Orange can't find BlackBerry maps Punters getting themselves a BlackBerry Bold from Orange are finding the in-built mapping application absent, and are being asked to pay for the Orange alternative despite the original adverts clearly stating the in-built app would be included. The adverts in question appeared on the Orange website, and used to clearly state …
Orange always used to run custom firmware on the handsets, even over a decade ago on the early motorolas and the banana Nokia. Back then it was for good reasons, normally to sort out PCN support as most handsets only worked properly on GSM. Unfortunately since they were sold their 'service' and attitude to customers has become worse than the Met Police. The best bit is when you tell them to cancel your account they agree to cancel it, tell you it is cancelled and then spend months sending you bills for an account that you no longer have and ringing you up threatening to take you to court for money you don't owe.
Bill Gates as Orange are now a bigger bunch of crooks than Redmond..
I brought a 8120 for myself in May, (only because i have a work 's 8100 and a car kit for it, and didn't want to buy a cradle for my personal phone and swap it about) I rang Orange two days after getting the phone about Blackberry maps, to be told they couldn't help me, as they "don't support 3rd Party apps, call Blackberry direct to find out why it won't install"
I gave up trying to get an answer form both so downloaded a free version of amAze which is not as good as Google Maps for detail but does allow Navigation so can listen to the directions as i'm driving. Shame pesky work won't allow the 8100 to connect to GPS devices else i'd use Blackberry Maps.
So a big Boo and Hiss to Orange for being Orange, i'll migrate to a new network at the earliest shame i didn't realise i was being shafted by Orange till after the 14 day cooling off period
Alas, more evidence of the downward spiral Orange has encountered since being taken over by FT. The Orange Satnav solution was totally flawed from the beginning regardless of them trying to make it work by not offering any other choice.
Despite other, more able, solutions being made available to them, they chose a solution purely on the basis that it needed the maps to be sent via the network as it would increase data usage. Who cares about the customer experience. Well - Orange certainly do not.
Incredibly sad.
I was livid as I only went for that phone because it had the GPS feature enabled, and was very close to sending it back and cancelling my contract.
thankfully I tracked down a solution which involves editing a configuration file and removing an entry which lists orange and a number of US carriers which block certain applications so they can sell them and then it works fine
I decided earlier this week that I got lost too much for someone with GPS built into their phone, so I looked at the navigation add-on for Nokia Maps on my N95. They wanted to charge me sixty quid, and I'd only be able to use it for a year!
Just downloaded amAze and it looks perfect, I'll definitely be giving it a try.
"Alas, more evidence of the downward spiral Orange has encountered since being taken over by FT"
Er, Orange has *always* been part of FT.
In my experience, Orange provide a reasonable service for ordinary punters (i.e. not professionals), but for Gawd's sake don't use their hardware.
for making things 'vanish' without explanation.
Had an Orange email account for years, linked to phone. They USED to have a free text facility on the email portal, but it 'vanished' some time back, leaving a similar gap on the web pages where the links used to be.
All without explanation, despite numerous requests for 'clarification'.
I had a Nokia N95 from Orange, and it came with custom Orange branded firmware...
The Orange firmware was ugly, buggy, always a version or two behind the official Nokia firmware, and they disabled features like the SIP client, only they did it in such a half assed way - the client was still visible, and you could configure it and even get it to register with the sip server, but it couldn't make any calls.
When i called up Orange about the SIP feature they insisted it wasn't disabled and that it should work, but that i was on my own to configure it because they don't support that feature.
So i reflashed the phone with generic Nokia firmware, SIP client started working right away, battery life improved and the phone stopped crashing so regularly.
"thankfully I tracked down a solution which involves editing a configuration file and removing an entry which lists orange and a number of US carriers which block certain applications so they can sell them and then it works fine"
If this is true, it proves without a shadow of a doubt that Orange have been caught with their thoroughly filthy profiteering pants down (a well blended metaphor).
Orange shouldn't just be ashamed of themselves, they should be fined by Ofcom. Oh wait, that's right, Ofcom are a bunch of shiftless useless sh!tes.
Glad to see the usual iPhone comment on here. Webster, your cue...
My out of the box bb 8320 actually had bb maps installed despite me having the orange branded model. But it was a really old firmware version so it couldnt do anything with it of the "smart phone" variety.
So i found this link
http://www.blackberryforums.com/general-8300-series-discussion-curve/146371-latest-os-8320-4-5-0-81-4-5-0-55-english-east-asian-languages.html
and upgraded to the lastest firmware (4.5) and now everything works great, i can connect to my wifi network and watch video on it. BB maps however is installed but i cant access it.
The only firmware version i could find is intended for some Indonesian vendor, it was impossible to find the updates for the uk version. You just had to delete the vendor.xml file though and then it's fine to use.
Anyway, bb maps is shit, googlemaps for me is much much better, you get aerial photo's as well
I recently took an 8820 with Orange on a business tarriff. They come with 4.3 installed... First thing i did was flash it to 4.5 via RIM, and now have access to everything Orange try to prevent you from playing with.
Did want a iPhone, but refused to pay £200 deposit for it!
Paris, because she knows her Apples from Oranges
.. most UK operators put a special version of the phones firmware on - whether it's Vodafone so they can put on an icon for Vodafone Live or o2 adding the o2 button to the softkey options on a Nokia ..
In all cases you should be able to flash the phone to the standard version but you may loose access to a few options that the operator hardcodes into the fimrware.
I got my Bold 2 weeks ago and have been using Amaze also for GPS maping, seens a good application although i asked orange this morning about BB maps and the support person tried the "Just download it from Blackberry" line, until i told him it was already on the Device....lol
I had 3 Tyttn2 phones in my office last month, one on orange, one of vodafone and one on O2. All the same handset.
I wanted to use push email with a self signed certificate, 2 of the phones installed the cert no problem, the Orange refused.
Despite numerous HTC the handset makers revealved all. They told us that Orange use their own firmware and that we should email a special orange address to have the certificate made in to a signed cab file that will work on the phone. It worked. Just a shame Orange themselves were completely clueless about it.
I for one will not be going near orange any time soon. They are up there with BT for poor customer service.
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