On Message with Ben Gross

Cingular’s “service” for Blackberry devices leaves some things to be desired. While RIM has gotten a lot right, the associated web-based mail service is atrocious — it doesn’t adhere to basic standards, is IE only, is unresponsive (time-outs are common), fails to synch properly, fails to auto-age and delete messages properly, and limits storage to 25 Mb (the size of a couple of large email messages). Truly, it’s a pathetic, badly designed, badly implemented service.

Rather than fix it, and provide reasonable web mail as a complement for what is an expensive ($44.95/month) service, Cingular and RIM have opted to kill it. Maybe that’s for the best, but given their obvious lack of testing for the existing service, it’s a little unnerving to take the plunge into something new.

Now that NTP is off RIM’s back, it doesn’t seem too much to expect that the two companies might provide a web-based service that functions, and a synch utility that actually works, not just for messages, but for calendar data, and addresses too. If anyone at Cingular or RIM is reading this, please get in touch, and just in case anyone is curious, here is the blurb on BIS 2.0 that is presented when users attempt to log in:

Upgrade to BlackBerry Internet Service!

BlackBerry Internet Service version 2.0 (BIS v2.0) is NOW available!

NOTE: Please read this entire notice carefully. There are several new improvements and changes with BIS v2.0. Depending on your individual needs, you may not choose to migrate at this time.

Currently, your BlackBerry Internet Service v1.8 account features push email from up to 10 Internet email accounts. If you migrate to BIS v2.0 you will receive additional functionality, namely integrated email account management from the device. BIS v2.0 improvements include:

* Multiple “Sent-From” Address - when you compose an email on the device you can designate which integrated email account you want the “Sent From” field to display.
* One-way Reconciliation - perform these functions on your device and the action will also appear in the integrated Internet email account:

* Sent items
* Deleted items
* Read/Unread status

* Individual Email Account Icons - if you have a 7130c, an 8700c, or any other BlackBerry device upgraded with 4.1 handheld code, new icons will appear on the home screen for each integrated email account. Click on each icon to easily view incoming/outgoing mail from that account. NOTE: You may still view all of your messages by clicking on the Message Inbox icon.
* Improved Attachment Viewing - continue to view popular formats like JPEG, BMP, TIFF, Microsoft® Word, Excel, PowerPoint®, Adobe® PDF and now view PowerPoint presentations in slideshow format.
* Unlimited email storage - Since BIS v2.0 directly accesses integrated accounts, an online HTML web version of your BIS inbox is no longer needed. Therefore, BIS v2.0 user will not have to manage their email storage. With BIS v2.0, all messages automatically auto age after 30 days.
* Mail Connector Delegation - If you use BIS Mail Connector to access Microsoft Exchange or Lotus Domino email, you can now delegate the required network connection to the email server.

You may NOT want to migrate to BIS v2.0 if you:

* Require HTML web access to your BIS inbox as BIS v2.0 does not support an HTML view.
* Depend on the personal folders feature of BIS v1.8 as BIS v2.0 does not support folders. NOTE: When BIS v1.8 customers migrate to BIS v2.0, their folders will exist on the device for 30 days only.
* Prefer to manage BIS email storage limits using web access vs. the new auto-aging feature of BIS v2.0 on the device.
* Use BIS v1.8 to access Domino iNotes. With BIS v2.0, Domino iNotes is supported only if you download use BlackBerry Mail Connector and keep a continual desktop connection to your company’s email server using your computer or a delegate’s.

If you wish to upgrade to BIS v2.0, simply click “Yes” below. No additional steps are required. Your upgrade will take place right away and you will be able to begin using the new and improved features of BIS v2.0!

NOTE: Once you upgrade to BIS v2.0, you will not be able to revert to the previous BIS v1.8 version. You may decide to migrate at a later date: each time you log into your BIS v1.8 account you will be prompted with this option.
Do you wish to upgrade your BlackBerry Internet Service?

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