MapForums

I've been using the Sprint PPC-6700 for the past couple of years and have been really satisfied with it. Sprint has an excellent high speed data network in the US, and since i run a lot of bandwidth pig applications that has been a great feature. Their network is so good in fact that I find I rarely use/need the built in WiFi on the 6700. for my next phone, I'm hoping to find something a little smaller than the 6700 without sacrificing features, which I think should be possible given the advances over the past couple of years. This is where you come in Have a look at my wishlist below and if you have experience with a phone Positive or negative) that fits the bill tell us about it in Comments.

3G Bandwidth - Like I said, I feel spoiled by the data throughput on the 6700. Video streams from my home net to my phone flawlessly and map navigation with OTA maps is really impressive. My next phone absolutely has to work on a comparable or better network.

SlingPlayer Mobile - I love my Slingbox and having access to it on my phone is killer. I really can't consider a mobile that can't run the Slingplayer. Outside of email and surfing IMDB, this is my most used application. Unfortunately this whittles the field down to mobiles running either Windows Mobile, Symbian or Palm OS.

Open for Applications - If I can't install the applications of my choosing on it, that's a non starter. Closed phones died a welcome death years ago and gadget nerds haven't looked back since. I've got to be able to run my own hacky applications as well as the third party apps of my own choosing.

Decent browser - New phone needs to come with a good web browser built in, or allow me to install one. the Pocket IE browser on the 6700 is adequate, but not as feature rich as the iPhones browser. definitely looking for an upgrade in this area. My bar is IMDB as i turn to it so often when i'm out; if IMDB.com doesn't look good and perform well, I need a different phone

GPS - Preferably built in, but via Bluetooth is OK too. I think just about every smartphone supports bluetooth at this point, so this shouldn't be an issue.

Keyboard - Not a showstopper, but a strong preference. email and IM are just so much easier for me with a physical keyboard compared to T9 and onscreen tapping.

Other stuff - Exchange and webmail access, runs a version of Lines, good music/media player, memory expansion (SD preferred)

A couple of WM devices that seem to meet all of these criteria are the AT&T Tilt or Pantech Duo, and the T-Mobile Shadow. Feedback on these as well as recommendations for others not on my radar are most welcome! Whatever I go with I promise a full review here in the new year with an emphasis on its mapping capabilities.

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