, I am lucky to have a free phone subscription via my employer. :cool:
 

Jon

Well-Known Member
Dec 16, 2008
15,259
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Man, it sucks texting now because I most of the time have to hit a key 1-4 times to get the number or letter needed. :(

I know, I know, I am lucky to have a free phone subscription via my employer. :cool:

Ouch! After having a full keyboard I couldn't go back to the old way on my old Motorola.
 

hyson

Forum Jerk
Oct 19, 2008
11,844
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Man, it sucks texting now because I most of the time have to hit a key 1-4 times to get the number or letter needed. :(

I know, I know, I am lucky to have a free phone subscription via my employer. :cool:

Can't you use the T9 function to allow the phone to speculate what you're typing?
 

IdRatherBeSkiing

Sherbet is NOT and NEVER WILL BE ice cream.
Oct 11, 2008
27,227
13,832
168
Toronto, ON
Our company gives them to managers and select 'on call' employees. They are completely neutered to have only e-mail. I of course am not that important but they think nothing of calling me on my personal cell phone (they won't pay for cell phones) at any hour and sometimes ask how come I didn't read the e-mail they sent at 10PM from their crackberry. Well .... I don't have a crackberry nor do I remote access my work e-mail just to catch an e-mail someone might send at 10PM ... so no.
 

goreds2

Well-Known Member
Oct 14, 2008
6,163
1,017
118
OH H.....EYE OH
Can't you use the T9 function to allow the phone to speculate what you're typing?

Please explain the T9 function. I have the Verizon LG phone. Thanks,

lg-vx8350-1.jpg
 

DAB

Mod Emeritus
Oct 9, 2008
9,434
149
63
Louisiana
Ouch! After having a full keyboard I couldn't go back to the old way on my old Motorola.

Tell me about it, my Razr2 in my opinion always sucked a typing text. It seem to never remember words in the dictionary so you've have to type them over and over. Yet in the menu it had use personal dictionary. There were so many days that I wanted to slam that thing against a wall. Though I have to say with the exception of the texting it was a rock solid phone!
 

jef

Power Pig, Hello!
Oct 12, 2008
3,849
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Well, mine does not have it unless there is a way to download the program. :clueless:

I had that phone and I don't think it has T9 - it has some other thing available, but nothing as good. Verizon LG phones are notoriously craptacular, especially the ones they give for free, or near-free.
 

memebag

Top Brass, ADVP
Oct 11, 2008
17,404
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Lake Huntzing
I used to have a Blackberry without a full QWERTY keyboard. It had a number pad in the middle, and keys on each side, with 2 letters on each key or something like that. It's predictive text was amazingly fast. I could type faster on that than I can on my current QWERTY keyboard.