dilemma...!

Okay, so almost nothing about video games here... Deal.

The dilemma that I face, and that pretty much everyone in the US will face is in regards to the word "upgrade". I'm narrowing the scope of this upgrade to cell phones specifically, because I'm considering my carrier (Sprint, the slowest and oldest, most worthless network available) and my device.

Most people in the US own or will own a portable communications device. Then they will inevitably take it for granted. Let's narrow the scope down to that point. I'm looking at replacing my crappy Blackberry (model# is irrelevant as every Blackberry is pretty much junk) with anything else. Having used almost every platform (Symbian, Sony-Ericsson, Windows Mobile, Blackberry, and some others) save for Android, I figure it's now time to give Android a fair chance.

I'm writing this article to help my brain grapple with "4G". The "fourth" generation of cellular data service. WiMax and LTE, both touted as 4G solutions, really aren't anywhere near the 4G specification (1Gbps over wireless), but are both designed to be expandable.

The real dilemma is that upgrading is such a dubious and vain idea. Solomon the wise would probably call upgrading anything a "Chasing after the wind". There are many theories to when the best time to upgrade will be, but they're all just theories and subscribing to any of them means that you're going to be immediately wrong. I think I can successfully boil these down to three categories, and, since I tend to write on the fly with minimal correction, we'll see how I do.

Category 1: Early adoption.
The is getting new tech immediately when it becomes available. It tends to be a lot of fun, but also somewhat expensive. You get to experience all the newness of technology with all the pains of generally poorly tested materials.
Why is this relevant today?
Well, because we're on the verge of new technology being implemented throughout the nation. Most network providers are scurrying to come up with suitable '4G' networks. Sprint is using WiMax, while everyone else is going with what is generally believed to be the superior LTE system. An early adopter may jump directly onto the Sprint network seeing as they're implementing everything about 6 months to a year before anyone else trials LTE. The early adopter will get to play around on Sprint's new '4G' tech for about a year before they have the opportunity to experience buyer's remorse! Hmm....

Category 2: Wait and see.
The middle road. This is almost the same as the early adopter, but they wait to see how the early adopters fair before taking the plunge in tech. Generally it means waiting a few months after a product releases before even getting their grubby mitts on it. These wait and see people will often wait for the first price drop before they go for major purchases. The financial and strategic risk is lower, and they still get to look like the tech goons previously mentioned.
Why is this relevant?
Because in order to be a "Wait and see" about this technology shift I'll have to wait about a year using devices that no man should ever have to use (Remember, I have a blackberry... ugh...). Sprint's WiMax may be pretty fast, but AT&T and T-Mobile's 3G networks are actually upgradable to almost the same speed as WiMax. Interestingly, T-Mobile is supposed to have some phones coming out using their HSPA+ technology, which runs at around 21Mbps (faster than my braodband connection at home!). However that's a theoretical maximum and speeds like that are rarely seen, though many claim to be getting 10Mbps. The worst part is that these technologies are going to slowly mutate from what they are now into who knows what with only the underlying technologies being similar. Currently there are basically two 3G standards, GSM and CDMA. Soon there will still be two but much like the MPEG4 specification it's anyone's guess what actual technology will be the best or worst at any given time. There will never be an end to the waiting or seeing that one will do for at least the next three years, minimum.

Category 3: We'll get there when we get there.
If it ain't cheap and in my hand now, I don't care. These people are generally spendthrifts (usually in a very good way) who don't see a need for, or don't get excited over tech. They probably still don't text message people and can't use their phone for more than saving a few phone numbers and dialing out.
This approach minimizes financial and technical risk. IE, if a phone is relatively good in quality then someone is who picks it up for free is probably going to be satisfied with the product. Unless it's a blackberry. Blackberry phones are all the exact same thing, just with different sizes and some are shinier than others.
Why are these people relevant? Probably because they drive the 'low end' market. They're also the people that keep Nokia, LG and Motorola (and all the other dirt cheap phone makers) in business. The real advantage of being Category three is that you NEVER need to worry about features or the future. If you get calls and have to charge your phone once or twice a week you're more than happy. It's an almost stress free life for you, kudos. :)

Where am I? I typically sit between Category 1 and 2, depending on which device is involved. With computers I'm usually Cat1. When the i7 dropped I was all over its glory. With phones, I'm closer to Cat2. I'm not interested in holding the latest shiny POS and proud of it. I'll let some other people try them out for a few weeks and once I've read that it's really a quality product, I'm in (did this with the first iPod Nano. Once I heard that a few reviewers ran over it with a car and it survived, heck yeah!).

Currently I'm very interested in the Evo 4G and the Samsung Epic 4G. They work on the newest Sprint network (which is due to show up some in the Twin Cities by the end of 2010). I'm torn. Sprint is the currently the slowest available network. They're 4G is probably also going to be the slowest next gen, but it's here NOW. Not later. The other perk (as I understand it) is that Sprint is using the 4G network as DATA ONLY and the 3G network as voice, so, like AT&T, you can call and use data at the same time. Which is a big plus, and the main reason I didn't want to leave AT&T a couple years back.

I suppose I could just go buy an Evo and see how I feel about it. Not like I don't have 30 days to return it if it sucks. :D