yeah, on At&t, EDGE will not allow it simultaneously. I think the n900 on EDGE is just about as fast as a 1st gen iphone. So its not a speed demon but if you already knew the n900 didnt work at&t's 3g before you bought it, then its no surprise.

Yes. Now taking everything into consideration, I can understand that N900 does support both Data and Cellular together. But I am surprised that this works in Kollam (Kerala) and not in Bangalore (Karnataka) - I used the same Operator (AirTel) in both the places

And the speed is just ok for me, which again is not N900's problem because, when I was in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, I had a 3G connection and got download speeds up to 220kbps. EDGE is not impressive here in Bangalore (may be due to more number of users)

Anyways, I had got a reply from Martin (on maemo-users list) This is what he says. Thought it worth sharing:

Actually this is the first time I've seen GPRS mentioned as 2.5G.
2G on data plans usually stands for GPRS while 2.5G stands for EDGE.
EDGE is based on GPRS utilizing several channels at the same time.
So don't worry, 2.5G is indeed EDGE.

It's just called 2.5 G because it's a 2G technology being faster than
regular 2G.
The G is not a factor or unit but 2G simply stands for 2nd generation
(GSM) while 3G stands for 3rd generation (UMTS).
Likewise, HSDPA on 3G which is faster than regular UMTS is called 3.5G.

Hope this is useful

Thank you everyone for your support and help.

Well Rogers (Canada) has EDGE and for some odd reason my phone shows 2.0 and 2.5 from time to time.. not sure whether its a bug or Rogers signal weakens sometimes

hi I have similar problem in Ireland. in Meteor when I have 2.5 on the screen I can't connect to the internet because is still disconecting itself. and I get "cellural network not available" and than I can't see on the screen any recepion's bars.
do you know how to fix that?

Having issues with 2G and 3G on TMO in TX, unable to get a 3G signal at all. When switching to dual I get "no cellular network available" switching to GSM I get 2G-2.5G and able to connect to the internet, and switching to 3G same thing no cellular network. I installed FMMS and Vibro-call and thats been it; uninstalled FMMS, but the MMS APN remains in the connections available.
Anyone have any ideas how to get my 3G speed back?
EDIT I also had Auto-Disconnect but uninstalled because it kept knocking me offline, when surfing.

Just tested today on Tata Docomo network (India) data and call works simultaneously on EDGE network.

I have the same problem here. I guess it is the problem from the operator/tower. Just call ur customer service they will surely help you out. The problem on your side is that right now both dont work simultaneously at some areas. or may be because you are having some network issues

Oh man! Now I need to go to the customer care and get this sorted! BTW, is it displayed as 2.5 under the signal strength for you???

I'm in the same boat as you Avinash - I'm using Airtel in Bangalore. I get the 2.5G signal but the phone is unable to use Data and Voice/SMS simultaneously. Please let us know if going to Airtel customer support helps.

Yes 2.5 is displayed