when I stopped by the PCCW in Central, one of the salesmen there told me that since they are the only company
among mobile phone companies who control the broadband, they provide better connectivity than the other mobile
phone companies - is this true?

I notice that my Blackberry provided by Smartfone sometimes struggles or goes dead since I suspect the kids watching
TV in their smartphones gobble up banwidth while poor me is struggling to check my e-mail.

Do any of the technically minded brothers have a view on this?

Dunno, but I can tell you what my experience was when using data on my phone with the PCCW SIM (purchased from 7-11 for HKD 48).

- I used it in my iPhone 4 (it came in a break away microSIM card, but if you want standard SIM card that's ok too - just don't break out the microSIM)
- with 3G data enabled speeds were very usable (can't say I tried to download anything massive to test speed), but:
- - emails came down ok;
- - browsing websites seem reasonably quick (even this DB + forum);
- - apps using the net were responsive (e.g. the HKeTransport app);
- - in fact, I was aboard the Airport Express and so I was moving when using the HKeTransport app to work out my trip details (so no issues with coverage whilst moving in train);

If you're looking for another discussion on the benefits of certain carriers in HK (esp. data oriented) see here*:
http://forum.sex141.com/eforum/v ... id=37015&page=1
* I contributed some info about PCCW and Three at post #10.

Hope that helps.